Hello!

Too much water can’t cause statis. In bad cases of stais or a GI blockage, the water in the intestine can sometimes “leak out” and leave the the intestines. In which case water by mouth will not make a difference, the rabbit needs sub q or intravenous fluids.

Rabbits in pain tend not to pee, they often hold the pee for as long as possible, then pee a flood.

Is your rabbit eating anything? Have you seen poop these last few hours?

You can always add to your posts by clicking the edit button and then add the info you want. It’s good to start with the letters ETA which means “edit to add”, that way people will know you have added new info.

ETA: It doesn’t matter what cut you feed, as long as your rabbit will eat it. If he prefers a softer hay now, then you can give a softer hay.

Have you seen a vet? Pain management and motility meds are often essential for stasis treatment.  Gas sometimes goes along with stasis, but simethicone itself is not a stasis treatment.

As Dana says, if he isnt eating you need to see a vet. Its good that he passed a big poop, but he must start eating. Gas drops will not cure stasis.

I’m not sure what you mean by giving an enema, but that also doesn’t sound like a good idea and isn’t generally a recommended treatment for rabbit stasis.

Are you able to syringe feed him? You can make a mash out of pellets if you don’t have a recovery food like critical care.

Once a rabbit has stopped eating for 6-12 hours it becomes a veterinary emergency.

Have you researched animal charities that might be able to help pay for vet fees? Here in the UK we have the PDSA and Blue cross charities that help to give free veterinary care to animals who’s owners can’t afford vet bills. Hopefully you might be able to find some similar charities in your area by searching the Internet.

The only pain meds I know that are safe for rabbits in stasis is metacam which I believe is prescription. Perhaps someone else might be able to advise better on that.

Rabbit tummy massage has been known to help move gas along, there are a few videos on YouTube that describe how to do this. Also if he is still eating some things like pellets or vegetables/lettuce you could encourage him to eat those to try keep his gut moving. –  that said, I would still push for finding a vet charity.

I don’t think an enema would be beneficial. I would advise against it. What you’re describing sounds like a gas problem. Simethicone can help if the gas isn’t too serious. Tummy massages can help too. One other thing to try is to lift his butt so it’s higher than his front end. Gas bubbles rise, so sometimes this will help the gas bubbles work their way out.

I agree with the others, if you can’t get him to eat then he is going to need intervention from a vet. You could syringe feed Critical Care, but you want to make sure there isn’t a blockage… especially if there is no poop being produced.

Mucus means there is irritation/inflammation in the intestines. There is clearly some kind of GI upset going on. The large poops would indicate this as well. When things slow down, the poop builds up and gets smooshed together.

Since there is poop you can try syringe feeding pellet mush. That’s pellets soaked in water until they become a mush. There are no safe OTC painkillers for a bun who has an irritated gut, it could make matters much worse. Also make sure he keeps warm. It’s very dangerous if he becomes cold. If he likes sitting in your lap, your body heat will warm him up in a safe way, if you give him a warm water bottle, make sure he has space so he can move away from it.

Here’s Mary S Cotters Howcast video on how to help a rabbit with gas pain: https://www.howcast.com/videos/514701-how-to-help-a-rabbit-with-gas-pain-pet-rabbits

Here’s a video on how to syringe feed a rabbit. The woman in the film uses Critical Care powder mixed with water, which is easier to feed than pellet mush, but it’s still the same principle:https://youtu.be/uhcEVaK32So

I don’t think megacolon should be suspected just yet, so dont give up. Try to syringe feed him pellet mush, it could help. If he likes greens, you can give him that, you can even offer small pieces of fruit – not too much, just a little bit to help him perk up so he hopefully starts to take an interest in food again.

Hay is the best and most important food for rabbits, but a big rabbit like a NZ rabbit probably cant live on hay alone – he’d need to eat all day and night and it would still be difficult for him to get all the nutrients he needs in him, especially now when he’s poorly.

You seem like a dedicated rabbit owner. It’s not so easy when you dont have your own money and in some places there aren’t even any good rabbit vets.

In the past I had asked my vet about an enema and he said they are very dangerous to do in rabbits because the wall of the colon is very thin and easily ruptured.

It does sound like he has a lot of gas. Its good if you can get jim to move around a bit, but definitely do not chase him. Keep giving him the baby gas drops. Also try to elevate his butt like LBJ suggested.

He really needs vet care. A vet could give him sub q fluids and pain meds.

If he is eating poultry pellets and not hay, that is not healthy for his gut flora. Rabbits need a lot of fiber in their diet for their poop to move through properly. Poultry feed is mostly starch, so could contribute to an overgrowth of bacteria, gas build up, and imbalance, along with poop getting backed up in his system. I highly doubt that switching from 1 cut of timothy hay to another cause his issues.

He needs hay and rabbit-appropriate food. By continuing to do enemas you could be introducing more problems.

You should phase out the poultry pellets (dont stop from one day to another, they must be phased out slowly) so that he starts to eat more and more hay. If you can get rabbit pellets you can slowly wean him on to rabbit pellets. The poultry pellets could be the root cause of his problems.

Benebac is widely used with rabbits and many of our members give it.

If you can grind up the hay finely that could help!

you can also try offering fresh grass if it’s available in your area (and not sprayed with pesticides or growing by a roadway).

Mucus does not necessarily mean there is bacteria. It is a sign of inflammation. The inflammation may or may not be from a bacterial infection. I agree about the poultry feed. That is likely the cause of all of the digestive issues. That stuff is not formulated for rabbits. It has a lot of starch in it, which is not good for rabbits to eat. Different cuts of hay are unlikely to cause digestive issues.