Strange behavior

[Todoroki]

Hello! My bunny is a female and the weather in my country is getting warmer so she naturally started shedding. My problem is that she also started getting way less energetic and stopped eating. If I give her some food with my hand she will eat it but it will take her more time to chew it than she used to. She will always sit at the same spot in her cage near the water bottles and drink sometimes constantly sometimes not. Her stomach also started making noises. Another fact is that when I open the cage and let her out she is quite energetic like nothing’s wrong.

I’m really confused myself. She has been like this for the last 3 weeks. We even bought her new/different food and she ate it when we first put it in her bowl but then she stopped again.

We are planning on going to the vet soon but I’d like to hear what you guys have to say.

[ThorBunny]

Given the changes in chewing it might be a dental issue. She might have some tooth spurs that are irritating her mouth and preventing her from eating normally. It could be a number of other things though, it is good that you are going to a vet!

[Todoroki]

This is what I thought so I tried to check her front teeth. They were a bit longer compared to what I searched on the internet that could be normal. But I’m not an expert at all so I don’t what to jump to false conclusions..
Thanks a lot for your answer!

[Todoroki]

Ok.. So yesterday we went to the vet and it came out that she has fever. He checked her whole body and found everything ok except from the fact that her belly is empty.
He wrote down a prescription with the medicines we should give her and he simply said that she will start eating eventually.. And that is the thing that doesn’t sound right to me.. She keeps refusing to eat and even stopped pooping.. How can I just sit down and say “ok she will eat eventually”. Something else must be wrong..
What confuses me the most is that she’s so energetic like nothing is wrong. But it’s been weeks already and she has gotten thinner..
Also it’s so hard to give her the medicine! She doesn’t want it at all! She was so scared and even started crying.. It makes me so sad seeing her like that.. I don’t know what to do anymore..

[BanditCamp]

First take a breath, your worried and I get worried too as bunslaves.

1. Ensure that your rabbit is pooping and peeing regularly. If this hasn’t been done you will have to use critical care and syrange feed her. If this persists for 12-24 hours go to the vet immidately

2. Rabbits hide their pain as a prey species and will feign activity or hide to make predators think they are a hard target.

3. Ensure you gibe the medicine as described, if it’s your first time doing this rub the tip and shaft t
Of the syrange in something tasty like banana to make it not a foreign object and apply slowly from the sides not the front of the mouth as you can block their airway. Do this on an unfamiliar spot like a washer or table where she normally doesn’t go to reduce her from moving too much, or use a bunny burrito (blanket) and leave her head exposed.

[Muchelle]

Was the vet an expert in exotic pets? Or at least bunny savvy?
If she’s not eating you’ll need to force feed her with Critical Care or similar products, to keep her guts moving and avoid GI stasis.

What medicine did the vet give you? Is it pills or liquid? Maybe we can give you some tips about that.

[Todoroki]

Since she stopped eating she also stopped pooping.. but she does drink and pee normally I believe.

While I was in class my mother informed me that she tried to syringe feed her and she drank it. She put in it orange juice and a bit of sugar, and that’s were I panicked a bit because I don’t know if that’s good or not for the bunny.. 

Could you please suggest me what would be good to feed her with the syringe?

My mother also told me that she tried to give her her favorite pieces of her mixed feed and thank god she ate a bit!

For the night, I tried to burrito her to give her the medicine (I also watched some videos on the internet) and it went way better than before! Thanks a lot for the tips!
I haven’t tried to rub the tip of the syringe to any of her favorite food since I have already tried to feed her these and she refused them completely.

[Todoroki]

He did was a small animal vet and he seemed to know..
The medicines he gave us are liquid. It’s amoxicillin and paracetamol syrups. He told us  to give them to her once every morning and night for six days..

Thanks both of you for your answers! It really means a lot!!

[Todoroki]

BIG NEWS BIG NEWS EVERYONE!! SHE ATE!!!

Ok so in the morning before I give her her amoxicillin syrup I tried to syringe feed her some mashed lettuce. Searching here and there on the internet I decided to buy some pineapple juice and pellet for junior bunnies. At noon, I syringe feed her the pineapple juice and during that process her belly started making some really loud noises (I thought it was mine for a sec lol). I returned her in her cage and added in a bowl the pellet. At first she sniffed it and tried it a bit but lost interest and laid down. Since her belly was still making noises I tried to massage her belly. There was a specific move that she really liked and she was chattering. After a while she stood up and went immediately to the bowl and started eating normally!!! I have no idea what actually made her eat but I’m sooooo happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I won’t let my guard down though.. but this is such a big step!!!

[ThorBunny]

Yay! Glad to hear things are looking up

[Bam]

Yay! Happy news =)

[Todoroki]

Well let me update you a bit about the whole story. I’m sorry for keep writing. I wanted to write here again once we have overcome the situation but this is very important!

This morning (thank god before I give her the medicine), I don’t know what’s gotten into me, but I searched if the medicines the vet gave are actually good for a rabbit. And yes guess what, they are deadly bad! I was so shocked!! I immediately tried to find another vet.
We went to the other vet and this is where the second shock came. It was like I found an angel (lol)! She was such a professional!!! And everything made such a sense now!
First of all! She never had fever!
Second of all! She does have some teeth spurs!
The new vet also told me everything I have to do for her situation with the food and I finally feel like I can trust this person..
We will face everything properly this time!

Aaaahh.. I feel so.. idk.. pissed? no. I feel more sad that my bunny had to go through this with the first vet..

I’m sorry guys for keep bothering you. I’ll inform you again once everything comes to normal again.

[ThorBunny]

Wow, it is so good that you checked on that medicine and that you are now in the hands of a good vet

Unfortunately this seems like it happens all too often, not all vets are rabbit-savvy and rabbits have such unique needs it is hard to know who to trust.

Don’t apologize for updating us, its nice to hear how things are going. Hope she feels better soon!

[Muchelle]

Don’t worry, glad it all went for the best!

As for teeth care, feed the bun a lot of hay, pressed hay pellets (for example Bunny Traum) and, if you feel like growing some, cat grass or ordinary grass. They will help the bun keep the teeth in check and possibly avoid to have the vet manually file the molars down. I have a dental bun, so if you have questions do ask

[jerseygirl]

Wow. I got really concerned reading amoxicillin and paracetamol syrups. Especially amoxicillin. It should never be given to rabbit in the oral form. And I dont think paracetamol is safe for cats or dogs, let alone rabbits!

It’s a good thing you did look into it and went to see another vet. Did she have many doses of either of those meds?

Im not sure what to think about the first vet. Whether is is worth getting back in touch to talk about the danger of those meds or just reporting them. tbh, he doesn’t sound like a licensed vet at all. 

[Hazel]

Good job doing your own research and finding a better vet! I wish they would just be honest about it if they don’t know much about rabbits. She should be getting better now that you found out what the real issue is.

I noticed you said that she eats a mixed food, it’s best for them to have plain hay based pellets, either alfalfa based for young rabbits (up to six months) or timothy based for adults.

[Todoroki]

We are finally back to normal! Everything is fine and my bunny is as energetic as ever!

Sadly neither the second vet helped us. After two weeks of suggesting us to keep bringing her to them for checks and syringe feeding her every two hours my bunny was getting worse and worse. We even took x-rays and the only thing they could see was that she had gas in her belly. All these of course costed us a lot of money. Even though she was getting worse they also wanted to file down her molars but I knew that this would make the situation even worse.
So this is when we got in touch with an other vet. From the phone he was sure that there were only two options that could cause that to the bunny. The next day he came to our house to check her. He said to stop giving her what the other vets told us and simply put enrofloxacin in her water bottle. In five days our bunny was back to normal and he never took money from us.

I was in such despair I thought she wouldn’t make it… Thank you everyone for your comments and suggestions!
p.s. I’m sorry for mentioning the money. I wouldn’t mind giving any amount of money if this would actually help the bunny. But sadly there are vets that take advantage of it.

[vanessa]

Wow… I just saw your thread… I started to panic when I read about the amoxicillin and paracetamol… Good Gosh!
Glad to hear she is doing better. Here’s my two cents…
Gurgly belly, stomach pressed to the ground, not eating – try simethicone. 1cc baby unflavored simethicone. Gas is painful for bunnies and it will make them stop eating. Syringe feeding is indeed important – because whether they are in pain or not – they need to eat. If they stop eating, they can go into stasis and die. Very quickly. But it doesn’t help either that nothing was done about the gas. Since the enrofloxacin seemed to help the best, there was probably a bacterial imbalance (overgrowth) that caused the buildup of gas. To prevent this in the future, keep your bunny on unlimited hay, 1/8 cup of good quality pellets per day per 4lbs of body weight (if she is an adult), limit (or cut out) fruit, cut out sugary treats/snacks, ensure she drinks plenty of water. This will help keep the bacterial balance in check. You can also give her probiotics like Benebac or Protexin.
If her molars have spurs, she will need them filed down at some point, or they will start to hurt her, and she will stop eating again.
Money makes the world go round – it is what it is.
🙂

[Todoroki]

Posted By vanessa on 5/25/2017 11:38 AM

Wow… I just saw your thread… I started to panic when I read about the amoxicillin and paracetamol… Good Gosh!
Glad to hear she is doing better. Here’s my two cents…
Gurgly belly, stomach pressed to the ground, not eating – try simethicone. 1cc baby unflavored simethicone. Gas is painful for bunnies and it will make them stop eating. Syringe feeding is indeed important – because whether they are in pain or not – they need to eat. If they stop eating, they can go into stasis and die. Very quickly. But it doesn’t help either that nothing was done about the gas. Since the enrofloxacin seemed to help the best, there was probably a bacterial imbalance (overgrowth) that caused the buildup of gas. To prevent this in the future, keep your bunny on unlimited hay, 1/8 cup of good quality pellets per day per 4lbs of body weight (if she is an adult), limit (or cut out) fruit, cut out sugary treats/snacks, ensure she drinks plenty of water. This will help keep the bacterial balance in check. You can also give her probiotics like Benebac or Protexin.
If her molars have spurs, she will need them filed down at some point, or they will start to hurt her, and she will stop eating again.
Money makes the world go round – it is what it is.
🙂

Thanks a lot for your suggestions! I’ll keep everything in mind!
I don’t think the second vet did something bad to her.. But maybe she wasn’t actually needed all these checks and vaccines and drugs. Also her stomach seems to be getting better since it’s not noisy any more.

I do think it would be good to file down her molars but since she is still recovering I don’t want her to go through that now. I did talk about that with the last vet but he said that she doesn’t actually need it. What can I say..

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