Rabbit gone of hay for past 2 days.

[michellexgix]

IMMEDIATE INFORMATION:


Location -Ireland

Description (Breed, color, weight) - mixed breed, sable marten, very small, about 2-3 pounds

Age - 9/10 months

Sex - male

Concise Summary of the Rabbit's Condition: Yesterday and today he isn't eating as much hay and also poopingless.



ADDITIONAL INFORMATION / CHECK LIST: (Please fill in relevant info).

Fecal and Urinary Output

- are the bunny's poops and pees normal? Unsure about urine, He isn't pooing as much and bits he does arelighter brown than the normal.
- when did they last use their litterbox?He is not litter trained, trying but hes unneutered and not getting any sucess
- any unusual behavior? straining to pee? unusual litter habits? No
- what litter and/or bedding do you use? Fleece bedding, just started using it last week, till then I was useing woodshavings. Litter s 'critter litter'

Medical History

- spayed/neutered? No, will be atxmas
- has s/he been to the vet or been sick before?No - I have him since he was 6months, before that I am unsure
- is s/he on any medications?No

Diet

- what specifically does your bunny eat? Hay, vegetables which could be romiane lettuce, bell peppers, carrot tops, parsely, basil, carrots, apple, brocoli, cabbage, kale,etc and 'burgess excel' pellets.
- when and what did s/he eat last? Bowl ofvegetables -romaine lettuce, green bell pepper, parsely, carrot tops.
- any changes in the way s/he eats? (ie: not eating a particular food, odd chewing motions, etc) Not eatting hay. Will eat it if I do poke it in his mouth, but wont go over and eat it himself.


Other

- movement - any unusual movements? Is s/he hopping normally? Yes.
- is the rabbit molting? No.
- any weight loss?No,not visable, I just started weighing so unsure really.
- any sign of drooling? wet face? No.
- runny eyes? No.
- wet nose? coughing? sneezing? No, No, No.
- is s/he breathing normally Yes.

Additional

- any plants, chocolate or other substances within reach? No.
- has the rabbit been outdoors? No.
- any other pets? if so, have they been ill? 3 dogs, 4 cats, 3 ponies, 1 guinea pig all no health problems.





I was giving him extra pellets by accident recently, I think the problem is him getting too much pellets and then prefers them that his hay and gone of the hay now. They hay is Meadow hay, bag which was stored right and bought about 2/3 weeks ago. I will be getting timothy hay though next month for them.

What can I do to help him? I know decrease the amount of pellets and try encourage him to eat hay more, will he need a vet? Will I decrease amount of veggies too.

 

[tonyshuman]

Any chance he ate some of the bedding? I would not decrease the veggie amount, it could be a blockage of some sort and the wet veggies can help it move through.

Are his teeth ok? Often if a bunny stops eating just one type of food it's from tooth pain. I do a quick check for changes in the molars by feeling the farther back area of the jaw for asymmetry and bumps. It's by no means definitive but can help you get an idea. You can also try to feel the tongue side of the molars by sticking your finger in there and feeling for sharp parts--not easy but I've seen it done.

You could also give him some pumpkin puree and probiotic to help stimuate his gut if it's a GI slowdown that's making him not want to eat hay. Adding a bowl of pedialyte to his cage can also help move GI things along.

 

[Maureen Las]

I would also give him some simethicone (baby infant gas drops) as he may have gas.you can find this product in most pharmacies but check the back first to be sure that simethicone is the only active ingredient.
I noted that you feed a lot of gas producing veggies.

How is he now? :?

 

[michellexgix]

I checked his teeth, They seem fine.I could only look at front ones, he doesnt like to be held or messed with so couldnt look further.

Last night he ate a good bit of hay, made a few droppings at playtime, he was straining to poop a bit though. This morning he hadnt any hay ate, I just cleaned out the whole cage and when I put him back in he started to eat some and made 5-6 droppings. Going to chck again in a few minutes and see then.

I cut down on pellets alot. Gassy foods are like cabbage, brocoli and kale? Yes? Well if I do give cabbage I only give a very small amount and I just give it every so often, he gets brocoli about twice a week and not a whole lot of that either. Kale he usually gets a small bit every so often but has not had that for a while due to me not doing the food shopping.

It is possible he ate some wood shavings but I changed him to fleece bedding since this day last week.

 

[michellexgix]

Pooping has been alot better.
Eating more hay too.

Gave him his veggies extra wet to help things moving, if that is the problem.
I stuffed a toilet roll with hay so that might help tonight.
Gave him only a small amount of pellets too, hoping he will get hungry and eat the hay.

 

[michellexgix]

Ok, So he was pooping a good bit this morning. I found a few droppngs to be sort of wet and sticky. I looked through a few and found hair, also found light coloured hair which I am thinking could be fluff from the fleece, He may be bitting it and then swallowing it.
He is sable marten in colour so it is hard to tell wether it is hair or fleece.

I have since changed him back to wood shavings. Yes it is pine and all that but its just temporary.

Going to vets tomorrow morning. First time bringing a rabbit to a vet and also first time at this vets. Please wish us luck.

 

[Anaira]

Good luck! Hope all goes well.

 

[michellexgix]

Thank you, theres poo this morning along with him eatting a small bit of hay. Still not himself and his stomach is all hard too. Going to ring up in 15mins to get an appointment.

 

[michellexgix]

Just back from the vets, Hes fine. She wasn't 100% sure what it was though. She said that it could be stress if anything happened even that we didnt realise it but could be stressful for him. Could also be his teeth part of his back teeth don't meet right. A small part of one of his tooth doesnt meat the top tooth so it isn't getting grinded down by the top tooth like it should be, its also quite sharp. She said this could be causing him pain. She also said it could be the fleece bedding but she didnt seem to think that too much.

She weighed him (1.22kg), listened to his heart beat for AGES, said she listened to his gut movements too, she looked at his front teeth and then at his back teeth through a small light thing she had.

She did not grasp him tooth down, for the reason that when she does have to she will grasp it down in a way that it will always have to be grasped down by her and wont happen naturally. So once she stops she will keep having to do it.

She did give him two injections, one with 'maxalon 10mg/2ml vial' and '.07ml metacam 5mg/ml inj/ml' these were given in the back of the neck. One was to help his gut movements and other was for pain. She also gave his nails a clip thank goodness as they needed it LOL.

Shes thinking the injection will work to help the gut movements and that it was just stress causing it. Of course if he hasnt gotton better or is getting worse to bring him back and his teeth may need to be done.

When I was going she told me to 'think about changing back to the original bedding' which I have done since yesterday, though only temporary as they are pine shavings and would rather use different bedding better for his health, I am thinking grass mats or something like that, problem is he isnt neutered so it will be mesy!!!
Gave me infomation to neuter him and aboutt he too anual injections they should get, forget the name. She had a look for leaflets on them diseases but couldnt find them so she said she would send them out to me!!!.