Sick bunny – big weight lose-help

[Dina]

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My bunny is 5 years old and I’ve been having problems with her health since 27.12.17. First she stoped eating and pooping, i took her to the  vet and after it was ok for maybe 14 days. Then she started peeng blood and vet give us antibiotic (they helped with pee but were bad for stomach.) After i stoped giving her antibiotic she stoped eating again. I’v took her to the vet again and it was very bad GI (vet didn’t know if she’s going to make it). I took her to the vet everyday for 16 day to get her medicine but eating wasn’t better i had to force feed her the whole time and i stil have to. So after her stomach supposed to be better vet said she needs teeth trim (that was on 21.2.) and today she still doesn’t eat all by her self. I feed her 4 times a day and she eats a little bit of veggies but no hay or pellets. I need advice how to deal with this, she already lost 700g (24.6 ounces) in 2 months. I need someone to give me advice how to deal with this, vets in my country are not really bunny experts and I cant ask nobody for advice because bunnys are not really common in here. Please help me. Did someone have this problem? 

I am also sorry for my bad English

Thank you for your help

Dina & Nana (bunny)

[Muchelle]

Hello Dina, don’t worry about English!

Weight loss is common when the bun is not well. Mine lost up to 800gr during his last sickness.
Coming out of GI problems can be very hard, and the added stress of the daily vet trips probably did not help. You need to be very patient and keep going with an organized plan.
I’m going to ask a few questions to better help you and Nana:

– Is she still taking any medicines right now?
– What are you force feeding her? Critical Care? Or are you using a home made mixture?
– How much are you feeding her every time?
– Is she drinking by herself?
– Is she not interested in food or is she trying to eat hay/pellets but fails?
– Are you giving her massages to help her guts?
– Did she already receive the teeth trimming?

Sorry for the many questions, but I guess it’s going to be easier to have all the info

[Dina]

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Hi and thank you for your anwser

– she gets vitamins and pain madication (i give her last pain med today) everyday 1x day – im planning to visit her vet on tuesday for a check up 

– i force feed her with  mix of Science Selective  pallets +  goVet® Gastroplex (i got that by the vet) +Power Flake Parsley-Mix and Rice flakes & vegetables those are only good thing i can buy here and she use to like it, i cant get  Critical care in my country  

– i feeded her every 4-6h with 9-12ml of mix(last 3 days) before that more offten, but today i started again on 2-3h with same mix

– i give her some water while feeding but she does drink by her self but not as much as before

– she is now eating small amound of veggies, little hay and some treats, she smell food but looks like she is testing it, her poops are small and dry

– she had her teeth trimmed on 21.2.18 with gas anestetic

– i give her massages while feeding and cuddling, her tummy is soft

i’m worried because her weight los, thank god was se a little bit fat before so now she has her ideal weight (vet said so) but 700g in 2 months is a lot for her size. She hates force feeding its like a battle everytime and im scared that im going to hurt her. 

[Katie]

I cannot say that I have had this experience or anything like it, but when I read your post I thought of a product that I have head of that might help. They also have some other supplements you might want to look at but I think these ones might help out your bun. Hope this helps, and Best of Luck.
https://store.sherwoodpethealth.com/sarx-rescue/
https://store.sherwoodpethealth.com/sarx-rabbit/

[Dina]

THANK YOU!! i will look into it and try to find it here. Thank youu!!!

[Muchelle]

Seems like you’re doing an awesome job so far. At this stage it’s normal that her poops are smaller, but if they’re very dry it means she’s not as hydrated as she should be. If she has a bottle, switch her to a bowl for the time being, she’ll drink more willingly. Keep giving her a some ml of just water after you’ve force fed her. Keep note of how much she drank by herself, so you’ll be able to see if she starts drinking more.

Since she’s received a trimming, it can be she’s still sore in her mouth so she should be starting to eat more confidently by herself once the pain goes away.

Keep up the good massages. To be safe, avoid giving her sugary foods (carrot, fruits) until her GI problems are cleared and poop resumes coming out consistently. Also… don’t be afraid when you feed her. Have a firm hold on her, if she feels you are unsure she will fight it even more. It’s hard, but you’re doing all of this for her good, she will forgive you once it’s all done

[Dina]

thank you for all youre help!!

she is drinking more today and also started peeing in her toilet she looks a lot better, but im still taking her for check up on tuesday

THANK YOU!!!

[Luna]

Do you have access to alfalfa hay? That might entice her to eat hay, and it will also help her gain some healthy weight. I fed Luna alfalfa hay when she lost weight after an ear infection and it helped a lot .

[Dina]

I didint see it in the store but i will look for it online maybe i can buy it there. Thank you for the information!!!

[Dina]

it’s been 5 days since her teeth trimming and she is still doesnt eat good bye her self. I still have too force feed her every 3h she is trying too eat little hay and paletts but not enough her poops are also still small i called her vet and we are going for a check up tomorow how long can this take? i dont know what else should i do im going to work on thursday and wont be able to feed her every 3h :S

[Bam]

It shouldn’t take more than five days. That’s how long it took for my bunny Yohio after his first molar burr. He didn’t eat by himself until I got the vet to prescribe some Metacam for him, apparently his gums were sore. He’d sit with his nose in the water bowl, perhaps in an effort to ease his discomfort. My vet was unwilling at first.

[Dina]

i dont have pain meds anymore. i only get them for 3 days :/ i’m taking her to the vet tomorow mornig first thing. I’m scared because i have to go back to work and i wont be able to feed her every 3h. I need her to start eating at least enough for her to wait for me to come home :'( 

[Wick & Fable]

One of Wick’s molar trims irritated a tooth infection so we had to begin treatment for that. That’s also a potential possibility?

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.

[Dina]

it could be. Vet said that te GI was coused because of her teeth primary, something like that but we had to wait for teeth trim because she was on antibiotics. I literally have to lock her in her cage so she goes in her toilet and eat hay or at least try. If i let her in my room she goes in her corner and sleep. But now she is in her cage for 40min and she did drink water and is eating hay on her own a little. also  today i fed her a bit more then usually (15ml of food + water + metaclopramide 0,1ml and i give her 50min massage and cuddles). She had it all in 2 months, blood in Urine, bad GI and her teeth trimmed. My poor girl  

[Luna]

If it seems like she is more likely to eat when she is locked in her cage, maybe you could test it again (not suggesting you lock her up all day or anything) before you go to work Thursday to see if that really is the case? That way, at least you know if she’s likely to eat or not while you’re gone, and if not then would it be possible to return home on your lunch break to feed her real quick?

I’m sorry she’s been through so much in 2 months .

[Dina]

i took her to the vet today, he give her pain meds and metaclopramide. She weights 2000g now, 2 months ago she was 2850g, she is now under weight yet but rapid loss is the problem i asked about xray but they dont do that in my city i would have to take her to the other part of the country :/ i will do it if needed but i dont know how she will react on driving so long. She is more active today and goes eating little hay every once i a while and her poop are a bit bigger. Vet said i should force feed her couple times a day and let her try to eat alone when she is hungy. he also said it could take he 14 days to get back to normal since rabbits are not common pets in here and most die before they are 5 years old , was vet surprised that she is over 5 years old and taken care so good. we are fist familiy that brought bunny back for treatment everyday and we still do and she is best managed rabbit in his work history
now i have to wait and see how she is going to act
I roderd Oxbow essentials food and all support tablets oxbow i could find online.

Thank you for all your help !

[Luna]

Glad to hear she is improving . Any little bit in the right direction is good. She is lucky to have you.

[Dina]

Thank you all for your help! <3

[LittlePuffyTail]

Hope your little bun is herself again soon. I agree: lucky to have you for her bun-parent.

[Dina]

thank you!! I hope she i getting better soon

[Author]

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