My baby bunny of 6 years died today after an abrupt call from the vet. They did "blood tests", but with a limited sample because they couldn't find her veins. They said there were traces that make them suspect liver & kidney problems (but couldn't tell what they were exactly).
12 days ago, she went to emergency vet for eating chocolate, and boarded for 2 days (despite us being concerned that she'd be stressed). We came back with 3 medications:
- Metronidazole 0.63ml every 12 hours for 10 days, at 125mg/ml. I was concerned about this amount because it's been found cancerous in rats, and the dosage seems rather high (she is only 2.5kg bunny).
- Ranitidine 0.3ml every 8 hours for 3 days, every 10 hours for 7 days, 24 hours for 7 days. At 25mg/ml
- Metacam 0.5ml every 12 hours, at 1.5mg
After the vet, she got better in 2 days and was eating normally. Then, on day 10, she started eating less and got lethargic. Both those conditions worsened, until day 11, she wouldn't eat, so I force fed her Critical Care and meds. She was swallowing until... she stopped swallowing.
I took her to our regular vet this time, who did the mentioned blood tests. They recommended to keep her overnight, which I complied. But they called us this morning, saying that she was on an oxygen mask. Another call 30 minutes later, and she's gone.
I do wonder if the medications given to her were "over-kill", and that it may have caused her kidney & liver problems. The vet suspected cancer, which one of the medications were known to cause. I hate the idea of having religiously force-feeding my rabbit something that would've killed her (she never complied with eating the Metronidazole, unlike the other meds). I have no idea if we could have avoided this problem if I just let her stay at home - she wasn't monitored overnight. And I wish she had passed away in the comfort of her own home.
12 days ago, she went to emergency vet for eating chocolate, and boarded for 2 days (despite us being concerned that she'd be stressed). We came back with 3 medications:
- Metronidazole 0.63ml every 12 hours for 10 days, at 125mg/ml. I was concerned about this amount because it's been found cancerous in rats, and the dosage seems rather high (she is only 2.5kg bunny).
- Ranitidine 0.3ml every 8 hours for 3 days, every 10 hours for 7 days, 24 hours for 7 days. At 25mg/ml
- Metacam 0.5ml every 12 hours, at 1.5mg
After the vet, she got better in 2 days and was eating normally. Then, on day 10, she started eating less and got lethargic. Both those conditions worsened, until day 11, she wouldn't eat, so I force fed her Critical Care and meds. She was swallowing until... she stopped swallowing.
I took her to our regular vet this time, who did the mentioned blood tests. They recommended to keep her overnight, which I complied. But they called us this morning, saying that she was on an oxygen mask. Another call 30 minutes later, and she's gone.
I do wonder if the medications given to her were "over-kill", and that it may have caused her kidney & liver problems. The vet suspected cancer, which one of the medications were known to cause. I hate the idea of having religiously force-feeding my rabbit something that would've killed her (she never complied with eating the Metronidazole, unlike the other meds). I have no idea if we could have avoided this problem if I just let her stay at home - she wasn't monitored overnight. And I wish she had passed away in the comfort of her own home.