I feel a small lump on Rye’s side…like a poop under his skin

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

OK.

I’m worried.

I was sitting here watching TV and noticed Rye was lying in his litterbox, which is weird. He got up and sat there, then lay down outside the box, then sat up and got back in the box, then out and lay down. So I grabbed him and felt his tummy, but it felt normal…and then as I was feeling around, on his left side, about behind where his hind leg curve is … like, when they sit normally and there’s the big bump in their leg, in behind that, I felt a “poop sized” lump. moveable, felt just like a hard poop under his skin.

I put him down to wander and being the territorial brat he is he has pooped approximately 30 times in the past 10 minutes running around…so he’s obviously not having trouble pooing.

But…this lump…has me slightly worried. Can you feel poops in a bunny? Or…what do I do?

He is almost 8 months old, unneutered male lop.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Lion_Lop I would say take him in to have a vet look at it. It could be an abcess and it’s best to have it checked out as it defiantely does not sound normal.

[MimzMum]

Well, I can’t speak to bunnies, but I remember feeling my lump. But I wouldn’t have particularly classified it as movable, it was pretty much staying put…so I would try my best not to jump to any conclusions that it is a tumor or anything.
I can’t imagine being able to feel poops in a bunny. But then although your description is very thorough, I just can’t picture where it is you’re talking about. Do you mean on top of the rear leg or underneath it or where?
I am more worried about the in and out of the box thing. Is he peeing okay? Is he straining? Is there any signs of sludge? You said he’s been leaving bb’s around the room, but is he under any apparent discomfort doing so?

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

Okay.
This morning I came out and he was just lying there…usually everyone is excited for food time – jumping and running. But he just lay there as I got everyone’s food. I put the bowl in his cage and he is lying there facing the wall.
Something’s definitely up, and my vet is closed today. They have “Emergency services” but it is on rotation with different vet hospitals in the city and I would not feel comfortable having one of the other vets look at him – because my vet is the best exotic in the city.

Argh. Crap… I don’t know what to do. I do not want to risk having some dog/cat emergency vet look at him and then be charged for it.

Mimz – he was having no trouble at all pooping yesterday night. He had an appetite and everything, ate hay, was grooming himself, etc.

I’m worried that maybe something was wrong with the hay…but everyone else is fine…because I get my hay from my horse barn, not from the store. But everyone else is fine.

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

OK.
I picked him up and put him on the floor to see what he would do – as usually he heads straight for Yuuki’s cage to bb gun shoot poops at Yuuki. Anyway, he immediately started hopping around, but no poops. But he is marking with his chin, he groomed himself, is running and a few moments ago he pooped – yay! – I saw it come out of his butt!
And just now he stopped and is eating hay on the floor.

It’s hard to tell what his poop/pee track has been like, because he only uses his litterbox 20% of the time, the rest he poops wherever and it ends up flicked all over the cage/floor (NIC cage with no guards on the bottom).

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

Okay, he has peed…several times. >.<
I just got up to go clean out his pen completely to watch for poops and pees, and found several wet pee stains in my carpet (one looks like a normal pee and the second looks like he tried to spray Jazz’s cage).
Next to the pee was a nice wet, recent poop.

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

Ok. Just put him back in his cage and he immediately started drinking. *is timing it* OK. He drank for 35 seconds.
I gave him a whole bunch of new hay, cleaned his cage completely out and his litterbox, gave him his pellets.

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

After I posted, he started drinking yet again. On and off he’s been drinking water for like, over a minute.
So, he has peed, he pooped (I saw it), he is drinking, he ate some hay off the floor…

[Beka27]

i would keep a close eye on him (like you’ve been doing) and see if the vet can see him tomorrow.  i think the vets can feel the poops, or at least my vet said she could when she was feeling Mead’s tummy.  but it doesn’t seem like pooping is an issue…

[babybunsmum]

i agree… doesn’t seem like a pooping issue or an issue that needs emerg vet attention.  imho i’d wait until your trusted vet is available & then take him in to have the lump looked at.  baby’s lump started as a nipple getting bigger & bigger & it wasn’t a shifty-under-ther-skin type of lump at all.  it stayed put.  so try not to worry too much just yet (not easy, i, of all people know this)… rabbits can get fatty lumps too can’t they? 

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

Ok, good news – he is eating hay for sure. He’s also drinking still and he’s pooping.
He’s acting more normal too…phew.

[rabbitsmba]

It actually is possible to feel poops in the cecum – my vet showed me how – but from what you described, thats not where they’d be. It sounds like he is fine for today but I would definitely take him to the vet to see what this lump is that you have found. Sometimes they just end up being fat deposits and are nothing to worry about.

[Gravehearted]

oo how scary! why do these kinds of things always seem to happen on the weekend? i am glad to hear he’s eating ok, but hope you’ll be able to get him checked out ASAP and everything will be ok.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Hope your little lop is okay. Have you taken him to the vet?

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

How’s your poopy boy doing LL?

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

Despite acting quite normal yesterday into the night, this morning he was just lying down…no interest in food but many poops in his cage. He’s been breathing quite rapidly. I took him out and massaged his belly, and I cannot find the lump I found yesterday – maybe it was a poop?
I did massage his tummy quite deeply, and I felt a little lineup of poops in his gut – I swear.

Right now he’s lying down with his face jammed in the side of the cage…looking really tired and miserable

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

OK, I just called the vet and have an appointment at 4, in less than an hour.
I hope he’s okay…

I will keep you guys updated.

[Beka27]

i’ve said before but i really don’t see how people can keep rabbits outside and feel okay with that. if LL had not known exactly how Rye acts, she would have had no idea something was wrong. sigh…

good luck LL. feel better Rye.

[Lion_Lop_Lover]

It’s true – as soon as he didn’t leap against the bars for his morning food yesterday I knew something was up.

I leave in 5 minutes…will keep you guys updated.

[xnovalentine]

i know i just talked to you, but i lullabelle and i send our love and healing vibes to rye! Hang in there rye!

[kimberleyanddarren]

send vibes keep us posted!!

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