Poop in butt. Help!

[Bunstheboss]

 Hi you all! I’ve been soo busy, it’s been getting hard to post, but I never forget you guys! Anyway, I need help with Baileys. He has been getting this awful ‘cakes’ of poop in his butt area, which I have to recurrently cut off, but it stresses him vey much, because it happens all the time. I had to take him to  the vet, to have this done more than once, because it gets stuck so close to his skin, that I am really afraid of hurting him! The thing is that this has been happening so often, that it worries me. The vet suggested my deworming him, which I have done, to no avail. I have reduced the number of veggies, but still, no improvement. Do you have any idea what could be causing this, and how to prevent it? It surprises me that he shares his life and diet, of course, with his ‘spouse’ Lemoncello, but she has never had this problem. Could it be that she knows how to clean herself better?

Any ideas?

Thanks! 

[RabbitPam]

Hi, glad to hear from you.
Wish I could help, but I’m stumped by the fact that the vet has not suggested anything else. Do you think they are his cecals, or just his regular poops? Would a change of litter soak up more of the liquids and make the poops less sticky and likely to stick to his fur?

Otherwise, perhaps a warm washcloth would loosen them if you wiped him, then gently removed the poos. That way you might not have to cut.

[Monkeybun]

Soem bunnies are sensitive to the pellets they are fed, try cutting down on the pellets if nothing else works.

[Deleted User]

I had a bun like that that I watched for his owner. He improved with changing from alfalfa pellets to timothy pelllets and increase of dry fiber, i.e. grass hay. Some rabbits get cecal overproduction from too much protein (alfalfa). Cecals are sticky droppings that are hard to soak off once they cake together.

[Bunstheboss]

 Thank you RabbitPam. The truth is that where I live, there are really no rabbit savvy vets. There is only one very, very far away, and it is kind of a dangerous neighbourhood, that is why I only go there in case of severe emergencies. Of course I will take him if this continues. I do not think they are cecals, but I cannot tell for sure. It is kind of a big solid mass that gets stuck there. I have tried wiping it, but this thing is super solid! And he is really tired of this procedure… 

Thanks again!

[KatnipCrzy]

I would also suspect diet.  Is Baileys on alfalfa pellets or timothy pellets?  what about treats- those can be a common cause of “poopy butt”- bunnies with sensitive stomachs sometimes do not tolerate carbohydrates/sugar well- such a fruit, raisins, grain, commercial “pet store” bunny treats.  Is Baileys overweight?  That will hinder grooming.

[jerseygirl]

Can you get his poop tested? Something like coccidiosis might cause this.

[RabbitPam]

I was thinking that you could call the good vet, and possibly send a sample to her to be tested. Might be able to learn more without actually making the trip out there.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I vote diet as well…What are you currently feeding? Ie. how many veggies, how much and what kind of hay and how much pellets and what type?

Also until it gets cleared up, bum baths are a good thing to do. It’s very easy-I just use the sink, fill it with very warm but not hot water, and let the bunny sit in the sink (with hind legs and bum in the sink and front legs resting on the outisde) hold firmly with both hands so your bun knows your there and he’s safe and give a little soak-try for a couple of minutes but even a minute or so is good. Then dry dry dry with a few towels. Brush when it’s mostly dry

[Bunstheboss]

 Hi you all!!! Thnak you sooooo much for all your advice and concern!! Sorry I could not reply before, but I came down with the flu and then being a mom took up most (human and four legged creatures) of my time! Abyway, I have been trying some of your ideas. I used to give them both pieces of apple at night, I cut that down to zero for a while. They eat pellets and alfalfa. I also feed them fresh veggies everyday, I also cut down on that. I cannot say what kind of pellets they are, but here in Argentina they are the only kind I can get… they are made of a mix of vegetables I think. As for hay, I can only get alfalfa. He still has a poopy butt, I will take him to have it removed tomorrow. He has been pooping kind of soft, but nothing close to diarreah. Just the kind of poop that becomes a cake. I am not sure I dare try the bum baths. I’m afraid I might drop him or something! Not that skillful I guess… What surprises me is that Lemoncello, who eats exactly the same diet, is always clean! I guess they digest food differently. Anyways, I’ll keep you posted on our progress! Again, thank you bunny guys!!!!!

[MooBunnay]

Unfortunately I’m pretty sure that the alfalfa is causing the issue – it sounds like you have tried to get something else, but you haven’t been able to find anything other than alfalfa? Alfalfa could definitely cause poopy butt in an adult rabbit. It is really only recommended for baby rabbits under a year old. Are there any farms around where you live? I would think that anyone that has horses might be able to tell you where to get hay other than alfalfa. Have you tried hings like ebay or amazon.com? I checked Oxbow but they don’t sell in Argentina yet.

[Bunstheboss]

 OK, so after intense search I could get two options: 1) hay, pure, 100% hay. I was told that it is what is used as a horse’s bed. 2) what they call here ‘pasture’. They feed horses on this. It is a mixture of hay, plus alfalfa, plus other (couldn’t specify exactly which) vegetables. Which one should I feed my babies? 

Thanks for any ideas!

 

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