Rabbit keeps having bloat/GI issues

[DelawareRunner]

I've had rabbits for most of my life and never had a rabbit have gas/bloat issues so much as one I have now. I adopted two sisters (in avatar) over a year ago, both spayed and healthy. They will be two in August. They are seven pounds each and a lionhead mix. They saw the vet a couple months ago for their booster and exam. Both had a perfect bill of heath. I mentioned to the vet that the gray sister had quite a few rounds of GI issues and I gave her Mylicon and syringed water which always helped. The vet did not find anything wrong with her and she hadn't had the issue for a couple months at that time. Well, they have been shedding a lot this past month and I brush, vacuum, etc. all can to keep them from ingesting it. Ali (gray sister) hides in her box, won't eat/drink, pees on the floor when she gets the GI issues. This last round lasted longer than usual and I had a vet visit planned, but she did start eating again so we did not go. The other sister never has issues. They eat a mostly timothy hay diet with a half cup Oxbow pellets every day and greens every morning. Anyone ever have a rabbit with this issue so often?

 

[JBun]

First things to verify are that your rabbit is maintaining a healthy weight, is eating hay really well, eating other foods normally, and drinking well. If any of these are off, it can help pinpoint the cause of the stasis, such as from a dental issue.

If it coincides with molting, and especially if you're seeing a lot of fur stringing the fecal balls together, then excess fur ingestion and insufficient fiber is the likely cause. If it's happening when your rabbit isn't molting, other likely causes could be a food sensitivity, dental problems, an internal medical issue like post spay adhesions, etc.

https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Gastrointestinal_stasis

Also, rule out stress induced GI stasis, such as from changes to your rabbits environment, loud noises, predators around causing stress, anything you notice that is causing your rabbit to be on edge or unusual changes of behavior. A rabbit being under consistent stress, for whatever reason, can cause an alteration to the gut bacteria and function, setting the conditions for stasis to occur.

The experience I've had with a rabbit having repeated bouts with stasis, was due to a pellet and carb sensitivity. Once he was put on a no pellet/no high carb foods(or sugars) diet, and only was free fed good quality hay, and select greens and forage, he never had problems with stasis again.

If you think it might be food related, pay particular attention to how your rabbit behaves in the 1-2 hours after eating. Look for signs of discomfort or abnormal behavior. I was able to figure it out with my bun because I noticed him eye squinting and repeatedly shifting positions to try and get comfortable, soon after he ate.

If you don't notice signs of discomfort but think it might be related to not enough hay (fiber) being consumed, you could try reducing pellet amounts some, so more hay is consumed. But make sure that hay consumption is really good, fecal balls are a good size, and that no unhealthy weight loss occurs with any change of diet.

Other than those things, if it continues to be a problem, you may need to have your vet do further testing, like an ultrasound, to get a look at what's going on in the gut.

 

[EdwardV]

We have two rabbits, Lola (avatar) is now 11 and has GI stasis about once every two years. Our other rabbit Georgie has never had it. They are both in the exact same environment (food and shelter). Does not make any sense other than her DNA is just prone to GI issues.

I have become sensitive to looking for her to have GI issues. Both of them just went through a massive shedding time and Lola right now is battling some kind of issue. She is having the glumpy poops and some discharge in her eyes. Took her to the vet yesterday and they prescribed and antibiotic and eye drops.

You may benefit from giving your GI stasis prone bunny some probiotics. That seemed to have helped Lola with the GI issues.

 

[DelawareRunner]

Thanks for the advice! I am going to cut back on pellets some and see if that helps. Thankfully, both girls are big hay eaters. I give them Small Pet Select timothy (second cut) with a little bit of orchard. I will also look into probiotics.

 

[EdwardV]

We use. https://www.amazon.com/HealthyGut-Probiotics-for-Rabbits-120/dp/B07TCVKLJ1?th

 

[overhear]

I do think having GI issues are a bit the luck of the draw, as they are for people. That said, after changing my current bunny's diet 2 years ago she's never had another bout of stasis, so diet can make a huge difference.

We changed to a higher quality pellet (Versele Laga complete), and reduced her pellets to 1/4 cup a day. She gets a handful of greens twice a day too, but we eliminated all treats (no more carrots). So basically she spends the whole day happily munching hay.

The one 'treat' she still gets -- which she LOVES -- is a mug of cooled down peppermint tea every night. I have mine at the same time

Maybe it's a coincidence but since making the change she's been completely stasis free.

 

[DelawareRunner]

Peppermint tea? That sounds good! I might have to give my buns some.

 

[overhear]

Peppermint tea? That sounds good! I might have to give my buns some.

Just be sure it's not the caffeinated kind

 

[New2RabbitsDonna63]

I do think having GI issues are a bit the luck of the draw, as they are for people. That said, after changing my current bunny's diet 2 years ago she's never had another bout of stasis, so diet can make a huge difference.

We changed to a higher quality pellet (Versele Laga complete), and reduced her pellets to 1/4 cup a day. She gets a handful of greens twice a day too, but we eliminated all treats (no more carrots). So basically she spends the whole day happily munching hay.

The one 'treat' she still gets -- which she LOVES -- is a mug of cooled down peppermint tea every night. I have mine at the same time

Maybe it's a coincidence but since making the change she's been completely stasis free.

I do think having GI issues are a bit the luck of the draw, as they are for people. That said, after changing my current bunny's diet 2 years ago she's never had another bout of stasis, so diet can make a huge difference.

We changed to a higher quality pellet (Versele Laga complete), and reduced her pellets to 1/4 cup a day. She gets a handful of greens twice a day too, but we eliminated all treats (no more carrots). So basically she spends the whole day happily munching hay.

The one 'treat' she still gets -- which she LOVES -- is a mug of cooled down peppermint tea every night. I have mine at the same time

Maybe it's a coincidence but since making the change she's been completely stasis free.

What a wonderful idea. I am going to try it for my Peaty.