Gas or stasis?

[buddybun]

Hi my rabbit suddenly stopped eating and drinking today. She’s lethargic and doesn’t want to come out of her cage. We typically give her time outside her cage but today I was working all day and when I got home, I noticed the change. She drinks from a bowl but has a backup waterbottle, and has drank little from her bowl. I am not sure when the last time she pooped was. I know it was yesterday but I am unsure about today. She might have pooped a small bit but not near the amount that she normally does. The weird thing is that her stomach and intestinal tract doesnt feel hard or bloated. I can move it easily but shes still hunched over. We mixed some pellets with warm water because we are out of critical care and shes ate/drank at least seven spoonfuls of it. She eats it if I put it up to her mouth so I don’t think its stasis at the moment. We will get her to a vet tomorrow but is there anything I can do for her tonight to alleviate her pain? I need to sleep but if she needs me to I will stay up as long as I have to. I might be feeling in the wrong place on her body but under her ribs it doesnt feel hard, just kinda big? Not bloated big but full belly big. If anyone has any idea about what this might be please respond. I’ve been trying to do some massages but she hates when i touch her sides even on a normal day because she thinks ill pick her up. I’m very worried and wont be able to get her to a vet until tomorrow morning. Shes also started to tilt her head a little bit but I don’t think its a head tilt issue because she has tilted it in both directions so idk. please help me

 

[buddybun]

Shes just now ate more of the diy critical care, moved around in her cage, and kinda layed down? she did the laying down where their feet arent out behind them but they are still laying so shes not hunched but idk if it still counts because her stomach is on the ground. im just praying that she will still be alive in the morning. i lost my other bunny about ten months ago to surgery so im not sure how me and my family would handle it if she died this early. i did more stomach massages and she hopped around her cage

[LittleLionMan]

How is she this morning?

It’s good that she was eating willingly last night, and I’d suggest keeping up with it (though if you’re concerned there’s no harm in going to the vet). I usually try giving my bun things that he likes as a way to evaluate if he’s feeling ill. If my treat monster bun doesn’t eat a treat, then I know I gotta break the critical care and simethicone out! I also have metcam (pain med) I’d give if he’s looking uncomfy. Typically I’d set alarms throughout the night to keep up with food and meds…good preparation for human babies 😅

Do you have baby gas meds on hand? If you think it’s gas then I’d give her some of that. Clean her litter so you can evaluate poop production. Also a good tip is to listen to her belly if you can. Bunny’s GI tracts are constantly making noises. No noises or extremely faint noises may indicate stasis, while aggressive bubbles are gas.

At the end of the day go with your gut and take her to the vet if you’re concerned. Bunnies are tricky animals!

[buddybun]

The most confusing thing is that this morning she laid fully out but wont come outside. I picked her up and took her out of her cage which we use for sleeping, and after running around a little bit, she’s pooed about 15 small poos. I dont hear any noise in her stomach but she just pooed in front of me so her intestinal tract MUST be moving right? I’m taking her to the vet at 8 when they open today. It’s probably a good idea to keep some simethicone and critical care on hand. It’s kinda hard to judge what shes been eating because shes not a treat monster like my old bunny. I’m definitely going to take her to the vet this morning though. It’s so weird though because she lays down sometimes and then other times shes hunched over. I don’t have any meds on hand but I will be getting some to keep on hand just in case. After my last bunny passed, we got rid of his critical care and gas drops for his stomach problems.

Another question, do you think the food could be the culprit? My previous bunny had no medical issues for the five years of his life leading up to us adopting him. He was fed basically junk food for his whole life so we switched to some oxbow food. A few years after that, he started getting gas issues. This bunny has been on a rabbit feed her whole life and has been in top notch condition for her entire 2 years. We just got her in May and have been giving her a mix of the same food we gave our other bunny and the food she ate previously. Could the gut problems be caused by the food?

[LittleLionMan]

Small poops are either an indication that her Gi tract is slowing down or starting back up. Either way it’s a good idea to go to the vet!  Definitely get your emergency kit ramped back up though!

I’m not a vet or rabbit expert, just a fellow bunny owner. but I’ll pose a question that might help others: when you say you’re feeding your bunny oxbow food, do you mean you’re giving a bowl of pellets as their food source?

majority of bunny diet  should be hay, followed by lettuce snd veggies. They should only have access to a small amount of pellets, but the actual amount depends on your bunnies weight.

That said, my bunnies have wildly diff digestive tracts. My 5 year old bun has a sensitive tummy and gets gassy, so his diet is more limited. My other bun has an iron stomach and can eat anything without issues. So sometimes it’s just a food sensitivity thing!

[buddybun]

She eats a lot of hay, but after we got her and limited her pellet intake, she started losing weight. We took her to the vets and she said she didnt want to see her lose anymore and that she was in the perfect body condition. So, since I didn’t want her to lose any more weight, I gave her lots of pellets (about 3/4 of a cup). She’s a nine pound rabbit and has access to hay 24/7 and gets spring mix every morning, but she doesn’t really like to eat that much. Her head tilt is super weird because its not as severe as the ones you see on the internet but it is certainly tilted to the side slightly. Shes been laying out for a little bit but hasnt been up to eating anything this morning.

[LittleLionMan]

Gotcha — like I said I’m just a fellow bunny parent so obvi follow your vets advice!

Poor baby. When did she eat last? If the last time she ate was last night then you really should give your homemade CC.  You have to keep her going until your vet appointment or see if you can get in sooner….12 hours is definitely emergency territory.

[buddybun]

Yeah we’ve got a drop off appointment within the next 30 mins so in the mean time I’ll keep giving her the cc

 

[Wick & Fable]

My understanding (I am not a vet) is that gas can lead to stasis. Stasis is a state of being for a rabbit’s GI tract, so rather than the question being gas or stasis, it’s more so evaluating whether you should wait it out or go to the vet immediately. It looks like you have an appointment scheduled, and hopefully there’s good news from it.

Yes, the fact that there was a poop is a positive sign. Diet can absolutely lead to to gas if your rabbit’s GI system is not agreeing with a particular food item. Also, if your rabbit is not eating enough hay regularly, the GI system will also get disrupted. 3/4 cup of pellets is a lot. Naturally, a rabbit should not really be losing weight once its reached its healthy baseline. A lot of pellets can lead to eating less hay, which can cause issues. I have a 7lb rabbit and she only gets 1/8 cup of pellets really– hay and a plate of veggies a day should generally be enough for a rabbit to maintain weight. If a rabbit, at its ideal weight, is losing it despite diet being adequate, there may be an underlying medical issue causing weight loss.

With food, you want to introduce new food slowly, in small quantities. If the rabbit’s stomach grew up with a particular type of food, the bacteria and stomach is used to breaking that type of food. New food, even food that is rabbit-safe, can still cause upset because the rabbit’s stomach environment is not used to it.

A slight head tilt can eventually become a more moderate/severe head tilt, so if you are seeing this, I would get it assessed by a rabbit-experienced vet. This may be a sign of an ear infection, a neurological issue, or something else.

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.

[buddybun]

Yeah, she’s been eating probably more pellets than she should. I don’t think its a new food issue because shes been eating it for about a month. We just dropped her off so hopefully we get word in a few hours. I’ll cut back on the pellets and urge her to eat more hay.

[buddybun]

Hi, just an update! We just got word that she has ear infections in both ears :0( she also has points beginning to form on her teeth so we will get that fixed and make her eat more hay. Thank you guys so much for the input!

[LittleLionMan]

Ah thanks for the update! Hopefully some meds and tooth filing will help your little mama feel better!

[DanaNM]

Thanks for the update! Glad you got to the bottom of things!

. . . 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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