loose droppings

[Megabunny]

Gracie is a 2 year old fuzzy lop we got from someone who was too sick to continue caring for her. We’ve discovered just how high maintenance she is.

 

 She came to us matted and fairly dirty in her hind quarter.. She’s been shaved by the vet (though not right to the skin) and I’ve given her lots and lots of hay…timothy, mixed 1st cut (I think) and oat hay from the store. I could still bathe this rabbit almost every day, as there’s once a day when she has really loose droppings and usually when I smell it, I pick her up and turn her over and it’s just hanging off her. I do frequently bathe her, then set up a heater to keep her from getting chilled. I give her a small bit of pellets several times a day because she is so thin and I want to be sure she keeps eating. I’ve just resorted to putting mounds of hay in her cage. It’s messy. She’s not yet spayed, so she’s not litter trained and I don’t have a litter box for her because she’s still in a smallish cage, with several hours a day to get out in a larger area that I can easily clean.

She’s supposed to get spayed in about a week, but she seems so thin. She also isn’t so fuzzy, as she’s been grooming herself and leaving clumps of fur. The vet cannot find anything wrong and thinks it’s hormonal. I’m a bit worried about sending Gracie to be spayed when she hasn’t fattened up yet (the vet actually said she needs to, which I didn’t think she EVER told an owner) and she still has this stomach thing. The rest of the day she’s fine.

It drives me nuts because how many rabbits seem to want to be held all day? Gracie does, but she’s so yucky I don’t hold her nearly as much as I’d like to(and she’d like to be). I do bathe her and keep her clean as I can, but cannot bring myself to put her through that every day.

 

So, should I keep the spay appointment at this point?

Any other ideas for getting these intestines under control? I’ve read it can take weeks or months, so I may just be impatient, as I’ve had her on more hay/less pellets for just a couple of days, though I’ve been working up to this for weeks, giving her those timothy w/ carrots treats in an attempt to keep her eating. But now I’ve decided to even stop those, but it hasn’t helped either.

VERY IMPATIENT!

MB

[Sarita]

I think it would be a good idea for you to have a conversation about spaying with the vet if you still feel uncomfortable at this point to spay her.

Did the vet check for coccidia?

[Megabunny]

Yup Already negative for parasites

[Isabelle]

You know her best at this point, if you think she needs more time before surgery you might consider putting it another two or three weeks. Rabbits can have problems under anesthesia, you don’t want her already compromised by an iffy digestive track. However if your rabbit savvy vet is okay with performing the procedure, she/he must feel confident that the problem is not severe enough to hinder the surgery. Also if she not at the weight you and the vet would like it also might be worth post poning. I would suggest having another chat with the vet to see if her weight/tummy should be given more time, a spay is important but I don’t think it would be terrible to put off another few weeks until she is more stable.

[Bam]

How long has she been with you? It can take a long time for a tummy that’s out of order to right itself. I fed my bunny Bam the wrong kind of food when he first came to me, I’d no idea, bought the stuff at a pet-shop and he really loved that food. Well, he ended up having sticky-but and it took me many months to get him right again on a diet that consisted mostly of hay. For a period he even had to have butt-baths several times a week, poor baby. He’s got a sensitive stomach so I always have to be careful with what I give him, whereas my other bunny tolerates just about everything (They don’t get bad food now but Yohio has shown a tendency towards eating leather-bags and other stuff I never thought bunnies would eat.) .

If she’s “otherwise healthy” it’s the bacterial flora that isn’t right and it needs time to repair itself, longer than I’d ever thought. Hay is supposed to be the best thing for this, but there are so called “digestive aids” that are said to fix or help the intestinal flora – I don’t know how well they actually work because I’ve never used any. I’d too be very reluctant to have a bunny spayed when she’s not quite well. After all, it’s a big surgery. You’ll have to consult with your vet.

If you go ahead with the spay or rather, when, you could feed her oxbow critical care a couple of days before the surgery as a preparation.

I seriously wish you the best of luck.

[Megabunny]

Thanks for the wonderful support everyone. I now have hope that she may eventually get over this. Given the condition she was in when I got her I suspect she’s been messed up a long time. I’ve had her a couple of months. You’ve also helped me calm down and not rush the surgery.

[Author]

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