Overall health concerns

[SteviesMom]

Hi everyone,

It's been quite awhile since I've posted. My 4.5 year old male (neutered) Holland lop has been having ome strange symptoms lately. I've brought him to2 different vets since some symptoms began and they had no explannation.
So, he is currently experiencing:
-sneezing fits (with no runny nose or discharge). He had pine allergies so maybe this could be another allergy?
-he's stopped urinating in his litter box (asked the vet to prescribe antibiotics to treat possible uti, didn't help)
-he's not cleaning himself well (his underside gets very matted, I've started to clip/shave off mats while leaving fur as long as possible)
- fur loss around his chest and underarms (I'm guessing from urine stains)
-he has lost almost a lb over the past year (he was topping the scales for Holland lops at over 5 lbs before, he's now around 4.25 lbs. We moved to our own apartment last year and he has been way more active so I assumed it was that. He eats everything I give him and the vet said he's still a healthy weight)

While visiting my home town about a month ago, I brought him into our usual/awesome vet. He did a very thorough check and said he was very healthy.
I work in a health care setting so I brought home my otoscope to check his teeth (they looks fine, no spurs).

Any thoughts as to what could be going on? Thanks!

 

[Watermelons]

Have you dont bloodwork on him?
1. Sneezing - Try shaking out his hay outside to get rid of excess dust before giving, or try another type like orchard grass.
2. Urinating - If you suspect a UTI was urine tested? I would do a urinalysis and go from there, potentially culturing it. Throwing random antibiotics at a rabbit is a bad bad idea and teally only helps make bacteria more resistant.
3. Cleaning - Has Metacam been tried? He could be getting sore and arthritic.
4. Fur loss - could be the urine issues or something else. What does the skin look like in these areas? Any chance of mites?
5. You can try adding a small tsp of old fashion rolled oats to help with the weight, but with out seeing or feeling him its hard to know if 5lbs was perfect or if he was a bit fat at 5lbs. 5lbs is pretty big for a Holland.

 

[JBun]

Yes, what tests were done: blood test, ec blood titer, urinalysis, xrays of chest(lungs and heart) and/or bladder, skin scrape to test for mites, etc? Have you noticed any change in his breathing: increased or labored at all? Does he seem to rest his front paws up on things frequently or raise his nose frequently while breathing? Is his third eyelid frequently visible, especially when his head is lowered?

Is he dribbling urine or just not peeing in the litter box? Any blood in the urine? Were bladder sludge/stones or kidney issues ruled out as a cause? Have you tried a low sided litter box(or cut down the side of his litter box) to see if it's just him having difficulty hopping into his litter box due to pain?

Have your vets prescribed any other medications besides the antibiotics?

 

[SteviesMom]

Thanks so much for the ideas and feedback! I will do all of these things (shake out hay, orchard grass, low sided litter box). He did not have his urine tested. This was done at the local vet; who I did not feel very comfortable with. She wanted to do a urine culture but suggested I leave him overnight. They had free range cats there and I just didn't feel comfortable leaving him. He doesn't dribble any urine, it's normal in color, and I don't see any sludge. Our longtime vet felt his bladder (I think?) And said that felt good.
We have not tried metacam. He had a bad reaction to it when it was given after his neuter so I'd be hesitant to try it again. Good vet brought his legs through range of motion and didn't suspect arthritis (no clicking or grinding).
He was treated for fleas and mites last month as a precaution as he was around my parents cat. His skin in the bald areas looks fine. No redness or flaking. It looks hydrated, idk just like I'd expect it to.
His breathing is normal for him. He has always been a bit of a noisy breather. New vets freak out about it at first. We've chopped it up to the fact that he is deaf. Right now, I don't hear any breathing sounds but sometimes he makes a "snoring" sounds when sleeping haha.
Third eyelid is not visible. Eyes look good, no redness under eyelids.
We have had reglan after a stasis bought years ago but no other meds have been trialed.
We also havent gotten bloodwork or any other labs done. Vet said he looked and sounded great last month so none were warranted.
I'm going back home in 2 weeks so I'm definitely going to make an appointment for then.
What should I do/try in the meantime (anything additional to what was suggested, I'll do all that) and what should I ask/get done when at the vet.