Possible stasis

[Swetzel91]

Help! I am coming to you all after a very difficult time with my 1.5 year old male himalayan, George. Starting early February George became lethargic and would not eat. I immediately took him to our local rabbit savvy vet, where she believed him to be dealing with stasis. He was put on two different antibiotics, one of which is Metoclopramide. We have been feeding him critical care with a syringe.
During this time, his stool was only a few times a day and just mucus. Samples came back healthy.

When the first round of antibiotics ended, he started to eat his fresh greens again, which he had been snubbing. I had hopes he’d get better and start eating, but no go. He does have formed stool now, but still not normal bunny pellets.

Last Thursday I had him sedated to do full dental exam, they found he had two minor molar points. He also had xrays and bloodwork, which all came back fine. He started to eat a mix of hay again, but not full amounts yet. Plus getting excited for his daily fresh greens. I even saw binkies and heard purring again. They vet put him on the Metoclopramide again.

Then tonight, no eating, low energy, laying with his belly pressed on the floor.

I am totally out of ideas, have read everything I can get my hands on and nobody has a similar situation.

Any advice, help, or ideas would be great!

[LBJ10]

What antibiotics was he on? Metoclopramide is a gut motility drug.

Pressing his tummy to the floor often means it hurts. He might have gas. Have you tried giving him tummy massages. You could also give him simethicone (baby gas drops).

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html 

[Bam]

I second LBJ, it sounds like gas. Baby gas drops are bunny-safe and often helps with gas. He might also benefit from a pain-killer (metacam, meloxicam), a bunny in pain tends to lose its appetite.

The ileus-article LBJ links to is really great. Read the sections that fit your situation. It sounds like the problem was with his teeth, and when he started to eat again, his tummy couldn’t really handle the food. The gas needs to get out. Try to make him move around, that’s the optimum way to get gas out, you can also give a very light tummy massage. You don’t often hear a bunny pass gas but sometimes you can smell it, and you will soon see it in the bunny’s relieved expression. If he’s not better within a few hours you need to go back to the vet.

[Swetzel91]

I have tried the simethicone drops and the tummy massage. I did both last night and this morning he has a few loose stools in his cage. I also see some mucus, again. His energy levels are up, as he circled and is enjoYing his morning attention.

I’m really concerned about weight loss with this back and forth. He’s lost a pound through the ordeal and was one 4.25lb to begin with. Do you suggest anything to help him keep weight on until his tummy is staightened out? I have been syringe feeding critical care as much as hell let me when he isn’t eating, but it’s not keeping the weight on.

[Bam]

Mucus can be a sign of bad bacteria or it can just mean that the GI tract is irritated and that the body is producing mucus in an effort to protect the intestinal lining. Since his energy levels are up, I’d suspect the latter. Right after a bout of stasis it can take several weeks before the tummy is in perfectly good order again. Are there any round poops at all?

Weight-loss is of course concerning and he needs his strenght now as he’s fighting this. You can try giving him a small amount of rolled oats. Oats are easy on a bunny tum and often much appreciated by the bunny. It’s traditionally used to get weight up on underweight buns or to pregnant does or to keep a healthy weight on buns that need extra energy because they’re living outside. You can give oats raw or made into oat meal – serve the oatmeal cold (of course!)

[Swetzel91]

George is loving the oats, I put just a bit in his food bowl and he is excited to see them. Since Tuesday night he has been eating fine. Not quite up to normal yet. I haven’t noticed any more mucus in his stool.

However, still no normal round bunny poops. His poops are kind of large ovals that seem soft. He is producing a noreal amount of these and his drinking is normal again.

[jerseygirl]

You can also try mix up the critical care thickly and offer it to him in a dish. Or form small balls or patties with it that he can pick up easily himself. Th CC should help with maintaining weight. Cold mashed pumpkin could help also.

If he’s getting gas, this may be occurring due to the gut slow downs. But I do wonder if one of the greens could cause an upset. Sometimes, just one food can do this. I have a friend who wont give banana to one of her bunnies because she worked out this was a trigger for him. Whereas it causes no issue in others.

I know this is an odd request, but can you share a picture of the poos he’s producing? Has he ever produced ones like that at other times?

What were the meds the vet prescribed? Metaclopramide and –? Was he been given any pain relief medication?

[Swetzel91]

For the life of me I cannot remember the name of his antibiotic. But they never prescribed a pain medication.

He is still eating, drinking, and full of energy today.

I attached the picture of his poops, it really seems to be the only sign of sickness remaining right now.

[jerseygirl]

Posted By Swetzel91 on 3/18/2016 8:30 PM

For the life of me I cannot remember the name of his antibiotic. But they never prescribed a pain medication.

He is still eating, drinking, and full of energy today.

I attached the picture of his poops, it really seems to be the only sign of sickness remaining right now.

Possibly Baytril aka enrofloxacin?  It’s the most often prescribed because it’s licensed for use in rabbits. Another a vet may prescribe if they suspect clostridium overgroth in the gut is flagyl aka metronidazole. 

He wasn’t give take home pain meds after the dental either?

An unidentified source of pain is often a trigger for GI stasis or slow downs. Dental pain is often one, so hopefully you’ll see an improvement now that he’s had those points taken off. 

I’m glad to hear he is acting more himself now.

Here is a picture guide to bunny poop. Be warned, it’s a little gross! http://imgur.com/a/5N4lD

It could be the meds in his system still making his poop a bit odd, or his GI tract is not quite up to speed yet.  If you continue to see problems, it might be wise to have a fecal test done. 

There is also a congenital condition that results in odd poops. Mega colon or “Cow Poop Syndrome”. I’m not suggesting your bunny has this but if he continues to have these episodes and pain, stress or parasitic or bacterial infection have been ruled out, then I’d consider looking into this. 

ETA: That syndrome most commonly effects a rabbits of certain colouration which you’ll be happy to know, George is not. 

[DanaNM]

Hi Swetzel,
I realize this is an old thread, but I am interested to know how this all worked out with your George. I am dealing with a very similar bout of stasis with my bun, where he is going through cycles of gas and mucous after going into stasis about 2 weeks ago. His poop in between bouts of gas and mucous looks very much like the photo you posted.
I’m getting afraid that he might have cow pile syndrome, so I am curious to know whether George recovered.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[aquaapril]

Hi Dana,

Sorry to hear what you are going through with your boy. I’ve just posted about my very recent GI stasis experience here if it will help:

https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/156932/Default.aspx

Happy to provide more information in his treatment etc if needed.

[Author]

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