Female Bunny not eating pellets, losing weight.
- Thread starter Ampee
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If she has true diarrhea where the fecal poop is no longer normal round fecal balls and is runny or mushy(not just when it's mushy cecotropes with normal fecal balls still occurring which is different and not usually an emergency), then that is considered an immediate emergency with rabbits, and I would urge you to get her to the vet immediately.
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/poop.html
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/poop.html
Diane R
Well-Known Member
I am passing on advice from our vet who teaches rabbit medicine at one of the best vet schools in the world. Think of pellets as treats.
Tercar88
Active Member
Get to the vet!!Today she just had diarrhea
dogwoodblossoms
Well-Known Member
Defiantly get her to the vet.
Just a wayward thought, will pineapple juice concentrate break down the food in her gut if she has any? I know it breaks down fur but I'm not sure about food...
Just a wayward thought, will pineapple juice concentrate break down the food in her gut if she has any? I know it breaks down fur but I'm not sure about food...
Please learn to give subq fluids at home—they are a lifesaver in cases like this. Diarrhea will make a bunny even more dehydrated. There is definitely something wrong with her digestive system. Have you seen her eating cecals? Could be a cecal slowdown, symptoms are similar to intestinal slowdown/blockage. This is an in-depth article about cecal issues and how to prevent/treat them: Poopy Butt / Cecal Disbiosis — Westley’s World
As the article states, the number one priority is liquids/hydration. It sounds like her diet is very dry. I would not advise any fruit juices, least of all pineapple, since it is very acidic and could easily cause stomach ulcers in a rabbit not eating well. The simple sugars in juices also feed bad bacteria in the cecum. Her elevated blood levels could be a sign of cecal dysbiosis (but antibiotics can make this worse).
If your vet suggests giving antibiotics without any mention of giving her fluids, I personally would call another vet.
As the article states, the number one priority is liquids/hydration. It sounds like her diet is very dry. I would not advise any fruit juices, least of all pineapple, since it is very acidic and could easily cause stomach ulcers in a rabbit not eating well. The simple sugars in juices also feed bad bacteria in the cecum. Her elevated blood levels could be a sign of cecal dysbiosis (but antibiotics can make this worse).
If your vet suggests giving antibiotics without any mention of giving her fluids, I personally would call another vet.
MyGrandbunns
Well-Known Member
thanks for that! i freaked out thinking that was such a tiny amount.
We fed her Critical Care (this day twice) and gave her 1x BioLapis Probiotics (it is the 4th one, since we started a "probiotic cure", and this was the 4th day of that cure)
Her daily feeding is: Hay (dry), Oxbow Digestive support (1perday), Oxbow adult rabbit pellets (3 times a day, but every time not that much, its not even reaching 10g per day), water and 2-3 leaves of basil. Nothing more nothing less (no exceptions! we dont give any kind of fruit/veggie etc!)
They are free roaming 24/7, our home is setup to support their free roaming.
"subq fluids"? you mean like using an injector? I don't have that experience to properly inject something into her body
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We fed her Critical Care (this day twice) and gave her 1x BioLapis Probiotics (it is the 4th one, since we started a "probiotic cure", and this was the 4th day of that cure)
Her daily feeding is: Hay (dry), Oxbow Digestive support (1perday), Oxbow adult rabbit pellets (3 times a day, but every time not that much, its not even reaching 10g per day), water and 2-3 leaves of basil. Nothing more nothing less (no exceptions! we dont give any kind of fruit/veggie etc!)
They are free roaming 24/7, our home is setup to support their free roaming.
"subq fluids"? you mean like using an injector? I don't have that experience to properly inject something into her body
As for eating her cecals: Yes I see her eating it.We fed her Critical Care (this day twice) and gave her 1x BioLapis Probiotics (it is the 4th one, since we started a "probiotic cure", and this was the 4th day of that cure)
Her daily feeding is: Hay (dry), Oxbow Digestive support (1perday), Oxbow adult rabbit pellets (3 times a day, but every time not that much, its not even reaching 10g per day), water and 2-3 leaves of basil. Nothing more nothing less (no exceptions! we dont give any kind of fruit/veggie etc!)
They are free roaming 24/7, our home is setup to support their free roaming.
"subq fluids"? you mean like using an injector? I don't have that experience to properly inject something into her body
As with anything else, even among vets, there are differing opinions on pellets. I don’t doubt that there are some pet rabbits whose system can’t tolerate pellets. However, over the nine years we bred & showed rabbits, we had 0 who could not eat pellets.
Also, ours have been eating it since day1.
I know there are differing opinions about greens as well, but I would at least add some fibrous, high-moisture greens like parsley, arugula, endive, escarole. Kale is fibrous but could cause gas. Basil is a bit soft-leaved. My bunnies love fennel fronds. Basically avoid any greens which wilt or ferment quickly (like cilantro).
Pellets are not only dry, but they absorb a bunch of liquid in the gut, which is why bunnies will go off them when they’re “constipated.” I'm glad you’re giving Critical Care — I usually mix it with more water than the instructions say.
I know lots of people swear by Oxbow, but I stopped using their pellets years ago because several of my bunnies had repeated tummy problems on them. If you have access to an extruded pellet, those are easier to digest (we use Science Selective). Here is a good link about pellets (with another link about veggies at the bottom): Rabbit Pellets
I feed a tiny slice of apple and carrot with my bunnies' twice-daily salads, since that allows me to immediately tell if something is wrong with a bunny (if they skip the fruit, something’s definitely wrong!) But if off their feed, fruits definitely should be avoided.
Chloramphenicol is a good broad-spectrum antibiotic, very powerful and works against many anaerobic bacteria. I hope the vet instructed you on the precautions to take with it (for the human), like wearing gloves and making sure not to get any on yourself. Any antibiotic can upset GI flora and put a rabbit off eating, which is why I tend to avoid them unless there are definite signs of an infection. If she has more diarrhea or mucous in poop, those might be stronger indications for antibiotics.
Yes, subq fluids are given subcutaneously, so needles are involved, but it is not like an injection into muscle. Rabbit's skin is easy to pull away from the body (around the upper back), and giving subcutaneous injections just requires a bit of training and practice. I use a 60-ml syringe and butterfly catheters, which works best for me and my bunnies.I always warm the fluids (in the syringe) to body temp first.
Pellets are not only dry, but they absorb a bunch of liquid in the gut, which is why bunnies will go off them when they’re “constipated.” I'm glad you’re giving Critical Care — I usually mix it with more water than the instructions say.
I know lots of people swear by Oxbow, but I stopped using their pellets years ago because several of my bunnies had repeated tummy problems on them. If you have access to an extruded pellet, those are easier to digest (we use Science Selective). Here is a good link about pellets (with another link about veggies at the bottom): Rabbit Pellets
I feed a tiny slice of apple and carrot with my bunnies' twice-daily salads, since that allows me to immediately tell if something is wrong with a bunny (if they skip the fruit, something’s definitely wrong!) But if off their feed, fruits definitely should be avoided.
Chloramphenicol is a good broad-spectrum antibiotic, very powerful and works against many anaerobic bacteria. I hope the vet instructed you on the precautions to take with it (for the human), like wearing gloves and making sure not to get any on yourself. Any antibiotic can upset GI flora and put a rabbit off eating, which is why I tend to avoid them unless there are definite signs of an infection. If she has more diarrhea or mucous in poop, those might be stronger indications for antibiotics.
Yes, subq fluids are given subcutaneously, so needles are involved, but it is not like an injection into muscle. Rabbit's skin is easy to pull away from the body (around the upper back), and giving subcutaneous injections just requires a bit of training and practice. I use a 60-ml syringe and butterfly catheters, which works best for me and my bunnies.I always warm the fluids (in the syringe) to body temp first.
We found that certain meds could affect the gut flora so we typically gave ours a probiotic while on those meds. Benebac or Probios were the two we used.
Antibiotics are not a “cure” if the problem is dried lumps of food and hair in her gut. Again, fluids/liquids are the most important part of treatment. Getting enough nutrition into her is also important, since hay is not enough.
Antibiotics will only treat an overgrowth of bad bacteria, if that has happened (and it can happen with stasis or semi-stasis). Or they may help if the cause of her not eating pellets is some other infection (but then I'd expect her to stop eating hay as well). But antibiotics can also upset the bacterial balance and make things worse, as well as decreasing appetite. So most vets are reluctant to skip straight to antibiotics in rabbits without strong evidence of infection Hence why I said I would find another vet if antibiotics were being recommended but fluids were not. Also if pain meds and gas drops (simethicone) weren't recommended, since those are the other parts of treating gut slowdown.
I just had a rabbit neutered and he stopped eating pellets completely for 6 days while his gut got back to normal. He just started eating pellets again two days ago, after passing poos with lots of fur and “strings” in them. He ate plenty of hay, but it wasn't enough. Subcutaneous fluids, belly massages and pain meds were crucial in his recovery.
I assume she is spayed, since she is 6 and has a male partner? And did the vet do any xrays?
Antibiotics will only treat an overgrowth of bad bacteria, if that has happened (and it can happen with stasis or semi-stasis). Or they may help if the cause of her not eating pellets is some other infection (but then I'd expect her to stop eating hay as well). But antibiotics can also upset the bacterial balance and make things worse, as well as decreasing appetite. So most vets are reluctant to skip straight to antibiotics in rabbits without strong evidence of infection Hence why I said I would find another vet if antibiotics were being recommended but fluids were not. Also if pain meds and gas drops (simethicone) weren't recommended, since those are the other parts of treating gut slowdown.
I just had a rabbit neutered and he stopped eating pellets completely for 6 days while his gut got back to normal. He just started eating pellets again two days ago, after passing poos with lots of fur and “strings” in them. He ate plenty of hay, but it wasn't enough. Subcutaneous fluids, belly massages and pain meds were crucial in his recovery.
I assume she is spayed, since she is 6 and has a male partner? And did the vet do any xrays?
PeanutsPlace
Well-Known Member
On the topic of pellets, I recently switched over to sherrwood pellets (the free feed one) and feed them two table spoons a day.
Yes both of them are spayed. They didn't do xray for this case.
Whats strange is that even though he is not eating pelletts, she accepts digestive support tablets at the same time. So if she is not feeling hungry/well why would she accept the digestive tablet?
Also I contacted my regular go-to vet (they were unavailble at the time my bunny got sick) that I had to take my bunny to a different vet due to you were not available. I asked them whether they would look at the blood diagnosis, but they told me that they don't want to interfere with the other vet's sayings and treatment. So yeah, they refused to help/give advice.
