Newbie alert!! And question re: "poopy butt syndrome"

[Nettles]

Hello, everyone. First time for me, and I'm as green as clover, so please excuse me...

I signed up here to investigate my Fiona's chronic poop impaction underher tail. I saw the previous post about loose stools, and that led meto the link that was given, primarily Dr. Krempel's. It seems like itsthe "cecal dysbiosis" as we've been far too liberal with the starches(like sweet potatoes, apple, carrots etc.). So, we've increased thetimothy hay, and given raspberry leaf (we have a patch in our garden)to help firm things up (we read about that on a bunny herbal site), andyanked the starches.

And so far, this morning she's only had firmer pellet poop (crossed fingers and toes). But, my 2 follow-up questions are:

1) The link said no seeds or nuts - what about grains like whole (uncooked) oats and millet? Is that too starchy too?

2) I was glad to see Krempels recommends lots of fresh greens - butIt's still confusing me since I've read numerous times that greenscause diarhea (which never made sense to me - wild bunnys would have"the runs" 24/7) and the Herbal page mentioned above lists Dandelion asa laxative - which is the green most often given to Fiona.
Has anyone else experienced/heard of Dandelion greens in particular giving loose bowels?

Sorry so long winded - but poor Fiona! She's otherwise very happy andhealthy, but this is so uncomfortable for her, and the butt bathsaren't fun for either of us!

Thanks for your help!

 

[peapoo_bunny]

Nettles wrote:

Has anyone else experienced/heard of Dandelion greens inparticular giving loose bowels?

well, peapoo eats a lot of dandelions..and her poo seems normal



welcome to the forum!!:bunnydance::bunnydance:

 

[maherwoman]

I'm not sure about the oats, but I can answer the question about greens.

Greens, by themselves, don't give the runs. It's if you givethem too much too fast when they weren't eating them regularly already,or if you give it to them at too young an age. They aresomething to be introduced gradually, and only increased when you seethat your bun hasn't had a diaherria reaction for a few days afterintroducing them.

Here's a couple links that should help, the first one is a thread fromthis site containing the two other links I'll give, and many othersregarding food, the second is a question thread from this site aboutgreens, and the third is a Diet FAQ from the House Rabbit Societypage. Both this site, and the House Rabbit Society pagecontain LOADS of information that should help you on your quest aboutgreens (and maybe also about the oats and such).

Food Thread from Here
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

Food Question Thread from Here
http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=11264&forum_id=1&highlight=hay

Diet FAQ from House Rabbit Society
http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/diet.html#veggies

Hope that helps! Let us know if you have any additional questions!

 

[maherwoman]

Ok, I just found a couple more sites that would be helpful...

This one lists greens and such that are good, as well as things that aren't
http://www.mybunny.org/info/fruitveg.htm

This one is a guide per age what to feed your bun, and how much
http://www.mybunny.org/info/general.htm

At the end of the first one, it says,

"NO GRAINS, LEGUMES OR NUTS!" So I guess that means no oats and such.

The House Rabbit Society also has a list for veggies
http://www.rabbit.org/care/veggies.html

Hope all that helps!

Edit: Found a good article at carrotcafe.com
http://www.carrotcafe.com/f/veggies.html

That one contains all sorts of information...enjoy!

 

[Nettles]

Thanks PeaPoo for the bunny wiggle greetings!

And, wow! Maherwoman! Thanks for all the links. I will dive into them tonite - really appreciate the leads...

I've also gone back to that Herbal page, and realized that Dandelionsare listed as a treatment for diarhea, too! So maybe its more"adaptogenic", in that it helps normalize digestive problems, ratherthan be solely laxative...So maybe I've answered that one myself.

Anyway, I've read enough to be more reassured about greens, so I wentout and picked some dock, clover, and plantain for Ms. Fiona. She wasvery happy to see them!

What's helped the most was reading the description/explanation that thenearest thing to a similar diet to bunnies would be a horses! A littlelight bulb went off there...

I'll keep reading, of course. Thanks!!

 

[peapoo_bunny]

peapoo loves clover,dandelions,romaine lettuce and carrots...she eats a little everyday and she is fine

 

[maherwoman]

You're so welcome. Sorry forthrowing so much information at you at once, but I just kept findingmore articles that contained great information! Lol...hopethey help!

Nettles wrote:

Thanks PeaPoo for the bunny wiggle greetings!

And, wow! Maherwoman! Thanks for all the links. I will dive into them tonite - really appreciate the leads...

I've also gone back to that Herbal page, and realized that Dandelionsare listed as a treatment for diarhea, too! So maybe its more"adaptogenic", in that it helps normalize digestive problems, ratherthan be solely laxative...So maybe I've answered that one myself.

Anyway, I've read enough to be more reassured about greens, so I wentout and picked some dock, clover, and plantain for Ms. Fiona. She wasvery happy to see them!

What's helped the most was reading the description/explanation that thenearest thing to a similar diet to bunnies would be a horses! A littlelight bulb went off there...

I'll keep reading, of course. Thanks!!

 

[bunnybunchof4]

Both my vet and the breeder I got Tinkerbellfrom recommends Old Fashioned rolled oats. I've found it helps preventand stop the starting of lose stools. Espeically in stressful times,like when you first bring them home. Obviously everything inmoderation. But I've only seen benefits with THAT type of oat. I givethe oats to them a few times a week as a treat. That's the onlystarches they get though.

 

[bunnydude]

Hi, welcome to the forum!

1) Rolled oats can be fed, but only in moderation.

2) I have always found that contradictory. Like maherwoman said, Ithink greens only cause diahrea when you give "to much to fast".Although, I have heard of a few individual bunnies that just don'ttolerate greens well (I don't know why). Devon and Amber get a cup ofveggies each every night, and I have never had a problem with themhaving soft poops.