Stasis, blockage or bloat?

[Suzeliza]

Hi I hope someone can help me stop worrying myself sick 🙁
This morning Betty didn’t want breakfast and was very listless. Our rabbit vet is a 2 hour drive away and here in France we are in lockdown. She also really freaks out in the car so I decided to take her to our other nearer vet. She’s pretty good, treats all our other pets and has a lot of rabbit experience but is mainly a cats and dogs vet.
She checked Betty’s temperature, ears, teeth and palpated her abdomen. She said it was her transit and gave her pain relief, prescribed motility drugs, probiotics and critical care
I gave Betty some baby gas drops too and as she hadn’t eaten by lunchtime we started critical care syringe feeding. It’s now night time and we gave her meds, another 15mls critical care but she’s still not pooped and is really listless, hiding under the sofa.
So I’m terrified that as she’s not pooping she has a blockage. I rang the vet earlier and said I was worried and she assured me there’s no blockage. How long does it take before a rabbit starts pooping if they have stasis? And is it better to give frequent smaller syringe feeding sessions or bigger ones to get things moving?

Also can force feeding create bloat?

thank you

[DanaNM]

It can take some time for the poops to come (sometimes days). I would go for the amount and frequency of feeding your vet recommended. A 15 mL feeding (3-4 times a day) is on par with what my vet has recommended, so that doesn’t sound odd to me. My vet is super rabbit experienced. He has also told me that even if a partial blockage is suspected, he will syringe feed to try to push it through. Rabbit GI tracts are like conveyor belts: if there isn’t anything going in, nothing will come out.

I do not know of any cases where force feedings have caused bloat. How does her belly feel? Often with stasis there is a build up of gas because things are moving so slowly. I go back to this article often: http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

Especially this quote: “It is essential that the caretaker faced with a rabbit in GI stasis be patient, allowing the treatments and medications to work. Rabbits are easily stressed, and excessive handling should be avoided. It may take several days before any fecal pellets are seen, and it may take two weeks or more of motility therapy before the intestine is moving normally again. We know of one case in which a rabbit produced no fecal pellets for 14 days, but finally did respond to gentle, consistent administration of the above treatment regimen. Patience and persistence are key.”

I of course don’t know what’s going on with your rabbit, but with true stasis, it’s important to keep with the supportive care and be patient. Recovery can be very slow sometimes, but additional aggressive treatments can make things worse.

How do her ears feel? If they feel cold she might appreciate a warm bottle wrapped in a towel to snuggle with. Was her temp OK at the vet?

. . . 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.  

[Suzeliza]

Thank you so much for your advice. I gave her a little more CC in the middle of the night and stoked up the fire to keep her warm. I just went to check on her this morning she’s hopping about, nibbling hay and had a few poops! I’m so relieved and happy my vet although not a bunny specialist knew what she needed.

The linked article is really useful for the future thanks!

 

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

I’m sorry that I have no advice to add to this, but I hope Betty gets well soon!

[Suzeliza]

Thank you Ellie

[Jadeo09]

 

I have had the same issue. When my rabbit goes into stasis we cant feed her critical care because of the gas and had to get grain free pellets to soak which caused less gas.

Maybe your rabbit has a slight intolerance to grain?

Her gas was so severe it lasted months. We had better success with grinding down her hay fine but not a powder. This is digested more slowly so as not to cause gas (similar to flour vs wholemeal flour in humans) It also is bulkier and helps things pass through better apparently.

You may find if you add longer strands of hay into your critical care for syringe feeding it blocks the syringe. What I found best was to mix it as normal with warm water and then roll it into balls and my rabbit loved them.

Simethicone, light belly rubs and vibrations are a God send if they have gas.

We got a tiny vibrating device that was small enough for her to sit on. And she used to sit on it so I’m assuming it must have felt nice.

 

Here is an article quite by galens garden un the UK regarding syringe feeding and about the increased hay length being beneficial for gut motility if you can manage to get it down them. Sometimes even when syringe feeding causes gas it’s still necessary if they arent eating themselves.

 

 

“Indigestible (lignified) fibres should be at least 2.5mm in length to ensure the good gut motility essential for the wellbeing of the rabbit.  Even beneficial lignified or indigestible fibre, if ground too finely, will pass through the digestive system as carbohydrate or energy as opposed to the type of fibre which acts to move the other food through the gut in a healthy manner.”

https://galensgarden.co.uk/herbivore-nutrition/syringe-feeding/

 

Good luck

Jade

[Suzeliza]

thank you so much for your advice. It’s always so worrying when they are sick. 

My bunnies don’t have pellets and Betty has never had a problem with hay. My vet says it’s because of the time of year, the wild greens I gave her were too rich. She wants me to feed her only hay for a few days then reintroduce fresh food one by one and in much smaller quantities.

I’m glad you managed to find the cause of your bun’s recurring stasis too!

[DanaNM]

You’re welcome! I’m so happy to hear she is on the mend!

Seeing a bun nibbling hay after a stasis episode is just about the best feeling in the world.

. . . 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.  

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