Odd behavior today.

[Mariah]

A good rabbit vet may be able to rule out some things, like an impacted cecum or blockage, with just a physical exam, though an xray is always more definite, but often a rabbit has to be put under GA to do it. It would be good to start off with a gut stimulant and metacam, then you can see if that helps her. You'll want to make sure her ears are checked, and it wouldn't be a bad idea to have the vet check her teeth too, if it can be done conscious, without a GA. Also if you don't have any critical care mix, you may want to get some in case she stops eating altogether and you have to syringe feed her.

Let us know how the vet goes so we don't worry about little Ellie.

It's too bad you don't live near me. My bunny vet is awesome, and can do X-rays (DV) without a GA, & their teeth as well.

 

[whitelop]

I will have her look at her teeth too. Because thats something else I've been thinking about. BECAUSE there were a few times when I would go to feed her a pellet, she would put her lips on it and then not take it. Like, shes having tooth issues.

I'm going to write down what to ask. Teeth, blockages, gas. Can they hear the gas?

The normal rabbit vet, is a great vet. He's the best in the area, an ARBA judge and a rabbit owner himself. He specializes in rabbits. But he's out of town till Thursday. If the vet tonight doesn't know or whatever, then I'll go back on Thursday to see the real rabbit vet.
But apparently, they see a decent amount of rabbits and while this vet isn't as well versed as the specialist, the receptionist said shes still quite good with rabbits. I just really hope that she is!

 

[JBun]

Sometimes you can hear gas if there is gurgling or if there are pockets of it moving through the digestive system.

If nothing else with the vet today, you can at least get some gut and pain meds, and critical care, to help tide you over til you can see the other vet if needed.

 

[whitelop]

Back from the vet. He said that her gut felt good, no blockages or obstructions.
He gave me Critical Care and some antibiotics. I have to go get some more critical care on Thursday or so. Apparently, they had a ton of rabbits and guinea pigs come in today with GI issues.

He did say that her back teeth didn't look good. That her bottom teeth sort of go in and her top teeth sort of go out and they're a bit pointy in places. He said her cheeks looked fine, but it might (probably) will cause issues later on. So next week, I think I go back and see the specialist and have him suggest something for her teeth.

She weighs 5.5 lbs!

I'm going to feed her some critical care now. I'll keep you guys updated on her though! I'm just glad she doesn't have any blockages or anything like that. But I'm still a bit worried about her teeth.

 

[JBun]

I'm glad there wasn't a blockage. Hopefully she'll start feeling better soon. Did they also give you the gut stimulant and pain meds? Did he mention what the antibiotic was for?

It will be interesting to see if your other vet says the same thing about her teeth or not.

 

[whitelop]

He said the antibiotic was for the GI tract. And no pain meds or gut stimulant. I think, that I'll get some baby asprin tomorrow in case. Or I could probably call them and ask them for a pain reliever for her, since I was there tonight and will be back later to get the rest of the critical care.

Speaking of critical care, how the heck am I supposed to get her to eat it? That is done so much easier in theory than in life. LOL I'll figure it out.

She did really well at the office though. She didn't grunt or bite anyone! She did bite my foot when we got home though. I need to watch a video on how to properly burrito her. The tech got her burritoed and she just stayed there. So I need to learn how to do it properly.

 

[JBun]

ARE YOU KIDDING ME! They gave you an antibiotic that you probably don't even really need, and they didn't give you the two meds that you do need? A rabbit not eating much and has a slow gut needs a gut stimulant. And pain meds are essential in helping get a rabbit eating again on its own. A rabbit in pain(from it's stomach or teeth) isn't going to want to eat. Ugh, VETS!!!

You should ask them for a gut motility med tomorrow. Unless she's eating and pooping normally. She isn't is she? You could also ask them about using baby aspirin. I prefer to use metacam though, as it seems to not be as harsh on the GI tract. More expensive though.

Good luck with the critical care. They're usually much better behaved for the vet then for us owners So is she not eating anything on her own now?

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iGZVYVm5Bg[/ame]

 

[whitelop]

New developments! She pooped for the first time today! And shes eating on her own! Well, she ate.
I wanted to give her a little time to calm down before trying to really give her the critical care. So I gave her some simethicone and cleaned the kitchen. Then, I saw her in the litter box, eating cecals and I looked and there was a pile of poop where she had been sitting! How exciting.

I did mention that she ate her cecals like 3 times today right? There just weren't any fecals. I'm brain dead today, so if I didn't mention that, then I'm sorry.

I think the really deep(scary) belly exam he gave her today, helped to loosen some things up.
I'm still going to give her some critical care and her antibiotics. I watched how to burrito, it should be interesting to do. LOL

I'll call tomorrow and get some metacam for her, and get the man to pick it up on his way home or I'll run and get it.

 

[JBun]

That's really great! Much better to let her eat on her own if she will. Trying to syringe feed a non compliant rabbit is no fun

You'll just want to continue to keep an eye on fecal production. And if it is her teeth hurting, she may still not want to eat much, so just keep an eye on that too.

I'm so glad there is some improvement though.

 

[whitelop]

Critical care done. I think I got more on me and the towel than I got into her. But I smeared a big glob on each front paw so she should eat if off. LOL What a difficult rabbit to feed! She just spit it right now half the time. HA!

And whoever decided that anise was the proper flavor for this stuff, was wrong. It smells terrible. I need to order the other flavor to keep on hand, I guess.

thanks everyone! For listening to my rambling especially. I've never had to deal with this. And fundamentally I think I know most of this, but in practice I become a moron.

 

[JBun]

Yeah, anise flavor isn't usually a buns favorite. I know it's what my vet has, as that is the only flavor in the fine grind, which is easier to syringe feed as it has a smoother consistency. But most buns seem to hate it. You could always try putting it in a dish and seeing if she will just eat it herself. You never know, it could happen

Telling other people how to help their sick buns is TOTALLY different than having your own sick bun. My brain does that moment of panic, then I have to sit there and think what it is I'm always telling everyone else.

 

[whitelop]

So great news this morning! I got up and there is a ton of poop in the litter box! Some of the hay is gone too. There is also pee in the box and on the floor. I'm so excited that she went potty! I walked into the kitchen and she was up and about, rearranging her blanket. I gave her some pellets last night, since it looked like she was starting to eat on her own and about half the pellets are gone. So thats really good!

I don't know if I should still syringe feed her? Shes still not eating as much as I'd like. So maybe like once or twice a day? She really hates it, but she liked being in the burrito last night and sat with me for a while and I loved on her face.

Also, this has been so eye opening for me! I know now that I need to put the dog food up high and the cat food too. So this weekend, I'm going to get something to put those bowls on. It might not totally stop Ellie from getting to them, but it will hinder her enough that maybe she'll lose interest.

Well, going to drink some coffee and syringe feed her! Every time she seems me coming, she gets leery and runs off. LOL

 

[StampyBunny67]

I think she might be depressed, does she have a partner? My female was like this before we paired her, so she might be lonely. I'm guessing thats the reason she get up only to see you, she probably wants company!

 

[whitelop]

She doesn't have a partner, because shes not spayed. I never really thought about her being sad! I spend a good amount of time with her and there hasn't been an issue before.

She still hasn't eaten much today. I tried to force her to eat as much critical care as I could this afternoon, that didn't work well. She just spits it right out. So now, I'm boiling some water now to make a pellet slurry with her pellets. I'm hoping that will go down easier than the critical care. I think its the anise that she doesn't like that much. Because if it smells like that to me, then it smells awful to her.

Hopefully I can get some pellet slurry into her and she'll get going again. It started snowing today, so I didn't get the gut motility stuff today. I'm going to call and have my DH pick some up tomorrow.

I just want her to be better!

 

[JBun]

Pain meds too. They're really important.

Hope she starts feeling better soon. Come on Ellie!

 

[whitelop]

I feel like every morning I have good news to share, then by the evening its back to the same thing.
BUT I do have good news!
Last night, I gave Ellie her antibiotic, some simethicone and got about 10 cc's of pellet slurry into her. She really, just hates being syringe fed. I put her on the desk with me, in her burrito and loved on her face for a while. Then she wanted down, so I put her back.
Anyway, I could hear her all last night (had to get up about 3 times to tell her to knock it off) she was digging in boxes, nibbling cardboard, trying to get into the recycling, clanking metal dog bowls together, being her normal, naughty self. So at about 6am, I saw that she had pooped more! And she had eaten her pellets. I gave her a small little handful to get her to stop being so bad!

When I went in there again, a few minutes ago, there was more poop in the litter box and about half the pellets were gone. And shes finally calmed down and is going to nap the morning away.
Her poops are getting more round and uniformed! They started out sort of odd shaped and some were really small. Yesterday they were like that too. This morning though, they are more round. Still a bit oblong, but looking WAY more normal.

I don't know if we're out of the woods yet, but she seems to be much better. Her behavior last night was proof of that too. She hasn't caused a ruckus at night in about 2 nights! I was happy to see her up and about.

 

[Chrisdoc]

It's always scary when they're not well. Glad to hear she's feeling better. Is it true that when you open Metacam, you have to get rid of it after 14 days ??

 

[whitelop]

Ellie has continued to eat on her own and shes pooping well. She seems to be so much better! She kept me up half the night last night, she's obsessed with my recycling.
Her poop is back to normal now, all round and uniform. I am so glad that shes okay!

 

[aj82]

I'm really glad she is ok x

 

[aj82]

What is burrioting?