Two Questions...

[kherrmann3]

OK, well, I'll start off with Berry-Boo, 'cause I'm a little more concerned about her. Is it a bad sign for her to be sneezing so much? I heard her sneeze a couple times this afternoon, and a few times this morning. I am worried about this because our porch door was left open last night, and she is in the living room (across from the porch). I've never heard her sneeze before, so I was a little worried. Her nose is not runny or anything, and her eyes are clear and crust free. Is there anything I should be looking for? I don't think she's sick, but I want to make sure.

Question Two. Is it normal for a rabbit to not poo all day? Lately, Toby hasn't been pooping... until night. He only leaves a pellet here or there during the day, but he will go a lot at night. He normally doesn't go as much during the day, but now he's hardly going at all! Should I be worried? He's still eating, drinking, and urinating normally, but his "output" isn't what it normally is during the day. He makes up for it overnight, but yeah. Is it ok? :?

Pre-thank you's to anyone who answers!

 

[Maureen Las]

Both of the issues you brought up are important. The fact that you noticed them shows that you area good bunny mom!

if Berry Boo doesn't normally sneeze then the fact that she is sneezing now is something you should watch. It could just be a change in the seasons or allergies or it could be the beginning of a URI. Continue to wach her and if she continues to sneeze over the next few days it would be wise to have her checked out by a vet.

if Toby is only pooping at night when he usually poops all day and all night that is also something to watch. make sure that he has a lot of hay and also water and be sure to monitor his intake and also his poops. This could be the beginning of GI stasis but this is the point where intervention is the key to prevention. keep a close eye on him, possibly give him some wet greens and continue to monitor his poops. he is not at any crisis point now. If he is shedding it may help him to brush him if he is ingesting a lot of hair.
Please keep us up dated

 

[kherrmann3]

Berry-Boo Update:
She seems to be fine. She's not acting any differently. I made sure that the patio doors were shut last night, and I put the heat on low. I noticed my zebra finches sneezing last night, too. As of this morning, everyone is alive and well. Berry-Boo even was a bit more pushy than normal for her morning Cheerio. She is still eating like mad (how much food should I be giving her still? :? She gets 3 oz. daily). She also has been drinking and eating hay as usual. I haven't heard her sneeze today (woohoo!). So, we'll see where that goes.

Toby Update:
He didn't poo a lot last night... On a scale of 1-10, 10 being normal, I'd only give him a 5. I chart his intake and output ('cause we suspected GI stasis a month or two ago). He gets 1 oz. pellets daily, and normally doesn't eat it all. He has unlimited hay and water. He is shedding (like mad) right now, but he won't let me brush him. I've been giving him little bits of Petromalt daily. He's still acting fairly normal. This is a photo of him from this morning:



As you can see, he looks perfectly normal, if not a little grouchy. lol He lays around most of the time, so no shock there! That's his favorite stool, by the way. lol

His past few days of eating look like this:

DAY_______|__Food Given | Food Leftover__
Sunday : 1 ounce - 1/4 oz.
Monday : 1 ounce - 1/2 oz.
Tuesday : 1 ounce - 0 oz.
Wednesday : 1 ounce - 1/2 oz.

Here's the "technical" stuff:

- Toby is fed once a day in the morning.

- He is given his one ounce (by weight) of food, his cage is cleaned, and
anything needing to be refilled is taken care of in the A.M..

- He is normally given Petromalt once a week on Sundays. If he isn't
"regular", he gets Petromalt daily (smaller amounts). He has been
getting his extra Petromalt (he's not complaining lol).

- His food is (don't yell!) SunSeed's "Vita Rabbit" and I mix in
dehydrated papaya and banana chips. This is what his food looks
like:

- His other "ingestibles" include Kaytee's "Krunch-A-Rounds" (peanut
covered in yogurt and sesame seeds), Kaytee "Yogurt Drops", SunSeed
"Pet-Zel sticks" (little cookie sticks) and romaine lettuce.

- He gets 2-3 treats a day, depending. Romaine is daily (one large
leaf).

- He is fed Oxbow "Orchard Grass" for his hay (unlimited in his cage,
a handfull is left in his out-of-cage litter pan).

- He had Marshall's "Bi-Odor" liquid in his water.

- His litter (only in the litter pans) is pine shavings (please don't
yell... again). He only has pine because I had issues with him
eating everything else. His cage is well-ventilated, as is the area
where his pan is in our bedroom. These are both thoroughly cleaned
daily.

All of this info is here so you (the reader) will know a little more
about Toby's life and daily routine. All of the above "brands" are
the only ones that I have been able to get Toby to eat. He is a picky
one! -_- I also buy his food in bulk (25#). He used to eat a lot more,
so it made sense. I am going to buy smaller bags now and try and switch
him to something a little better.

Whew! That's all that I can think of as far as his daily routine and
products go... There's a little more insight! lol (a lot more insight!)

Here's the above-mentioned food picture

 

[Maureen Las]

Toby's diet is part of the problem. If you invested in a way better PLAINpellet (preferably a timothy pellet but if not that a good alfalfa pellet with low protein, fat and calcium it would be way better for him.
If you cut out all the snack treats (which are not healthy) and bought more good and different kinds of hay it would help a lot

petromalt often ends up drying up the contents of the GI tract. Many vets would never givie it. Better to get more fluids in him while he is shedding like pedialyte and/or fresh pineapple juice or just a lot of clean good tasting water than a petroleum based product.

You could slowly increase the variety and types of veggies that he eats ..like cilantro ,parsley, endive etc. Better to invest in that than the treats. When you wash the veggies you can wash them very well then leave them wet. ...that in itself will oten improve poops.
Diet changes like this have to be done slowly...so don't do any of this ina day ..could take months to get it in place

so for right now I would increase thee hay, cut out the packagedtreats..(You can give a small piece of apple or banana once a day), cut out the petromalt and get more fluids into him. If you cut ou the treats he may actually eat more hay

if you cannot brush him you can still wet your hands and/or a cloth and oftentimes just wipe him down to get a lot of hair off.

over time look into a better pellet.. all those little colored chunks are junk food

I know that you are a good mom to your buns but the treats that are advertised for many pets are not good for them . IN the case of rabbits they provide nothing more than a good taste and a lot of gut slowing carbs.

I think that over time you can get Toby pooping way better

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

 

[kherrmann3]

Thank you, for the response!

I know those treats are bad for him, I've asked my mom to stop buying them. She bought a bunch of them and brought them over. The store wouldn't take them back... SO here I am with a bunch of treats -_- I give some to my three hamsters, but they only eat so much lol

Toby has a sensitive tummy. I've tried other greens, but he snubbed them or got diarrhea after. I haven't tried endive yet. Maybe that would be a better one. I've tried changing him slowly to different pellets, but you could see he was picking around the *few* that were mixed in. Same with hay. I don't know why. I might try and give him some more timothy hay (he likes it when it is stolen from Berry-Boo's hay rack, but not when it's in his cage).

Any recommendations for food? I still have a good 10+ pounds of food left. That would be a good amount to start mixing something else in. Cost is also somewhat of a factor, as I am unemployed

 

[tonyshuman]

If you want to get rid of the treats, try someone with a rat, mouse, gerbil, etc. At the shelter I volunteer at we give that kind of stuff to those guys sometimes. Not to bunnies--they were giving it to Benjamin when we got him because it's all he would eat, but I know those products and they're not really a good choice. The high carbs in them can definitely cause GI slowdown. Have you tried purina hi-fiber lab diet? It's a pretty good pellet, quite cheap, and better for him than the vita rabbit. You could try that, get him eating it for a little while, and then transition him to an even better pellet, like Oxbow or Zupreem. Also, Timothy hay is a bit coarser than orchard, so maybe try mixing that in with the orchard in his hay rack. Good luck and cute pic of Toby.:biggrin2:

 

[TreasuredFriend]

dear K, definitely keep an eye on Berry-Boo for sneezing concerns as we'll get her in to Brook-Falls Veterinary Hospital for a check-up. Then again it may be a temporary /mild thing that angieluv Infirmary Mod and members of RO forum can ward off or inform on.

Hay particle, hair, in their nostril?

A couple of ours will sneeze if their usual hay type is changed. Bluegrass hay sent a couple into early gas trouble/gut stasis a month ago. They are fussy on quality hay. One guy is sensitive to dust. Household and hay dust. Yah, when our windows are open 1 or 2 have an occasional sneeze. Not like a chronic condition thou'.

Zupreem timothy hay lately found at Pet Supplies Plus with the $3.00 off coupon has been palatable to the buns. I'll getcha some when I'm headed down Bluemound Rd. again. Also if Berry-Boo enjoys the homegrown orchard grass and clover mix hay, I got more yesterday. Have a bit of alfalfa blend from the Muskego farmer too. Toby is welcome to try the orchard grass!

Oxbow has been stalky and unpalatable lately. :-|

I use the 1/8 c. shiny Good Cook measuring spoon (for coffee).
Have extras laying around if you need one.
I give the youngster in our care half Oxbow alfalfa pellets & half Oxbow BBT timothy pellets.
Berry-Boo has a inkbouce:great physical shape and she's most athletic-like with her binkies. That's gotta burn off a ton of energy and calories.

4 lb. bunny? Hmmm, under 6 months, .... serving Berry-Boo one scant 1/4 cup scoop (divided into 2 servings) would be my suggestion. So that's a scant 1/8 c. coffee scoop a.m. and p.m.

hope this helps, I hope Toby-man will learn to enjoy the healthy fare!:agree

 

[TreasuredFriend]

tonyshuman, does Purina hi-fiber lab diet come in smaller bags? 10 lbs?
I got a sample of Zupreem pellets and corn was listed in the ingredients. Wasn't crazy about giving the sanctuary bunnies corn. What did you think of Zupreem pellets for palatability?

 

[tonyshuman]

Yes, Zupreem has corn. My bunnies like 'em, and they're supposed to be formulated to be better for bunnies that have digestive issues already, so I don't worry much about the corn. It still has very high fiber and is timothy-based, but I can see how you might be worried, though. I'm happy with Oxbow myself, so I stick with it, but I think Zupreem would be my next choice if my guys stopped liking Oxbow.

The Purina Hi-Fiber Lab diet is what they feed the buns at the shelter (except babies and picky guys, who get Purina Rabbit Chow in the green bag). it only comes in HUGE bags (50lb?) at our local Mounds store, and it is an alfalfa pellet, but it does have a lot of fiber. I don't know if Tractor Supply Co. or Farm & Fleet would sell it, but they're probably worth a try. American Pet Diner is also a favorite pellet around this forum.

 

[kherrmann3]

Regarding Berry-Boo:
Well, I've only heard her sneeze once today. No binkies (she was in a smaller area, though), but overall still spunky. She was busying herself in her towel/toy. She also stopped to munch on an endive leaf. Those were a hit with her.

And Now, to Toby:
I will probably pick up some Oxbow (I've seen it in stores around here). Since I still have a bunch of the other food, I can mix it in without having to purchase more Hooray, cheapness! Since Toby doesn't eat as much anymore, it will last a while! Is there a specific type of pellet I should be feeding an almost-four-year-old Nethie? A four-pounds-last-time-we-weighed-him Nethie? I would assume lower in alfalfa, other than that. I'm lost. I know more about dog food. -_-*

Would he even be considered a nethie at the four-pounds mark? He's not fat, either! Just a little more meaty than normal. Vet said he's not fat, though!

 

[myheart]

Just thought I would chime in on the poo-problem. Patrick went through a bout of having small poo's. The vets encouraged me to stop all "junk-food" as most of that is a carbohydrate. Rabbit tummies don't digest carbs very well, so his little tummy wasn't working properly. I cut out all cookies and cheerios from his diet (trust me it is very difficult to do when those brown eyes demand that it was time to have the snacks). All he gets for snacks now are blueberries, blackberries, cantaloupe, apple, and occasionally some banana. So don't feel that you have to eliminate all sweets, just watch how much you give (tell mom that berries from the grocery store make a healthier treat for the fur-kids).

Anyhow, Patrick is strictly getting his Oxbow BBT, unlimited hay, and a berry or two for his snack. Oh, almost forgot to add....When the kids are having severe molting/shedding, they get a bit of canned pumpkin because it is high in fiber. That is the pumpkin pie filling without the spice. It can also be frozen so you will always have some on-hand for such cases of suspected GI problems.

You might also want to get some Bene-bac to help promote the good flora in Toby's GI. I get it from the vet for under $15.00, although other people pick it up at pet stores (I have never found any there...) It is because of me that my vet in Manitowoc now carries the Bene-bac and is the only vet facility in the County who does. Bene-bac will always be part of my "Emergency Care Kit" for the bunners along with Pedialyte, Critical Care, canned pumpkin, and symethicon(sp?) (baby gas formula).

Hope that helps,

myheart

 

[Maureen Las]

Oxbow BBT is a good timothy pellet...maybe you could get the Purina hi fiber and mix it with oxbow?
I have to look up Zupreem; I'm not sure what's in it :?

 

[kherrmann3]

I think I will be going to the pet store tomorrow to pick up either Oxbow or Purina food. We'll see which one my wallet likes better