Worrying bunny mummy!!

[Theodoreandfamily]

Hello! I'm new here.

My name is Cassie. I have a 12-13 week old dwarf lop called Theodore, but he lives alone, although we give him lots of attention and has free run of the flat except when we are out or asleep (there's always someone in usually). We have had him since he was approx 8 weeks old.

When we first got him he had a case of snuffles, he had some antibiotic treatment that seems to have worked well. He no longer sneezes although occasionally makes some strange sounds that sound like he might be a bit "bunged up" - he is breathing fine and there is no longer any nasal mucus.

He has a diet of unlimited hay, 50g of baby bunny pellets (16% protein, 16% crude fibre, 4.5% oils and fats, 7% crude ash, 10% moisture) (recommended by the vet, decreased from 60g to try and encourage eating cecotropes), unlimited water and the very occasional treat. He is due to start on adult pellets at 16week. We are going to start introducing some fresh veggies in there this week, although I am not entirely sure how much to introduce and when.

The last day and a half ish he hasn't been himself - he's usually running around and jumping on the bed and sofa. (Although he always does lay around a lot) and yesterday he ate and drank much less. Today he has eaten almost all of his pellets although I haven't seen him eat much hay. I fed him a few syringe fulls of water and since then he seems to have been drinking better. He was also ignoring us but has given us some loves and kisses tonight. I'm wondering if he was cross with us for leaving him for a while at the weekend and he didn't get as much attention as he usually does - he looked really sad and lonely but does seem a little better tonight.

Something that is really worrying me is that he doesn't eat his cecotropes. I occasionally see him coming up from his bum chewing but I'm not sure if he's eating them, and there are SO MANY left over. Like loads. We have tried putting them in his food bowl, reducing his pellets, feeding them to him and even dunking them in apple juice (he likes that - the vet suggested it when we were giving him his snuffles medicine). The apple juice thing worked a couple of times but it's an awful lot of work, I don't want to be giving him too much apple juice, and also I feel like he kind of needs to know that he should be eating them and won't know if they don't smell and taste so sweet! However, he eats his normal poos, the round ones. Often. And I don't know why. There has been a little variation in his poos - some have been a little smaller and a little darker, a tiny bit less round than usual. But some are normal. Although the ones I class as normal are slightly moist, but look a good colour and crumble when pressed... is that normal???

Also does anyone have any suggestions for litter training? He uses the litter tray to wee but not as much to poo, and occasionally wees on the kitchen floor. Although he is good in the sense that he wees and poos in the kitchen except a couple of times on the bed before he figured out he could get down as he wants to. He has a litter tray in his cage which he can go in to whenever he wants but he doesn't use it in there, and a tray in the corner of the kitchen - he does use that a little more. We put him in the tray when he wees on the floor and put the tissue in it used to wipe it up but he's still not totally getting it. His wee also smells worse than usual I think.

His fur also looks a little greasy. What could be causing this? What can be done to correct it?

One more thing - I'm thinking of getting him a friend as soon as he is old enough to be neutered, around 4 months. Will it be OK to introduce a female friend to him at this stage? I'd like to get a baby girl and would get her spayed as soon as she is old enough.

I guess my questions are:
1. Is the "bunged up" sound normal?
2. Is his diet ok?
3. How much fresh veggies should we introduce and for how long? What should he be eating as a full grown adult?
4. Is the behaviour change a cause for concern, given that he seems quite a lot better now?
5. Do you think he was cross with us and have started to earn back some trust? Do you think he is bored/lonely/unhappy?
6. Is the fact that there are lots of excess cecotropes normal? How can we get him to eat them? What will happen if he doesn't? Could it be a symptom of an underlying condition?
7. Is it normal that he eats so many of his ordinary poos?
8. What may have caused the variation in his poo size/colour? Although only fairly subtle?
9. Are his normal poos supposed to be slightly moist and squishy?
10. Are there any suggestions for litter training based on the circumstances?
11. Why might his wee smell more than normal? Does all of this add up to something like a UTI?
12. What could be causing his greasy fur and what can we do about it?
13. Would it be ok to introduce another bunny once Theodore has been neutered? Or does it have to be that they are introduced really young?

Sorry for the life story. I'm not sure what's me being an embarrassing worrying mum and what is cause for concern!!

It's frustrating because I'm a nurse for people and people can just tell me if everything is not OK. I haven't had pets for many years, so I'm learning to interpret behaviour etc from scratch. And also still getting to know his personality, as he hasn't that long since joined our family!

Thanks for reading and I appreciate any responses.

Lots of love,
Cassie, Theodore and family. <3
xxx
:bunnyhug:

 

[JBun]

If your rabbit is still sounding congested, he likely still has a bacterial infection and should still be on antibiotics. Metacam to reduce inflammation, is also helpful, and if somewhere that has bisolvon, some vets will also prescribe this to help thin the mucous to help with breathing and clearing out the infection.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Bacterial/URI.htm

The behavior change is a cause for concern. Typically a reduction of appetite and activity can be a signal a rabbit isn't feeling well. The irregular smaller than usual fecal poop is an indication of slow digestive motility, which can lead to a possible blockage if not corrected right away. Your rabbit eating his fecal poop can also be related to this slow motility, as a rabbit will often crave fiber when their GI track is moving slow, in an attempt to help increase motility. Some rabbits will even eat cardboard to help fill this craving, even though this would be very bad for them. Best thing to help increase motility is to increase your rabbits hay consumption by decreasing pellets and/or treats, but you do have to ensure that your rabbit is in fact eating more hay. If not, this isn't good and there may also be something else going on such as dental issues, etc. Has your vet ever checked your buns teeth? If the slow motility is getting to be where your rabbit isn't eating or pooping well, you may need a vet to prescribe a pain reliever(usually metacam) as well as a gut motility med. In severe cases where a rabbit has stopped eating, you also need to syringe feed recovery food and water. But usually in mild cases of digestive slowdown where the bun is still eating and pooping fairly well, this can be corrected by the increased hay and fiber(as well as ensuring good water consumption), unless another health problem and not diet, is the cause.
http://rabbit.org/gastrointestinal-stasis-the-silent-killer-2/

There can be many causes for slow motility or GI stasis. A common one has to do with diet and not enough fiber and/or too many sugars and carbs. But also any health problem that causes discomfort and pain can cause a rabbit to eat less which will cause digestive slowdown and stasis. It's possible if your rabbit does still have a URI, that the discomfort from this could be contributing. Also the antibiotics he was taking, could have disrupted his GI flora, causing upset, slow motility, and the uneaten cecals. It's also possible with you being gone, he felt stressed. A stressed rabbit can also cause a change in GI flora and lead to illness. If your bun won't eat more hay, or the increase of hay consumption doesn't seem to be helping, or your buns condition worsens or isn't improving, it's likely something else is going on and you need to get to a vet right away.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/drop/Drp_en.htm
http://rabbit.org/sluggish-motility-in-the-gastrointestinal-tract-2/
http://rabbit.org/disorders-of-the-cecum/

Uneaten cecals often have to do with the microflora of the cecum being disrupted, causing the bacteria to be wrong and thus the cecals not smelling right, and so a rabbit won't eat them. Also possible is too rich of a diet, with too much protein or carbohydrates, causing excessive production of cecotropes, and so some remain uneaten. Both problems are almost always able to be corrected with a change of diet if it hasn't become too severe, by increasing fiber intake with hay(ensuring the bun is actually eating more hay) and reducing pellets and/or sugary starchy treats, though sometimes eliminating certain things may also be necessary depending on the severity of the problem. With your vet suggesting dipping the cecotropes in apple juice, it kind of makes me wonder about your vet. There are reasons why a rabbit isn't eating it's cecals, and it's not because they don't taste nice. Better advice would be increasing fiber and possibly adding a probiotic, and this is something that a really knowledgeable rabbit vet would know.

The fecal poop being moist could have to do with the diet imbalance, but also sometimes pathogenic bacteria or coccidia can cause this as a beginning symptom, and both of these are extremely serious and need immediate treatment. It might be a good idea to have a fecal test done to rule these out.

The greasy fur could have to do with your bun not feeling well, maybe due to the URI, so he may not be grooming normally because of this.

Unless you are certain your vet is a really good rabbit vet, it may be a good idea to find a different vet. Seeing a rabbit specialist really can make a big difference in whether or not your bun is getting the correct diagnosis and treatment. If you post your general location, someone may be able to point you towards a better vet.

The stronger smelling urine often occurs when a rabbit matures and becomes hormonal, especially males. Neutering is the best way to help with this. Though if there is urine dribbling and/or loss of litter habits, a UTI is possible. It can sometimes take a young rabbit a bit to catch on to the litter training thing. A sudden increase in space before they are good about it in their pen/cage, can also make it more difficult. A rabbit is technically litter trained when they pee in the litter box consistently. Pooping is different as it is used to mark their territory. Often when in a new home/area a rabbit will do a lot of poop marking. Sometimes this will decrease as they get used to where they are and no longer feel the need to mark. Neutering will often help reduce this marking behavior, and in some cases get rid of it altogether. A rabbits litter box set up can also help with this. Rabbits poop while they eat, so having a nice big litter box with their hay in a corner or rack above, will help contain some of the poop mess.

You may want to wait on getting him a companion, until you have worked out his health issues first and then are able to get him neutered. You also usually have to wait 4-6 weeks for the hormones to fade enough to start bonding. When you are ready to bond, I would suggest looking into an already spayed adult female from a rescue. It's really much easier as you don't have to deal with the teenage phase and hormones, which can sometimes completely change a rabbits personality, especially females. Also with a rescue you will usually be able to do bunny dates to find a rabbit that is the right match for your boy bun, as not all rabbits like each other and can be bonded. If you were to get a baby bun, there is no way to know if they will get along at all when they are both mature. Also some rescues will even do the bonding for you.