Forum

OUR FORUM IS UP BUT WE ARE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF UPDATING AND FIXING THINGS.  SOME THINGS WILL LOOK WEIRD AND/OR NOT BE CORRECT. YOUR PATIENCE IS APPRECIATED.  We are not fully ready to answer questions in a timely manner as we are not officially open, but we will do our best. 

You may have received a 2-factor authentication (2FA) email from us on 4/21/2020. That was from us, but was premature as the login was not working at that time. 

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately! Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES

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.

What are we about?  Please read about our Forum Culture and check out the Rules

BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

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.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum DIET & CARE Bunny Not Eating or Pooping

Viewing 21 reply threads
  • Author
    Messages

    • SnowWhiteBunny
      Participant
      27 posts Send Private Message

        Hello, I am not entirely sure what to do about my daughters bunny. She is a very active and healthy bunny, almost 3 years old, However, since thursday the 31st I noticed she wasn’t pooping normally and hasn’t been eating hay, other veggies and such she would eat however. Everyday though she seems to have less interest in food and now she is not pooping at all. My rabbit is strange due to the fact that she doesn’t drink water, she will drink juice if she can get into some but no water whatsoever. 
        We caught her outside, long story short -we had a rabbit hutch in the backyard, one day however raccoons got in and killed half of them, some got out and were living loose in the backyard as we couldn’t catch them, she was an offspring of one of those and there wasn’t really a freshwater source for her to drink from so I am assuming she just didn’t learn…

        I live in a small town and haven’t found any rabbit wise vets around, I force feed her water with a syringe especially now that she is not feeling well. 

        Do you have any suggestions on what I should do in order to help her. From what I understand hay and water at this point are the best things in order to help fix her digestive system. 

        She is still quite alert and playful when my daughter is around but is spending a lot more time than usual sitting in her litter box. This morning she found some cardboard and ate some up but wont touch her hay.

        Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated, this happened once to her in the past when she was constipated, then she had diarrhoea but she was back to normal after a couple days…

        One again thank you for the help, we really love her and want her healthy and back to normal


      • StachesMommy
        Participant
        117 posts Send Private Message

          Awww no…. She needs to see a vet ASAP. That’s a tough situation for you because you said there are none around you. If she hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12hours, I was told that she can die… within the next 24 hours. I don’t mean to scare you but your situation is an emergency. Hopefully a more rabbit savvy member will read your post and give you more advice. It sounds like she has GI Stasis but I’m fairly new at being a rabbit mommy. I’m sorry this is happening. *healing vibes*


        • StachesMommy
          Participant
          117 posts Send Private Message

            Here I found this old post… https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/133466/Default.aspx  (Sorry for double post!)


          • LittlePuffyTail
            Moderator
            18092 posts Send Private Message

              What area are you?

              It is very important she see a vet. It is very critical that bunnies GI does not completely stop moving. Any vet, at this point, would be better than no vet at all. They could administer IV fluids, which can be a great help to stimulate gut motility and possibly take an Xray to see if there is a blockage. I hate to scare you but any upset of the GI system can be very serious, especially if it’s been ongoing. I really hope your little bun is okay. Until you can get her to a vet (which I strongly recommend be asap) you can try administering some simethicone (baby gas drops). The dosage is 1ml every hour for the first 3 hours and then 1ml every few hours thereafter. This may help a bit if there is pain from gas but the underlying issue needs addressing. Please keep us updated and wishing your bun a ((((Speedy Recovery))))).


            • Bam
              Moderator
              16838 posts Send Private Message

                It is serious since it’s been going on since the 31th. A bunny not eating and/or pooping for 12-24 hours is a bveterinary emergency. Treated in time the prognosis is good.

                This is the best article on GI stasis that I know: http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

                It’s long, but please read it. (But nevermind the part about giving an enema).

                A vet can give sub q fluids to help hydrate the contents of the GI tract, even if you’re giving fluids by mouth now, more is often needed. X-rays of the GI tract will show if there’s gas or a blockage or impaction. If there’s no blockage a vet can give a gut motility drug.

                Keep her warm, sick buns tend to get hypothermic (their metabolism drops, things slow down even more – vicious circle.).

                Whatever she eats voluntarily now is good – treats, mashed up pellets with baby fruit purée or canned pumpkin (plain, unsweetened), piece of fruit, a raisin, if she drinks fruit juice, give her fruit juice.


              • SnowWhiteBunny
                Participant
                27 posts Send Private Message

                  Thank you everyone for your responses, last night around 10pm I got a hold of some benebac and gave her some, half an hour later she had a bowel movement, after that however lots and lots of diarrhea with some mucous, that lasted till about midnight, not contant but pretty frequent, I was frequently cleaning up after her and wiping her feet and bum. I left her hay, a leaf of kale and water out. Only had a little more diarrhea overnight until I saw her at 6am. She didn’t look good though, very much looked like she was in pain but VOLUNTARILY drank lots and lots of water when I offered her, that NEVER happens so I am assuming she lost a lot of fluids with all the diarrhea.

                  I just checked on her at 9am last, more poop but not as liquid as the previous ones and no mucous, more like a paste and she ate her kale leaf and drank more water. No hay however….

                  I think this is a turn for the better. I have given more benebac despite the label saying to wait 2 days to give the next dose, she must have lost a lot of her good gut bacteria in this process

                  Thank you for the advice bam, as soon as I get a chance I will put a warm water bottle under her bed to warm her up.

                  Thank you all once again for the advice, have any of you had any sort of experience such as this before?


                • Bam
                  Moderator
                  16838 posts Send Private Message

                    I believe you’re right about her intestinal microbiota being out of whack. I too would’ve given the benebac, you want good bacteria to recolonize the gut. The big risk is if bad bacteria gets the chance to multiply uncontrolledly in her gut: Some bad bacteria produce toxins that can seriously harm the liver. Mucus in her stools do indicate the presence of such bacteria. There is a remedy for that, but it’s prescription only so you’ll need a vet to prescribe it. It’s called cholestyramine (Questran). Here’s some info on Cholestyramine:
                    “Cholestyramine (Questran)

                    is a granular resin with a high affinity for negatively charged, hydrophobic compounds, such as those produced by Clostridium spiroformes as toxins. Cholestyramine is used in human medicine to reduce serum cholesterol, and so is readily available at most pharmacies. If the rabbit has mucus in the stool, there is a good chance that Clostridium bacteria are proliferating and producing dangerous exotoxins. Questran will absorb these and be passed out harmlessly in the feces. Questran should be suspended in a generous amount of liquid (1/2 teaspoon of powder in at least 20 cc of water) and administered orally: because of its hydrophilic properties, it can dehydrate intestinal contents if given with insufficient water. Questran does not affect the action of the intestine; it is not absorbed by the body. Rather, it works directly upon the contents of the gut.”

                    I don’t have any personal experience with severe dysbiosis of the gut, just more easily remedied bouts of gas and gut slowdowns. Sadly, we have had members here who have lost their bunnies to this type of thing, which is called bacterial enteritis. I do think you ought to seek vet care, since it’s serious. I’m not saying it to scare you, it’s just my honest opinion. Here’s an article on enteritis in rabbits:

                    http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/Generalities/Enteritis_en.htm


                  • SnowWhiteBunny
                    Participant
                    27 posts Send Private Message

                      Is there such a thing as too much benebac? I’ve given her a whole tube today and half a tube yesterday.

                      I’ve done some research and am having a hard time understanding the difference between mucoid and bacterial enteritis? is there even a difference? I’ve got some dri-tail in hand and Sulmet, I am not sure which if any to use, I don’t want to kill off any good bacteria and also don’t want to constipate her again.

                      One a more positive note her stool is looking a little firmer than did earlier, still much wetter than usual however, still finding clear mucous on it about half the time. She is back to rejecting water so I am forcing her and she refuses to swallow most of it so she must be feeling better. This evening also caught her eating some carrot bits by her own free will (she has no cage, her cage is our laundry room which is bunny proof) where as before she was sitting in a corner and I was bringing her bits of food to eat. She also ate half a leaf of kale earlier when I wasn’t looking. Still refusing any hay.

                      Sounding like she is getting better? I hope so!

                      Thank you for all your advice guys, no luck on the vet yet, have a couple around but they wont see her. 


                    • Lili
                      Participant
                      27 posts Send Private Message

                        Hey, I’m not a very experienced bunny mum yet, but Sally had similar symptoms over Christmas.

                        The vet gave us critical care to syringe feed so that she was still getting something when she wasn’t eating/drinking. I’m not sure if that could help your situation, maybe someone with more experience could weigh in?

                        Also I couldn’t find a vet either because it was Christmas, however after calling around one vet that couldn’t see me gave me the number for an emergency clinic. Maybe you could call back the vets you already tried and see if they could refer you somewhere?

                        Because we had to go to the non-rabbit savvy vet and sally is over 5kg, the rabbit-vet made some instructions for the cat/dog vet to always give sally cat-sized dosages because originally what she was getting was wayyy to small. In the off-chance that you have a big bunny too and get into a vet, I thought that might be helpful to know.

                        Hope your bunny gets better soon.


                      • Bam
                        Moderator
                        16838 posts Send Private Message

                          It does sound like she’s getting better, since she’s eating carrots and her sttols are firmer. I think over-dosing benebac would be difficult. It’s rather more of a chance you under-dose it so the stomach-acid kills off all the good bacteria before they reach the intestines. I give my bunnies probiotics for humans (lactobacillus plantarum v 299) when they have tummy trouble. I haven’t worried a lot about dosage.

                          Critical Care is good stuff. It has all the nutrients + fiber that a bunny needs and you mix it with water, so the bun gets fluids too. You can mix it with fruit-juice (plain) or fruit-purée or mashed banana for palatability. If CC is hard to come by, pellet mash will do.

                          Sometimes clear mucus around stools just means the intestine is irritated and secrets mucus as a protective measure. I hope this is the case with your bun. I can’t say anything at all about Dri Tail or Sulmet, I’ve no experience of those remedies =(


                        • SnowWhiteBunny
                          Participant
                          27 posts Send Private Message

                            Snow White is a dwarf last time I weighed her she was only 4lbs, and I think she has lost weight since this whole ordeal.

                            Woke up to find all the carrot and kale gone and she was actually nibbling on some alfalfa hay which is so so so nice to see, still wont touch her usual timothy hay so I went out and got alfalfa hay which is said to be softer and sweeter, she usually never eats the hard bits of hay only the softer stuff. Spoiled bunny

                            Thank you for the advice Lili, I didn’t know what critical care was and after doing a little research regret I didn’t know about this sooner!
                            I do hope Sally is feeling better, what was her diagnosis?
                            I will call them today, I think they are getting annoyed with me , I’ve also gotten a couple friends calling in for me trying to get their “pet bunny” in to be seen and I think they caught on LOL

                            This morning stool was half good half bad, still quite a bit of mucous however… I do hope you’re right bam, I am starting to feel if she was going to pass away she would not be getting better and she definitely has improved in the last 48hrs

                            thank you very much for your advice and help everyone its definitely kept me encouraged and enlightened during this whole process, I will keep posting about her prognosis. I am sure if Snow White could understand, she would say thank you too
                            Now everytime I try to pick her up she grunts at me, she must be suspecting I am going to wrap her up in a blanket and force feed her something LOL


                          • tobyluv
                            Participant
                            3310 posts Send Private Message

                              If your bunny prefers softer hay, you should look for second and third cuttings of timothy hay. There are a couple of brands that have those. You can do a Google search to see what’s available. American Pet Diner Timothy Gold is a second cutting of timothy, which is soft and fragrant smelling. Petco now sells this, as well as several places online, including the Binky Bunny store. The Binky Bunny store also has hay toppers, which are dried flowers and herbs to sprinkle over hay to entice bunnies to eat more.  They are sold out now, but you can ask to be notified when the item returns. Orchard grass is also a softer, sweeter grass hay. Alfalfa hay is okay to use as an occasional treat, sprinkled over their timothy or other grass hay, but it’s a bit rich to be fed full time to adult rabbits.


                            • SnowWhiteBunny
                              Participant
                              27 posts Send Private Message

                                Posted By tobyluv on 1/05/2016 9:21 AM

                                If your bunny prefers softer hay, you should look for second and third cuttings of timothy hay. There are a couple of brands that have those. You can do a Google search to see what’s available. American Pet Diner Timothy Gold is a second cutting of timothy, which is soft and fragrant smelling. Petco now sells this, as well as several places online, including the Binky Bunny store. The Binky Bunny store also has hay toppers, which are dried flowers and herbs to sprinkle over hay to entice bunnies to eat more.  They are sold out now, but you can ask to be notified when the item returns. Orchard grass is also a softer, sweeter grass hay. Alfalfa hay is okay to use as an occasional treat, sprinkled over their timothy or other grass hay, but it’s a bit rich to be fed full time to adult rabbits.

                                Thank you for the advice, I didn’t know that and will get some.

                                Her coat just isn’t as smooth and full as it was before she got sick and she has lost weight, she feels very bony, I have just ordered some critical care online and should receive it the latest by thursday. 

                                Her stool has been getting more solid now and less mucous.So I think its only going to get better

                                What a scary experience, I thought I was going to lose her! 


                              • Vienna Blue in France
                                Participant
                                5317 posts Send Private Message

                                  Get well vibes for Snow White – it sounds as if she has found a loving family to take real good care of her.

                                  The only thing that really shocks me in this post is that the vets refuse to see her !!!!?
                                  Why on earth would a trained vet refuse to see an animal. Isn’t that in their oath or something…?
                                  It’s like a doctor not treating a human being! A-ma-zing.


                                • Lili
                                  Participant
                                  27 posts Send Private Message

                                    So so glad to hear that it seems like she’s getting better. I didn’t know much about critical care either, but in the end it was great for sally.

                                    They diagnosed sally with a liver node torsion, but there were a couple of things the vet said could cause the symptoms, it took blood work ect to work out what it was so Snow White could have been facing something different. If she’s a dwarf then you probably won’t have the same issue I had in regards to dosage , the emergency vet did they best they could but were giving 2ml when a bunny sally size needed 20ml and I’m still so new to being a bun-mama that I didn’t even think of it. Thankfully it all worked out in the end, and she’s all better now.

                                    I can’t believe they won’t see her, I assumed when you said that originally that it was because they didn’t have any free appointments. Do they just not treat rabbits!? Cause that seems pretty rude to me. I agree with Vienna Blue it’s very shocking and I’m sorry you’re having to deal with it, sounds like you are doing the best you can.

                                    Adding to what bam said about palatability, the vet said that once Sally started to eat little bits we could try using the critical care mash to ‘coat’ pieces fruit so that she would eat it without having to syringe feed, didn’t work for Sally but maybe Snow White might.

                                    Also I got my bag from the rabbit clinic and they’ve added a sticker instructing to keep the critical care in the freezer once opened, I’m not entirely sure why but I figure better safe than sorry.


                                  • Bam
                                    Moderator
                                    16838 posts Send Private Message

                                      The advice to keep it opened CC sachets in the freezer is to keep it fresh longer. Sometimes if you’re lucky you can go a year or longer without needing it, and then you need it like Wham! often on a national holiday when you can’t just go out and buy some. So it’s wise to keep it in the freezer.

                                      I’m so glad to hear she’s doing so much better. Lovely to hear that she grunts at you when you try to pick her up, that means she’s well enough to show some bunnitude!

                                      Hay is really important now to get her GI microbiota restored, but she will of course need some extra nutrients since she’s lost weight. CC is very good for that. Some buns will eat CC on their own if you mix it with sth yummy and serve it on a plate or offer it on a spoon.

                                      Sometimes it’s better when a vet won’t see a bunny. If they have no clue, they can inadvertently kill a bunny.


                                    • Vienna Blue in France
                                      Participant
                                      5317 posts Send Private Message

                                        I admit I do not have CC in the house in the event of needing it. I wonder if it has kept the English name in France….?
                                        I should get some and pop it in the freezer. Is it only available from vets?


                                      • Bam
                                        Moderator
                                        16838 posts Send Private Message

                                          CC is available in on-line pet supply-stores and in actual pet-supply-stores. I have no idea if it’s kept it’s original name in France, the French are rather partial to French names I think. Here it’s called Critical Care. There is original taste which is fennel/aniseed and there’s apple/banana taste which I’ve never tried but it does sound like the yummier alternative (it’s not as readily available everywhere). There’s also a fine-grind version, but I’ve only ever used the normal type.

                                          Mashed up pellets will do in an emergency if you don’t have/ can get CC, but CC is the best option + it’s a powder so you don’t have to grind it etc, just mix with water or some other liquid. 


                                        • Vienna Blue in France
                                          Participant
                                          5317 posts Send Private Message

                                            I’ll have a check around – thanks bam :o)


                                          • SnowWhiteBunny
                                            Participant
                                            27 posts Send Private Message

                                              Liver node torsion? sounds painful whatever it is!

                                              They secretary claimed they weren’t knowledgeable in rabbits and only treated cats and dogs, its not like I have an emergency clinic, these were only by appointments, I guess they were picky.

                                              Anyhow, Snow White is back to her normal self, eating everything and pooping as normal and the amazing thing is that now she drinks water. Before I would leave her water bottle out and she wouldn’t even touch it, now the water level is going down, its not a leak as I don’t see the pad underneath it yet and I have caught her a couple times drinking

                                              I gave her the critical care, apple/banana flavour just mixed in some warm water and the loved it! 

                                              Thank you for the advice for the critical care, the package didn’t say that and I just had it in the bunny supply drawer, I’ll move it to the freezer.

                                              Thank you so much for all your help everyone, I hope I don’t go through this again and none of you either!


                                            • LittlePuffyTail
                                              Moderator
                                              18092 posts Send Private Message

                                                Glad to hear she is doing well.


                                              • knr8269
                                                Participant
                                                1 posts Send Private Message

                                                  Hi,

                                                  If anyone has this question please take your rabbit to a vet. My bunny stopped eating and I figured I would wait one day and if he was still not eating I’d take him to the vet (He did eat some veggies yesterday)…long story short Barley just passed. If I hadn’t waited a day he might still be with us. Just take your bunny to the vet. Barley was hopping around this morning and seemed fine. I wish I had just taken him in the moment I was worried. These tricks might work, but you are risking losing your bunny.

                                              Viewing 21 reply threads
                                              • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

                                              Forum DIET & CARE Bunny Not Eating or Pooping