Few different questions.

[Rippy]

This would mainly go in Diet & Care but there are a few minor “general” problems as well. Nothing serious this time but I need some tips.

As you know Shmoo recovered from a blockage and a near GI stasis a few weeks ago and from them till now he gained back near all the weight he lost during this ordeal. I have been feeding him near double the amount of greens (Dandelions, Lettuce, Endive etc.) that they got before which is quite a lot and it keeps him well hydrated as well since he barely drinks any water except during the night when its just hay. Pellets are about 1/10 cup Oxbow/day.

But I am not happy with his hay consumption…he does eat a few straws here and there but its mostly just the things he likes. I did buy 4 different brands when he started eating again to make sure he gets what he likes the most but its just not as much as Pika eats (she is only 10-15% more heavy then he is).

Another thing that is worrying me is he still poops out a few poops that are connected together by fur on a daily basis. He is a Lionhead so he has very long fur in places. I brush him, vacuum his cage daily and he is not molting or shedding. Usually its just 2-3 poops connected together about 3 times per day but today he produced a “record” and this was probably one long strand.

This is something that might have caused a blockage again so it does worry me. And I don’t know how I can improve his interest in hay because it was pretty much the same even before the blockage.

Few other things:

Pika had(has) worms so last week I took them both to the vet for a shot and Shmoo got it as well just in case as there is a chance if one has them they both have even if the cages are separated, next week we will repeat the treatment.

Shmoo jumped off the bed and hit his rear leg on his cage door while in binky mode. He did limp a bit , was in pain and some fur came off but after a few minutes in a hutched position he cheered up again. I think the leg might be slightly swollen up but he was hopping around fine after this and today he was running around like he usually does.

5 days ago my father sprayed part of the garden with a strong herbicide (kills green plants) which he neglected to tell me till today (I wont describe the conversation that followed his “by the way…”). And since I gather dandelions from that part as well I’m sure that for 4 days they each got 5 or so leafs that had been sprayed. Now this particular chemical is used 1-2% to 98-99% water. In the safety warning if a human would consume the herbicide it states that a would result in nausea, headache, stomach pain, gastrointestinal bleeding and a large amount in hypertension, pulmonary edema, renal failure some other “fun” things and death. Now they do seem like normal today so I hope what they got in them was not in a concentration that would cause problems but I will call my vet first thing in the morning about this.
 

[Sarita]

Well, that is actually good because the fur is passing through. Did you take him totally off pellets? I would decrease the veggies a bit to get him to try to eat more hay.

Poor Schmoo when you call the vet ask if they can recommend some metacam which is a non steroid anti inflammatory to help with inflammation and pain on that leg.

[Sarita]

Okay, I see about the pellets now – I really would eliminate them altogether.

[jerseygirl]

That is what most of Jerseys poop is like. She’s also a poor hay eater. She doesn’t shed alot or groom Rumball that much so she may ingest fur from just the environment. I’m still trying to figure her out. So if I have any break-throughs I will let you know as Shmoo and her seem to share similar problems.

I hope you have no problems from the pesticide and your vet has some advice on what to do. (((Some vibes for Schmoo & Pika))) all the same. You could always try growing dandelions in pots so you can be assured they won’t get sprayed.

[Rippy]

Hello.

I spoke to my vet today…mentioned the leg but I did not even ask about metacam because not so long ago he was taking it for over a week straight and I don’t think its causing him pain because he hops as normal and allows me to touch it.

Now the herbicide might be a problem or it might not be. The active ingredient is Glyphosate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glyphosate . Did some reading and there is little or no side effects on animals even in large doses. But after talking to my vet (not that good with bunnies but a very good horse specialist), he said that sometimes GI stasis will occur if they eat it. Now there is no antidote for the toxin but you treat the symptoms.

Something about Shmoo got me quite worried yesterday evening and I spoke to my vet about that as well. He ate about the same amount of greens that he normally does but it was off his normal routine. Still had some pellets but did not touch them at all (removed them after as well). At about midnight he went into a hay eating frenzy and it was almost deja vu as last time he was so hungry for hay he had stasis and gas the next day. At about this time I give him a few greens as a snack before I go to bed and he left them alone. I stayed up for another 3 hours to observe him and it almost seemed that he was in slight pain, acting a bit clumsy and he did not seem to enjoy a belly rub (but I have never really poked and observed him much during this time). After 2 hours he did poop a bit, groom himself and then did a flop as I was watching him from my bed. After that I went to sleep as a flop is a “good signal”. During the night he ate the 10 or so dandelion leafs and a small lettuce leaf I left him and in the morning woke up to him eating some straws of hay (normally 5-30 minutes).

Now I just gave him the morning/afternoon greens and he is eating them but it feels like he has less interest then he would normally. But I wont know for sure for another 4h because he does eat this meal slow while he naps and then its his play and poop on my bed time so Ill see.

[Rippy]

Hum he seems fine…very energetic, pooping and maybe even eating a bit more hay in addition to greens. Forgot to mention that I started giving him probiotics again (today) just in case.

[Chazz]

I had trouble with my bunny eating hay regularly. (We had a GI statis issue last year.) But I was buying hay from pet stores, which probably has been sitting on the shelves for a long time. So I figured I needed to find a better option and started buying hay from a Bunny rescue group in Chino, CA. (bunnybunch.org) and he loves it. It smells so good and fresh! The one I buy is a blend of oat, wheat and barley.

[BinkyBunny]

He could be feeling a bit nauseous from the pesticide. Obviously very difficult to know. I would say keep an eye on him and if he doesn’t improve or gets worse, talk to your vet about what the next step should be in this case.

[Rippy]

Shmoo is fine It might be that I worry too much as well…because after what he went thru it seems that I panic if he has a bad day.

Pika is still pooping out worms. Its been 10 days since there worm shot and a repeat on Monday. I only notice them during her play time around 4pm but nothing in her litter box after that. I think I saw one move yesterday but it is hard to tell since they seem to die fast on air.

And I have stomach flu. Constant GI problems it seems

[RabbitPam]

I’m sorry you’re sick.
I find that when I don’t feel well I worry a lot more about most things, especially pets and family.

{{{{{{{{{{{Healing vibes to all of you}}}}}}}}}}}}}

[foxtailskies]

I’ve only heard of one major “worm” in rabbits- pinworm- and thankfully, at least they’re not really harmful (just really, really gross)… maybe check with the vet about another treatment? Good ol’ Merck (god bless it’s free, publicly available heart) says that one treatment isn’t usually effective on its own anyway- http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/171336.htm (assuming that it is pinworm of course, your vet would know better than me)

[Author]

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