I Think BunBun’s Sludge Is Back :(

[Dee]

Wow, for so long Bun has been healthy- I thought his bladder sludge was just a onetime result of a very high calcium diet (collard greens, kale, dandelions). It’s been well over a year I think, and since then there has been a few times when he seemed like he might get a UTI, but then he got over it and acted normal. I also learned that poopy butt can make him posture, since his bum gets sore. But this time, I think it’s really back. Here are his symptoms;

I found some sludge on a kitchen chair a few days ago.

He was drinking a lot yesterday.

He has been ripping apart his cardboard houses, which he does when he’s not feeling well.

He’s been eating his greens with less enthusiasm than usual.

Last night, he kept peeing a little, then shifting around and peeing a bit more, etc.

Today he was posturing so much in the litter box he almost fell on his face. I feel so bad for him.

Obviously, unless he makes a full recovery, I’m taking him to the vet tomorrow. His vet is an hour away, but this guy sees bunnies all the time, so I trust him. My main concern is what to do if BunBun gets really uncomfortable or sick tonight. I have Metacam and Baytril, but they both expired 12/11- how’s that for horrible luck?? I don;t know if I’d be better off giving him those meds if he is really bad, or whether they could harm him.  I have a bag of Sub Q’s, but they were opened and used well over a year ago, so I doubt I could trust those either. What do you guys think of those meds? Also, has anyone here had a bunny who had one bout of sludge, and then had another very small bout that just passed over with no vet visit? Thanks for any help .

[Sarita]

Don’t give him the metacam after the expiration date, but the expiration date should be for the end of the month not the beginning so you should be fine to give these to him until you can get him to the vet. Should be the same for the baytril (is this compounded though?)

As for sludge, it really doesn’t sound due to diet but rather to genetics with Bunbun. It’s funny that Toffee has not had a bout of sludge in awhile but I don’t take chances if I think there is sludge – I take her in and let them do fluids to help get the sludge out.

[Dee]

I’m glad Toffee hasn’t had sludge in a while . BunBun hadn’t had it in well over a year- I thought that he might be all set and never get it again. But then I saw some on the chair and started noticing little suble things that wren’t quite right. Today he’s definitely off though- I tend to jump the gun, but something is up. He has postured occasionally since his last bout with sludge, and one weekend he was even ripping up the carboard boxes and not going for his food like usual- then he got better.
Today he’s eating OK, but he’s been sitting with his eyes half shut, which I’ve only seen him do before when he had UTI/sludge. I haven’t seen him go to the litter box since this morning- I’m not sure whether that’s good or bad. I would think that if he had a UTI. he would be in and out more. But if it’s sludge only with no UTI, he might be holding his pee since it hurts. I’m praying that this is just a weird little phase and he’ll suddenly go back to normal, but I’m not too sure. If he’s not acting completely fine tomorrow, I’m taking him to the vet. I guess I’ll go with the vet that’s 10 minutes away. His other vet is 45-60 mins away, but he’s a real bunny expert and the close vet is good (got Bun through a severe bout of GI stasis!) but not as bunny oriented as his “far” vet. I’m just not sure- on one hand I think that once he’s gone through the stress of getting into the car, it doesn’t matter much how far we travel- then I think that a 10 minute ride is way less scary than being out for 2 hours.
I just checked the meds again- the metacam has been opened, but like you said, the exp. date is 12/11. And I have Baytril tablets (yuck) don’t expire until 2012. I’m not going to give him anything unless he really seems uncomfortable all the time. Right now he’s gobbling down pellets and nibbling hay, so he’s not miserable. If I saw him do a normal pee in the litterbox I would be very encouraged .
Thanks, as always, for your help, Sarita .

[bunnyfriend]

Healing vibes to Bun! Hope he gets better quickly.

[melbunny]

Hope he feels better soon!

[Dee]

Thanks, you guys- looks like the good vibes have worked ! BunBun started improving yesterday as the day went on. He went from sitting with his eyes half closed to his normal self- hopping everywhere, into everything, begging for food, etc. And best of all, his posturing decreased to the point where today, I wouldn’t notice anything differeent if I wasn’t watching him. It still looks like he’s trying a bit too hard to pee, but he’s just going once, then eating hay, which means his business is done and he can relax. So… I’m hoping this was just a minor irritation. Since I did see some sludge the other day, maybe he passed some crystals that irritated he urinary tract and made him posture and act “off”. The fact that he’s getting better, not worse, is making me think I should hold off on taking him to the vet unless he has more problems. I hate aking the bunnies to the vet when it’s not neccessary- they get SO scared. I just hope I’m not being negligent by not taking him in just in case.
Hey, I just had an idea! I could take a urine sample myself and bring it to the vets, right? That would probide some answers and spare him a terrifying ride. Anyway, thank you all for your advice & healing vibes!

[Sarita]

You could as long as it’s not contaminated.

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