I woke up and there was a huge chunk of my buns hair in the cage accompanied with more "caecals"(sp?) Than I've seen so far covering the bottom of her cage. she seems to be acting pretty normal. I have been transitioning her to new pellets but I have been doing it carefully and gradually as well as giving her collard greens but in very small amounts . Any reason for these things to be happening? I don't want her to be sick
Think I made bun sick..
- Thread starter kep12091
- Start date
Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:
whitelop
Morgan
How many pellets are you feeding her in a day? An excess of cecals is a lot of times from too many pellets, so they don't eat the cecals.
How long have you been transitioning, and what is the ratio of old food:new food?
I never had good luck feeding my bun collard greens, it made my lop gassy. But thats just me personally. A better green to feed would be a green leaf lettuce or some cilantro. Those are always easier on the tummy.
Is she spayed? The clumps of fur could be because she's molting. But the only time my rabbit pulls out fur is to make a nest due to false pregnancy, thats why I asked if she was spayed.
How long have you been transitioning, and what is the ratio of old food:new food?
I never had good luck feeding my bun collard greens, it made my lop gassy. But thats just me personally. A better green to feed would be a green leaf lettuce or some cilantro. Those are always easier on the tummy.
Is she spayed? The clumps of fur could be because she's molting. But the only time my rabbit pulls out fur is to make a nest due to false pregnancy, thats why I asked if she was spayed.
Well I have also been reducing her portion size because the woman I got her from told me to feed her 3/4 cups a day and I thought that was too much so I have been trying to reduce it while changing it but not too dramatically . Monday I started with 3/4 c and have been lessening it each day while transitioning her. So maybe that is why because of the large amount of pellets. I am working on getting her to less but she eats them all up and i feel bad so ive given her more at evening too. The first day I did 1/4 c old + 1/8 c new twice that day. Then the second day I did about the same. So far today I've only given her 1/8 c old and1/8 c new and will probably repeat tonight. The collard greens I've just been giving her for 3 days small amounts. She is not fixed
whitelop
Morgan
All rabbits beg for pellets, so don't feel bad. When she looks hungry for pellets, give her another handful of hay.
The amount of pellets could be the reason for the extra cecals.
The amount of pellets could be the reason for the extra cecals.
Are the cecals just excess ones, but normal grape like clusters, or are they semiformed or unformed mushy cecals?
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/drop/Drp_en.htm
If the collard greens are new to her, I would suggest stopping them while you are transitioning onto a new pellet, so that when there are problems like you are currently having, you will only be introducing one new food and will know what is causing the GI upset or change. Did she have the cecal issues before you started changing pellets or did this start happening with the introduction of the new pellets?
The recommended feeding amount of 1/4 cup pellets per 5 lbs. body weight, is just a general guideline on some rabbit sites. A better guideline is 1/4-1/2 cup per 6 lbs. body weight, but again, that is just a guideline. The amount of pellets each rabbit needs depends on the type of pellet being fed as well as the metabolism of your individual rabbit, along with any other foods that are being fed. More or less pellets than the guidelines may be required depending on each individual rabbits needs. You judge the amount by what keeps your rabbit at a healthy weight and also supports healthy GI function. If a rabbit is having excess cecals, then the diet is too rich, from too many pellets and/or too many veggies/treats. The same applies when you are seeing unformed or semiformed cecotropes. Often it is from too many pellets and/or treats, but sometimes it can be caused by a sensitivity to a veggie being fed. When a rabbit is having these issues, you will have to do some experimenting to find the cause. Are you also feeding unlimited hay, and if so what type? The fiber from hay is important for good GI health and can help clear up these kind of problems when the right balance of hay and pellets is found.
You may be transitioning pellets too quickly. If the cecal problems started when you began transitioning, then this could be the cause of it. Usually a transition should take about two weeks, but with some rabbits it needs to be done even slower. So you may need to cut back the amount of new pellets that you are giving and transition onto them more slowly.
There are health issues that can cause fur loss, but more commonly it happens with a bad molt or false pregnancy for unspayed females. Do you know if it is just falling out or if your bun is pulling it out? Are you seeing any signs of skin irritation or does it look healthy?
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/drop/Drp_en.htm
If the collard greens are new to her, I would suggest stopping them while you are transitioning onto a new pellet, so that when there are problems like you are currently having, you will only be introducing one new food and will know what is causing the GI upset or change. Did she have the cecal issues before you started changing pellets or did this start happening with the introduction of the new pellets?
The recommended feeding amount of 1/4 cup pellets per 5 lbs. body weight, is just a general guideline on some rabbit sites. A better guideline is 1/4-1/2 cup per 6 lbs. body weight, but again, that is just a guideline. The amount of pellets each rabbit needs depends on the type of pellet being fed as well as the metabolism of your individual rabbit, along with any other foods that are being fed. More or less pellets than the guidelines may be required depending on each individual rabbits needs. You judge the amount by what keeps your rabbit at a healthy weight and also supports healthy GI function. If a rabbit is having excess cecals, then the diet is too rich, from too many pellets and/or too many veggies/treats. The same applies when you are seeing unformed or semiformed cecotropes. Often it is from too many pellets and/or treats, but sometimes it can be caused by a sensitivity to a veggie being fed. When a rabbit is having these issues, you will have to do some experimenting to find the cause. Are you also feeding unlimited hay, and if so what type? The fiber from hay is important for good GI health and can help clear up these kind of problems when the right balance of hay and pellets is found.
You may be transitioning pellets too quickly. If the cecal problems started when you began transitioning, then this could be the cause of it. Usually a transition should take about two weeks, but with some rabbits it needs to be done even slower. So you may need to cut back the amount of new pellets that you are giving and transition onto them more slowly.
There are health issues that can cause fur loss, but more commonly it happens with a bad molt or false pregnancy for unspayed females. Do you know if it is just falling out or if your bun is pulling it out? Are you seeing any signs of skin irritation or does it look healthy?
oatmealbunbun
Active Member
I went through a similar situation ... But my bunny had really loud gurguling in his tummy ...
I was switching his pellets and feeding him veggies and he ended up with really loose (runny) cecals.
Had to take him to the vet since all he was eating was hay and his gas didn't go away... got him antibiotics and now he is fine.
I hope your bun feels better !!!
also you might want to get him some bene - bac if he does have runny cecals...
I was switching his pellets and feeding him veggies and he ended up with really loose (runny) cecals.
Had to take him to the vet since all he was eating was hay and his gas didn't go away... got him antibiotics and now he is fine.
I hope your bun feels better !!!
also you might want to get him some bene - bac if he does have runny cecals...
She has unlimited Timothy hay. The only problem is that I only got a little bag from the Lady I got the bunny from and I can't find the brand. Her skin looks fine and I'm not sure if she pulled it out or not ...ive only had her a week so im notsure about the history
