Someone help!

[PenelopeBun]

I’m so confused and can’t find any answers anywhere online! Last night around 9pm I noticed Penelope was really lethargic, tired and kept lying down everywhere, she wasn’t interested in her food or water, so naturally I became concerned and sat with her for most of the night. At one point she was grinding her teeth and shaking which scared the life out of me. I eventually went to bed for a few hours only to wake up this morning and she’s eaten all of her food, she’s been pooping fine, she’s very alert and is hopping about everywhere!

What’s going on? Do I still need to take her to the vet?

 

[Augustus&HazelGrace]

I would take her to the vet and have them run some tests just to make sure she is ok.

 

[Preitler]

She might have had gas. That hurts them, but more often than not the problem resolves by itself. One sign are gurgling noises when you put your ear on her side. You can try to give her a tummy massage and some simethicone then ( See this post and thread)

 

[JBun]

If she's acting normally, as well as eating, drinking, and pooping normally now, she could have just had an upset or gassy stomach that has resolved itself. I would keep a close eye on her the next couple of days to make sure she is still feeling alright. If she stops eating again, I will usually try few doses of simethicone gas drops over 3 hours for my rabbits and if they don't start feeling better after that I get them to the vet, particularly if it's been more than 12 hours since they last ate. Or if they develop bloat or severely decline, it's the vet immediately.
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html (gas drops dosing info)
https://rabbit.org/vet-listings/

 

[PenelopeBun]

I ended up taking her to the vet and they couldn’t find anything wrong with her and put it down to gas! What a night that was, they defiantly know how to scare us don’t they!

 

[JBun]

Yes they do! I'm glad she was ok.

 

[DeeNtheBuns]

Definitely sounds like gas to me! My bunnies have all done that at one time or another- some rather frequently.

First, try to think of any food she has eaten that day that was different. If she had the same food as always, obviously it wasn't related to that. Often there is no obvious reason for it.

As JBun said, simethicone is good to have on hand. It is infant gas medicine and you can buy it over the counter at most stores in the baby medicine section. Once you notice your bunny acting uncomfortable, pick her up and give her 1ml of simethicone. You can give her 1 ml oerhour for the first three hours, then 1ml every 3 hours for the next 8 hours. The medicine is not absorbed so you can't really overdose them.

You also want to keep your bunny warm during gas bouts, as the pain can make them go into shock, which causes their body temp to drop. Often a bunny in pain will have cold ears- that means they need to be warned up ASAP.

One more thing you can do is massage your rabbit's belly. I also jiggle their bellies with my hand- it seems to help soothe/distract them and get the gas bubbles moving. You can often feel the big bubbles moving through their stomachs.

I'm glad your bunny is fine now. It was actually a good thing because now you will be prepared for it happening again. Of course I mean sometime in the future, not that it's likely to become a regular occurrence!