How to help a severely underweight bun gain weight

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 7sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 8 months ago by Horlicks.

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- 07/03/2018 at 9:22 AM
  Horlicks
  Participant
  46 posts
  I feel like I’m on a roll, posting multiple times on the forum these days, and not for happy reasons..
  
  Long story short : our boy just recently recovered from a fractured leg but his weight loss is getting quite alarming. So much so that I have decided to bring him to the vet to do some blood tests to find our exactly what is happening. The results showed that his red blood cells are virtually non existent ie he’s very anemic. His urine is also almost the consistency of water although strangely his kidney and liver results are OK.
  
  The vet is honestly a bit baffled and I don’t blame her. She ssys there can be multiple reasons for the anemia and she’s hoping it’s nutrition linked due to the muscle loss on his leg rather than bone marrow diseases. Because of his weight, she hesitates to put him under sedation to do a bone marrow biopsy. Our bun is essentially in a catabolic state now.
  
  Our vet is currently checking with other specialists to see what other expert opinions there are. In the meantime, most importantly we need to get his weight up. We have been given free rein to give whatever he wants to eat.
  
  And so here I am posting again. What is the most efficient way to make our boy gain weight? You know, for all his troubles, he’s such an active boy and eats very well and poops very well. I have zero idea where all the food I’m feeding him is going to.
  
  Daily he is currently on:
  4 tbsp pellets, half of which is alfalfa based
  1 Cup greens
  10ml of critical care every 4 hours
  Unlimited hay and water
  
  What else can I increase for him? Pellets? More critical care? I have read somewhere that oats is also good. I’m desperate to see some weight on him. It just breaks my heart to see him so abnormally skinny.
- 07/03/2018 at 9:48 AM
  Sirius&Luna
  Participant
  2320 posts
  I reckon if vet has said whatever you want, you could also try adding some small pieces of fruit, like banana, which are pretty fattening for buns. Is he still voluntarily eating hay? The only thing you need to watch out for is that he keeps eating hay by himself.
  
  You could probably also up the pellets a bit, but make sure he’s not producing too many excess cecatropes as it’s probably difficult for him to eat them with a broken leg.
  
  Has he been checked for worms?
- 07/03/2018 at 1:43 PM
  Gina.Jenny
  Participant
  2244 posts
  When I took on two underweight feral bunnies three years ago, I used the barley rings meant for horses to help them gain weight, which they did, I don’t know if that’s worth trying? Oats can be used but they are very rich for a bunny yum so only in tiny quantities
- 07/03/2018 at 5:24 PM
  Sofia
  Participant
  348 posts
  Like S&L said, you could give small amounts of treats, while making sure he is still eating hay I had a bunny who became severely underweight overnight, and then sadly died a couple months after. We later found out that she had some serious digestive system issues, and it looked like her cecum wasn’t working at all :
- 07/03/2018 at 5:24 PM
  Sofia
  Participant
  348 posts
  Like S&L said, you could give small amounts of treats, while making sure he is still eating hay I had a bunny who became severely underweight overnight, and then sadly died a couple months after. We later found out that she had some serious digestive system issues, and it looked like her cecum wasn’t working at all
- 07/03/2018 at 10:55 PM
  Horlicks
  Participant
  46 posts
  Posted By Sirius&Luna on 7/03/2018 9:48 AM
  I reckon if vet has said whatever you want, you could also try adding some small pieces of fruit, like banana, which are pretty fattening for buns. Is he still voluntarily eating hay? The only thing you need to watch out for is that he keeps eating hay by himself.
  
  You could probably also up the pellets a bit, but make sure he’s not producing too many excess cecatropes as it’s probably difficult for him to eat them with a broken leg.
  
  Has he been checked for worms?
  
  He does eat his hay but to be honest, because we are feeding him so much high calorie foods, his hay appetite has diminished.
  
  I don’t see any cecotropes lying around so I think he shouldnt be producing too much.
  
  He was routinely dewormed back in Apr, as I understand from the shelter. So my vet thought it’s quite unlikely that he would have worms again. You think it’s worth checking that and crossing it out as a possible cause?
- 07/03/2018 at 10:57 PM
  Horlicks
  Participant
  46 posts
  Posted By Gina.Jenny on 7/03/2018 1:43 PM
  When I took on two underweight feral bunnies three years ago, I used the barley rings meant for horses to help them gain weight, which they did, I don’t know if that’s worth trying? Oats can be used but they are very rich for a bunny yum so only in tiny quantities
  
  I don’t really know where to get barley rings here where I stay though.. But I think you are right on those oats being too rich. I will probably hold that back first and see if I can just try and up the weight through pellets and critical care.
- 07/03/2018 at 10:59 PM
  Horlicks
  Participant
  46 posts
  Posted By I’m with Boo on 7/03/2018 5:24 PM
  Like S&L said, you could give small amounts of treats, while making sure he is still eating hay I had a bunny who became severely underweight overnight, and then sadly died a couple months after. We later found out that she had some serious digestive system issues, and it looked like her cecum wasn’t working at all
  
  I am so sorry to hear that. It must have been very devastating for you.
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