Bunny sludge

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 13sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 11 months ago by bunnybuns.

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- 08/16/2017 at 4:22 AM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  I came home from a trip yesterday and of course, i went to the bunnies first. I let Mile in one side of the room and Bella in the other side of the (divided) room and they ran around and explored as all buns. I was done cleaning Bella’s cage and Mile hopped into her cage and peed. It was creamy, white and thick,like mucus. My father told me when i wasn’t home that he noticed Mile had that kind of wee when he cleaned his cage, and i’ve been gone for a week so he probably urinated like that the whole week.
  Could this be a bladder stone, i feel like this is an emergency but my father worked a late night shift and is too tired to drive to the vet, but i’ll possibly go to the vet at 4pm or so.. I’m keeping an eye on him, also he’s shedding crazy again and i have lots of fur everywhere, any tips on how to brush him more efficiently? I brush him 4 times a day, 3 times if i’m busy.I noticed this morning while cleaning cages, Mile had normal pee, he couldn’t lay down comfortably and always got up when he tried laying down. Really worried, just waiting for the vet drive. I’m taking him to the vet now when i noticed the early signs, don’t wanna leave him in agony when he develops a chronic condition.
- 08/16/2017 at 4:39 AM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17044 posts
  Here are pictures of both sludge and normal bun pee:
  http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Uro_gen_diseases/generalities/Sludge.htm
  
  You can serve him his greens dripping wet to get more fluids into him. I
- 08/16/2017 at 4:46 AM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  I served him wet greens this morning, he ate it all up. His didn’t dry out, it was just like that as i described. Does it take time for it to get firm and chalky or?? Maybe it’s just normal white pee but i’ll still consult with the veterinarian.
- 08/16/2017 at 10:28 AM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17044 posts
  You can see the chalk right away if the bun pees on a piece of fabric. If the bun pees on a non-absorbent surface, it looks milky. Then it dries to a white powder. That’s normal for rabbits, they expel excess calcium via their kidneys. Most mammals expel excess calcium via the feces.
  
  How is he behaving now?
- 08/16/2017 at 10:35 AM
  joea64
  Participant
  1423 posts
  The exasperating thing about trying to control a rabbit’s calcium intake is that they have to have some calcium in their diet in order to keep their bones and teeth healthy. According to wabbitwiki, this should be 0.6% – 1.0% of an adult rabbit’s daily nutrient intake:
  
  http://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Nutrition_for_rabbits#Calcium
  
  The trick is judging how much of what foods to give for the right amount of calcium!
- 08/16/2017 at 12:45 PM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17044 posts
  They absolutely must have calcium in their diet. Their teeth grow all the time, their skeleton is continuously self-regenerating just like our skeleton. A diet too low in calcium could increase the risk of dental disease and also cause osteoporosis.
  
  It’s absolutely NOT good if a bunny’s urine is all colorless and clear. So you shouldn’t try and cut out calcium unless your bun really has a sludge problem and your vet tells you to modify the diet.
- 08/16/2017 at 12:46 PM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  I took him to the veterinarian and the first thing he asked was did i give him dandelion leaves. I said yes and he told me the same thing as you Bam, about ejecting extra calcium via kidneys… But at my mistake, i found out when i came home that i forgot that when he asked me did he ate the dandelion i said YES but he ate the leaves TODAY, and i noticed the pee yesterday. So he couldn’t get the, let’s call it “sludge” because i didn’t gave him that. He had to get it from something else that he ate, i didn’t really give him anything with high calcium so he has more than he needs… Idk, the pellets that i buy they don’t even have the percentage of calcium. Will contact the vet.
- 08/16/2017 at 1:37 PM
  Deleted User
  Participant
  22064 posts
  While you were away did your dad feed him more pellets than he is used to? I’m really not well-versed on this subject, but if he was getting a considerably higher intake of calcium that could account for a temporary “sludge” problem that would work itself out once calcium has been returned to normal?
  
  Bam can probably answer better and I’m not sure if what I said makes any sense at all, but that’s my thought! lol
  
  Have you noticed any change in pee yet?
- 08/16/2017 at 2:26 PM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  Yeah he did, of coursee!! He gives him way too much and Mile doesn’t even finish eating them (as for a normal portion, he would eat them all at the same time) That’s probably the reason. And no, don’t worry, it makes sense lol.
- 08/16/2017 at 2:37 PM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  He seems fine, much more comfortable laying down now as i write this, acting completely normal. His wee is normal as well. He peed out a yellow pee and again later a brighter yellow pee, like a fluorescent yellow as far as i can remember (not really fluorescent but like a bright sunny yellow).He also hopped around the house and munched hay which is good. I was a little worried when we came back from the vet cause he didn’t wanna eat hay until 1 1/2 hour passed by. He took a few strands that i offered and threw them away, but he started eating and seemed good. He’s drinking water now lol. Altough still catious and will keep an eye on the urine. If i see more, going to the vet. I reduced the pellets. He usually gets 1/8 cup in the morning and 1/8 cup in thr night
- 08/16/2017 at 2:45 PM
  Deleted User
  Participant
  22064 posts
  Oh! We may have found the culprit then! Glad he is doing better! Once I saw a really funky pee from Ophelia… before I had known that red or orange pee was normal for them. I was like WTF is actually going on?! haha
- 08/16/2017 at 2:52 PM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17044 posts
  A bright yellow urine is fine. From dandelion they can get bright orange or even red urine, so don’t freak out if you see that, the color comes from carotenoids in the dandelion.
  
  If your dad fed him too many pellets, it’s likely the reason why the pee was thickish. Dandelion has calcium in it, but it’s also a diuretic (makes the animal pee more), and that’s a good thing, because more pee helps flush out calcium.
- 08/16/2017 at 3:01 PM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  Yes, glad we did! Mile once had an orange pee and i started freaking out cuz i wasn’t informed about the normal urines at the time. Later i found out that it’s derived from plants and remembered that he ate carrots the other day lol!
- 08/16/2017 at 3:04 PM
  bunnybuns
  Participant
  92 posts
  Thanks for informing me, good that he’s flushing out the excessive calcium out of his tummy.
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