Advice needed: Elderbun not eating

[BouncyBunBuns]

Hi all, in a last ditch effort to find some answers – I’d appreciate any advice. My elderbun Quinn (10.5 yrs), has just completely stopped eating greens or her pellets. She’ll nibble hay here and there, and she’s drinking water. I am sure most of you are immediately thinking stasis, and so was I. 3 weeks and 4 vet visits ago. She’s been to a rabbit savvy vet so many times. She’s been on stasis meds (cisapride & gabapentin) as a precaution since then. She’s still pooping (though not as frequently). She’s also had her teeth checked (they’re fine). Had her blood taken (results normal). Had her kidneys checked (all fine). She’s had an ultrasound and her nose and eyes flushed for any foreign bodies. All fine. Lungs fine. She DOES have arthritis, so that is being managed with some pain meds (metacam), which she happily gobbles down from a syringe. She’ll eat a craisin without a problem so I know she still has some sort of appetite. She’s also happy to continue to munch on cardboard and hop around exploring so she’s not sitting there in pain or anything. I have tried every green, herb or lettuce I can find (that’s safe for buns). She’s just not interested and she used to love her greens and pellets. So here I am asking for help, please. We are almost a month into full time syringe feeding with critical care. It’s really starting to stress her out and she’s lost weight. I just have no idea what to do. Any suggestions?

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

I’m sorry to hear that your bun is in such a state, it must be nerve-wracking 😰

Sometimes they can’t see all sides of the deeper molars during a regular tooth check-up, because they’d have to go deep and rabbits resist that. Has she ever had a dental exam under sedation? That can reveal a bur.

[Bam]

I agree with Ellie, this does sound like a molar issue. It doesnt have to be anything dramatic, even small molar spurs, or just the one spur, can cause a bun to refuse  food. I

I had a very similar experience with one of my buns, three weeks of Critical Care, all tests good, energy level good etc. His vets didnt think his tiny spurs were enough to cause his very selective eating (he basically only wanted to eat willow leaves and chew cardboard). Eventually the vets decided to sedate him and do a molar burr. 5 days later his eating was back to completely normal.

Rabbit’s teeth are difficult to see unless the bun is sedated. This is due to the anatomy of the rabbit mouth and the fact that they rarely cooperate for as long as the vet needs to get a good look.

 

[BouncyBunBuns]

Thank you all, I will contact her vet and see what they say. I’m a little nervous about anesthesia, only because she had an ultrasound a few weeks ago with anesthesia and that’s what kicked this whole not eating thing into high gear. She also struggled to come out of it, and had to be kept a few hours longer due to her temp being too cold. However if that’s what’s wrong, it would be nice to have an answer. Appreciate the responses <3

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

You’re welcome ^_^

I completely understand about being nervous about anaesthesia. When our Owen went for his neuter I couldn’t eat a thing until he was back home, and he was a robust teenager… 😳🤦‍♀️

Let’s hear what the vet says, and their risk assessment for the situation.

[Bam]

Oh, I’m sorry she’s had a not so good experience with anaesthesia. That is absolutely sth you’d need to take into consideration and discuss very thoroughly with your vet.

I dont suppose she’ll eat fresh grass, but I once had luck with fresh grass for a bun that wouldnt eat hay and had small molar spurs. The grass ground them down so he never needed a dental burr. (If you try fresh grass, only give a little bit to begin with for the sake of the tummy, and obviously only pesticide-free grass).

[BouncyBunBuns]

Thank you for the grass suggestion! It was quite the hit. Still waiting on her vet (due to it being the weekend) – but she’s eating some hay and the grass and a few greens here and there. No pellets but the critical care should make up for that. Thanks again to everyone for the thoughts and helpful advice.

[Bam]

Oooh, hreat that she likes fresh grass! The most important thing for the tummy and teeth is hay and grass (hay is of course dry grass). This time of year, in the Northern hemisphere, grass is generally safe. It’s early spring grass that has a lot of simple sugars that can mess with the microbial balance in the cecum).

Fingers crossed she’ll keep wanting to eat! Critical Care contains all the nutrients (and fiber) a bun needs. You can keep a bun going for months on critical care only (I’ve done that, which is why I know it for a fact), but the aim is of course that the bun starts to eat more and more by itself, so that you can safely taper down the CC.

 

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