Genitals and Anus Red - Warning - Graphic Image

[DorinaC]

Hello guys! I am a new mommy of an around 3 months old Kia (champagne coloured lionhead). I still don't know if Kia is male or female because of the age. Today in our cuddle session I did my weekly check: nails, ears, teeth and poo place and I got a really big scare. The whole anus/reproductive organ area is really red, there seems to be some white spots it and urine (?) (am I overreacting?) and also just appears a bit swollen.
Please help me with one grain of information because I'm really worried. I did a buttbath and it appears that the whole situation calmed down, but just a notch.
The poop is normal, but during the day she seems to have a lot of soft ones. The litter box is changed daily (so no change in pee colour, odor or amount). Eating - like a maniac.
I cannot take a day off on such a short notice and rabbit vets in Mauritius are almost non-existent and won't work on weekends (from the information I managed to gather now). I could barely find hay and everyone here recommends just pellets and veggies as bunny fuel.
Thanks a lot!

 

[Popsicles]

You will definitely need to feed hay I’m afraid - if you can’t find any on pet stores you can try online, or try buying directly from a farm or stables etc. It is really important for them to eat lots of hay to keep their teeth and gut healthy.
That does look really sore! If you can’t make it to a Vets at the moment keep bathing it with salt water, dry it very well, and apply a barrier cream if you have it such as sudocrem or savlon. It might be a UTI, sludge, urine scald.. I would see a vet when you can.

 

[DorinaC]

Thank you very much for your answer.
I searched for hay in the whole country and I managed to find at 1 pet store. After checking at least 10 pet stores.
Since Mauritius is an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean they don't really have the hay for rabbit mentality. Also, most of the online shops won't deliver here and when you're ordering online you need to declare at the customs what you're bringing and might even be confiscated (in order not to endanger the endemic plants here). I was thinking to plant grass myself and start harvesting it.
As for vets, they are mostly for dogs and cats (as usual) and I found only one clinic that deals with exotics, who is closed on weekends and after 18.00 pm.
What saddens me is that when trying to ask for hay I was met with a lot of misinformation - they can just live with pellets type of answers, but they (bunnies) are massively sold in pet stores.

I won't give up, though!

 

[Popsicles]

So what do they feed horses etc in Mauritius? Do they not have hay for them?
Yea it’s difficult to be in places where rabbit knowledge is poor - that’s why forums like this are so useful! It would be best to make an appointment with this exotics vet asap

 

[DorinaC]

So what do they feed horses etc in Mauritius? Do they not have hay for them?
Yea it’s difficult to be in places where rabbit knowledge is poor - that’s why forums like this are so useful! It would be best to make an appointment with this exotics vet asap

I will try and call again tomorrow for the vet and see what can be done and when we can meet.

Horses are usually left on green pastures from my knowledge, you rarely have cows or goats and they are fed with roadside grass and I've never seen a sheep. I will try going to some Horse Riding clubs and check with them.

I bathed Kia with salt and water and and now the redness went down even more. I will monitor the evolution during the night.

Thanks a lot for the support!
Kia sends you a lot of licky kisses.

 

[Popsicles]

Yeah I definitely would
It’s so difficult to access hay in some countries! I know there are others on here having the same struggle.
Ah keep us updated hopefully she will start to feel a bit less sore

 

[Amber]

Are you able to order compressed hay blocks? Also, Sherwood Forest has a rabbit food that is mostly made of hay and helpful for bunnies who don’t like to eat enough hay. Good luck!