hiccups? pineapple/papaya?

[PwnzorsNTittylwinks]

im not sure if this is anything to even worry about, but since its not his usual behavior its got me all paranoid.

he has had hiccups before but they dont last long and its like once every couple months do i see it (usually after hes been running around a lot and then suddenly flops. lol)
but lately ive noticed hes been getting hiccups more, and today he has had them already and seems pretty lazy.
usually his little routine is to eat his salad, lay down infront of the book shelf, run around then he watches tv (he lays down under the futon infront of the tv and if i turn it off he goes somewhere else til i turn it back on. i dont know if hes actually paying any attention to the tv but i know if my feet get in his way he nudges them out of his way before laying back down.. lol)

today though he had two little leaves and has been laying in his cage. right now hes all flopped over and passed out (eyes closed, calm, he looks like hes having a dream with little ear twitches). earlier his hiccups were hitting the kabob toy and making the bell at the end jingle with every hiccup.

so my question is, could hiccups be a sign of anything i should be worrying about? could it be gas? we introduced craisins this week and he liked them so much i think i might of introduced them a little fast. his poops were a little small yesterday so i havent given him anyy, now they seem to be normal size/shape/color. he eats a ton of hay. but he is totally ignoring his veggies.

if it IS gas could pineapple juice or those papaya tablets help? hes never had papaya or pineapple juice, so if those would help how do you introduce those to him so they help without doing it too quickly?
:confused2::sickbunny:
so if this was long and confusing. /:

 

[Imbrium]

pineapple and papaya contain digestive enzymes that can help ingested hair pass through the digestive tract. the best way to give them is with oxbow papaya tablets, since they're stuffed full of extra enzymes and therefore have a lower sugar to enzyme ratio than the actual fruit. as a note, if you give pineapple juice for the enzymes, it has to be fresh - the canning process denatures them.

out of curiosity, how old is your bunny? Gazzles used to get hiccups periodically when she was younger. I would just gently rub her tummy in hopes of soothing her diaphram until it stopped spasming/the hiccups went away. I don't know if it helped, but it was all I could think of to do.

hiccups wouldn't be caused by gas or a hairball or anything else that I can think of, though I don't know exactly what does cause them. it's basically just a muscle spasm.

as long as he's still eating a ton of hay, it's ok if he ignores veggies for a couple days for no particular reason.

honestly, I don't think the hiccups are anything to worry about and there's probably not anything you can do to put a stop to them. I dunno about your bunny, but Gazzles always seemed totally unfazed by them. if you're concerned, I'd call the vet and ask them about it over the phone - it won't cost you anything and should provide some peace of mind.

 

[PwnzorsNTittylwinks]

thank you! he is a little under a year old, so hes still young. he doesnt always seem bothered by them, sometimes he just looks annoyed though lol. thank you for calming my nerves about them though. he is my first bunny thats 100% my responsibility (and my last one was when I was really really young so..lol) so i think im just an overly paranoid mommy. haha

 

[Imbrium]

when he gets the hiccups, you can try gently but firmly stroking his chest - if nothing else, it might be comforting to him and I found it made me feel better, like a parent giving their sick kid a back rub to make them feel more taken care of