GI Stasis

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 2sd replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 8 years ago by JunoBunny.

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- 04/12/2018 at 5:09 PM
  JunoBunny
  Participant
  2 posts
  Hi! This is my first time posting here but I always find useful information in the forum. Today I’m very worried and was wondering if maybe you could give me some input.
  
  Our bunny has been going through GI Stasis for almost two weeks. The week before last, we took her yo a vet to get her regular anti-parasite. This was a different vet than usual. He injected her with ivermectine which she had never got before and which I later learnt that may be harmful to Dutch rabbits, and she’s a Dutch.
  
  A couple of days after this, we went on a weekend trip and decided to take her with us. On Saturday, se started noticing she was pooping less. By Sunday, she was eating and pooping very little and we were very worried but there were no available vets nearby. We returned on Monday morning and took her to the vet (a different vet) first thing.
  
  The vet injected simethicone, metoclopramide, tramadol, enrofloxacin and an anti-inflammatory. She gave us all these meds for us to continue giving them to her orally. She improved very quickly, and by Wednesday she was eating and pooping normally. However, by Saturday she started getting worse and by Sunday there were no poops and she wasn’t eating much again.
  
  We hospitalized her. No poops on Monday either, and then on Tuesday she started pooping some small poops. We brought her home and she is still pooping very small poops. She eats lots of veggies but mot much hay. We are still giving her the simethicone and the metoclopramide, but poops aren’t getting bigger or more frequent.
  
  The vet asked for an ultrasound, but she wouldn’t keep still for it and she would have had yo he anesthesized. We were worried that would make things worse.
  
  I’m not sure if the ivermectine, the stress of the trip or something else brought this on, but my question is, how long should it be before regular pooping resumes? And is there anything else se could do to help her?
- 04/13/2018 at 1:34 AM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9064 posts
  Stasis can sometimes be a very slow recovery, with ups and downs. I’ve heard it called “like jump starting a train”. The cause could be the combo of the medication and stress, as you suspect.
  
  You might ask your vet about a different motility medication. They act on different parts of the gut, so depending on where to slowdown is, another drug (or a combo of two) might be more effective. Is she on pain meds? Pain management can be very helpful as well, as if the bunny feels better, they will be more likely to eat.
  
  If she is eating veggies, that’s great. Keep pushing hay and all the veggies she will eat. Are you also syringe feeding her critical care? If she is eating, the poops will come…
  
  I think an ultrasound would be good to rule out a blockage, and it might help them decide which motility med to use. That said, there is always a risk with anesthesia. You can ask your vet how often they put rabbits under anesthesia and how frequently there are complications to help you decide whether you want to risk it.
  
  If they do sedate her, have them do a deep molar exam as well to make sure she doesn’t have spurs or another dental issue. Dental issues are often the true source of GI issues, as they cause reduced hay consumption.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 04/14/2018 at 9:43 PM
  JunoBunny
  Participant
  2 posts
  Hi! Thank you so much for answering, I have just seen your reply.
  
  Thankfully she’s doing much better now, pooping a lot. She’s slowly starting to eat some alfalfa although she still eats mostly veggies. I also gave her just a tiny bit of pellets and she ate them quickly, if there was a problem with her teeth she wouldn’t eat pellets either, right? Or would she just drop the hay?
  
  Since she’s getting better we’re holding off sedating her for the ultrasound or teeth check since we think it would stress her out so much which was probably one of the causes of the problem in the first place. Her vet did check her teeth though without sedation and said they looked okay.
  
  I am glad to hear ups and downs are frequent because I was worried about her relapse, hopefully she will keep getting better. She is trying to chew everything she sees and is peeing in a different spot than usual, for some reason since getting better she’s behaving very badly, haha, but the important thing is that she’s okay. Thank you for support!
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