Clumpy Poop

[Toki+Pumpkin+Elmo]

I was cleaning their litterbox today and noticed something weird about Pumpkin’s poo.  It’s NOT runny. It’s in its normal shape.  But some of them were clumped up together.  Few little poo were clumped up together like a small ball.  Some of them were quite big to be a bunny’s poo.

So I’m sure if she is poo-ing all clumped up or they are clumping up in the littlerbox.  Is this ok?

 

[BinkyBunny]

Did it look like little grapes? That kind of formation?  A bit more squishy and shiny?  IF so, then most likely what you were seeing is cecal pellets.  IF that is the case, most of the time we don’t see this stuff because bunnies actually eat it.  I know that is gross, but that’s how their wild cousins have survived with little nourishment.   To explain it as simply as possible – basically their digestive system has a certain type of bacteria that breaks the food down and stores an extra nutrients in the cecum – like a little pocket, then from the cecum comes this highly nutritious icky stuff, and they redigest it.    This usually happens only once day. 

If you start to see this happening more often where your bunny is not consuming it or it’s getting worse then either it’s that Pumpkin’s diet is too rich or there is another reason for this and pumpkin should be treated by a vet.

If it ends up looking like one messy glob, not little clumps, then that is also a problem.

[Sarita]

It does sound like she could possibly be overproducing cecals and they are clumping with the fecals. I agree with BinkyBunny – it could be possibly diet related and messy globs are something that could require a trip to the vet.

[osprey]

THe other thing to check is if the big ball of stuff is being held together by fur.  Sometimes when bunnies shed, they ingest fur as they groom themselves, and the individual poops get stuck together by the fur.

 

[Toki+Pumpkin+Elmo]

I think the description of cecal fits Pumpkin. They are shiny and little moist. But moist enough to stay as a ball-like shape.
You said that her diet could be too rich. What do you mean by that??

She gets pellets and unlimited hay. On top of that, I give her bunny salad (carrots, some herbs, lettuce/bok choy, kale) everyday too. I give her only half cup of veggies. Am I giving her too much veggies?

[Scarlet_Rose]

Too much protein usually causes this.  Are the pellets you feeding Pumpkin timothy or alfalfa based?

[Toki+Pumpkin+Elmo]

I feed ‘Nutriphase’. It says it’s high in fiber. Should I feed something else?

[Scarlet_Rose]

Say I am having trouble locating the manufacturer web site to see the nutrional content.  Can you tell me how much protein is in it?

[MooBunnay]

Are you seeing these routinely? or just this one time? If its just this one time, I don’t think it is a cause for too much concern, however, you can keep an eye on the litterbox to make sure you don’t see it anymore. If its more routine, than you might want to adjust their diet, however, their diet sounds good to me…unless there is too much alfalfa it sounds like the recommended bunny diet!

[Toki+Pumpkin+Elmo]

Ok.. Here’s what’s on the back of the bag

Crude Protein 17%
Crude Fat 3%
Crude Fiber 12&
Moisture 12&
Calcium (min) 5%
Calcium (max) 1%
Phosphorus 0.4%
Salt (min) 0.25%
Salt (max) 0.75%
Vitamin A (min) 2500 IU/lb

I’m going to change the food, just to get the uneasy feeling off of me. What’s a good brand?

[Scarlet_Rose]

Crude protein is a little high and should be around 12-14% with the exception of longer haired breeds like an angora. Binky Bunny has great info on bunny pellets here:

https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=60

Fat 1-2%

Fiber should be at 18% minimum

Calcium 1%

The salt? I would get something that doesn’t contain extra. I and quite a few others use Oxbow BBT for adults and 14/24 for young ones. American Pet Diner Timmy rabbit pellets ones are good too. Try to get a timothy hay based pellet with the guidelines above.  I am thinking that the one you are feeding is alfalfa based because of the calcium and fat content and could be a source of the problem.  Be sure to change the diet SLOWLY.  You’ll need to start out mixing them 1/4 new to 3/4 old for a week, then  1/2 new with 1/2 old for week 2 and 3/4 new with 1/4 old for week 3 and for week 4, all of the new. Some bunnies take more persistence and a slower change. 

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