Take a look at these poos

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PhoenixTheMiniLop

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These are the poos Phoenix did just before... She is due to have blood taken on Tuesday and it's after hours at the vet now so will be a lot to take her in. I know she's not well, she's not herself in anyway :(
Do you think she will be ok?? I rang the vet and the lady said if she stops eating and drinking then to take her in
 
You could have a stool sample checked for coccidiosis. Its a fairly common parasite rabbits can get that effects their gut.
 
The vet checked the poo last week for that and couldn't find it cause that's what he thought it was too so she is getting blood taken so he can find out what the problem is.
I'm just scared for her, she's very quiet and not her active self :(
 
Remind me what her exact diet is now(type and amount of hay, pellets, veg, herbs, forage, and any treats), and has it been the same since you got her? Have you made any changes in that time?
 
When I got Phoenix the breeder gave me a bag of food to take home to feed her that she was already being fed which was a mix of pellet (unsure of what sort), oats and seeds of some sort. I heard that she should've been having pellets without all them things added so I got her oxbow alfalfa pellets for young rabbits. She didn't like them and would refuse to eat them so I went and purchased rabbit origins by vetafarm (was told they would be ok) but I would add half and half of each pellet to entice her to start eating her alfalfa pellets and then she started to so I took away the origins but give them as a treat occasionally.
She has unlimited oaten hay which she loves but about a week and a half ago or so I stopped feeding her pellets as she had abnormal poos and something wrong in her stomach so I was told to give her hay so she could get heaps of fibre. I started her pellets back either yesterday or the day before but not many, don't want to give her heaps to start off with.
I haven't introduced veggies to her yet, especially why she is having tummy problems.
Does this all sound ok to you Jbun??
 
Did her fecal poop look better before you started adding pellets back in or did she still have odd fecal poop even when she was on a hay only diet? Did she appear to feel any better on a hay only diet? Does your oaten hay have many mature seed heads in it, or pieces of grain? Has she ever been put on any medications, and if so which ones?

One thing to be aware of with coccidiosis, is that the test can sometimes not show anything even though a rabbit may be infected, especially if it is hepatic coccidiosis. Generally the most accurate results will be when a 3 day fecal sample is tested, but even with a negative fecal test, it may be worth it to go ahead and treat for coccidiosis if no other cause is found. There is also a fecal test that can be done to test for e. coli being the cause. That might be worth discussing with your vet as well.
http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Parasitic/Coccidiosis_Hedgehog.htm
http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Parasitic/Hepatic_coccidiosis_rabbits.htm
http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Bacterial/Colibacillosis.htm
 
Even on a only hay diet her poo stayed the same, it's strange. She would have normal crumbly pellet poos then they would go real black and moist then a little bit of a diarrhoea and it would just always change it would never be a specific way. They would also change in sizes quite often.
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That is the order, as you can see they are getting worst but then in between all of that happening she would do normal poos as well. This is what is confusing me.
She has never been on any medication. The vet did test for that and it didn't show up but blood tests will hopefully help!

Sorry for the long post, just thought some pictures would be good to show you.
 
She was a bit more active before we re-introduced the pellets back into her diet. But she has just been getting less active as the days go on... Doesn't binky anymore, doesn't run around the room. When she is let of her x-pen she will go sit somewhere under the bed.
Her poo now is quite smelly (the black and moist ones) and her bum is a bit smelly too.
I've noticed some mature seed heads in her hay as well but there isn't a lot and no grain.
 
If it were me, I think I would go back to no pellets for now. I would also pick out as many seed heads from the hay, as possible. The mature grain heads will be adding carbs into her diet, and that can contribute to her digestive difficulties. It might even be worth switching to a non grain grass hay, provided she will eat another kind well, as it could also be the oat hay itself contributing to the problem. Some rabbits can be sensitive to certain types of hay. You will also want to closely monitor her weight to ensure she isn't losing weight. One thing that can contribute to weight loss on an all hay diet, is if the hay doesn't contain enough leafy bits, that contain the majority of the protein and nutrients.

I personally would want to treat for cocci and e. coli if it were my bun. The tear drop shape of some of her poop, I have seen a few times when it has been one of these. And I would want to get that medication started today.

Another much rarer possibility, is a digestive disorder called megacolon, also sometimes called cow pile syndrome. It's quite rare, but it can cause these types of symptoms as well. But there is no cure and it is mostly managed with diet and medication. I have one rabbit that has a mild case of it, and I am able to manage his just by diet. He has odd shaped poop, and how 'normal' it is, is very dependent on his diet. There are much more severe cases of megacolon, that are much more difficult to manage. So just something to keep in mind if no other cause is found.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/Differential/mega_differential.htm
 
Ok I will remove pellets from her diet and just continue on with fresh unlimited hay. What is a good non grain grass hay that you can recommend? And do I have to gradually transition her off oaten hay and onto another hay? And I will keep checking her weight.
It just so happens that the pet shop has run out of oaten hay (I still have a little left) so I've had to go purchase oaten chaff in case she runs out, is this ok until I can get more hay?? Not many people sell oaten hay and the one that does is having trouble getting it into the shop.
To to take her to the emergency vet would be $120 up front for a consultation, do you think its possible to wait until Tuesday? Or do you think this is a very serious thing and should be attended to tonight?

Thank you for that information Jbun, I'll keep that in mind and let my vet know that as well so he's aware.
 
It might be good to try some Bene-bac probiotics, you can get some for rabbits in most pet stores and online. It might help and its really safe so it can't hurt.
 
Ok thanks for that squidpop.
What exactly is bene-Bac? I've seen it written in quite a lot of threads but not sure exactly what kind of probiotic it is?
 
I don't know exactly which bacteria are in bene-bac but it says this on the instructions— "Supplying Bene-Bac® Plus with the 7 different bacteria may help to re-establish the correct gut pH so the natural flora can again grow." I trust it because someone who worked at a rabbit rescue for years and years said they used it all the time even on baby bunnies only a few days old and it helped them survive- so seems really safe.
 

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