Anyone else have a rabbit prone to gas?!

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Katie94

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It seems I have a very gas prone bunny he had an episode on Sunday and then another one last night which resulted in a vet trip this morning after he went 12 hours not wanting to eat. Since going to the vet he is eating again but I have no idea what’s causing it. So my question is if anyone else has gas prone bunnies how do you prevent it? Is there anything you completely avoid feeding altogether? There haven’t been any sudden diet changes or anything which could have caused stress to cause it so I feel at a bit of a loss? Any advice much appreciated.
I do have baby gas drops on hand but I’m hoping I can find the problem and prevent it rather than having to cure it everytime.
 
Different rabbits have different sensitivities to foods. Certain types of greens or certain pellet brands (or any/all pellets) could be the culprit. You may have to play detective and reduce/eliminate certain items to figure out the problem. @JBun may have suggestions as to where to best start (which food type may be more likely to be the cause).
 
It seems I have a very gas prone bunny he had an episode on Sunday and then another one last night which resulted in a vet trip this morning after he went 12 hours not wanting to eat. Since going to the vet he is eating again but I have no idea what’s causing it. So my question is if anyone else has gas prone bunnies how do you prevent it? Is there anything you completely avoid feeding altogether? There haven’t been any sudden diet changes or anything which could have caused stress to cause it so I feel at a bit of a loss? Any advice much appreciated.
I do have baby gas drops on hand but I’m hoping I can find the problem and prevent it rather than having to cure it everytime.
Lümi is also prone to gases, but in my case the culprit of this is my mum-she gives the boys way too much suspicious/sugary/gascreating foods such as carrot, cabbage, beet, grain products, and the recentmost addition-super crappy pellets with pretty much no fibre and too much protein. I found those laying around in both boys' enclosures and as a result Storm was sluggish and slow for the remainder of today, and Lümi just perked up from it after two rounds of gas drops and so much belly rubs as he could tolerate. I believe he just has a slightly weaker organism.
Other than that, i can't think of anything else. My mum won't listen to anything i or dad say so it is just my responsibility as a proper bunny parent to cure and monitor their symptoms.
 
I’m going to stop his treats for the time being so he only gets his hay, pellet allowance and green veggies- minus any broccoli and cabbage as they are definitely gassy. Vet seemed happy with his diet and was happy when he examined him that there was nothing causing an issue. If it keeps happening a lot we might have to go looking for the problem with more tests so hope it doesn’t come to that a little worried about him.
 
I’m going to stop his treats for the time being so he only gets his hay, pellet allowance and green veggies- minus any broccoli and cabbage as they are definitely gassy. ...we might have to go looking for the problem with more tests .

What I was trying to convey was that even on a "normal" diet of hay, limited pellets, and greens, it may be that something in that diet is causing the problem. If he continues to have problems on this diet, then I would look to reduce pellets to see if that helps. I don't know that I'd go stressing him with more tests until I've ruled out dietary issues. There are some rabbits that simply won't tolerate pellets of any kind. There are also some highly sensitive to just about any green.
 
Okay I see what you are saying now all episodes have been after eating veggies so this might be a good starting point. I might try serving smaller portions throughout the day and alternate leaving some out and see if that makes any difference with him.
 
When you change something, keep that same change for a few days to monitor any effects. In other words, if you cut out green leaf lettuce one day, don't cut out something different the next day or you won't be able to know which one is making the difference. Do the same for a few days to see if there is any effect. If there is not, then switch to something else for a few days.
 
Testing will only work if it's a non dietary cause, such as kidney or liver problems, mass, infection, abnormality of the bowel, stuff like that. But if you are thinking it's dietary, best way to find out is eliminating possible offending foods from the diet. This way you should be able to determine which is the problem food. Though if it doesn't seem to be dietary, definitely get tests done.

Common culprits are ones Blue eyes mentioned, but other things to consider are veggies that have started to go bad can cause upset, hay that has mold in it or weeds, some buns can be sensitive to certain types of hay such as rich early growth leafy hay, pellets that have gone bad or a new batch that might be contaminated in some way. I would first look at if anything new was started just prior to all of this happening. A new veggie added, a veggie fresh from the store possibly sprayed with a chlorine wash or something to help it stay fresh, a new bag of pellets opened up, a new bag or bale of hay, anything new added to the environment, if your rabbit is let outdoors it can be all sorts of things from outside.

If you think it's the veggies you can either go about eliminating one at a time or stop all veggies for a week or two to make sure the veggies are the culprit and he's doing good with no signs of upset, then gradually add them back in slowly one at a time. I would probably go for stopping all veggies then adding back in, just so you know for sure if it's the veggies or not, and so if it is that you don't have to deal with another upset stomach so soon after the last one. When you do start adding veg back in, I would do so very gradually, one at a time, and giving it a week or more of very gradually increasing, watching for any sign of upset soon after feeding. If he seems ok with that one veg being gradually increased after a week or so, then try adding in a new veg.
 
Thank you both I’m wondering if I’ve bought a dodgey pack of veggies or something this week now as he hasn’t really eaten anything new or in abnormally large quantities. His first episode of gas was quite a few months ago now back in March so hopefully if it was something else other than diet it would have bothered him again before now. I think I’ll just go to the supermarket and start fresh and keep to the none gassy veggies. As he is more sensitive he could be reacting even though the others aren’t.
 
My BB has had at least 100 pain episodes - anorexia, clear abdominal pain. We tried a hay diet with a few pellets for a few weeks and then gradually adding some herbs. We also got rid of everything she could be eating that she shouldn't - mats, cardboard, etc. It helped but, unfortunately, she still gets the episodes. We have had all tests possible including two CT scans. No cause found (although the first scan showed some inflammation of the pancreas). I drew the line at exploratory surgery. If it's any consolation, she is now 9 years old and 99% of the time she is happy. We manage the episodes at home with painkiller and gut stimulants but take her to the vet if she doesn't eat for 4-6 hours. I give her small bits of food several times a day so I know right away when she's not feeling well. I immediately give her Metacam, cisapride, emeprid, simethicone and gently massage her belly. Normally she starts feeling better after 2-3 hours.
 
Thank you for sharing @Diane R that really gives me hope that it’s not the end of the world. It scared me to death the first time it happened I thought he was dying it’s horrible when they don’t want to eat and also look in pain. I now keep gas drops on hand to help and tummy massage has worked very well before too. I suppose as long as I am prepared we can manage it we give our bunnies lots of cardboard to chew but I think I will remove that just in case he’s eating it and it’s not agreeing with him!
 
Yes, I know exactly how stressful it can be... I hope it doesn't happen again of course but if it does I recommend a visit to an expert rabbit vet and some thorough investigations. I would also ask to have painkiller and gut stimulants in stock as a bunny in pain will not eat. Yes, definitely get rid of the cardboard. List of rabbit vets here: Rabbit Friendly Vet List
 
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