Rabbit won't drink on her own. Suggestions?

[Kim1218]

To start at the beginning, I brought Shadow to the vet on Friday because she wasn't drinking her water at all, was hardly eating anything for the past day, and had almost no deposits in her litter box over the past 24 hours. She wasn't acting lethargic, but her activity level was a little less than normal. The vet didn't feel any lumps in her stomach, but she didn't hear many gut sounds, either. She said Shadow's gut was still "palpating comfortably." They gave her subcutaneous fluids and sent me home with critical care and metoclopramide, which was to help break up anything in her gut and help get things moving like normal again (I think). The vet also said I could give Shadow 5 mL of fresh pineapple juice per day because it has a helpful enzyme that could help with tummy issues. I was advised to bring her back if she became lethargic/depressed, or didn't improve. Well, she's eating better now. Not quite normal, but better. I'm still giving her critical care, but more watered down so she gets more fluids because she still isn't drinking on her own. She has a water bottle, and I put a crock of water in there, too. I tried adding a little unsweetened apple juice to her water - no luck. I even tried diluting the 5 mL pineapple juice because she kind of liked it, but she won't touch it. I've also been soaking parsley in water and giving her little bunches of that throughout the day. She won't drink from a syringe, either; I tried, and she just lets it run out of her mouth. I just don't understand why she won't drink anything. The vet checked her teeth, and didn't find any problems or sores in her mouth. Shadow is peeing now, but not as much as she normally does, so I know she isn't getting enough water. I will be calling the vet today to see what kind of follow up and/or treatment she recommends, but I thought I'd pick the brains of you rabbit savvy folks, too. I appreciate your time and any suggestions, and I apologize for this big block of text - I know it's probably difficult to read.

ETA: In case it matters, Shadow is 4 yrs 4 months, spayed female Lionhead mix, 4.2 lbs

 

[lovelops]

Can you try something like watermelon? that is heavy in water to see if she will eat it... or melon? I've done that in the past when my guys would stop drinking water but they would eat watermelon. I'm able with Chico and chica to take a piece and push it under their mouth and get them to eat it. I don't know if you are able to do that with Shadow at all.. but I've been putting food in their mouth from babyhood so they are used to it with me. But Shadow might be stressed out now and that approach might not be good now.. but whenever they slow down with the water I get watermelon, melon and other veggies or fruits high in water content...

I've always had good luck with the syringe feeding of water or pedialyte. Are you able to push the syringe a bit further back without making her uncomfortable so it will not run out of her mouth? Have you called the vet to get some advice?

Vanessa

 

[JBun]

Never force a syringe further into a rabbits mouth in an effort to get them to swallow! You run a high risk of the rabbit aspirating the liquid and contracting pneumonia. If they are not swallowing, there may be some medical reason for this that a vet needs to investigate.

Your better sticking with leafy greens to try and keep her hydrated instead of sugary fruits. Adding a lot of sugar into a rabbits diet can sometimes cause serious digestive problems, especially with a bun that is already having gut slowdown issues from not drinking well. As long as your bun will eat leafy greens then keep wetting them down. This is a really good way to keep getting moisture and nutrients into a rabbit, when they are used to veggies. It's also debatable whether pineapple juice actually does any good. The enzymes aren't likely to survive the acid in the stomach, and the added sugar could also cause more problems than good.

My first thought would be a problem with the teeth. I know you said your vet checked them, but sometimes spurs can be missed in a simple visual exam, and a more thorough exam under GA is needed. You may also want to consider xrays to see if there is infection or tooth root issues causing the lack of drinking. These type of things can't be seen without xrays. At any rate, you probably need more tests to try and figure out what is going on with your bun. You'll also probably want to have some sub q fluids given as your bun is probably dehydrated at this point.
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/dental.html

There are other internal problems that could be causing discomfort and the not drinking, but usually a rabbit will also not want to eat when it is experiencing discomfort and pain. Did your vet not send you home with metacam for pain relief? That is really an essential thing to help get a rabbit eating and drinking on it's own. I would be a little concerned about a vet that doesn't know this. If you think you need to look for a different vet, you can try looking on these lists.
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f28/finding-vet-13366/
http://rabbit.org/vet-listings/

 

[sarahbunny]

sorry i cant help with what is wrong but when mine wouldnt drink i gave her lots of wet herbs and a few grapes.. not too many and it kept her ok until she decided to drink again.. i hope you see some improvement soon.. Also one other thought and dont take it as gospel it is just a thought, do you think that now you are giving the watered down food that maybe shadow is getting enough fluid so is not needing to drink much.. just a thought.. let us know how things go.. xxx

 

[Kim1218]

I rarely give Shadow fruits, and she only gets a few nibbles of apple or banana when she does. Parsley is the only leafy green she's ever liked, so I'm keeping some soaking in a bowl of water to feed her bit by bit. When I have to syringe feed her anything, I put the tip in her mouth sideways, just behind her front teeth. She eats the critical care just fine like this, as well as taking her medication and pineapple juice. I didn't give her the juice today, though. Mostly because I was concerned about her having more sugar than normal. I left a message for the vet, and I'm waiting for her to call back. I don't think Shadow is in pain, though. She is running around and binkying like normal, and she isn't grinding her teeth.

 

[lovelops]

I'm glad to hear that Shadow doesn't appear to be in pain and some times the buns will push the tip of the syringe out forcing the fluid out and it will run out of the mouth.. .not suggesting pushing it down the throat or anything...

I hope everything works out and please keep us posted..

V

 

[Kim1218]

sorry i cant help with what is wrong but when mine wouldnt drink i gave her lots of wet herbs and a few grapes.. not too many and it kept her ok until she decided to drink again.. i hope you see some improvement soon.. Also one other thought and dont take it as gospel it is just a thought, do you think that now you are giving the watered down food that maybe shadow is getting enough fluid so is not needing to drink much.. just a thought.. let us know how things go.. xxx

If she was drinking something from her water bottle, I'd agree that maybe she's getting enough water from the watered down food and soaked parsley. I'm just concerned that she hasn't touched her water bottle since Thursday. I've cleaned it out and given fresh water every day to try tempting her. I'm even thinking maybe I'll get her a new water bottle to see if she'll try that one.

 

[Imbrium]

First of all, I second everything JBun had to say.

Secondly, the fact that she doesn't appear to be in any pain doesn't guarantee that she's not. Bunnies are hardwired to hide any signs of pain and/or illness as best as they possibly can - in the wild, a bunny that's obviously not at their peak is about to be a predator's meal. Pet rabbits may not be wild, but their ancestors were and that's one instinct that domestication hasn't bred out of them. They do show pain at times, but that simply means the pain is SO severe that they can no longer hide it - moderate or mild pain can still be present without being apparent to even the most savvy of bunny owners.

They gave her subcutaneous fluids and sent me home with critical care and metoclopramide

^ This concerns me. Your bunny was displaying symptoms of GI stasis; the proper treatment for stasis is Critical Care, metoclopramide and metacam.

Metoclopramide is a motility drug which stimulates the gut muscles to get/keep them moving, Critical Care ensures that there's something in the gut to move and metacam is a pain killer and anti-inflammatory - which is considered a "must" because stasis and pain go hand in hand. The vast majority of stasis issues boil down to [some sort of medical problem] causing pain, which in turn causes them to stop eating (and/or drinking).

A healthy bunny will always drink whatever amount of water their body tells them they need so long as a water source they consider viable is readily available (viable meaning clean/fresh enough for their liking, nothing added to it that they dislike and served in a way that they're willing to drink it (it's not unheard of for a rabbit to not understand how to use a water bottle if they were raised with a bowl)).

If a bunny isn't drinking fluids at ALL, there is a problem. In her case, it's clearly NOT lack of a viable water source... which means it's time to phone the vet (as you already plan to do ). When you call, also ask about pain medication, as I don't understand why she wasn't given any to begin with.

Before you call, do a tent test on her - pull up the skin between her shoulder blades; if it doesn't fall back into place pretty quickly, that indicates dehydration. If she's definitely pretty dehydrated, I recommend calling the vet's office and informing the receptionist (politely, of course, I just mean don't phrase it as a question) that you're bringing your bunny in immediately because she was treated for GI stasis and given sub-q fluids the other day but still isn't drinking on her own and has become badly dehydrated as a result. Hydration is as crucial as medications are to recovery from stasis, so if she's dehydrated it's in her best interests to view that as an emergency.

If you bring her in ASAP due to dehydration, it's all the more important to try to get some metacam out of the vet. Also, it's definitely worth discussing with the vet whether they're willing to teach you how to administer sub-q fluids and give you the stuff to do it from home if she ends up needing another round of it (a good time to ask is while the sub-q fluids are being given to her, as she should automatically get them if she goes in for dehydration).

If you do a tent test and she's NOT obviously dehydrated, then of course you'd call and ask to speak with the vet rather than calling to announce that you're on your way in.

I hope she gets better soon - give her a nose-bonk from me and my bunns! ray:

 

[Azerane]

Give her a water bowl as well as the bottle, there may be a reason she's stop drinking from the bottle so try a bowl as well with some nice cool water in it Otherwise, keep an eye on her and return to the vet if you feel she needs it.

 

[Imbrium]

Give her a water bowl as well as the bottle, there may be a reason she's stop drinking from the bottle so try a bowl as well with some nice cool water in it Otherwise, keep an eye on her and return to the vet if you feel she needs it.

I almost mentioned that since bunns tend to drink more from bowls in general, but then I re-read the original post and realized that a water bowl (referred to as a crock) had already been offered and snubbed .

 

[Azerane]

Ah, you are correct! I even read that to, I guess by the time I'd read the rest of the posts I'd forgotten, lol.

 

[Kim1218]

Well, last night I caught Shadow drinking the water on the plate after she finished her parsley She still hasn't touched her water bottle, but it's possible she drank a bit out of the crock last night, too. I still brought her in to the vet today, just so they could check her out. Shadow doesn't show signs of dehydration (she had wet gums and passed the "tent test"), her weight is up by 0.1 pounds, she showed no signs of any pain, and she had strong gastrointestinal sounds. The vet said to continue with the metoclopramide and critical care for the next day or two, or until she's drinking more, and to bring her back in if she stops drinking or declines in health or activity level. At that point I can have xrays and blood work done to find out if there are any other problems. I'm hopeful that she'll be back to normal soon! I really appreciate all the help you've all provided. Thank you so much!

 

[lovelops]

Please keep us posted... I'm glad to hear that it looks like things are looking up!

Vanessa

 

[Imbrium]

I'm so glad she's not dehydrated and that you caught her drinking a little bit! I hope she continues to improve

 

[sarahbunny]

Ahh that is good news glad to hear it.. i hope the situation keeps improving.. xxx