Thinking of rehoming

[MiNinoJack]

I’m so upset right now.

I love my little boy bun. He makes me so happy and he’s bonded to me. But he’s having increasing occurrences of stasis and is very difficult to handle. I can barely medicate him and it is extremely stressful for him and me.

I don’t think I’m the right owner for this rabbit.

I have had him for 2 1/2 years and they have been mostly happy, but in the past 4 months he’s been hospitalized for stasis 3 times and has had 2scary episodes at home. One just now at 2am. I was able to get him in his carrier and after a failed attempt at a bunny burrito in a room he doesn’t know, I squirted the metacam and simethicone on his face so he kicked it up. He’s eating hay now, but hasn’t tried to poo yet. I think we’re out of the woods though…

I just am freaking out because I work long hours, don’t have much money and am terrible at handling this difficult rabbit. My vet even tells me how hard he is to medicate. He’s cost me thousands in the last couple of months and I have nothing left in my savings.

I’m considering calling the rescue I got him from and asking them to find him a more experienced owner that can handle a stasis prone rabbit. I just don’t think I’m good at caring for him in the way he needs.

Has anyone else been in this situation where they just don’t think they can be the the best bunny mom for their little one?

[Sirius&Luna]

What a stressful situation! Have you been able to identify any triggers for the stasis episodes? Lots of people find that really simplifying the diet – little or no pellets and little to no vegetables can really help stasis prone buns.
It’s a shame the rescue didn’t warn you that he might have special needs, but I guess they might not have known if he hadn’t been there long.

[MiNinoJack]

He wasn’t “special needs” until a few months ago. His diet is very restricted. No veggies, no alfalfa in pellets or treats. Only hay and Timothy pellets. Everyone is baffled as to the trigger.

I just feel overwhelmed. I can’t afford any more emergency vet visits and I’m terrified I’m going to come home one day to him being dead because I wasn’t there to see the signs.

[Bunny House]

Hi, so my bun patches had very bad stasis and almost died, he is still recovering but what we found out is that he has mega colon which explains why he got so bad and why it’s taken so long to recover. He’s on cesapride to keep his colon working and it’s amazing how well it is. He’s always had weird big poops and every vet I told just ignored it but the last vet said he has it which explains everything. He might need longterm(life time) motility meds and I get mine from a huge pharmacy(don’t know where you live but if you’re in the states I can let you know) and it’s $11 a month with $15 overnight shipping and it’s made a world of difference.

Your baby might have a poor working cecum or colon which might need a easy fix with meds. Maybe you can go to a doctor for a second opinion because there is an underlying issue you need to find.

[MiNinoJack]

Yes. I have a great vet, but I will be taking him to a different one soon to get another opinion.

I don’t believe it is megacolon, and neither does my vet, but who knows. I’m just so overwhelmed on what to do.

Thank you for your responses.

[Bunny House]

I know how you feel, I’m still overwhelmed with two of mine sick and the other two being healthy but take a break and go do something fun to get your mind off of it and then come back to it.

An X-ray is an easy way to see if something major is there. Mega colon can also just be a lazy colon and takes time to pass poop. Maybe some others can chime in that have more
Experience. Heck, you guys might just try a motility drug and if it works then you know he has a slow working gi tract. White bunnies with black spots( like yours and mine) share the same gene responsible for megacolon and slow moving gi tracts. I know many of my vets said he didn’t have it but one said he did and sometimes you just have to shop around for vets who care about the details and see if they can set up a payment plan for you.

[Q8bunny]

Agree with above posts. It could be something as simple as tiny daily doses of Zantac to keep his motility up. Nose boops to you both – you’re being a good bunny mom putting him first. *hug*

[Terra]

I’m really sorry to hear of your situation. I also had a difficult to handle rabbit who I just couldn’t get medication into.

Another rabbit of mine had a period of several months where she had repeated stasis. The vet had about given up on her, but I persevered with gut motility drugs and recovery food and it’s now been a good few months since she’s had a tummy ache, let alone stasis. I have no idea if something changed to make it stop, or if it was just one of those things.

I know you didn’t ask for advice about this so feel free to ignore, but there were a couple of things that I found really helped. First, I’ve had much more luck with ranitidine (Zantac) than the other gut motility drugs, and keep on giving them at decreasing doses for a couple of weeks after an episode of stasis seems to help prevent relapse. Second, in acute stasis I’ve found subcutaneous fluids to be helpful in hydrating poop still in the gut to help get things moving again. I’ve had to ask some vets specifically for these, though, otherwise they only give Metacam and emeprid (metoclopramide) or cisapride.

Another thing might be to see if you can find a vet willing to teach you to inject meds into the scruff. It can be far easier than oral, if it’s a suitable route for the med.

Sorry that I don’t have much that’s helpful to say. Best wishes to you both.

[MiNinoJack]

Thank you so much. Those are great ideas. You’re the second to suggest subcutaneous fluids and I have a vet willing to show me.

You guys have given me good ideas to bring up to the vet too.

I don’t actually want to give up my boy. I just get so overwhelmed. We’ve been ok since the last incident (about a week ago), and insurance is kicking in the 10th.

Thanks to you all again for the support.

[Q8bunny]

*hugs*

[Terra]

Thank you for the update. It’s good to hear how you’re doing. I hope your next visit(s) to the vet goes well. It’s obvious that you love your bunny and want the best for him. Remember to try to look after yourself as well

[Bunny House]

I hope everything goes well❤️

[Author]

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