FORUM

What are we about?  Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

FORUM HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Health issues with rescued bun! :(

Viewing 5 reply threads
  • Author
    Messages

    • Amelia's Moms
      Participant
      3 posts Send Private Message

        When I adopted Deja 5 months ago, I noticed right away that she had sore hocks. I read that sore hocks are more common with Rex fur, and I was told she came from a breeding situation so that may have contributed. I took her to the vet immediately who gave her a round of antibiotics and probiotics. Her fur has yet to grow back and the hocks have not healed. They do not openly bleed, but look red and calloused. Her play space is carpeted and I keep a clean soft towel on the bottom of her crate as advised by the vet, but it doesn’t seem to be helping.

        In addition, she’s had trouble with diarrhea, which has been incredibly alarming. When I first adopted her, I was giving her fresh veggies daily. The diarrhea came a few weeks after finishing her medications for her sore hocks. It was not soft stools, but blotches of liquid that would appear on the towels I line her cage with. They almost always appeared overnight. I spoke with the vet who said it may have to do with the fresh fruits and veggies. I started to wean her off of them. I made sure she was well hydrated and there were no other red flags. She was pooping regularly in addition to the diarrhea, drinking plenty of water, eating plenty of hay, binkying, playing. Everything appeared normal, but a few times a week there would be diarrhea stains on the towel. This went on for weeks, even after I stoped giving fresh veggies and fruit, and only ended a couple weeks ago.

        She hasn’t had diarrhea for about 2 weeks now and I’m wondering if anyone has any idea what may have caused it, in the absence of any other GI warning signs. Should I begin to reintroduce fresh foods? Right now she is strictly on hay and pellets and I worry about upsetting her digestive system but I want to make sure she’s well nourished. I’m also hoping for advise on how I can help heal her hocks. She’s a sweet and loving rabbit who deserves a better life after such a rough beginning, I want to help get her on the right track! Thank you so much!

        – Deja’s human


      • Ella Kate
        Participant
        8 posts Send Private Message
          When I first got my bun he had a similar issue.

          Mine was have loose stool issues so same thing I took him completely off veggies and brought him to the vet. My vet knew right away what to do and it was way more serious them it seemed. He was on one medication to help his eating come back. I had to force feed him pure timothy weird mix my vet gave me to get things moving again. Then he was given a stress medication that really a parasite killer because he thought he may have saw a parasite. Another medication was to put his stomach back together. One day when my vet wasn’t there we took Pretty Boy to a different “rabbit vet” and she had no idea what she was doing, so make SURE you have a very very rabbit-savvy vet. Then when the vet said I could start slowly giving him veggies again, I had to learn what ones upset him and what ones went well. For my bun it is kale. Kale fixed his WHOLE issue. Never give lettuce it can cause loose stool because of the water levels in it. Cilantro is VERY good for buns so try that. Find a better vet, make sure bunny is on really good food (Oxbow) if vet says slowly add veggies like ONE leaf at a time, if it upsets her, take it away. Good Luck!!!!!!


        • Bunny House
          Participant
          1241 posts Send Private Message

            Hi!
            Diarrhea is very dangerous for bunnies, they can loose a lot of fluids when they have it, but also not produce the cecotrophs they need to eat.The veggies might be causing this but, also she might have a bad bacterial infection that you will need to treat with metronitozol ( no idea how to spell it) it would clear my bun right up but he will occasionally have it since he has pasturella chronically that will flare up and cause many issues.
            I would make sure to keep her on pro and prebiotics for a month or so after antibiotics because it can take up to 6 months for their flora to get back to normal and they can have diarrhea during their recovery. I would take her off pellets and make her have a hay strict diet with of course, lots of water and see if she improves. I agree with Ella, Make sure you have a rabbit savvy vet because they will know how to treat exactly what your bun has. Kale has a lot of calcium in it and can cause stones which Caramel had so it should only be used sparingly as Ella said- it causes issues.

            I hope this helps


          • Gabi
            Participant
            7 posts Send Private Message
              Unfortunately I don’t know about the first issue.

              As for the diarrhea, what are the veggies you’re giving her? Here’s a list of safe food for rabbits: https://rabbit.org/suggested-vegetables-and-fruits-for-a-rabbit-diet/

              Some rabbits can’t tolerate some veggies, slowly reintroduce each different vegetable and see if anything happens, you may find the culprit. 


            • Sirius&Luna
              Participant
              2320 posts Send Private Message

                Are you sure it was actual diarrhea, not just a mark from cecatropes?

                Cecatropes are the special type of poop that bunnies eat. From what you’ve said, it sounds like it was just a small brown stain on a towel? But she was also still doing regular, round hay poops? in which case, that’s not serious. In true diarrhea in bunnies they don’t do any normal poops at all, and all their poops are just liquid, which is a very serious situation. In your case, it sounds as if it could have just been some cecatrope stains on the towels, in addition to regular poops. Every now and then I see a small brown stain on one of my bunnies rugs, and it’s just from cecatropes.


              • Bam
                Moderator
                17033 posts Send Private Message

                  True diarrhea is differentiated from sticky poop/poopy butt/liquid cecotropes by the presence or non-presence of normal, round poop as well as the soft/liquid poop. If there are normal, round poop, it’s not true diarrhea.

                  I have seen the brown stains you describe with my bun, and I know other forum members that have asked about similar things. It is due to a slight imbalance in the gut microbiota. Hay is the best thing to counteract such imbalances. Cutting back on vegs and fruit was very wise

                  You could wait a bit longer with re-introducing greens, but the most important thing is to do the reintroduction veeery slowly.

                  Memory foam bath mats can be very good for sore hock buns.

              Viewing 5 reply threads
              • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

              FORUM HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Health issues with rescued bun! :(