baby bunnies not pooping, poor vet care in area

[Rigby]

Hi,

     We have two new bunnies, they are about 1 month old. They don’t seem to be pooping(in the 2 days that we’ve had them). They are peeing though. They have been on a diet of alfalfa hay and yesterday, we started giving them a bit of kitten milk replacer mixed with cecals from our other rabbit which I read would help to promote good gut health, in lieu of mother’s cecals. The vet care, as I usually mention in my posts, is really poor in this developing country.

     What would you suggest in this case? Resources are limited. Would trying to induce diarrhea be a last resort thing? There are a lot of vegetables and such in this area, we could go out and get something like that no problem but our vet is only available 2 days a week. I also tried to help stimulate them by using a cotton ball moistened with lukewarm water to to rub around their bum area but haven’t had any success with that. And they seem to be rather lethargic, eyes partially closed and they sleep most of the day.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks so much

[jerseygirl]

Are they both still eating?

Could they be eating all their own poop?

You could try let them run around in an area they’ve not been before. They may be a little young for territorial marking but that’s what will make my rabbits poop everywhere. If anything, the exercise will help get the gut moving.

Would trying to induce diarrhea be a last resort thing? There are a lot of vegetables and such in this area, we could go out and get something like that no problem

you definitely don’t want to be seeing diarrhoea. That will dehydrate them fast. Also, introducing greens might be too risky at this time.
Perhaps they’re reacting to the kitten milk. How do their bellies feel? (Right up near the ribs)
Do you have infant simethicone? This won’t help poop exactly but it can help relieve gas pain which might make a rabbit stop wanting to eat. Worth a try…

How much do you estimate they are drinking?

[Rigby]

Hi Jerseygirl,

Thanks for the advice. Actually just yesterday we started with the kittens milk. The day before they were just eating alfalfa and not pooping. And we haven’t been giving them too much kittens milk, maybe about 2 ml per feeding.
They have been eating their hay, not a whole lot because they spend a lot of time sleeping but when they wake up they usually munch on some hay. They haven’t been drinking as much water as I would like to see them drinking but they are peeing so maybe they are drinking water when I’m not looking?
We will continue to let them run around some more today. I’m just so anxious to see one little poo If I can see just one, i think I would feel a whole lot better about the situation.
I realize that they could be eating their poo but would they really be leaving no traces whatsoever of their poo? Doesn’t seem likely to me but again i’m not very experienced. I really hope that’s the case but I’m doubtful.
Simethicone? Hmm i can try looking for that when I go out. I’ll try looking for a western brand because I would have no idea what it would look like in the local written language!
Thanks again so much, let me know what you think about that.

[jerseygirl]

It’s good they’re eating. It may be its just taking a while for things to move through. Maybe they had some stress from coming into a new home. I know a friend whose new rabbit didnt poop for a day on his first day home. He was older then your little ones though.

Do you give them a bowl of water?
You could try adding tiny amount of oral hydration fluid (The stuff people have when they have stomach flu.) to make it more appealing. Or even juice or tiny pinch of sugar & salt. You’d want to make it very diluted.

Edit: Is it warm where you are?

[Rigby]

hi jg. One of them just made a big pee pee puddle as she was resting/sleeping. So it would seem they are getting enough fluids. I don’t have a bowl of water for them, just for their food. They do have a water bottle though and i put some water in a lid type thingy just in case they haven’t figured out how to use the water bottle just yet.
I’m hoping they just need to get acclimated first. Waiting anxiously to see that first bit of poo!

[Rigby]

just saw your edit. yes it is warm but we try to keep the AC on for right now, even though our slightly older bunny likes the AC off.
i’m here in southeast asia so it’s pretty hot and muggy without the ac. What would you suggest?

[jerseygirl]

You could try putting some ice bottles in with them if ac bothers your other rabbit. I know ac can struggle in humid conditions.

[Rigby]

update: We have poopage!

Also took them to a vet today to get a check up and a couple shots. it looks like the change in environment and stress might have been what held them back from pooping for a few days. But this morning I felt like a kid on christmas morning : ) Except it was poop instead of presents!

[jerseygirl]

[LongEaredLions]

Glad you have poops, I hope they continue to do well.
(((Vibes)))

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