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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A My Bun is acting a bit strange

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    • Jutchy
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        My Pet bunny has never been as energetic as when I got him since he was neutered a year ago, but since a few days now, he’s been acting…weird.

        Usually he’ll binky around and run and jump for an hour or so, and the he’ll lie down around the flat and pick different spots to be lazy on, he also usually eats around half his food bowl a day (his bowl is fairly big so..) But now (and that was a rather radical change) he just sits in his play box I put in his cage and he rarely comes out. At first I blamed the heat wave we got, heck he has a giant cage and it’s always opened so I blamed lazyness. But then I noticed that he hadn’t pooped much, in fact, if there were anny poop it was burried. Again, I blamed it on the heat, heat=less apetite = less poop. Then I started researching online for things that might be happening to him. I’ll take him to the vet if I have to, but the one that can actually care about bunnies is 1h30 away and since I don’t own a car, I didn’t want to have my bun-bun endure 1h30 in a heat wave. So we installed the AC and I cooled down his cage area with ice bottles and such.

        What I concluded was the most probable was that he had wool block. He still eats, but he shuns his dry food and likes the wet stuff better (carrots, mint, pears, and a weird puree I mixed with also his dried food so that he could have all his nutrience). Then I came across pineaple juice as being a very effective thing against wool block. Unfortunately it appears my bun HATES pineaples, so I tricked him by dipping a pineaple juice feeding seringe in the puree he liked. But now he’s caught on the trick and won’t drink any.

        Today I went to check if there were any poops in his cage… there’s like… 5, but I also came across this white goo. I only found one piece of this white goo though, and he seems to be peeing normally.

        So yeah… I was worried, but now I’m really starting to be nervous. He refused a piece of banana (he NEVER refuses those) but then again he started coming out more. I would run to a vet, but the heat wave is still going strong for a few days…

        I usually call him my little poopster (poop-monster) but this isn’t the case at all! Any tips or tricks as to how I could trick him into eating pineaple? or is there any other stuff that could help him pass whatever is blocking him?

        help, I don’t want to loose M.Toupoutou  ;-;


      • RabbitPam
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          You need to take him to a vet. Is there one that’s not your favorite, but familiar with rabbits closer to you? Or can they consult the vet you like by phone?
          This is not normal, and if you wait too long you may have a sudden and very serious situation on your hands, and need to do an emergency run to anyone nearby, so I would get an appointment today with someone who can see him. Call the vet you like and ask if there is a name you can get of someone a bit closer under these circumstances.
          A problem with his teeth comes to mind, but we cannot diagnose or treat, and he is definitely in need of accurate diagnosis and possibly some prescribed treatment. He could get worse fast. Don’t mean to scare you, but please don’t wait.


        • Jutchy
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            There’s only 2 vets that take care of rabbits where I live, and the other one is even farther. Think I could perhaps put a cold water bottle in his carrying cage to make the trip?


          • Sarita
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              He could also have dental problems. Just so many things that could be wrong that a physical examination by a vet is the best thing you can do for him.

              If you don’t have a/c in your car then I think a cold water bottle would be helpful.


            • Jutchy
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                I don’t even have a car, so it’s subway and walking (no, our subways are not air conditioned here, which is also why I’m hesitating to make the trip…)
                He still eats his carrots though, that’s pretty much the only thing he doesn’t refuse. That and mint..

                Out of curiosity, can a bunny grow tired of a kind of food? I know it can happen with cats and dogs so..


              • Huckleberry
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                  Feeding him only carrots will cause problems too. Im not really very sure on what problems, but mine ended up with a lot of tummy problems because she was getting too many carrots. So be careful about that.


                • Jutchy
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                    I don’t give him more than one a day, and from time to time I’ll alternate the veggie selection. But right now it’s the only thing he does want to eat so I don’t really want to take them away from him…
                    He usually jumps for the bowl of bunny food when I fill it, and he’ll come running if I dare shake the bag.

                    When I was very little, I lost a pet due to his teeth growing too much, I remember that he turned his food away but it was very gradual. This happened really suddenly =/

                    Just waiting for the vet’s opening time to call…


                  • Beka27
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                      Rabbits with teeth problems will still get excited for their food, but once it’s given, they try and eat a few pieces and then remember that they can’t eat it because it hurts too much. This sounds to be how he is acting in this case. It’s good he’s still eating veggies so you know he’s taking in something.

                      I wonder if you could call the vet if he’d be willing to consult with someone over the phone closer to you. The closer vet could do a cursory exam and take a look at his teeth before you go out to the further vet. Due to the distance, it would be preferable (if teeth are the issue), that you are able to have the exam and procedure done at the same visit.


                    • Jutchy
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                        Actually, he doesn’t get excited for his food at all anymore (sorry, I’m french so expressing myself in english leads to misunderstandings sometimes ^_^
                        I just got off the phone with the vet, they were able to give me an appointment for an exam this afternoon.

                        I’ll put a few cold water bottles in his carrier and hurry.
                        (it also just started raining like crazy.. with some luck, it’ll lower the crazy temperatures we’ve been having =D)


                      • brittbritt
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                          I hope all goes well at the vet’s office. I hope your bun is better soon.


                        • Jutchy
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                            So I went to the vet, Mr. Toupoutou survived the heat (I wet his ears from time to time and walked in the shadows)

                            The vet examined his teeth, no problem there, then he felt his belly, a little bloated but not that much, heard his stomach, everything seems fine. He then suggests an x-ray to check if it’s a hair ball, I accept.

                            Then he calls me into the x-ray room, and he looks at me with this… “WTFBBQ” kind of look.

                            Kidneys are fine, but it seems that my bun’s stomach is full, but no poo-poo is being produced even though the track is still functioning. And then he points a huge mass outside the digestive system. He then says that if it was an infection, it shouldn’t cover the are that way, but it also shouldn’t be a tumor, because it looks liquidy and he can’t feel a lump. Then says he’s never see that =_= He checks his temperature to make sure.. no fevere = shouldn’t be an infection.

                            He gave me some laxative and some preventive antibiotics in case it’s the begining of some weird infection…. Mr.Toupoutou was all happy to come back home, and then I force fed him his meds… he was NOT happy..

                            I just home that both things are not too serious and that he’ll pull through just with those meds…


                          • Beka27
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                              Wow. I’m not sure what that could be then. When I read “a huge mass” I immediately thought of cancer, but you say he said it’s “liquidy”. Keep us posted with how he does with the meds. Are you supposed to go for a follow-up at some point?


                            • Elrohwen
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                                Definitely keep us posted! I’ve never heard of anything like that before. I’ll definitely be sending healing vibes to your little bun and hope he gets through it.


                              • Jutchy
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                                  I’m supposed to call the vet if he hasn’t pooped on monday. The vet is supposed to send the x-ray to one of his colleagues so if he hasn’t called me next week, I will to see if he found anything. When he touched the mass (from outside of course) it didn’t seem to bother my rabbit (it didn’t seem painful) He had said that the best way to know would be to operate, but since bunnies don’t do well with surgery and we don’t even know what it is yet it’s better to use the meds and kill a possible infection until he finds out.

                                  Update: the little guy still hates his meds, but I managed to give him his second dose of laxative and antibiotics… and He’s poopin!! Yayyy!!! (and, sorry for the language here but… HOLY CRAP that was a big poop) He still seems to have a hard time passing whatever is blocking him though, so I’ll have him take another dose tomorrow if it doesn’t get better than this. His appetite seems to be coming back slowly ; he doesn’t eat much, but he seems to be “enjoying” food more (he literally jumped at the carrot I gave him even though he didn’t eat all the leaves like he usually does, and he went to eat a little bit of dry food on his own =D) He was livelier this morning too, even though now he’s being very lazy, but I blame that on the meds plus the very stressful day he had yesterday.

                                  Thanks to everyone for their support! M. Toupoutou is also thanking everyone for the positive vibes ^_^


                                • Sarita
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                                    What kind of laxative did he give you? And did he say why he gave antibiotics for this?

                                    Glad he is pooping.


                                  • Jutchy
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                                      He gave me laxatone. It’s a laxative usually used for cats and small animals prone to hair balls. And he gave me the antibiotics in case the mass he saw on the x-ray is the begining of a known infection called…something that sarted with a P x_X It’s really just to make sure that if it is an infection, it won’t get worse until he can find out what the hell that mass is.

                                      Update: I woke up to lots of little poops in the litter! yay! He’s still not eating all that much, but then again, more than yesterday (he also seems much happier and much less bloated) The pellets seem quite hard though so I decided to give him a much smaller dose of laxative today to help him pass them out. He gets more and more excited for his food every day, so he’s on his way to a perfect recovery! =D I’m gona go out later and pick up a nice apple for him, he deserves it after enduring that ^_^


                                    • Monkeybun
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                                        I would hold off on the apple until it is fully cleared up. And only give him tiny amounts.


                                      • Jutchy
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                                          He only had a piece and he never eats his fruit treats all in one shot. I made him a happy bunny salad treat (carrot top leaves (good for him, but he loves them) mint (no sugar in there and he loves it) with tid bits of a quarter of apple in it))

                                          He ate one apple bit and some leaves, he seemed happy about it. The meds he’s taking smell horrible so I think they also taste horrible. That’ll help him wash the taste ^_^

                                          He’s quite happy today, he’s been running and binky-ing and jumping on the couch and demanding cuddles ALL day. I haven’t seen him this excited since before he was neutered a year ago (and that was even before I gave him his happy salad treat)

                                          I’m so happy!


                                        • BinkyBunny
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                                            Well, whew, what an ordeal. I know it wasn’t easy for you to get to the vet — I’m assuming you had to take the subway? I’m so glad your bunny is doing better! Keep us updated!


                                          • Jutchy
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                                              yep, subway, bus, and a bit of walking. Fortunately it wasn’t rush hour so I was able to sit and let him see I was there. Poutou doesn’t mind the bus as much, but the subway is humid, hot, and it make scarier noises… He’s a brave little bun-bun to have gone through all that in the state he was.

                                              Now that the blockage has passed, all I’m hoping is that that weird mass is nothing serious (and the best case scenario is that it would so benign as to stop the antibiotics too. It’s so hard to have him take them, and I have to do it twice a day! lol)


                                            • BinkyBunny
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                                                 I understand — The subway is very noisy. Not sure if yours makes the same high pitched screeching as ours can on certain parts of the rail, but I know sometimes I have to plug my own ears. I can’t imagine how scary it would be for a bunny.    Your bunny is very lucky though to have you as it’s obvious you love him very much. 

                                                So will the vet have any more information regarding the mass to determine whether antibiotics would need to be continued (as of course you don’t want to stop them unless instructed). 

                                                My bunny Jack, who was on antibiotics for a little while when we weren’t sure what was wrong with him, got very stressed out by my giving him meds. I did have more success though with giving it to him while he was on the floor. I used my body to hover over him, my left arm right next to him as my left hand covered his face, and I split my fingers into a V shape (pointer finger on the right side of his face, and the middle finger on the left side of his face.  I kept his head still, and with my right hand, I put the syringe into the right side of his mouth.  He would then chomp on it a little and I would then squirt it in at a steady quick pace.   Then I just pet him and gave him a tiny bit of a treat. (though because your bunny was having digestive upset, not sure I would do that).   That seemed to be less stressful on both Jack and myself.

                                                Hopefully, I explained that well enough for you to get a mental picture. 


                                              • Jutchy
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                                                  Some trains do, the older ones only. There’s this constant hum though, and the voice announcing the station is sometimes broken and overly loud. It’s not that bad for humans, but for a bunny not as much. And there’s always those people trying to see what’s in the carrier too, so lots of unfamiliar faces, lots of smells (bad smells lol)…

                                                  Since he started to eat more normally I started giving him treats already. though I never gave him bunny treats, his treats are either mint or a small piece of fruit (usually a bit size piece of apple). He never gauges himself on these anyway, he’ll usually take a few bites and leave it for later. He likes to make it last lol.

                                                  And yeah… I’ll definitely use that link you gave me. Thank you soooooooooo much!!!


                                                • Jutchy
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                                                    Update: He’s still poopin. A Little less than yesterday but he seems to still be eating. I’m guessing there’s less poop because I stopped the laxative to let his system start working on his own, and also because he probably emptied himself the last few days.

                                                    I found a way to give him his meds without pining him down or picking him up. Although I don’t know for how long he’ll fall for it, it’s still better than to stress him out right now. Here’s what I do: he loves mint, and since mint isn’t full of sugar, it’s ok to give him a little more than normal sugary treats. So I take a leaf and roll it around the syringe . It has to be farther out than the nozzle of the syringe or else he sees the trick, the mint seems to be masking the odor of the meds just enough too. He starts nibbling on the leaf, and when I feel that he touches the nozzle of the syringe I quickly squirt the meds out. Then he gets to finish his mint, which probably helps washing the horrible taste down. so yayyy!!

                                                    I’m calling the vet tomorrow to let him know that he’s doing ok and to know if he has any updates on the mass.


                                                  • BinkyBunny
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                                                      Great trick!!

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                                                  Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A My Bun is acting a bit strange