bladder stone

[Hermione The Bunny]

so hermione has a bladder stone. however, my vet doesn’t recommend surgery because he is overweight and he probably wouldn’t survive. since they cut through the abdomen to get to the bladder (the abdomen is where all their fat is stored), she would have to cut through a LOT and it just wouldn’t heal right and she said that he would most likely die either during surgery or during recovery.

however, there is some “good” news. his bladder stone is large so it won’t fit down the urethra and get stuck. if it was smaller, it could and cause a blockage (and probably kill him). so even though it’s larger, i guess that makes it better?? ? we just have to watch for any blood in the urine because the bladder stone could scrap against the bladder.

what i’m wondering is…. do any of you have alternatives to getting rid of this stone? is there something (even something unorthodox but safe) that he can take to dissolve it? i don’t want to do anything illegal or unsafe obviously and any suggestions i would 100% run by the vet first. he isn’t in any pain right now but i don’t want it to get to that point. it might be selfish but i just cannot lose him right now and i will do almost anything to prevent that. he could still have a very long life.

[jerseygirl]

Had the stone been confirmed via am x-ray or ultrasound. My friend has a rabbit whose vet thought he could feel a bladder stone but it turned out to be sludge. They were able to flush the bladder.
I think a member here had a similar experience with there rabbit.

Without knowing the composition of the stone, I don’t believe there is a way to reduce its size. I may be wrong!
In humans there is a procedure using shockwaves (lithotripsy) to break down size but I do not know if it’s used in veterinary medicine. One recent study were rabbits were used for testing ( ) just resulted in damaged tissue and other complications. Although, it was not used on stones.

What is his diet and activity level like? Reducing his weight will be beneficial for his health over all. He then may be a candidate for surgery.

If he loses some weight and becomes more active, it should help prevent further stones developing.

It might be an idea for him to go on an antibiotic also. To prevent (or treat) bladder infection. If the environment was suitable for a stone to develop, it’s likely suitable to harbour pathological bacteria. A urine test may show if there is infection and give idea of the pH. Rabbits have more alkaline urine but overly alkaline urine is problematic as is acidic urine.

Have you noticed he strains to urinate or any other unusual toilet behaviours? Any retention of urine exacerbates the situation unfortunately.

[jerseygirl]

A second opinion could be worthwhile also.

[Hermione The Bunny]

yeah, the stone was confirmed by an xray. he had calcium buildup and she flushed that out with fluids and then revealed a bladder stone left with his diet, it’s normal but i am cutting back on pellets and also calcium. his energy is crazy lately LOL so that’s good! he doesn’t seem to be having trouble peeing. i give him urine supplements and that helps. like you said, maybe if he loses weight he can get the surgery but even if he does lose the weight, i don’t think the fat really goes away? and rabbits can’t have tummy tucks, so… ?. i’ve contacted some people on second opinions, just waiting for replies

[jerseygirl]

That’s promising that he has good energy levels.
With weight loss, slow & steady is the key. Too rapid can cause fatty liver disease.

Great that he has some buildup flushed. That should help keep bladder health at optimum.

Abdominal fat does complicate things but there has to be cases where surgery is performed regardless. Like for a gut obstruction for instance. Or life threatening tumour.

I honestly don’t know if leaving a stone is a long term option so it would be interesting to hear from others. I got the impression the vet did not seem confident with doing bladder surgery? But I do understand she is weighing up the risks here.
I was reading recently about laser surgery for bladder surgery. Laser seems to reduce the trauma and healing time.

[jerseygirl]

I suppose there are plenty of rabbits living with stones and owners are unaware. Rumball (now passed away) had one and who knows how long it was present?! I only became aware of it because he passed it. ?

[FlemishDad]

Large bladder stones are pretty benign. Generally stones don’t dissolve well but a low calcium diet will help prevent enlargement or other problems like sludge. My rabbit had kidney failure and I put him on a low calcium diet with lots and lots of low calcium veggies and few pellets and it seems to have worked. If I give him something high in calcium like kale his urine output goes up significantly in a few days so I think the low calcium is making a difference

[Bunny House]

I know in ruminants you can give them ammonium sulfate I’m pretty sure and it will make the urine acidic and then intern break down the stones. It’s used many time in castrated make ruminants to get rid or prevent bladder stones if they get them often

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