Gas, Bloat? Suggestions?

[johnsonfarm]

I think I might already know what's wrong, but wanted some input anyway.My mother in law hasa 2year old Flemish Giant doe who is 2 weeks pregnant... she just called me so I haven't seen the rabbit but here's what I know, they ran out of rabbit pellets yesterday so she fed her lettuce scraps untill they can buy more. This rabbit usually drinks an entire bottle of water a day and eats like a horse, besides being very friendly and active. Today she went to give her some potato peelings and she just sat in the corner of the cage, wouldn't touch the food, and the strangest thing of all, hadn't drank any water at all. Sooo... I'm thinking with the lettuce she probably has gas or worse, I'm going to get some gas meds for her, but any other suggestions, ideas? Thanks a bunch.

 

[HoneyPot]

- Gas meds,
- Keep her warm - maybe putting some rice in a sock and microwaving it for a short time and put it for her to cuddle up to.
- Make her exercise a bit - force her to run around and play - will help break up the gas.
- Get some pedialyte - maybe a fruit flavored one to try to get her to drink some and get hydrated...
- Give her some light tummy rubs to help break up the gas

____________
Nadia

 

[JimD]

johnsonfarm wrote:

Today she went to give her some potato peelings and she just sat in the corner of the cage, wouldn't touch the food,and the strangest thing of all, hadn't drank any water at all. Sooo... I'm thinking with the lettuce she probably has gas or worse, I'm going to get some gas meds for her, but any other suggestions, ideas? Thanks a bunch.

I would be very careful about feeding potato peels to the bun. Potato eyes are toxic for rabbits.

You're probably right about the lettuce overload giving her gas. She will have gotten a lot of water from the lettuce and may account for her not drinking.
What kind of lettuce was it....iceburg lettuce can cause additional GI problems.

Try the gas meds (simethicone) and keep a close eye on her. She may need to see the vet if she doesn't improve.

Pick up a syringe in case you need to force liquids or food.

~Jim

 

[ra7751]

Hi,

Seems you might already know what has caused your problem.And I would not give any part of a potatoe to a rabbit. Main things to do to combat gas is to administer simethicone...dosing depends on weight, keep her warm and keep her moving.If you have a light touch, a tummy massage might be nice for her.If possible, unflavored Pedialyte can be offered. You can dose simthicone often. It is not absorbed into the body.It acts on the surface tension of the gas bubbles and allows them to collect into larger and more readily passed pockets. And I would get back to a very basic bunny diet. You didn't mention any hay. Pellets are much more for our convenience that any benefit for the rabbits. In my warren of now 63 domestic rabbits, I could care less if they eat pellets....as long as their hay racks are empty and that I know we are offering top quality hay. We have a pair of Flemish....Andre "The Giant" and Chyna"The Big Show". They tip the scales well over 20 pounds each and they get only about a quarter cup or so of pellets daily....but they have unlimited grass hays available at all times. The hay has many uses...one of which is bulk (fiber) which will helpdisplace gas.

Randy

 

[Pipp]

What about veggies?

I have a non-hay eater so I don't have any choice with her (treating her for a bad case of cecal dysbiosis a couple of weeks back was quite the challege), but all my bunnies get a daily salad with a wide variety of veggies (and a few pellets), as long as it doesn'tmake them lose their appetites for hay.

But I'm afraid I might be overdoing it... onder:I slowly introduce newveggies, and checkfor bad spots,but we've had a few bad gas attacks regardless, I have to assume the veggies are the culprit.



sas :?