Red private area

[Spring]

Hi I went to go say goodnight and I smelt a smell like night droppings so I checked on her and when I putmy finger to the cage and caught a glimpse something was a light red so I put my finger at the front of the cage and took a look from the side and her butt (I think) was a red colour. She doesn't seem bothered by it and ate someromaine when I gave it to her so I'm just going to keep an eye on it. Could it be from a lack of fiber? She hasn't been eating as much hay as she should because all of the vegetables. The only things I've fed her tonight are the romaine, celery leaves some oats (could this be the problem? They are the quick kind?) and I think she ate a bit of hay.

I'm slightly worried. There was droppings in her cage since I cleaned it out about three hours ago still not normal size. Can anyone shed some light on the situation?

 

[RO STAFF]

Is this the new Lionhead? Are the poops getting smaller?

You're going to have to flip her over and/or cradle her, or get some help and get a good look at her hindquarters, asap, in case itssomething that needsimmediate attention.

RO Staff

 

[pamnock]

I agree that this is something you really need to have checked out by a vet before a serious bacterial infection take hold.

Vent disease can cause redness around the genitals.

"Urine Scald" or runny droppings can also cause irritation, redness and possible bacterial infection.

I've had a rabbit develop a red, irritated skin condition from just sitting up close to her water bottle.

A prolapsed rectum would also look red and irritated.

Can you get any good, clear photos? That could help us give some better guesses as to whats going on. She may need to have antibiotic ointment applied to the area or possibly be put on an oral antibiotic depending on exactly whats going on. "Vent Disease" is a serious illness in rabbits that would need to be treated by injectable penicillin. A urinary tract condition could also be the cause of the problem.

Is she used to having greens? Is she getting any pellets? Is her cage kept clean? Is her fur dry or wet in the effected area?



Pam

 

[Spring]

It's my netherland dwarf, not my new one. She is used to having greens on a regular basis and has been off her pellets for about two days. I'm not sure If I'll be able to get some clear photos as on Thursday when I took her out she ripped out two nails and she's still a little nervous about me being near her. She's still pooping although they are a bit mushy and stuck together(sometimes) and when they are normal they are not usual size but are getting bigger. Around the area is sort of a yellow-brown colour but just slightly.

The skin around it is clear not scabby or anything. She hasn't been in any close contact with my new rabbit (I've just held the new bunny about a meter from her cage)and has never been mated.

She didn't have it on Thursday, when she broke her nails because I flipped her on her back to clean some of the blood of her foot and there was nothing around her private area.

Her cage is extremely well kept (I have to because she's inside and my mom says as soon as it starts smelling she has to go outside) I clean the bottem area (where she poops and pees) every night and clean the whole cage every week. So I don't think she could get this from a dirty environment.

She has a water dish and her cage isn't damp or anything.

I'm going to keep an eye on it and feed her only timothy hay and water for the next 24 hours. Would alfalfa hay be ok too? Does this sound like a good plan? If it's not cleared up in 24 hours then I'll post some pictures to see what you guys say and information then take her to the vet. I'm almost in tears... I can't take these rabbit problems! :cry1:

 

[Pipp]

It's so stressful worrying about our babies, isn't it. :nerves1

How old is she? If she's a young bunny, alfalfa is great. If she's over a 10 months or a year, then only if she's not eating Timothy Hay.

It could just be from the mushy poops, seeing as she is so sensitive to stress, and her toe nail incident may have brought that on. (Losing those things hurts!)

Sounds like you're on the right track, and you're doing all the right things.

Let us know how it's looking!



sas and pipp :bunnydance:

 

[Spring]

I'm such a wreck right now.. I can'tafford a huge vet bill if there's something drastically wrong with her but I need to get her better no matter what I just hope it's from the stress. I feel so overwhelmed since I got the new baby and was in tears this morning wondering if I can take the extra work and debating over if keeping her is the best choice or taking her back to my cousins. She's such a sweet heart and I know i'd be heartbroken and regret it if I did. I really can't afford a vet bill so I'm so stuck on what to do!

She's around a year and a half. I just don't want her to be hungry because I've gotten her into this schedule of vegetables every night for the past 4 months. She doesn't really like her hay, but will eat it if there's nothing else around. I just hope this clears up.

I don't know if I can take the stress that comes with rabbits but having her not in my life would kill me. I'll just have to see what happens :sigh:

 

[Pipp]

Well, remember that bunnies are very sensitive to YOUR stress. That could be part of her problem.You have to be calm, happy and soothing around her, especially when she's stressed.

I always overreact when Pipp has a small poop or she she hasn't pooped in hours, or she's spending too much time sleeping, or she's not gulping down her food, or.... anything!!

But most of the time-- pretty muchall of the time--it's nothing. She hasn't pooped or eaten in hours because she only poops and eats at certain times of the day, she's sleeping because she did 20 'bunny 500's' around the living room the night before and she's tuckered out... and I know I'm being silly, but I still do it!

We just love our bunnies too much!

But both of yours sound like they're doing fine, and you're taking very good care of them! So keep an eye on it, but don't worry.

Oh, and Pipp lost a nail once -- at first the nail was still there, but her toe looked bent, and I was beside myself wondering if I should take her to the vet. Then she flicked her foot and the nail wentwhizzing by my ear like a bullet. I could tell it was hurting her for a couple of days (she's a bit of awimp when it comes to pain), but it healed up just fine. And later the vet just laughed and said he couldn't have done anythingfor her anyway.

I've got five bunnies here now, and pretty much everyday, somebunny's poops are soft, or a tad small, or there's a rough spot on somebunny'snose, or I heard a sneeze, or somebunny ate a bunch of drywall... But they all end up just fine.

sas and pipp :bunnydance:

 

[pamnock]

The additional information you gave was very helpful. I wouldn't stress out over this too much. Post a picture as soon as you can,and we can go from there. It would be very helpful to actually see the exact area you are referring to (vulva, rectum or surrounding area). The rectum could just be irritated due to the mushy droppings. Weather changes can be a factor in illness at this time of year.



Pam

 

[Spring]

I think she might have a small case of diarrhea. The tip of her tail has a smudge of poop but it's not watery and there's no watery substance in her cage. I think I might just leaveher with her hay and water for the next 24 hours to see if it clears up. If It doesn't I'll take a picture with her out. For now I'll try to get a picture from inside the cage so I don't bother her but she's nosy so I don't think I can get a good one!

 

[Spring]

Just an update. She's been eating her timothy hay fairly well and nibbled on the hard stalks of the alfalfa. Also I don't want her to be hungry so I went out a bought her some timothy hay tidbits I found at the store. They are sort of like timothy hay cubes,just look like pellets and hard and she seems to like them. She ate a few of them and I filled her dish with some. They are just sun cured timothy hay. She's also been chewing on the wood her cage is made of. Is this ok for her? It's not treated or anything and she actually eat sit.. doesn't chew and spit it out. Should I stop her from eating it?

The tidbits are these:

http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?cm_ven=null&cm_cat=null&cm_pla=unknown&cm_ite=null&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023695&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302037022&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441808783&bmUID=1142216756975

Any other suggestions? There's more poop and they seem bigger, although on her blanket there was some poops like they'd been stepped on but just crumbled,notsmushed. She doesn't smell like night droppings either so I'm taking this as a good sign! Hoepfully everything clears up :jumpforjoy:

 

[pamnock]

The Tid Bits appear to be a good timothy based treat. As long as she's eating and drinking, I'd give her a few days to see if it clears up because the cause could be viral.

If it doesn't clear up, I'd have a fecal float done for parasites.

If there are no parasites, you may need to experiment with some diet modifications. Some rabbits are prone to softer droppings and in some cases, a change in diet may help.



Pam

 

[Spring]

Could you explain about the parasites? I'll try looking to see if I can find any information.

How much does a fecal float usually cost? Do you know?

I haven't changed her diet too much and haven't had a problem until after she came out of the cage and broke her nails. I'll keep an eye on it.

 

[Spring]

I sort of feel stupid.. Is it normal for when a rabbit goes to hop and bends down that it's private sort of opens?the fold thing is the only place I see the light red colour so I was wondering if this is it.I was watching her just now and I only see the red when she goes to hop. It looks like when you are finding the gender of a rabbit. I was just wondering if this is normal??

**It's sort of the colour of the second picture when I'm right at the cage

http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/sexing.shtml

 

[pamnock]

Fecal float costs vary by region and vet. In our area, it costs around $10. You simply take a fecal sample in to have it tested.

It's very hard to visualize what you are describing -- a picture would really help. It may even be possible that you are seeing testicles. Both sexes have scent glands on either side of the genitals -- the skin is pink around the "vent" area and may also have some waxy exude.

It's very important that you either post a photo or take the rabbit to a vet. This may be a case of prolapsed rectum -- I just really can't accurately venture guesses without seeing it.

Pam

 

[Spring]

I just took her out for a look. I didn't bother take a picture because I checked her and I didn't see any red, just I saw the colour I was seeing when I opened it up. It looked fine to me.It wasn't swollen or anything. She is for sure a female. I also just wiped off the bitof poop off her tail and put her back in her cage. Her nails are also doing fine. All clear, no infections.

I can take her out again tomorrow and take a picture if you think it's really necessary, but it looked fairly normal to me? She's eating and drinking normal so I'm going to put her back on her normal diet tomorrow morning if there's no more mushy poop tonight.