Help! My rabbit is going into stasis!

[Ifsogirl]

My Bunny is 3 year old male, who has been sick for 3 months now! I have consulted two different vets and have sifted through all the rabbit specific portals but nothing seems to work!

He has had varied symptoms since early April.

At first his poop was semi-solid along with the normal poop too but later his problem began to worsen. Weight loss, fur loss and poop strung together poop was also observed.

He was given anti-biotic and some probiotic for three days, which gave no result.

Later the doctor prescription Meloxicam and Simethicone which helped at the beginning with the increase in poop production and consistency but later when the course was completed the soft cecotropes came back.

I waited for a while, including fresh herbs and hay as much as I can but to no avail. He has become weak and frail. A week ago, I contacted a different institution, where the doctor suggested deworming, He was given Nemocid(Pyrantel) for three days.

Since then the normal poop he was having apart from the soft cecotropes have diminished they are too tiny and less and less each day, he produces normal cecotropes but his stomach is swollen at times and he is too lethargic after deworming.

I am so sorry for the above rant I can’t think straight at this point.

His current condition:-

Eating and drinking normally.

 

Normal cecotropes but less in number.

Poop is hard  and tiny and less in number.

Rapid weight loss.

Over grooming.

Stomach feels lumpy and gas bubbles can be felt on touch.

My rabbit is lethargic and prefers to lay down on his side.

Also is warm to touch.

Living in a SE country has many downside as to limited access to rabbit savvy vets.

I visited his vet today and she prescribed Zymopet, Cremaffin (laxative), Proviboost(multi-vitamin syrup).

[caption id="attachment_1949775" align="alignnone" width="225"] His poop after deworming.[/caption]

 

 

 

[DanaNM]

I’m not familiar with the medications prescribed, aside from the metacam.

It sounds to me like your bun might need supportive care to get gut function back, sometimes giving a lot of different medications will make things worse if the vet is not rabbit experienced. Are you doing any syringe feeding? Even if he’s eating, critical care can help with weight loss. Simethicone can help with gas.

The weight loss at age 3 combined with poorly formed poops and soft cecotropes make me wonder if megacolon or cow pile syndrome might be an option?

. . . 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.  

[Ifsogirl]

His stomach is tight like a balloon right now. I gave him Meloxicam and Simethicone  just now. He is not showing any interest in eating rn. I don’t have access to Critical Care but I can make some if need be.

He is not moving at all and is over grooming which I am afraid will make things worse.

I really don’t know what else to do, the vets are not able to grasp the severity of the situation, no radiograph was done, they just prescribed me medicines.

I am afraid to give him a massage in fear of making it worse. His stomach feels like a balloon. He has only pooped cecotropes and they are too gassy I mean the coating of each cecotrope has these little bubbles.

I am feeding him only fresh greens and hay right now. He seems so in pain and it is absolutely killing me. I don’t really have the economic means to do anything else for him at this moment.

[Wick & Fable]

When you mention overgrooming, what signs are you seeing? Rabbits actually groom themselves a lot, especially during a molt. Lots of fur will come off, and that is natural.

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.

[Ifsogirl]

I mean that is all he does is sit up right and groom himself and then lay down again, I normally groom him twice myself.

All he is pooping is cecotropes,  and that too very less should I be worried?

 

[Bam]

Any poop is good. No matter if its smeary or mishapen. Poop means sth is moving in there.

Rabbits do groom themselves a lot. It’s a much better sign than if he were to just lie down and not move.

Id hold off on any powerful type of massage since his belly is hard.  You might however very, very gently and softly move and “tap”on his sides like in this video, only more softly:

https://youtu.be/LbyC6CWbm5M

Stop immediately if he seems unhappy with it.

If you can get him to move around a bit it would be very good. Exercise helps move gas and poop out.

Without a good rabbit vet its very difficult to know what to do and how to treat. Metacam will at least take away some of the pain and simethicone wont harm.

 

[Ifsogirl]

The vet I contacted lashed out at me when I asked him if I can feed him Simethicone. People here have no idea of how to take care of rabbits.

Is it happening because of the deworming medicine I gave him (Nemocid)? I don’t want to overload his system by feeding him multivitamin syrup the vet prescribed.

He does not eat hay as much as I would like him to, believe me I’ve tried them all. I sometimes suspect megacolon but there is no way of knowing for sure. I would visit the vet again to ask for atleast a radiograph.

How many times can I give him Meloxicam and Simethicone in a day?

Thank you all for replying, I really am grateful to all of you.

[Bam]

Meloxicam can be given twice per day, this is the dosage that Medirabbit (a trusted site) recommends:

As you can see, there’s quite a big span. In order to protect the gastric lining you can give Ranitidine, if it’s still available in your part of the world. (It has been unavailable in Europe and the USA for quite some time now).

Simethicone is basically not possible to overdose accidentally. You can give 1 ml every hour for 3 hours, then every 2 hours, then a couple of times per day as needed. If it doesnt make any sort of difference after the first day or so, its not likely to do much good. It is however harmless and not absorbed into the body, it stays in the GI canal and gets pooped out.

[LBJ10]

The pyrantel is “safe” to use in bunnies. Did the vet confirm that your bunny has worms? This particular dewormer is used mostly for roundworms. The dewormer itself shouldn’t cause gas. However, if an animal is heavily infested with worms, the dewormer can cause the worms to form a ball in the intestines. If your bunny does actually have worms, this is what I would be concerned about. But… it sounds like your vet is just throwing a bunch of stuff at the problem hoping something will work.

[Ifsogirl]

A fecal test was done and it was negative for nay parasite. He still asked me to give him the dewormer.

Everything was turning out to be just fine yesterday and today he had that liquid poop and so so much of it. I don’t know what to do and who to go to.

He has a poopy butt and is not interested in moving, I can feel gas bubbles in his abdominal area. He is still eating but is very weak.

For some reason I can’t upload any more pictures here.

[LBJ10]

Did you use the Add Media button to add photos?

 

It can cause loss of appetite and diarrhea in dogs… not sure about rabbits. There is no information on Medirabbit’s website. It is only listed as “safe” to use.

The lethargy and weight loss are concerning. However, it sounds like the weight loss was occurring before the Pyrantel. Also, the ongoing poorly formed cecotropes may suggest megacolon (as Dana suggested). What color is your bunny? Megacolon is associated with “Charlies”, which have two copies of the En (broken pattern) gene. They are almost all white with just a few spots of color on the head/face.

[Ifsogirl]

I am trying that but it tells me that I am not allowed to add photos to this post.

I also think that he is suffering from megacolon disease. I have no help from the vet in explaining anything about his condition.

He had extremely soft poop today and it is very worrying. The weight loss is happening prior to the deworming. I don’t want to stress him out any further. He also has a gassy stomach despite me giving him Simethicone in the morning.

[Ifsogirl]

Oh and he is a white albino so suspecting megacolon was not too obvious for me in the beginning.

[Cinnamon Bun]

My bun went to the vet not so long ago and they also took a fecal test. She’s had lots of bubbles in her tummy area and some mishappen poops. A lot are normal, but then they’ll be some liquidy, oval shaped poops. She’s active and eating and drinking fine, though. This isn’t stasis… is it?

[Cinnamon Bun]

She also has a poopy booty but it’s not so much that I have to keep cleaning it for her, and her cecotropes are liquid. I’ve cut out everything from her diet except hay and it’s been three weeks, and no improvement. I don’t know what to do.

[LittleLionMan]

I can’t speak to megacolon in bunnies (though it’s my understanding even albino buns can have megacolon). I always thought megacolon presented as large poops as well as intermittent diarrhea, so I’m interested to hear what some of the more knowledgeable members have to say.

As the owner of a bun with a sensitive tummy, simethicone can be given every hour (as Bam said). I find that by the third hour my bun’s gas as subsided. So I’d stick to that. But if losing weight and has soft poops, maybe your bun needs extra Cals and water. In humans and animals, lethargy can often be due to dehydration and/or malnutrition.

@cinnamonbun it’s unlikely stasis ( in my unprofessional opinion)  since your bun is eating, drinking, pooping/peeing. I feel like I’ve seen other posts where people recommended some sort of probiotic?

[Bam]

It isnt stasis since things are moving through. It sounds more like a lingering bout of cecal dysbiosis. You could try probiotics, it wont harm.

[Ifsogirl]

His poop would first show this great progress and then he would poop soft cecotropes again and I just don’t know why is that.

The doctors are not a great help frankly, I’ve been to three of them and they’ve given me varied medicines, I’m afraid the medicines will do more harm than good.

Only when he stays on Simethicone and Meloxicam, he stays active and poops well otherwise he just lays in one corner than another.

It has been three months since. I feel so helpless it is killing me. It hurts to look him in the eyes.

His stomach is almost always gassy. I feel gas bubbles breaking each time I touch his belly.

[Ifsogirl]

http://https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vxip5lflY5BY1zbgz_D4S7k4K7c6Cepb/view

[LittleLionMan]

I’m not sure if others can see the video, but I can’t for some reason. To clarify, the vet says your bun is physically fine and it’s not megacolon? If so, what type of hay are you feeding? I once got a mixture that contained orchard hay which my buns tummy didn’t do well with. Also, make sure the water is clean! Sometimes water bowl looks clean but it’s dirty and can house bacteria. I believe others have suggested probiotics as well?

[Ifsogirl]

His previous homeowners didnt introduce him to hay which is not entierly their fault, hay is not readily available  in my country. The hay online is as bad as it can be, I too get it imported from a different state. I feed him doob grass.

His poop has been soft and almost liquid since last night. Vet Clinics are closed on a Sunday and we dont have access to any emergency rabbit savvy vet.

He is eating parsley, mint and basil. I am giving him rose flower as a treat every morning. I have ordered hay but it wont be coming anytime soon.

[LBJ10]

Megacolon symptoms can vary when it comes to poop. Other symptoms are weight loss and lethargy. A severe case of cecal dysbiosis can lead to weight loss as well. Since we don’t know what it is for sure, I think your best bet would be to try to do a “cleanse” of the gut. That means a hay only diet for a while to see if the gut can rebalance itself.

 

Is doob grass the same as bermuda grass? Are you feeding it fresh or dried? Could it potentially be contaminated with something?

[Ifsogirl]

I think he has a wool block, he had his first hard poop in 24 hrs and it was full of hair and upon further inspection it was just a ball of hair covered in poop.

I have been making hay on my own from bermuda grass which my rabbit only nibbles at.

[Author]

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