I understand I might be doing something incorrect, I’m genuinely trying to give this bunny the best life I can and would appreciate kind education.
I don’t really remember exactly when it started, but several months ago I noticed that my rabbit’s bum was really messy. Messy as in his feet, legs, genitals, tails, and whole back behind his tail were stained brownish. I did some googling and out of all of the causes mentioned, I figured it was obesity. I was feeding him WAY too many pellets – 1 cup a day when he’s meant to have 1/4 – 1/3 cup – and immediately began reducing them over a period of a week. I was providing cardboard boxes to him but he would soil them and then sit in it, making him even MORE messy, so I removed those. Even though he doesn’t hang out in the litterpan except to use the bathroom, I also switched litters to something much more absorbent (horse pine pellets) and put a grate over the litter so he doesn’t have access to sit in waste.
He would go through periods of being less messy, to having to get bum baths every day; none of the changes have really effected the frequency of when he’s messy and not messy. This past month he’s suddenly downturned and has started to lose a lot of weight, you can feel his spine, ribs, and hip bones. His hip bones are prominent while loafing. The weight loss has been pretty sudden, he went from normal to deeply concerning in a month. His poops are normal and I 100% believe he is messy because of cecotropes and urine, I’ve been paying a closer eye on his litterbox habits and I have noticed his urine streams aren’t as strong and are more stop and go though (strong initial stream – pause – weaker second stream) I can’t say if he’s always been like that as I’ve never payed attention before. I’ve done some more googling and it sounds very very similar to Cecal Dysbiosis, and based on what I found I put him on a hay only diet 2 weeks ago. Previously he would smush a bunch of cecotropes into one big pile and then just sit in it and I’ve seen a lot less of that but it’s not drastically reduced how fast he gets messy.
He is three years old, unfixed, and eats oxbow rabbit essentials and oxbow orchard grass. His cage is a dog kennel with a solid pan flooring. I live in a state that doesn’t have very good human or pet healthcare, and especially not exotic healthcare. I booked an appointment with a vet at the start of this month and they couldn’t see us until the 26th, but I’m deeply concerned the vets won’t actually be able to help so I’m posting here in hopes of second opinions before our long awaited appointment. Thanks.
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