Bunny not eating, sitting hunched up

[subhrajit]

It is yet another “Bunny Not Eating” question but with a nuance which I have not seen asked before.

We have had a bun for a while now. Active etc, friendly, eats and poops a lot.

About 10 days back, he all but stopped eating. He has been drinking reasonable amounts of water.

We do not have vets here who specialize in small animals. So we took him to the vet, vet found nothing wrong and gave him digestives.

After 7 days, nothing has changed.

He has lost some weight, is not very active, but does hop onto flower pots once in a while.

I have absolutely no idea how he even manages to hop – he eats almost nothing.

Another thing I have observed is, he has stopped lying down or stretching out. He sits with his head up.

Last time something like this happened, his hair started falling off bigtime exposing his skin. Doctor guessed it was mites and gave him an injection once every week for 4-5 weeks and he recovered. This time around, there is no hair fall.

If anyone can help, I would mightily appreciate it.

[DanaNM]

Since the vet was not rabbit savvy, they may not have known what to do. What treatments have you been giving him? Have you been syringe feeding? If a rabbit doesn’t eat for more than 12 hours that is a medical emergency and they can die very quickly when you get past 24 hours of no food.

The posture you describe is how buns sit when they are in a lot of pain. It sounds like he is dealing with Gastric Stasis. It is important for him to get pain management and supportive care.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[subhrajit]

Hi DanaNM.

I have given him vitamin supplements syrup for 5 days (as doc suggested).

I have been given him a digestive syrup for now 8 days (as doc suggested).

We have been trying to syringe feed coriander juice. We have tried many veggies with him, but coriander was the only veggie he would have in some quantity on a regular basis.

I will talk to the vet about statis. Thank you so much.

[DanaNM]

This article gives some info on treatments of stasis that you can share with your vet, and may be helpful to you as well: http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html#:~:text=Symptoms%20of%20GI%20stasis%20include,be%20treated%20as%20an%20emergency.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Bam]

The article Dana links to is very good, it’s helped me many times inte past.

Pain relief is key, as is hydration and syringe feeding pellet mush or critical care for herbivores – once you know there’s no gastrointenstinal  blockage. A vet can prescribe meloxicam or buprenorphine for pain and a gut stimulant (metoclopramide and or ranitidine).

[DanaNM]

I’m not sure what digestive syrup is, can you share the ingredients?

Can you also share what your rabbit’s normal diet is in detail? Stasis can be symptom of improper diet or another medical issue.

If you currently feed rabbit pellets, you can grind them up and mix with water to form a paste that can be syringe fed. Coriander juice would help with hydration but doesn’t have the fiber or calories the rabbit needs.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[subhrajit]

The digestive syrup contains

• Key ingredients include Black Pepper and Licorice

Our rabbit’s diet is not great. Mostly pellets. He does not like veggies of any sort. Sometimes he will munch coriander. He will nibble at grass on occasion. He will also have cauliflower leaves a bit.

Thank you.

[DanaNM]

It is very important for rabbits to eat grass hay, as it is necessary for their digestion as well as their teeth. Rabbits’ teeth grow continuously and if they don’t chew hay for several hours a day it can lead to something called a “molar spur”, which makes eating painful. A diet low in fiber will also cause problems because rabbits need the fiber to move things through their gut.

If you can get fresh grass (that hasn’t been sprayed with pesticides or grown near a road), you can offer that to him as well. Are you able to access hay?

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[subhrajit]

Hi Dana.

Our bun has been with us for ~4 years. I used to try giving him green grass. No luck. He nibbles at best.

I have bought good quality timothy hay for him several times. He doesnot touch them.

I have tried other things like bamboo leaves (it is also a grass and our guinea pigs loved them). Does not touch them.

So I have given up.

He pooped quite a bit yesterday (the last 10 days he was passing out maybe 1/2 pieces a day). He also had a few pellets and chewed some cauliflower leaf my wife gave him. Today, he has not had anything. I am petting him a lot, and giving him belly rubs. Side of the belly rubs is ok, but when I go under, he jumps away. He must have pain there.

[DanaNM]

Hmmm, I do wonder if he has a dental problem since he has refused hay for a long time as well as grass. Most buns love fresh green grass. Sometimes buns will fill up on pellets and refuse to eat their hay, but this sounds like something more than that since he also didn’t like grass or bamboo leaves (my buns also love bamboo leaves!).

Are his pellets timothy-hay based? I do think it might be necessary to syringe feed him a pellet-mash or critical care if he refuses to eat. That will also help with hydration.

I would keep offering him fresh herbs and greens as well, like coriander, parsley, basil, fennel. Carrot tops (the green parts) and dandelion leaves are also really loved by rabbits, and have helped me entice a bun to eat many times.

 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[subhrajit]

You are right. He has teeth issues also. One of his teeth is broken. I will try some of the things you mention. My options are a bit limited due to local conditions. I think he is also developing mites (had happened to him about 6 months back). I plan to take him to another vet tomorrow. Feeling a bit down. I have vowed never to keep an exotic pet again. We just do not have vets who have experience with such animals (I live in India).

Appreciate all your advice.

[DanaNM]

That’s a really hard situation to be in. 🙁 I’m sorry you are having such a hard time with him.

Rabbits are very similar to horses in terms of their medical care (although of course they are much smaller), so it may be helpful to seek out a vet that works with horses (rather than one that only treats dogs and cats).

As for mite treatment, that is pretty easy to treat with a selamectin or ivermectin based product. Never use any product containing fipronil (sold as Frontline in the USA) on rabbits as it is very toxic to them.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[subhrajit]

An Update. Banni (yeah, that is his name) – had quite a bit if pellets yesterday in the night. Today, he has had very little. But he has been quite active since morning. Almost his usual self. Still sitting hunched when we put him in his cage. So its a mixed bag – but it is in the +ve direction. Lets keep fingers crossed.

Thanks for the advice on ivermectic. Really appreciated.

[subhrajit]

Just wanted to report that Banni is eating normally for the last few days. I think the belly rubs may have been crucial in getting him back to normal.

His patches of skin which I believed was a mite infection have also disappeared.

Thanks Dana and others.

[DanaNM]

I’m very happy to hear that! Thank you for the update!

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

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