Help! Rabbit diabetes?

[Samanthabridgett]

this is her litter after 2 days 

Hi there!

I have an adorable 9yo mini Rex named Holly. A few months ago, she had a very bad case of poopy butt and gas. I took her to the vet who suggested she needed a whole diet change. So with trial and error, she now is on a hay only diet (pellets give her bad poopy butt; even in small amounts 🙁 ) and a large feeding of veggies in the morning. Sadly, her tummy is just too sensitive for treats as well.

Since the diet change, she is NON stop eating the hay and drinking SO MUCH water. I have to change her litter every 2 days at least. Her pee is clear and has no odor, her poops are SO HEALTHY and her behavior has changed completely. She’s no longer skiddish or lethargic, she’s always running around and curious. I am just so concerned with the water intake and the peeing… I consulted my vet via email and she informed me rabbit diabetes is very rare and named off a few other symptoms that accompany it that Holly does not have….

 

does this sound normal to anyone who has dealt with senior rabbits/diet changes or should I consult to have her checked for diabetes

[DanaNM]

Changing the litter every two days is normal, and eating a lot of hay will cause a bun to drink a lot of water (both good things!). She sounds healthy to me!

It’s more of a concern when a bun is peeing a lot and NOT drinking (kidney problems), or drinking excessively but not eating hay (which can indicate a dental problem).

. . . 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.  

[Samanthabridgett]

THANK YOU FOR THIS INFO 🙂

[DanaNM]

Just to make sure she’s not drinking an extreme amount, how much would you say she drinks per day?

. . . 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.  

[Felicity0118]

Hiya

apologies on a bit of a crusade as I didn’t consider EC. I got my bunny about a year and a half ago and he always drank loads! Recently (5 months – I should’ve done something sooner 🙁 ) he’s been  peeing outside of his litter box but is overall very healthy so I didn’t think much of it, but it’s got worse so I took him to the vet yesterday and he had a seizure. It turns out that it’s very likely that he’s now got active EC so I just highly recommend looking at anti-parasitic treatment If you haven’t done so already 🙂

[Felicity0118]

Oo sorry just to follow up following call with vet, panacur can cause immunosuppression and she said she wouldn’t blanket treat her own as standard, so just have EC in the mind rather than heading for the drugs 🙂

[DanaNM]

Hi Felicity0118, this is an old thread so the OP is unlikely to see this reply. We ask that members don’t reply to old threads for that reason, so I’ll be locking this thread now.

. . . 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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