Butt Matts - help!

[Lissa]

angethespaz wrote:

Matsnear the bottom can become very unsanitary and their skin becomeirritated and possibly infected.

OMG. Now I'm worried. Do you happen to know if unkempt bottoms smell different if there is an infection?

 

[angethespaz]

I am only sharing this story to stress the importance of keeping up on the mats.
THIS
IS NOT FOR THE FAINT AT HEART OR TO SCARE ANYONE! I can tell you about what
Kilie and I went through a little over a year ago. Please don't think this is necessarily
what will happen to you. Our case was a little more extreme.

Kilie
is an older bun so she has a harder time keeping her bottom clean.I
normally keep Kilie's tail and bottom trimmed because sometimes poop will stick
or she will get urine on herself. I was doing my weekly trim/inspection and
noticed she had a BIG clump of poop stuck to her fur. So as I am cleaning her
up I noticed that the poop is tangled in a huge mat. (I check her every
week so this wasn't a neglect issue.) The mat in turn was blocking her anus. So
when she urinated it would sit there against her skin and caused an
infection...

Sigh..
this is hard to talk about.

I
was so embarrassed to take her to the vet because I didn't want the vet to
believe that I would not take the up most care for my rabbit. In fact, I had just checked her two days before!! The vet was able
to give her antibiotics and clean the area better than I could have. The vet's
suggestion was to bring her in for a sanitary trim to help prevent this from
happening again. I now check her every other day and in the winter when Kilie's
fur is thick I get her trimmed. The event was so traumatizing for me and the
rabbit - that it is worth it.Plus this can happen very quickly.

As far as warning signs,
usually if she gets a clump you can smell something sour or the cage smells
dirty, when it isn't. But visual inspection is the best thing in my opinion. I
guess my point is no matter how much your bun hates you for check their tail,
it is worth it. I could have lost Kilie because of a mat gone bad.

 

[Lissa]

Wow! Thank you so much for thatinformation. I cannot describe the smell from Iszy's bottomother than saying it is not normal and it is VERY strong. Icut some of the mats of yesterday...as much as I could...and will go atit again tonight. I also washed her bottom up twiceyesterday. It look better this morning. I'm stillworried about the smell. Could it be an infection?

 

[angethespaz]

Good question. I can't say for sure. Does yourbun's bottom look irritated, swollen, or oozing? If so, I would go tothe vet.Another think has your bun's eatting or drink habbitsdecreased? Is Izzy pooping and peeing? Are the poops smaller thanusual? These are things to watch for. You can always take Izzy in for atrim and the vet will make sure everything is okay.Again, Please don'tlet me freak you out. Just one concerned bunny parent toanother.Angethespaz and Kilie "we sure can be stressful littlepets"

 

[angethespaz]

Is it possible you are smelling the sent gland?Buns are always good about keeping that clean either. Kilie's getsfunky everyonce in while.She would kill me if she knew I was talkingabout her bottom to everyone. (laughing)

 

[Lissa]

I know what the scent glands smell like.....:faint::vomit:

But this odor is so much worse. Hm onder:

She is eating, drinking, pooping and peeing as usual.Everything is great except for this problem. While looking ather yesterday I noticed she looked a little uncomfortable all hunchedup. That'swhat prompted me to examineher.It's very hard to tell if her skin is irritatedbecause her fur is so dense.

 

[angethespaz]

Hm. Try brushing her again tonight. Do youtrance her when you brush her? It might make it easier to sneak a peek.I am sure she will be fine. Bunnies can be quite tough.a

 

[Lissa]

It is impossible to tranceIszy. :disgust: She lays pretty calm for me when Ineed her too though so I should have a problem brushing heragain. As far as the mats that are close to the skin, shouldI get some of that detangler stuff from the pet store to work out themats?

 

[Lissa]

Well, I think I got most of the mats out. She looks (and smells) a lot better down there now.

 

[angethespaz]

Oh good! Well give Iszy lots of treats and hugsso she doesn't think you are the enemy. (grin) I bet she feels a lotbetter.A&K

 

[Lissa]

Thank you....you've been very helpful.

 

[angethespaz]

Not a problem! Us bunny people have to stick together.(laughing)A&K "whatever human, get me a carrot!"