West isn’t eating. – EATING AND POOPING NOW, spoke with vet.

[bunnnnnnie!]

I came home from work, and first thing I do is feed the bunnies.  Both usually eat with gusto.  West didn’t touch her meal, and hasn’t eaten anything since I got home at 6:30ish, almost 3 hours ago.  She pooped during the day, peed, but didn’t eat as much of her pellets or hay as she normally does.

I’m so upset.  She was 100% better from her last vet visit.  And now I’m scared to death she’s getting sick again.  I had a bit of leftover Metacam, and gave her a dose.  That’s what seemed to help last time.  I’m calling the vet in the morning to see if I should just put her back on the meds she was on before.  She’s at least nowhere near as lethargic this time.  She’s a little quieter than usual, but not too bad.  And she fought me plenty when I tried to give her simethicone so that’s a good sign.

I think I’m going to put her back on the diet she was at in the shelter.  I’m going to call them and ask what brand of hay and pellets they feed.  She did just fine on their diet for 7 months, so maybe I’m doing something wrong.  Wrong hay?  Wrong pellets?  Can she not handle greens?  I don’t know.

I just want to cry. 

[Deleted User]

That’s terrible news. I hope West feels better.

[bunnyfriend]

I’m so sorry. Poor little West. (((((vibes))))))

[KytKattin]

(((((eating vibes))))) What does her stomach feel and sound like? It could simply be one veggie that gives her gas. That happened with my mom’s rabbit Eclipse when (she was was my rabbit) I gave her bok choy. She would get so gassy and get stasis and I would have to give her simethicone (spelling?) and massage her for hours. Until I caught on that it was that one veggie. So maybe go back and reintroduce all of her veggies very slowly to see if you can eliminate one that might be giving her problems? Or maybe you gave too many too soon, both variety and amount? Unless of course it is something else. But you can get to the bottom of this. Just take it slow with her once you get through this episode.

[LittlePuffyTail]

How is she today?

[bunnnnnnie!]

At around 445 this morning she started eating and pooping again, thank goodness.  She’s not quite as interested in food as she normally is but she’s eating, and her poops look normal.  I think the Metacam helped, I’ve read it’s peak effectiveness takes about 8 hours, and sure enough, 8 hours after giving it to her is when she started eating again.

I’m really not sure what to do to prevent this.  I’m going to call the shelter today once they open, and ask what brand of hay and pellets they feed.  Has anyone heard of a rabbit that actually does BETTER on an alfalfa-based pellet?  The hay was also not as good quality in the shelter compared to what I feed, but obviously something they were doing there agreed with her digestive system.

The only green I give her is romaine, just to be safe.  She also gets an occasional baby carrot, dried pineapple, dried papaya or dried mango.  The romaine I’ve given her in very small amounts (she might eat 1.5 leaves in a day, spread out over 5 feedings or so).  Maybe I should take the greens out of her diet altogether?  She loves her romaine though, that’s actually one of the first things she started eating when she felt better.

I just want to do whatever I can to get her digestive tract back in good shape, but I’m at a loss of what I need to do.  I’m going to call the vet and ask if she can just give me a small amount of Metacam to just have on hand, since that seems to do the trick for these episodes.  Will vets give out meds like Metacam like that?

[Sarita]

Well, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to try her again on those pellets regardless of what type they are. I think you should start exactly as you are saying and see what happens – pellets only and her hay. Then work your way from there to see if this occurs again. If it does, it’s not the diet at all.

I know you said West was at the shelter for a year but don’t remember if you mentioned how old you thought she might be…

My vet has sold me Metacam to keep at home.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 05:36 AM
Well, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to try her again on those pellets regardless of what type they are. I think you should start exactly as you are saying and see what happens – pellets only and her hay. Then work your way from there to see if this occurs again. If it does, it’s not the diet at all.

I know you said West was at the shelter for a year but don’t remember if you mentioned how old you thought she might be…

My vet has sold me Metacam to keep at home.

The vet thinks she’s around 2 years old.  Should I wean her onto the old pellets and old hay, or just start giving them to her?

Good to know your vet will sell you some to have on hand.  I hope mine will too.

 

[Sarita]

Heck, at this point just start giving them to her.

Ask your vet about Benebac too – it’s a probiotic – maybe it will help – it may not, but it won’t hurt to try. They also have a special one just for rabbits – can’t remember the name right off – I’ll have to look when I get home what’s it’s called. I have some that you put in water I think but it also comes in a gel tube like Benebac.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Definitely feeling more like herself this morning.. she just growled at and tried to bite Zeus.  

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 05:47 AM
Heck, at this point just start giving them to her.

Ask your vet about Benebac too – it’s a probiotic – maybe it will help – it may not, but it won’t hurt to try. They also have a special one just for rabbits – can’t remember the name right off – I’ll have to look when I get home what’s it’s called. I have some that you put in water I think but it also comes in a gel tube like Benebac.

Do you give the Benebac daily as like preventative or when the bunny’s not eating?  I’ve never heard of it, I’ll be sure to ask.

 

[Sarita]

Okay, here’s a link to the rabbit one I was talking about:

http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/vet/products/Proviable-rb.aspx

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 05:51 AM

Okay, here’s a link to the rabbit one I was talking about:

http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/vet/products/Proviable-rb.aspx

Thanks Sarita, I’ll definitely ask my vet about that.  I know they give probiotics to horses with sensitive stomachs, and rabbits have the same digestive system that horses do, so that could definitely be an option.
 

[Monkeybun]

I would cut out the dried fruit too. The extra sugar could be upsetting the balance in her digestion.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Monkeybun on 02/24/2012 05:55 AM
I would cut out the dried fruit too. The extra sugar could be upsetting the balance in her digestion.

Poor West, no dried fruit and no lettuce, her two favorites. .
 

I left a message for my vet, I’ll be curious to see what she says.  I’ll be calling the shelter here shortly too, they’re not open yet.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Ok, here’s the game plan, per the vet:

1. No veggies or fruits at all.  Hay and pellets only, and absolutely minimal amounts of pellets.

2. She’s going to give me a refill of the Metacam to have on hand.

3. If these bouts of stasis keep occuring on a pellets/hay only diet, then she wants to do xrays of her skull to check her teeth.

I also called the shelter.. and they don’t even know what brand of hay they feed.   But they “think” it might be Kaytee.  They also just feed a basic Kaytee pellet, they didn’t know the specific variety on that either.. how can you not know what you’re feeding your animals?!   .

So that’s the plan.  No more fruits or veggies, reduce pellets, and I’m going to get some Kaytee hay and pellets.  I’m going to feel so bad feeding Zeus greens and fruit in front of her.. maybe I’ll buy some of those timothy-based treats they have to give her at least something.

[Sarita]

Awww…poor little West.

Your vet might be able to put her under anesthesia to check the very back molars…sometimes those are hard to see with an otoscope and these little smush faced buns do have a tendency to have dental problems.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 10:32 AM
Awww…poor little West.

Your vet might be able to put her under anesthesia to check the very back molars…sometimes those are hard to see with an otoscope and these little smush faced buns do have a tendency to have dental problems.

Yeah that’s what the vet said, if after the diet change she still has problems, then we’d wait until she was through that individual bout, then put her under and really give her teeth a close look.

I hope the diet fixes things, even though it just feels really wrong to give a bun no fresh foods and an alfalfa-based pellet.  Her’s and Zeus’s diets are going to be SO different.  But if that’s what her system is happiest eating, that’s what we’ll do!

 

[KytKattin]

Posted By bunnnnnnie! on 02/24/2012 10:48 AM

I hope the diet fixes things, even though it just feels really wrong to give a bun no fresh foods and an alfalfa-based pellet.  Her’s and Zeus’s diets are going to be SO different.  But if that’s what her system is happiest eating, that’s what we’ll do!

 

 

The grey bunny you can see in my signature had a terrible diet of only unlimited pellets and often bread. No veggies, no hay (though it was always available). His poos were huge, he could never keep weight on, and he peed buckets. Vets were always amazed that he made it to 5-6 years old before being put down because his weight condition was getting dire and he was obviously uncomfrotable (plus the bunny he was bonded to had passed and he never really recovered from that). Not that I am recommending that diet for West, she doesn’t sound nearly as bad, just offering hope that she could still live a good life on what we consider a poor diet, especially if she does not have half of those problems. 

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By KytKattin on 02/24/2012 12:07 PM

Posted By bunnnnnnie! on 02/24/2012 10:48 AM

I hope the diet fixes things, even though it just feels really wrong to give a bun no fresh foods and an alfalfa-based pellet.  Her’s and Zeus’s diets are going to be SO different.  But if that’s what her system is happiest eating, that’s what we’ll do!

 

 

The grey bunny you can see in my signature had a terrible diet of only unlimited pellets and often bread. No veggies, no hay (though it was always available). His poos were huge, he could never keep weight on, and he peed buckets. Vets were always amazed that he made it to 5-6 years old before being put down because his weight condition was getting dire and he was obviously uncomfrotable (plus the bunny he was bonded to had passed and he never really recovered from that). Not that I am recommending that diet for West, she doesn’t sound nearly as bad, just offering hope that she could still live a good life on what we consider a poor diet, especially if she does not have half of those problems. 

 

Thanks Kyt. .

I’m going to stop somewhere after work and pick up some Kaytee timothy hay and I think I’ll go with their Forti-Diet pellet.  That seems to be their most basic pellet, so I’m thinking that may have been what the shelter used.  I’ll probably only give her MAYBE a tablespoon a day.

[Sarita]

What hay are you using now? I cannot imagine that would really make much difference.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 01:00 PM
What hay are you using now? I cannot imagine that would really make much difference.

Standlee hay, it comes in a super-compressed bale at Tractor Supply.  It has a very small amount of alfalfa in it, which I can USUALLY pick out pretty easy, but I just want to be safe and go with something I know for certain she can handle.  Do you think as long as I go with something that’s 100% timothy, it shouldn’t matter what brand?
 

[Sarita]

I think so. It’s not like pellets really which has different ingredients.

[KytKattin]

Plus Kaytee is just so dusty ime.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By KytKattin on 02/24/2012 01:58 PM
Plus Kaytee is just so dusty ime.

Yeah most “small animal” hays I’ve bought are really dusty.  I really prefer horse hay, but horse hays very rarely are absolutely 100% timothy, or any specific variety of hay.  There’s always a few little bits of something else in them.

Suggestions on brands of hay?

 

[Monkeybun]

Check around locally, there may be farmers or farm supply stores that do have 100% timothy bales. More cost effective than buying little ones online or in pet stores, thats for sure.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Monkeybun on 02/24/2012 03:18 PM
Check around locally, there may be farmers or farm supply stores that do have 100% timothy bales. More cost effective than buying little ones online or in pet stores, thats for sure.

 

Will do, thanks!  I do know the local pet store carries a big box of Oxbow Timothy for a decent price, but just buying an actual bale would be way cheaper I’m sure.

[Sarita]

But can you store a whole bale….

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Sarita on 02/24/2012 03:43 PM
But can you store a whole bale….

 

Bah, details!   

[bunnnnnnie!]

West is loving her new hay and pellets.  She’s eating all of her pellets immediately when I give them to her, which she didn’t do with the Oxbow.  So I’m thinking I’ll just give her a tiny pinch of pellets every time I give Zeus greens, so they can both eat at the same time and she won’t feel left out.  Zeus was trying to break into the bag of her pellets, he wanted some too.  .

[Sarita]

That’s good!

[Author]

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