Bunny won't groom her bottom!!

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 11sd replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 8 months ago by tobyluv.

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- 08/21/2018 at 4:09 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  Hi, I’m new here and have been searching everywhere to find someone with the same problem as me, but I haven’t been successful.
  My bunny is named Lucius and she is around 1 years old (she’s a rescue so her age isn’t 100% accurate) ever since I have had her she has never once groomed her bottom, but is otherwise very clean. She is not over weight, lazy nor injured to keep her from grooming.
  
  I clean her bottom for her with a warm damp towel whenever I notice it’s dirty again.
  On top of her lack of bottom grooming I have never once seen her eat her cecotropes, which I feel she has an over abundance of?
  I feed her Timothy hay pellets and loose hay every day. She’s a very picky eater so the only veggies she eats are carrots, kale, parsley and cilantro.
  
  Thank you for any help and advice!!
- 08/21/2018 at 7:21 PM
  Harveybunny
  Participant
  47 posts
  Hi!
  
  Does your bunny seem to have diarrhea on her bottom? If so, it could be a sign of a poor diet or sickness. What exactly (I know, gross) are you having to *ahem* help her clean up?
- 08/21/2018 at 10:14 PM
  tobyluv
  Participant
  3312 posts
  Hi and welcome to Binky Bunny! What quantity of pellets are you feeding Lucius each day? Too many pellets is often a cause of poopy butt. I assume that she is pictured in your avatar. That’s a Dutch rabbit, and they are a medium sized breed, so they should have about 1/4 cup of pellets a day. Make sure that she is eating plenty of hay every day. It should be available to her at all times.
- 08/22/2018 at 5:48 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  Not diarrhea, just the normal very soft cecotropes, which is what I have to clean off of her as well.
- 08/22/2018 at 5:51 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  Thank you! Yes, Lucius is a mini Dutch so shes quite small, I fill a small bowl (a little larger than 1/4 cup) every day or everyother day of pellets and top it with hay as well as having a large amount of hay in half of her litter box.
- 08/22/2018 at 8:10 PM
  Bunny House
  Participant
  1241 posts
  Hi, my lop will not clean her butt when she has dental issues so maybe your rabbit savvy vet and do a exam on her and see if her molars are too long.
- 08/22/2018 at 8:35 PM
  kurottabun
  Participant
  908 posts
  It doesn’t sound normal for a bunny to not clean their bottom. How long have you had her and do you see her bending over at all?
  
  For a full grown bunny lots of people just feed about 1-2 tablespoons of pellets daily. If you’re seeing excess cecotropes then definitely try cutting back the pellets. Has she been examined by a rabbit savvy vet?
- 08/22/2018 at 8:43 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  I had her teeth check as well as checking them occasionally myself and they’re totally fine!
- 08/22/2018 at 8:45 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  I’ll definitely try cutting down on her pellet intake and hopefully that will help!
  She cleans her belly and feet totally fine! She binky’s quite frequently and hasn’t shown any difficulty moving, hopping or eating.
- 08/22/2018 at 9:47 PM
  Bunny House
  Participant
  1241 posts
  Just because you see her incisors doesn’t mean you see her molars( often many buns need to be sedated to see them, but it depends on the bun, you need an otoscope to see them). But yes, cut down the pellets and hopefully it will help her butt!
- 08/24/2018 at 6:36 PM
  Buta
  Participant
  6 posts
  I can take her in again to have them checked but they were looked at just 2 months ago so I’m not immediately worried about them. I’ve cut down on her pellet intake already and so far so good! She’s been eating a good amount of hay all day.
- 08/24/2018 at 7:44 PM
  tobyluv
  Participant
  3312 posts
  That sounds good. Maybe all she needed was a reduction in her pellets. When I mentioned 1/4 cup of pellets a day for a rabbit her size, I should have said 1/4 cup maximum. For a small/medium size rabbit, 1/8 cup may be all they need. Some people who have rabbits that don’t handle pellets well only give a spoonful a day. Just cut back gradually, and hopefully the hay intake will keep increasing.
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