Mucus in poop (gross poop pics)

[Moonlightbunny66]

Pinky was eating his cecotropes and when he got up this was left behind. Some kind of stringy mucus poop? It’s not hair. I was going to take him to the vet with Muffin anyway. But I can’t call to make an appointment until tomorrow because they’re closed on weekends.

I also feel like he’s been eating his cecotropes too often today. But he normally does it more than Muffin.

What are the causes of this? I don’t know if it’s cecotropes or just poop.

[DanaNM]

Oh Pinky. Is he showing any signs of discomfort?

This combined with his other poop issues all points to a bit of cecal dysbiosis. He may even have some symptoms of “cow pile syndrome” (also known as the “wet” form of megacolon), but it’s hard to tell and hard to diagnose. Some rabbits just have a cecum that doesn’t function quite normally, so the cecotropes end up kind of getting mixed with regular poops. Pinky does have the markings that are associated with this. It’s kind of been in the back of my mind for a while with his poop issues, but I didn’t want to jump to conclusions or alarm you (I still don’t!).

If he is not showing signs of pain (stasis, gas, etc.), then I think I would focus on his diet (as you have been), and start tracking his weight. Buns with cecal disfunction can have trouble keeping weight on. So counter to what you might think, they sometimes do better on an unlimited pellet diet. But this could be worked out with a vet. Unfortunately these types of things are kind of the cutting edge of rabbit medicine, so most vets might not be too much help.

The most important things for the gut functioning are fiber and hydration. So as long as Pinky isn’t showing signs of pain and is pooping and eating normally, then I think I would focus on those.

To rule out parasites (such as coccidea), you could have the vet do a fecal screening, as coccidea can cause weird gross poops too.

 

. . . 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.  

[Bam]

I agree with Dana. Fiber is very important since it helps with the assortment process where some intestinal content is sent to the cecum to become cecotropes, and some to become the round fecal poops. The material that is to become cecotropes is actually sent backwards for a bit in the intestine, which is one of the places where things can get messed up. The intestines are controlled by their own nervous system, the enteric nervous system.

A lot can be done by tweaking the diet. Unlimited pellets can be an option for rabbits that have difficulty keeping weight on.

Whatever dietary changes you make, its safest to do them gradually. The bacteria in the gut need time to adjust to dietary changes. An abrupt change of diet, for example to a hay-only diet, can actually result in starvation even if the bun eats the hay, because the bacteria needed to make starch from the cellulose in hay aren’t present in large enough numbers. By gradually switching the bun over to a new diet, you give the good bacteria the time they need to multiply.

Sometimes the good bacteria in the gut get outnumbered by less good bacteria, which should normally only be present in low numbers. In some cases a shorter course of certain antibiotics can help.

 

[DanaNM]

Agree with Bam especially about gradual changes being key!

You might inquire with the rescue about whether they ever noted him having gross poops while he was there. My guess is they will say no… possibly because they just weren’t as observant, and also possibly because these sorts of things can be triggered by any change in environment.

 

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

Thank you both! I’ll speak to the vet and mention these things when I can.

I can’t really tell if he’s showing any signs of discomfort. He’s mostly acting normal. He was hunching a bit recently but looks relaxed today. I can see him grinding his teeth but both the bunnies do this often while they’re relaxing. So I think they’re just content.

It is concerning and messy, I hope he’s feeling well. I’ll ask them to test for parasites too. Thank you.

Thanks for all the info!

[Moonlightbunny66]

Oh and I had another thread called “soy sauce pee”. His pee has been smelling strange recently. Like soy sauce or fishy miso soup. Not sure if it’s related.

[NoodletheRabbit]

My rabbit also has poops like that sometimes!!! For him it seems to happen after little episodes of gas. Maybe Pinky’s eating something that makes him gassy, or maybe he’s just prone to gas like my bun? Either way, it makes me feel better that this doesn’t only happen to my bunny once in a while!!

[Moonlightbunny66]

Noodletherabbit awwww maybe our bunnies have something similar going on. This is the first time I’ve seen this poop from him, but I don’t always look through the litter box.

It could be gas, I’m not sure. :/ I just made a vet appointment for Friday and hopefully we’ll get all these issues sorted out.

[DanaNM]

I just had an interesting conversation about cecal dysbiosis and general cecal dysfunction with one of the leads at the rescue.

Apparently, her go-to for when a rabbit is having cecal issues that aren’t fixed via other means is to give them some alfalfa hay (like a large handful a day, not a ton). She said usually within a day the bun or too starts producing normal healthy cecatropes and normal poops.  We have a bun at the shelter who had coccidia and was treated for it, but is still having weird poops, and the alfalfa helped him get back on track.

Not saying it’s a cure-all, but could be an easy and safe thing to try if Pinky (and Noodle?) is still having icky poops. It wouldn’t necessarily be the first thing to try, but once illness is ruled out it might help!

 

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

@DanaNM That’s really interesting! I can see if that helps after I see the vet. I’m glad that it’s helped other bunnies. Would you have to keep feeding them alfalfa hay everyday? Or maybe just when it flares up? Thank you! 🙂

[DanaNM]

I think she just does it for a week or so while they get back on track.

. . . 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.  

[NoodletheRabbit]

i didn’t know that!!But I actually do give my rabbit alfalfa hay as a treat hay quite often, maybe that’s why I’ve seen it so much less now!!! Thanks for telling us @DanaNM!!!

[DanaNM]

Ohhhh that’s great!  I had never heard of it either so I was very interested! I hopped right on my computer to tell you all about it!

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

Thanks for mentioning the fecal screening! I brought in Pinkys poops to the vet yesterday and they did want to test for parasites. They said the results should come in on Monday. So it’s nice I didn’t have to drive an hour and a half again just to give them the poops. Thanks.

They also told me not to give him any fruits or things high in sugar right now since it might upset his stomach.

[DanaNM]

Ooh that’s good!  And yes, def agree on no sugars. Interested to hear what the results are!

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

Results came back, no parasites. But I don’t really know what to do from here. :/ Still having the moist poops and staining the blankets. And still different shapes and odd shapes. ):

[DanaNM]

Try the alfalfa! Not trying to use Pinky as a guinea pig, but I’m very interested to hear if it works.

I think I also remember that his pellets at the rescue had alfalfa in them? So maybe the shift away from that was what triggered the yucky poops?

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

Thank you DanaNM. Yeah I’m pretty sure the pellets at the rescue were alfalfa based. It’s possible that it could be the issue. I can try that today and see what happens.

[Moonlightbunny66]

Seems like the alfalfa may have helped a bit! Still some moist poops and different sizes. But looks a little bit more normal. No poops squished into the blanket since the alfalfa, which is good.

[DanaNM]

That sounds positive! Interested to see if they keep improving!

. . . 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.  

[Moonlightbunny66]

Thank you!

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