Sick Rabbit?

[Luluznewz]

Hey everyone,

I dont think Lulu is feeling too well. She was perfectly fine as of yesterday. Today, however she didnt eat her pellets from yesterday. She did, however, eat all of her hay and veggies from yesterday.

She hasnt touched anything today. Its not THAT weird for her, she sort of eats things slowly in her own time, but its weird she hasnt touched anything.

Shes also seems really relaxed. Like, she hopped around some, but she has been quite lazy. She also is really calm with me. She is new, so she isnt super comfortable with me yet, but she hasnt hopped away when I sat down next to her and she slept next to me for a while.

She also let me pick her up without a fuss, which could be odd, but she did eventually start to struggle so I put her down.

Is it really a bad sign when a bunny doesnt want to eat and is a little tired?

If I have to take her to a vet I will, but I wanted to get opinion first because my vet charges 60 bucks for me to even just go in.

 

[Maureen Las]

She may have gas or a gut disruption. Can you get some baby liquid gas meds with simethicone as the only active ingredient..some common brands are Mylicon for Infants and/or liquidgas Xfor infants. Give 1cc and give her a gentle tummy rub or encourage her to run about; she just may have gas. you can repeat the dose of 1cc every hour or so X 3 doses
you may also want to pick up some benebac gel tubes for small mammals at petco or petsmart. These are naturally occuring microorganisms that can reestablish the beneficial bacteria in her gut .
if she is not drinking get some pedialyte and syringe this electolyte replacement drink to keep her well hydrated.

let us know if this helps

 

[Luluznewz]

- Location: Santa Cruz, CA

- Description (Breed, color., weight): lionhead, black and white, about 2.5 pounds.

- Age: about a year

- spayed/neutered: spayed

- Notes on Fecal and Urinary Output
- are the bunny's poops and pees normal? They seemed pretty normal, one was a bit soft, but mostly completely normal.
- When did they last use their litterbox? Her litterbox was normal when I changed it this morning, but I havent noticed anything new since.
- Any unusual behavior? She seems fairly relaxed, not really as jumpy but shes fairly new so Im not entirely sure. She has jumped up and moved pretty fast a couple times. I wouldnt call her lethargic, just tired seeming.

- Medical History -- I dont know, she was adopted recently.

- Diet - what does your bunny eat? She eats plain pellets, timothy hay, and veggies occasionally.
- when and what did s/he eat last? She ate some of her food yesterday, but not all of it. She ate most of her hay yesterday.

- movement - any unusual movements? She is quiet, but when she does move its normal.

- are there any plants, chocolate or other substances within reach: None

- has the rabbit been outdoors: Never since ive had her.

 

[Luluznewz]

Should I try the gas x stuff right away or wait? I dont feel like it has been that long, and she just hopped to her litterbox and hopped out of her cage. She seems to be moving okay.

Also, if I have to take her to the vet, how much do you think it would cost? I'm a really cash strapped college student. I've started to save for a bunny medical fund, but I got her so recently that I dont have very much yet. A 100 + medical bill would be really hard on me right now.

 

[Maureen Las]

Everyone should keep the simethicone gas drops available for their rabbits so you can go ahead and do the gas meds. ; it is not absorbed into the body and will not hurt your rabbit.
The idea is to take a minor problem and resolve it before it blows up into something major.

if there was not an issue you would not have posted...
if you do benebac . simethicone and pedialyte you may not need a vet visit

 

[Luluznewz]

Okay, so I did the gas meds. She took it pretty easily. She seems to actually like it...

but anyway, I gave her some water too from the syringe because the petstore was closed, but ill get the electrolyte stuff tomorrow. She still isnt eat and nothing has passed...

Because its sunday I think there are only emergency vet hours. If she doesnt eat by the morning do I have to take her in or can I wait until regular hours?

 

[Pipp]

Rabbits shouldn't go 24 hours without something in their GI tracts, it can lead to a GI tract shut down and/or ulcers.

You may want to give her canned pumpkin after 16 hours.

The ER vet can check her out and especially give her SubQ fluids. If they know rabbits and they can't find any particular cause, they may send you home with Critical Care, a healthy mush to give them vitamins, fiber and hydration.

How is she doing? Make sure you keep her warm.


sas :clover:

 

[Pipp]

PS: Pedialyte can be had from a drugstore.

If she poops and/or eats anything at all, you can probably avoid the ER vet. Not a lot of them know much about rabbits, although you are in more of a rabbit-savvy area than most.

But not eating and not pooping for 24 hours is an emergency and requires aggressive treatment.

Given that she had a soft poop, though, I'd guess that the problem isn't likely to be a blockage, more likely a diet issue or a bug. It is going on a bit too long to be just gas as a cause, the gas is a symptom. The lethargy is also a concern and may signal this is more than simple gas. A gas attack from eating something that didn't agree with them usually makes them look uncomfortable and they don't eat. They snap out of it well within 24 hours -- usually 12 -- and act like it never happened.

Is she molting? Molting bunnies will often have sluggish guts and seem quiet and unwell.

Whatever it is, pumpkin and Critical Care along with the fluids will hopefully get her back on track.

But be cautious. They really hide their illnesses well.


sas :clover:

 

[Luluznewz]

Update:

She seems better! When I woke up this morning she drank a little bit of her water, about a fourth of a cup. Also, she ate all of the veggies that were left in there and some of the hay. Also the most exciting part was that there were quite a few normal looking pills.

She still hasn't eaten any of her pellets. Should I give her more veggies or should I just try to get her to eat the hay. I think im going to hold off on the emergency vet, she seems to be eating a little and passing it through.

She is molting quite a lot, iv'e been brushing her, but her hair is sorta like...piling off. She is a lionhead.

Is there anything else I should do for her besides monitor? Like should I continue the gas meds / electrolytes?

 

[bunnybunbunb]

It is molting season and some rabbits take it bad. It may just be an off time for her(which is what we hope is all it is). That explains the fur, my guys are all molting horribly. They look like mutants ;D

Hope she feels better.

 

[Maureen Las]

Continue the pedialyte..particularly if she is molting ..you want to keep her really hydrated so the hair will move through.
You can also get FRESH (not canned) and squeeze some juice and give her a few cc's of the fresh pineapple juice about every 6 hours today.

probably don't need the gas meds nowif she is moving about and looks more normal but if she slows down and looks like she did yesterday you can start the gas meds again.

if she is not eating her pellets she is not 100% so keep up the fluids for now ...

 

[Maureen Las]

also try to get all the loose hair off her because the more you get off her the less she will have to ingest when she is grooming herself.

 

[tonyshuman]

I know I'm popping in a bit late but you've already gotten some good advice. One reason to not eat pellets is tooth problems. Molar spurs can cause problems with chewing, but they usually stop eating foods that are more "chewy" than pellets, like hay and veggies, so it may not be tooth issues. Just wanted to bring that up.

I want to add in that you should use some probiotic like Bene-Bac or ProBios. Hydration with pedialyte and canned pumpkin puree should really help a lot too.

The pellets may also be bad--is it a new bag or something?

I'd change her litterbox so you can keep an eye on fecal production.