Please help, my bunny can’t get up!

[JessicaXIV]

Hi,

 Gia is a mini lop who is approximately 2 years old. About 3 weeks ago she was diagnosed with UTI and was prescribed antibiotics, but after a couple days of being on the antibiotics she stopped eating and drinking and began to have some diarrhea and major belly grumbling followed by teeth chattering. I took her to the emergency vet clinic, but all they could do is keep her hydrated and get her on Buprenorphine and Reglan. The following day I took her to her regular rabbit savvy vet. The vet said this was all probably just happening because Gia tends to stress easily so I was given instructions on how to take care of her from home. I had to take Gia back to the vet the following day because she didn’t seem any better so I hospitalized her for 2 days. She seemed better after being hospitalized, but 4 days later she got sick again (not eating, drinking, or pooping at all and was chattering a lot) so I took her back to the vet and hospitalized her again for 1 day. I brought her back home and she was eating, drinking and pooping well. She was also urinating lots. Yesterday I noticed she was kind of dragging her back legs so I called the vet and asked for help, she mentioned the buprenorphine would help Gia feel better. I gave her a dose of .15 ml of buprenorphine yesterday around 4pm and another dose this morning around 8:30am. She seems very ill but I can tell she’s hanging on! I’ve been giving her pumpkin mixed with baby food, a little romaine lettuce and water. She doesn’t really want water, but she tries to nibble on the lettuce and loves to suck on the syringe full of pumpkin and baby food. It’s been 3 weeks and the vet cannot find what is wrong with my little Gia. The vet did a culture of Gia’s feces, but I’m still waiting on the results. Gia has been okay thus far (eating, drinking and with some energy) but now she is going downhill and fast =( she pretty much hasn’t moved since yesterday around 6pm

 

 As of right now, she cannot get up at all. I can tell she tries to move but her little legs are just not responding. She has pooped and peed herself, I’m trying to clean her as much as possible but she doesn’t seem to want to be bothered at all. She eats very little, but as long as I bring everything to her mouth. I’m desperate for suggestions on how to help my little Gia, it breaks my heart to see suffer like this. The past 3 weeks have been very rough, but this past day has been the worst. I’m not sure if the pain meds are making her too drowsy and unable to walk or if this could be a symptom of whatever she has going on.

 I’m new here and not sure how this works. I’ve read lots of posts from this site and everyone seems so helpful and kind. I’d appreciate any help. Thanks!

[Sarita]

I would recommend that you have the vet do an x-ray and some bloodwork on her. It doesn’t sound like it’s just an UTI to me.

[JessicaXIV]

Thanks for your reply! My vet was waiting for Gia to be in a more comfortable state before running the blood tests… but Gia hasn’t reached that point yet. I called the vet a few minutes ago and she’s suggesting euthanizing Gia, since she has only been deteriorating since the last visit. Breaks my heart to even consider euthanizing her

[longhairmike]

i’m so sorry you’re faced with this decision.
i think what you need to do now is go over there to see her in person

[Cottontail]

Poor little girl. I would also feel inclined to have them check x-rays and/or blood work as well, but I am not an expert by any means. Is there any rabbit-savvy vet you could get a second opinion from? I would hate to put her through needless testing if she has progressed too far, but it does sound like she has an underlying health issue. I’m sure that whatever decision you come to will be in the best interest of Gia; and I hope the best for her.

[Dr. Doolittle]

I’m so sorry she’s so ill. Forget her being comfortable or not–this is an emergency situation and your vet should just do the blood work (in my humble opinion). Please keep us updated. I will keep sweet Gia in my thoughts.

[JackRabbit]

I’m trying to remember the name — could it be floppy bunny syndrome (?), and didn’t someone post about treating it with vitamin E rich foods?

[Roberta]

Yes, Floppy Bunny is one possibility and in cases like this good results have come from directly syringing vit E supplements. It is possible for the bunny to recover completely if treated quickly and correctly. That being said there is usually an underlying cause that must be treated as Floppy Bunny is still considered to be a sympton not the disease. If you type Floppy Bunny Syndrome into Google there is a lot of information available.

[JessicaXIV]

Thank you everyone for your help, I greatly appreciate your kind words and helpful suggestions! I have done some research on the “Floppy Bunny Syndrome” and I’m nursing Gia with veggies high in Vitamin E and I’m trying to keep her as hydrated as possible. She’s lost so much weight and her energy is almost none existent, but I’m hoping for the best. I can’t stand to see her suffer so much, but at least the buprenorphine keeps her comfortable for 12 hrs.

Please keep my Gia in your thoughts!

I greatly appreciate everyone’s help!

[robyn and 'tipps']

Only just read these posts. I’m so sorry for the two of you, this is such a sad story to read. Poor Gia, sending positive energies (((Gia))) and love and really hope this situation improves. Please keep us posted and you both are very much in my thoughts.

[JackRabbit]

How are you and Gia doing today?

[robyn and 'tipps']

Sincerely hope no news is good news. How’s Gia going?

[Author]

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