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Bassetluv

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The new littlerabbit that came to me before Christmas is still very ill. He had a bout of diarrhea a day or two after coming to my house, so I suspected it might have been the change in feed (thank you Tina for your help back then). I took away his pellets and fed him only rolled oats and hay, and the diarrhea seemed to clear up, so I put him back on pellets again. Then,aboutthree days ago (I think...my mind is a blur right now) the diarrhea re-appeared. His belly was somewhat bloated when he came to my house as well, and the bloating has since gotten worse. He also began sneezing, which had me worried about pasteurella. I've checked him for mucus, and a couple of times saw a bit of white mucus in his nose, but nothing abundant. He wipes his nose when he sneezes, and so far the area outside isn't really wet...just a wee bit of damp area right around the nostrils, but no real discharge, and his paws/front legs don't appear wet from wiping his nose.

I took him to the vet two days ago, who examined him and seems to think the problem might be from change in food...he suspects it has aggravated the intestinal tract and is hanging on. He didn't want tostart antibiotics without first seeing if diet would clear it up. The vet took his temp. and said it was normal. At that point the diarrhea was still there, but small poops were starting to form. So I took him home, and that night there were no small poops...just diarrhea again.The next day small poops were once again starting to form...but it doesn't seem to have gotten past that point...they are very soft/mushy.He's pretty listless, with eyes squinty, sits hunched in his cage, and overall looks quite sick. When I open his cage he will come out and will run about for a few moments, but then goes back in his cage again and sits. He is still eating, however...rolled oats and hay, and I am giving him NutriCal twice a day (he loves it). He has lost a bit of body mass and feels a bit cool to the touch, even though the vet said his internal temp is fine. I've put a box and blanket in his cage to give him someplace warm, but he refuses to stay in it.

Can anyone else suggest anything? I read something about papaya enzymes...can these be given to him at his age, and where does one find it (health food stores?)? I know that acidophilus helps humans with the healthy bacteria in the intestinal tract (it's something I sometimes take myself)...will it have the same effect on a rabbit, and can I give it to a rabbit that is so small? He's about 2-1/2 months old and very tiny....he weighs in at .8 lb.

At this point I don't have high hopes of this little guy's survival,yet I can see he's definitely a fighter. Any suggestions are more than welcome. Oh, and I finally did name him...ironically, I decided to call him 'Lucky'.
 
No, I haven't tried that yet Spiced, but have considered it. Right now he's not on any pellets though...just hay,rolled oats and NutriCal. I have also wondered if he could be allergic to anything. I'd like to experiment and take him off the hay to see,but right now he really needs all that fiber, and putting him back on pellets doesn't seem a good idea while his intestinal tract is still reacting so badly. So I'm sort of at a loss.
 
Have you tried baby gas medicine (simithicone(sp?))? I've heard it won't do any harm and might help if your baby is gassy. Keep up the good work with the hay and the oats. I found that my baby loves alfalfa hay which she will eat even when she's sick. it also has more calories so should help keep the body weight up. as for papaya, I got natural papaya treats from my pet store. you can try phoning health food and pet stores. Good luck!! :pray:
 
BassetluvL Then, aboutthree days ago (I think...my mind is a blur right now) the diarrhea re-appeared.His belly was somewhat bloated when he came to my house as well, and the bloating has since gotten worse.

He's pretty listless, with eyes squinty, sits hunched in his cage, and overall looks quite sick.




Can you hear gurgling in his tummy? Just before Christmas Willow got a big case of gas from food that had a lot of soy in it. That's just how she was siting in her cage too. She never did get diarroeha but she had some very soft poop.

This is the thread I posted onhttp://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=11119&forum_id=1&highlight=soft+poop+new+food

Gypsy and Spring recommended baby gas med with smithacone in it....that was that start of feeling better....there are 2 links about it in the thread

I got Ovol at Shoppers about $8 it came with a dropper in the bottle and i gave her about 4 drops every 2hr till she improved.

Make sure your guy gets lots of water, I offered it every hour right in front of willow because if they are ill they may not want to get up for a drink. Let us know and best thoughts

 
If he's eating on his own I'd take him off the Nutrical. I've heard it can cause bloating and it's really unnecessary in this situation.
 
jordiwes wrote:
Have you tried baby gas medicine (simithicone (sp?))? I've heard it won't do any harm and might help if your baby is gassy. Keep up the good work with the hay and the oats. I found that my baby loves alfalfa hay which she will eat even when she's sick. it also has more calories so should help keep the body weight up. as for papaya, I got natural papaya treats from my pet store. you can try phoning health food and pet stores. Good luck!! :pray:
No, I haven't tried that yet...I've seen it mentioned in the forum before and never even thought about it. Thanks jordiwes...I will give it a try.
 
Can you hear gurgling in his tummy? Just before Christmas Willow got a big case of gas from food that had a lot of soy in it. That's just how she was siting in her cage too.She never did get diarroeha but she had some very soft poop.

This is the thread I posted onhttp://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=11119&forum_id=1&highlight=soft+poop+new+food

Gypsy and Spring recomended baby gas med with smithacone in it....that was that start of feeling better....there ae 2 links about it in the thread

I got Ovol at Shoppers about $8 it came with a dropper in the bottle and i gave her about 4 drops every 2hr till she improved.
When Lucky had his first bout of diarrhea his tummy was making tons of gurgling noises. This time though, it seems fairly quiet. So Ovol is a medication that has smithacone in it? I will check that out as well...thanks so much John! (I will also check the other thread as soon as I can...I'm at work and am trying to check back in the forum as much as I can...)
 
Shuu wrote:
If he's eating on his own I'd take him off the Nutrical. I've heard it can cause bloating and it's really unnecessary in this situation.
I didn't know that Shuu...I've been giving him NutriCal because of the nutrients in it...I was worried that with him being on strictly hay and oats, he wouldn't be getting enough nutrients in him to keep his strength up. He's been off of pellets for about 3 days now. Would taking him off NutriCal put his body at risk that way, or is the risk of bloating worse?
 
Shuu wrote:
Ifhe's eating on his own I'd take him off the Nutrical. I've heard it cancause bloating and it's really unnecessary in this situation.
I'd like to know where you got this information. I always give my bunnies nutrical.
 
It was a comment from someone. I'd ask the vet about it. I was just giving suggestions based on something I'd heard.
 
I've heard that too. That's why I was wondering. I'll have to ask my vet what he thinks.
 
I think it was probably based on the fact that if their GI tract isn't moving, Nutrical can create a glob inside the stomach, thus causing bloating and not really helping the blockage situation.
 
I gave my Checkers, who had pasturella, Acidopholus when she was on long term Baytril, to replace the 'good' flora in her GI tract. She was about 7 or 8 lbs, so I gave her 1/2 of a 'people's' tablet once a day.
I think it wouldn't hurt to give it - and the simethicone.
I pray he feels better.
 
I think the only really important thread on this whole page is this one. I hope whatever information is missing can be quickly replaced. (If any information was taken down intentionally that can help this bunny or other bunnies,that's very sad). :( I hope he'sokay.

Pooks
 
Well, I've started him on a regimen this evening...pedialytes in his water, Ovol (thank you for that suggestion John), and Bene-bac. Oh, and I got him some alfalfa hay as well, as he was on timothy. He gobbled it all up, it wasn't hard to give to him at all. My concern is that his little body has been so ravaged...I guess all I can do right now is monitor him and administer meds. Keeping all my fingers crossed, and saying prayers...

And thank you all for your wonderful suggestions...it is truly so appreciated...
 

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