Soft poops

[cmh9023]

My rabbit's poops have been soft and mushy lately... Also very smelly. It's not actually like runny diarrea just mushy looking...

Should I stop feeding him his vegetables or pellets for a day or so and have him eat just hay? It seems like I read that somewhere that that will help.

Any suggestions?

 

[SunnieBunnie Rabbitry]

Are they clumped together kinda like a cluster of grapes?

 

[cirrustwi]

Ok, I have a few questions: How old is your bun?How long has this been going on? Is it all the poop, or could these just be extra cecals that are being smashed?

If it is all the poop, yes, first try taking away the veggies and pellets. You can give her some oats (dry oatmeal works fine-- just the plain kind). Also, if she has a poopy butt, she will need that cleaned. Give her all the hay she wants and make sure she is drinking. She needs to stay hydrated.If you don't think she is drinking, you can give her some Pedialyte. Also, if you have any Nutrical, give her some of that.

If the problem continues she needs to go to a vet. The strong smell concerns me because coccidia has a strong smell and can kill very quickly. If you've ever treated any animal for coccidia, it always smells the same way and is a smell you won't forget.

Jen

 

[cmh9023]

They are not clumped together like grapes. I know what you are talking about, the cecals, and I know what they look like. These look pretty much just like a regular poop, just mushy.

My bun is about 7. It's only been happening for I'd say the last 2 days. I'm trying to keep a closer watch on whether it's all the poops or just some. I have two buns and it's hard to tell them apart

Thanks for reminding me about the oats. I read that somewhere too.Tonight I'm going to skip their spinach, reduce the pellets, and feed them some oats and hay. He had a bit of a poopy butt just once and I cleaned it up. It was basically just one of the mushy ones stuck on his fur. He's a big drinker, and I've continued to see him drink a lot over the past few days. He also continues to have a big appetite.

What is Nutrical? Can I get it at a pet supply store? I do feed them a bit of Petromalt once aweek. Is that the same thing? I haven't heard of the disease you mentioned. Are there any other symptoms?

Thanks...

 

[SunnieBunnie Rabbitry]

Excerpts from Rabbit Production 8th Edition:

(Page 147):
Rabbits excrete two types of feces. The hard feces or dayeces, which are produced in the large intestine, are the fecal pellets commonly seen. The feces that are consumed via coprophagy are the night or soft feces, produced in the cecum. These are consumed directly from the anus... [They are excreted in grape-like clusters and are often foul smelling]... The term "night feces" is a misnomer, because these soft pellets are often seen during the day as well.

(Page 388-389):
... Another digestive problem is overproduction of cecotropes (nightfeces). This can lead to fecal smearing on the legs and perianal region andto a need to bathe the rabbit frequently. As stated earlier, this overproduction is often due to an excess of dietary protein, which in turn leads to growth of undesirable bacteriain the cecum. Reducing the dietary protein by switching or withholding commercial pellets or by eliminating leguminous hays often solves the problem. Some rabbits exhibit a similar sensitivity to carbohydrates in the diet, and removal of high carbohydrate foods, such as carrots, will help. Replacing all feeds with plain straw for three days also will help restabilize thececal flora. Diet-linked enterotoxemia is more readily prevented and treated in pet rabbits than in production situations because of the lower nutrient needs and the ability to individualize treatments.

*******************

In Layman's terms - If your rabbit is excreting an excessive amount of foul smelling, grape-like clusters of soft stool - lessen the amount of Pellet feedand Carbohydrates and increase Fiberous Hay like Timothy until remedied.

~Sunshine



Edit: Sorry--- Took me too long to type this up...lol... But I'll leave it for it's educational value.

 

[cirrustwi]

I will say that if it's coccidia, everyone would be involved, it's highly contagious.

Nutrical is a high calorie supplement. It also has some of the same qualities as Petromalt, as far as the laxative part.It is also an appetite stimulant. It's just good to have around in general. You can find it at most petstores. It will be in the dog/cat section. You want the kind for dogs and cats. He may not like the taste, some do, some don't. If not, smear some on his foot and he will lick it off in an attempt to clean himself up.

Jen

 

[Carolyn]

Might want to consider giving a dose ofPedialyte too. Rabbits can quickly dehydrate when they have the runs,so you want to make sure the little one is getting fluids in him.

Would stop all treats, and limit pellets (some folks stop pellets for aday). If it's just a case of too much vegetables or treats, it shoulddry up pretty quickly.

-Carolyn

 

Definately takeaway theSpinach; that could be a problemon its own. Idon'tfeed rabbit spinach as it's too high incalcium andhas a high Iron levelwhich can create more problemsthan itshould. Give adifferentdark leafygreen instead and in moderation .

 

[Carolyn]

P.S. My 6 year old has a negative effect withoats to her system. The woman who wrote the book on Rabbit Health inthe 21st Century found through her research that oats can effect thechemical balance of older rabbits.

Something to consider if you are thinking of giving him oats.

Timothy hay should help dry him up. You would notice a difference after a day usually if it's his diet being too rich.

 

[naturestee]

Everyone's given some really good advice.

I have one question. Does he have regular poop too?That would help you figure out if it's a cecal problem (too muchprotein and carbs) or diarrhea. Either way, cutting greens will help. How much fiber do your pellets have? You might try switching him to a high fiber diet when he feels better. Try getting a pellet with more than 18%fiber. Mine have 25-28%, if I remember correctly.

 

[cmh9023]

Thanks to everyone for all the information! I'm going touse all of your suggestions.

One question...I have been thinking that spinach was a good choice fora dark, leafy vegetable. What is best? The otherthing he gets is parsley. How's that?

 

[naturestee]

cmh9023 wrote:

One question...I have been thinking that spinach was a goodchoice for a dark, leafy vegetable. What is best?The other thing he gets is parsley. How's that?

Each (safe) veggie is okay if fed moderately in a mix, but not always so good on it's own or in large amounts. I feed my rabbits several different veggies every day, and they types often change some when I do grocery shopping every week. Right now, I am feeding them red leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, pea pods, and carrots. I also rotate in curly and flat leaf parsley, cilantro, alfalfa sprouts, endive, green leaf lettuce, and the occasional new veggie.They sometimes get spinach if I buy Spring Mix, but neither of my rabbits like it.

Certain rabbits also are affected more by different veggies.Some will get diarrhea at the mere sight of fresh greens. MyLoki had been having more frequent bladder sludge. He has timothy pellets and timothy and oat hay, so no calcium overloading there. Most of his veggies are fairly low calcium.You know what it was? He had been eating parsley for several weeks in a row. I took away the parsley, and he hasn't had white urine for about a week now. So you often have to go through some trial and error.

 

[Carolyn]

How are things going, cmh?

onder:

-Carolyn

 

[cmh9023]

It's much better. I took away thevegetables. The first day I gave only a little bit of pelletsand lots of hay. Yesterday there was only one softpoop. I think it was excess cecals because of too much ofprotein, carbs, calcium, or whatever. I'm wonderingif I should go back to vegetables, but do more variety, or not have anyveggies?

 

[Shuu]

Just start slowly. You may have been giving himtoo many veggies. Can also try to mix in some oats with the greens.There's really no reason he has to stop with them, just try not to givehim so many at a time. Good luck and glad to hear he's doing better.

 

[Carolyn]

Agree with Shuu to start out slowly. The amounthe was getting before may have been too rich for him, so just keep aneye on it. Keep that fiber going into his system.

I'm glad to hear the little guy is doing better. Good job bringing him back around.

:highfive:

-Carolyn

 

[Redfeather54]

I gave my 10 yr old Giant Flemish some spinach tonight. She had formed poop, but tonight she also had a huge cluster of poop that had no odor and was about 2" long. It did not stick to her fur, I was lucky. She is eating and drinking good. Do I need to be concerned. My husband died Feb this year (2/17/14) . I don't want my rabbit to die. She was to the vet today and he said she was in good health, great coloring, teeth are good, lung are good. I dont know what to think. Was it the spinach?