Dewey's not doing well

[minmelethuireb]

My mini rex Dewey suddenly started acting poorly yesterday. I noticed he wasn't eating as much or pooping as much. Then all of a sudden he started kind of flopping down and breathing really fast. He's been breathing fast and laying down a lot.

I took him to an emergency vet last night. They gave him subcutaneous fluids, Meloxicam, and Baytril. They weren't sure what the problem is though, and I'm not sure an antibiotic is a good idea. I'm hoping he'll make it until tomorrow so I can take him to his regular vet.

He seems to be drinking still, and he took a few Oxbow bunny treats.

Dewey is a 7-year-old mini rex who eats 1/2 cup Oxbow pellets, unlimited hay, and a treat every day. He won't touch veggies for some reason.

 

[JBun]

It's hard to know what might be going on until your vet does some tests. I'm sorry he's not feeling well. Hopefully the vet will be able to figure out the cause.

 

[KeltonB]

Hopefully he'll perk up before tomorrow...if not, maybe your vet can get him going again. Positive vibes!

 

[minmelethuireb]

Thanks,

He seems more alert and has been hopping around, cleaning himself, sitting up on his back legs. This is better than last night when he didn't want to move. He's not eating on his own, though. I've been syringe feeding him water mixed with powdered pellets. I'll be taking him to his vet tomorrow.

 

[JBun]

Is he laying down like he's pressing his belly to the floor, with his butt pushed up? If so, he could have GI stasis. Do his poops look really tiny, or are they normal but he's just not pooping as much? Don't you have another bun that just got over cocci? Could be that. I would definitely have his fecals checked.

 

[minmelethuireb]

His poops were really tiny and dry. The other day he was kind of laying with his legs pushed forward, panting. I really thought he was going to die last night. Now he's just been sitting normally. Coccidiosis has occurred to me, though I've read that usually causes watery poops, which is what my other rabbit had - extra wet and covered in mucus. I'll definitely ask them about it though.

 

[JBun]

Ok yeah, he has stasis, but if he's still pooping then he doesn't have a blockage yet, which is good, but he is most likely having stomach pain caused by gas. That's good that you are already giving him metacam. The other thing that really helps is simethicone infant gas relief suspension. You can get it otc at any pharmacy. You will want to give 1cc(20mg/ml) every hour for 3 hours, then once every 3-8 hours if he still seems uncomfortable and isn't eating. The metacam and the simethicone usually will get the pain under control, which helps a rabbit to start eating again on it's own. I don't know that the baytril is the best thing to be giving right now. In some cases when a rabbit has had a blockage for several days, it will be given to get the bad bacteria under control, but it also messes with the good bacteria, which you don't want right now, especially without any probiotics to give along with it. I know it's not usually good to stop antibiotics without giving the whole course, but it's something you may want to consider. Also if you can get him to eat hay and dark green leafy veggies like green leaf lettuce, cilantro, and parsley, would be a lot better for him to be eating than his pellets. But if he isn't eating anything on his own, then you do need to feed something. Plain 100% canned pumpkin(not the spiced pie filling) might be a better choice than pellets. Pellets have sugar and grain that can contribute to the gut imbalance that is causing the stasis. Don't feed any sugary or starchy treats. Syringe feeding amount is around 2-3cc/lb, every 3-4 hours. Also, make sure his body temp is normal and that he doesn't feel cold, before feeding him. If he is, then you can use a warm pack or warm towels to help warm him up. Also tummy massages help, and letting him run around also helps get the gut moving. So try the simethicone, and if it were me, I would be stopping the baytril, as it can sometimes just cause more problems with stasis, and should only be used if really necessary. And try and get him to eat grass hay and leafy greens. Those are really the best things to get the gut moving again. Moisture is really important too, so make sure to syringe water if he's not drinking, and offer a water dish if he only has a bottle.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Sending our prayers.

 

[minmelethuireb]

I just saw him munching hay and pellets. I gave him a dose of infant simethicone about 45 minutes ago. He actually started eating hay a few minutes after that - not sure if it helped that quick or what. I think his poops might have stopped though. I'm keeping a close eye on him.

 

[JBun]

That's really good that he's eating hay again. You also will want to reduce pellets some. I had a bunny that wasn't eating the other day too. Gave her metacam and simethicone, with in a couple hours she was back to eating again. I'm not sure if she ate something that upset her stomach while she was out playing or what, but I did decrease her pellet amount a little, just in case it was having too many carbs in her diet, since it I don't feed her treats that could have caused it. It's always such a relief when they start eating again.

 

[minmelethuireb]

Yep, I hope he keeps it up and gets better. Thanks for the simethicone dosage info you gave me earlier btw.

 

[minmelethuireb]

Dewey's been making poos! They're more normal looking too. On the left are tiny ones he made this morning, on the right are some he made tonight. (Don't know why this pic is so tiny.)

I'm still concerned about his breathing though. It seems faster and heavier than usual. I'm going to upload a video of it in a bit.

Still taking him to the vet to see if there's some underlying condition causing this.

Video:
http://s2.photobucket.com/user/legolasrules1/media/DSCN0777_zpse641ed4d.mp4.html

 

[JBun]

Those poops do look a lot better. I think you're right, about still wanting to take him into the vet. His breathing did seem pretty labored on the video. Stasis can really be caused by several things. It's not always diet related. An illness can set it off as well, so it's good that you are getting him checked out.

 

[tonyshuman]

I agree with what JBun said. I would want to have the vet take a listen to his lungs and probably have a chest x-ray. Here are some potential causes of labored breathing:
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Differential/respira_diff.htm

Having had a bunny with a thymoma (chest cavity tumor) that caused lower respiratory disease (pneumonia) who essentially went into cardiopulmonary arrest, any changes in breathing should be fully assessed to see what the problem is. Things can go downhill very quickly.

 

[minmelethuireb]

I just got back from the vet. He said Dewey looks absolutely fine today. Heart good, lungs sound good, and he didn't feel any lumps or masses. Dewey has gone back to munching now.

His breathing seemed pretty normal this morning. I compared it to my healthy bunny Lucy and their breathing rate seemed similar.

So I'm supposed to finish his meds, give him the Benebac the vet gave me today, and monitor his weight. He did lose 9 ounces since the last time he was seen - but that was 2 years ago. The vet says that he looks very good and young for a 7-year-old bunny.

So the thought is that he got a little constipated for some reason and the pain was causing the fast breathing. Another thing I forgot to mention is that when he started getting sick he'd do this weird thing where he'd suddenly rush to the litter box and just kind of squat in there.

So here's hoping that he stays okay and doesn't go downhill again.

 

[minmelethuireb]

As I feared he would, Dewey took a turn for the worse, right when the vets close on Saturday. Yesterday he seemed fine, with a good appetite and pooping. Yesterday evening I left to visit my parents. I came back today and it looked like he hadn't eaten or pooped at all since I'd left. I gave him some lettuce and he munched on that a little bit. I also syringe fed him some pellets mixed with water and gave him a dose of simethicone. I'm really worried that he just has some terminal issue the vets didn't find. My husband says we can't afford the emergency vet again, so I just have to nurse him until Monday. I'm SO stressed out, and I don't know what to do. If it's cancer or something like that we can't afford to treat that anyway.

 

[minmelethuireb]

He made some poo. It had quite a bit of mucus in it. Not sure if this is because he was backed up, or if he does have coccidia.

 

[JBun]

Do you have any metacam for him? Give him some if you do, with food and water. Hay and green leafy veggies would be much better than mushed up pellets, if he will eat it. If he won't eat on his own then I guess you'll have to do the pellets, or if you have 100% plain canned pumpkin(not the spiced kind). Do you have any of the cocci meds left? That may be something to consider as he may have gotten reinfected. If you don't have metacam, I know that baby aspirin can be used in some cases, however I've never used it myself. I just know it shouldn't be used if there is ever any bleeding(internal and external) involved. Here's dosage info if you decide you need to use it.

http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Analgesics/safe_analgesics.htm

But if you can, try and stick with hay and leafy greens. The sugars and carbs in the pellets may just further complicate things.

 

[minmelethuireb]

He hasn't pooped since the mucus-y stuff.

He won't touch the greens any more, and he has lots of hay but won't eat it, so that's why I've been doing the pellets. I want him to get some nutrition.

He seems to be in some pain, but I don't have any more Metacam. I do have some leftover coccidia meds, though that was for a different rabbit, my Pipkin. There may have been cross-contamination though I tried to be careful. The rabbits weigh about the same so I think I'll give him that medicine - can't hurt. I also have plain pumpkin so I'll try that.

Thanks for the pain relief info. I was wondering if there's anything safe for rabbits I can get over the counter. I might try baby aspirin, though that makes me kind of nervous. Can you only get Metacam with a prescription?


Uggggghh I'm stressed. :bawl:

 

[JBun]

Yeah, metacam is prescription. And you're right, if he won't eat on his own and all you have is pellets to syringe feed, that's what you have to do. Since you have the pumpkin, that sounds like it might be good to give a try.

I'm a little reluctant to use aspirin too, but if It's all I had and my rabbit still wouldn't eat even after several doses of simethicone, then I think I would give it a try. Make sure his body temp is warm before you feed him. If not warm him up with a warm pack or warm towels. You can also try tummy massages.

I don't know if you already have this link, but if not, then it might help. And just do the best you can til you can get him in on Monday. One promising thing is that he did at least poop, even though it had mucous. Even a little poop is often a good sign.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html