bun being slow and not as active as before

[Abi :)]

hi! recently Duke has been noticeably slow and not as active. He has been eating his pellets and some of his veggies (him and Bambi are both quite picky eaters with veggies so I was offering him his favourites which he was eating). Hay is always topped up daily and I see him in the litter box nibbling on some every now and then, and as far as I know he is drinking water normally. He's been like this for the past week or so but in between he became completely normal so I didn't take him to the vet.

When I let them out Bambi runs out and sniffs around while Duke hangs back in the hutch area. He doesn't seem to be in pain, he lets me stroke him and I tried massaging his stomach incase it was a gas related issue. I'm going to call the vet in the morning but they will probably only have appointments in a couple of days, in the mean time any advice on what to do?

 

[FuzzyBunny ph]

hmm is he a senior bun? my oldest bun started to get lazy when she turned 7.
Do you have direct contact with your vet? Maybe you can ask what to do first until you can get an appointment

 

[JBun]

Unusual changes of behavior can indicate a health problem. But it could be any variety of things, from dental issues to something else internal going on. It's important to make sure he continues eating and drinking as normally as possible until you can get him checked by a knowledgeable rabbit vet. But if at any point you're concerned he's not doing well, stops eating/drinking or isn't eating much, or starts to deteriorate, I would find an emergency rabbit vet to get him seen immediately.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-...abbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/
https://rabbit.org/gastrointestinal-stasis-the-silent-killer-2/

 

[Abi :)]

Update: we got an emergency appointment a couple of hours ago and the vet said Duke probably has some digestive issues, they gave us some meds to give three times a day and said if he doesn't come back to normal afterwards we should go in again. Also they noticed his teeth were growing long and hitting his tongue possible causing some discomfort, the vet gave us some pain meds and told us that the teeth weren't so bad that they didn't need filing yet and if he didn't seem interested in food in the next 21 days we should return and they'll file them down. Any thoughts on the teeth issue? He's a fairly young bun around 2 years old, we adopted him around last year and were told his teeth were amazing! But something must've changed in the last couple of months...

For now I'll keep an eye on him and give the meds as the vet advices, in the mean time does anyone have any advice on dental issues with rabbits? This is my first encounter with them and if someone had any useful articles/advice that would be very helpful!

 

[FuzzyBunny ph]

Any thoughts on the teeth issue? He's a fairly young bun around 2 years old, we adopted him around last year and were told his teeth were amazing! But something must've changed in the last couple of months...

I would've had them trimmed already since it was hitting his tongue. When I first experienced this issue, I wasn't prepared for the surgery cost so I asked what alternatives I could do and our vet said to give more hay (which he already had lots of). Not sure if it helped 'cause he died of EC the following month :'(

My other bun though, had dental issues at 2yrs old also, that was back in 2019. I had them trimmed as he was getting mouth sores on the tongue already. No dental trim needed since then

 

[JBun]

Was it the incisors or the molars, or both?

After these meds, if he doesn't get back to normal,, I would get him back in sooner than later. It may be the teeth are what's bothering him and getting them burred down needs to be done to help him feel better.

 

[Abi :)]

I would've had them trimmed already since it was hitting his tongue. When I first experienced this issue, I wasn't prepared for the surgery cost so I asked what alternatives I could do and our vet said to give more hay (which he already had lots of).

Thanks for the advice! The pain and digestion meds the vet gave us have been working wonders so far, we can slowly see him bouncing back to normal! I think I'll definitely be going back to the vet after the meds are done for a checkup and consultation about the teeth so hopefully the vets can tell us the costs and how it'll work.

Was it the incisors or the molars, or both?

After these meds, if he doesn't get back to normal,, I would get him back in sooner than later. It may be the teeth are what's bothering him and getting them burred down needs to be done to help him feel better.

Pretty sure it was the incisors... So far he's been a lot better so fingers crossed he returns to normal soon! Will definitely return to the vets to ask more information about the teeth.

Thank you both