I had an 18 month old female bunny that passed away yesterday. A couple of weeks ago she started having intermittent soft cecotropes that I was able to get cleared up by reducing the amount of pellets I fed her everyday. Monday we moved (about a 2.5 hour car ride which she's made before without problems) to an apartment. Tuesday I noticed she wasn't eating or pooping but was drinking water and peeing. Yesterday she was really lethargic and I had my son take her to the emergency clinic (I made sure they treat rabbits). Her exam was good, normal heart rate, no fever but she did have a tender stomach. They gave her subcutaneous fluids, a 5mg shot if Reglan and a shot of Meloxicam. The send her home with Reglan, Trimethoprim-Sulfa, Meloxicam and Oxbow Critical Care. When she got back home she was in really bad shape, not moving at all and I honestly thought she was gone but she did move and I could see her breathing. I put her in her cage on a blanket and she laid there only moving occasionally. When it was time for her meds and feeding I picked her up and she barely moved. I tried to feed her and everything kept coming back out of her mouth and she sounded like she was gurgling. She jerked a couple of times and I laid her back in her cage and she was gone. I had my son and husband take her back to the clinic to make sure she was gone and she had passed. I'm wondering if she had a reaction to the meds or maybe to much water was given to her. I tried calling the clinic this morning to talk to the vet and I'm waiting on a call back. I feel horrible this has happened. She's been in really good health until this and after reading her exam notes I feel like she was in good enough condition and she should have pulled through this.
GI Stasis - Bugs didn't make it
- Thread starter BugsMom
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I'm really sorry that Bug's didn't make it, that's really sad. Try not to blame yourself though, it's not your fault. I hope the vet will have some answers for you. If your bunny was that sick I feel like they should have kept her in the hospital 
existenziell
Well-Known Member
I'm really sorry to hear that your bunny didn't make it and that you had to watch her deteriorate so much like that. I lost a bunny earlier this year, and it never really does get easier.
Now, I'm going out on a limb here when I say this, but I think I have a theory what happened. My rabbit had a similar issue, although the blockage and build up in her stomach was due to hair. Lily was acting pretty similarly, not eating a whole lot and being really lethargic. What I noticed was that her lips were turning purple. It is possible for bunnies to have stuff come up from their stomachs and get into their lungs causing suffocation. That was unfortunately what happened to my bun. Perhaps something similar happened with yours?
Now, I'm going out on a limb here when I say this, but I think I have a theory what happened. My rabbit had a similar issue, although the blockage and build up in her stomach was due to hair. Lily was acting pretty similarly, not eating a whole lot and being really lethargic. What I noticed was that her lips were turning purple. It is possible for bunnies to have stuff come up from their stomachs and get into their lungs causing suffocation. That was unfortunately what happened to my bun.
Perhaps something similar happened with yours?That makes a lot of sense and would explain the gurgling noise I heard from her right before she passed away. I'm not blaming the vet, they did what they thought was right but I wonder if water somehow got into her lungs. Thank you, it helps to have an idea of what happened and I think you may right.
So sorry for your loss.
