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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Bunny recovering from stasis too slowly? What should I do?

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    • Meg
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        Hi all! Here’s the backstory but it’s kind of long so feel free to scroll to the bottom!

         My 7 1/2 -year-old Athena came down with GI stasis on Tuesday.  She was her normal self on Tuesday morning, gobbling up her breakfast with her usual enthusiasm, but when I came home from work in the evening she wasn’t eating at all.  I gave her a couple of rounds of simethicone and tummy rubs, then and before I went to bed, hoping she’d just bounce back, as she sometimes doesn’t feel like eating at bedtime but it’s just sleepiness and by morning all the food is gone and she’s fine. 

        But Wednesday she still wasn’t eating so I started Critical Care in addition to the simethicone and tummy rubs, 4 hours apart.  Her morning and noon feedings went OK, though I only got like 15 ML of critical care in her before she wasn’t having it anymore — but till then even lapped up the food off the syringe like the very good little bunny she is.  <3

        But then in the afternoon she was lying on the wood floor more and more, which she doesn’t usually do, and in an awkward position with her front legs all splayed (like maybe from weakness).    And Teddy, our other bun and her BFF, wasn’t paying attention to her at all in the afternoon, which I didn’t like.  And her late afternoon feeding didn’t go well at all!  I got some simethicone in her but no Critical Care or tummy tea because she just wasn’t swallowing anything.    And she was breathing so slowly and gently, even when she was in a burrito being fed!!!  She looked really dehydrated and lethargic and I was terrified this was the end.    I kept her on my lap for a bit to help keep her warm, and petted her and gave tummy rubs.  And tried to call around for a visiting bunny vet (since these two have gotten stasis after vet trips before) but with no luck.  When Teddy finally came back into the room I put her down so they could be together and she just lay on the floor where I’d put her for a minute, not even trying to get up or change position.  It broke my heart!!  And Teddy didn’t approach her. 

         But then she started to bounce back!!!      She got up, started sitting more normally, and then started drinking water and eating some dried flowers on her own.  And looking a lot better, and Teddy snuggled with her again.  I was so happy!!  She and Teddy both seemed very afraid of me and of being picked up at this point, so I stopped the medicine and force feedings thinking as long as she was eating, drinking, and looking happy I’d let her recover on her own.

        So Wednesday and yesterday she was slowly getting better: drinking and eating flowers and a bit of hay on her own, with enthusiasm, and eating kale.  And behaving pretty normally. Last night she drank water and ate kale at 1am, and then ate more kale at 5am.

         But then this morning at 9:30am when I checked again she was back to lying on the wood floor (though her back legs were stretched out) and when I put down dried flowers in front of her she didn’t touch them.  Now an hour later she’s back on her rug and did eat some kale when I brought her a couple small pieces.  (I don’t want to overdo it on kale of course.) 

        But I’m concerned that she’s not getting better more quickly.  And I forget what the drill is with this — how do you find the right balance between making sure she’s getting enough food/help and not stressing her out with all the force feeding?  In other words, at what point do you back off with the simethicone and critical care, if she’s eating a bit on her own?  Should I start that back up now?  And/or is there something else I’m missing?

        Thank you SO much,

        Meg


      • jerseygirl
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          It’s a bit of a catch-22 isn’t it?

          I think at this point I’d allow her to eat on her own as much as possible, even it is putting a bowl of CC down for her. Try herbs and greens with high water content to keep her hydrated. This may sound counter-productive but try offer things she normally is not interested in. Or she eats it but isn’t mad keen on. It might be bitter greens like arugula, mustard greens or endive. Dill can be really good for tummy issues also. 

          When my rabbits have been off their food, I usually have success with rose leaves and petals and dried willow leaves.  Sometimes fresh grass also. 

          It’s hard to gauge what they’re eating when you can’t be there to observe all day and when there’s more then one rabbit. If I were going to be out for more then 5 hours, I’d probably try do an assist feed before leaving if could see they hadn’t eaten in last few hours.

          Ideally, you need to get to the bottom of why she stopped eating. Aside from they way she’s been lying, is she moving around okay? Is she straining when peeing? When she is eating hay, is she doing so as normal or dropping it a lot? Has she been moulting a lot or has Teddy?

          {{{Athena}}} I hope you see her 100% better soon.


        • kmurphy
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            Poor bunny! Stasis is the worst. We adopted a new bunny and she immediately went into stasis and it took over 20 days for her to recover. I would definitely try wet critical care in a bowl or even just her pellets with water and heated up to make a mash. That was all our bunny would eat and she still is getting a little bit of it to keep her appetite (and weight) up.
            Apple leaves are also a big hit but there might not be any at this time of year.


          • Meg
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              Thank you both sooo much!!  That’s really helpful.  I’ll try those other greens and see what she does.  And how much kale can I give her (for a few days) before it’s dangerous? 

              She has been shedding a bit for the last week or two, so I’m guessing it’s maybe related to that.  I don’t suspect dental issues because it was so sudden, and a bunny dentist told me she has a nice even bite with no issues anticipated.  She doesn’t pick up hay and drop it.  

              Yeah, she moves around OK when she has the energy, and doesn’t seem to have pee problems.  She’s pooping tiny poops. She seems a little better now, stretched out on the rug and snuggling with Teddy, and taking nibbles of food.  (She likes to nap right in the middle of her food for easy snacking access, which is how I know we’re related.

              OK, I’ll keep up the greens and try putting warm Critical Care down (I also give them a little bit of Critter Be Better pellets, which are similar but have some probiotics in them so I like it for that). 

              Thanks so much!!


            • jerseygirl
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                (She likes to nap right in the middle of her food for easy snacking access, which is how I know we’re related.

                Lol.

                How is she doing?


              • Meg
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                  About the same, thanks for asking.  Lying with her legs stretched out and eating some of the kale I bring (but not much else).  I tried some of the new bitter greens that you suggested and… someone ate it (it could have been Teddy).  Haha.  I don’t want to make them feel like I’m spying on them any more than I already do, so I’m not sure, but I’ll keep a closer eye before I go to bed. 

                   How much kale can I give her (for a few days) before it would be too dangerous?  

                  Thank you so much for all your help and moral support!! 


                • jerseygirl
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                    How much kale can I give her (for a few days) before it would be too dangerous?

                    I’m not sure!
                    What is your concern with kale? The calcium?
                    If she normally doesn’t have trouble excreting excess calcium, I wouldn’t be too concerned about that. And it’s low oxalate, so no worries there.
                    Keep fluids up. Maybe put bowl next to her if she’s not keen on getting up too often. If you have hydrating solution, put out a small dish of that also. Or get her to take some by syringe. One with simple glucose is better, not artificial sweeteners.

                    If you have some of the other green’s left, try offer a small piece to each rabbit before you go to bed. Whoever had a taste for them earlier should take seconds happily. Maybe that will clue you in to who ate them.


                  • Meg
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                      Yeah, the calcium — I know it can cause problems over the long term, but wasn’t sure if it was an issue with a lot of kale for a short time. Thanks!

                      Oooh, great tip about the greens sleuthing! I’m gonna try that!

                      Thank you so much!!!


                    • jerseygirl
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                        Haha, good luck!

                        Ive edited my previous post half dozen times, sorry. I, of course, meant small dish, not small fish.

                        ETA: just another little thing I discovered recently when one of my buns had a gut slow down. She had me stressed for 24hrs. Then I put her in my carpeted living room with me and she hopped around quite a lot. Whereas before, she just loafed. The combo of traction and curiosity got her moving and really lessened my concern for her.


                      • Meg
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                          Thank you so much!! Yeah, it’s kind of a dilemma for me because when I open the door to my bedroom, which has more space for them to hop and some favorite hiding spots, the buns are happy and get the bit of extra exercise from at least hopping over there, if not around very much… but then at this stage Athena is likely to just stay put in there all day and not come back into their area (which is also on rugs) to drink water and eat. I bring some to her but I get the feeling it might be better for her to be near all her food, water, and litterboxes. The night before last I made an exception and let the bunnies stay in my room overnight, because they were both set on it and I didn’t have the heart to chase them out (which is a process) — but then Athena was worse in the morning. Last night I did chase her out before bed and when she got back to the bunny area she went straight for the water bowl.

                          So I’m thinking today I’ll experiment with keeping both bunnies in their area (which is like 8′ x 8′ or so) so Athena stays near the food and water, and see how that goes. So far she’s still the same: will eat a bit of kale, but not much else, and pooping a few tiny, somewhat mushy poops.

                          Thank you so much again! I am really so grateful.


                        • Meg
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                            You were right, Athena will eat dill too! Who knew? I’d never bought it before, even for myself. Thank you!

                            I kept the buns in their area today and Athena seems slightly better — she ate their goodnight treat (half an Oxbow Skin and Coat tablet) for the first time in several days. : ) And whenever I put some kale down throughout the day (which was 4 or 5 times) she almost always ate a few pieces. I’ll let them have the run of my room tomorrow because I don’t want to keep them cooped up, but it seems like today was OK. I did see a cecotrope on the floor tonight, which is not great (and never happens when they’re healthy), but that’s happened before with statis/slowdown. Other than that, her poop seems to be slightly increasing.

                            Oh, funny: I was reluctant to put out a dish of CC because if I were Athena, I’d be repelled by the smell of it since it’s associated with force feeding. (I hate the smell myself because it reminds me of bunnies being sick and me being anxious for them.) And sure enough, when I put it down by Athena she sniffed it, then got up and ran away, flicking her feet, and hid! I gave her a few minutes to make sure it wasn’t just that she was annoyed I kept putting food down near her (I’d just given greens), and then took away the offending dish so she wouldn’t keep looking so alarmed. ;9

                            Thank you so much!!


                          • jerseygirl
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                              Oh I’m glad she’s trying some other things.

                              Is she eating any hay? Will she try pellets softened with water?? I cant say i’m surprised she didn’t go for the CC in a bowl, but it’s always worth a try.
                              If she’s not taking anything else, you’ll probably have to resume syringe feeding unfortunately. She really needs the fibre and fluids.

                              {{{Athena}}}


                            • Meg
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                                She didn’t go for the softened pellets, but she did eat a couple little regular pellets this morning. She’s eating kale and dill very well. And she drinks from the water dish sometimes. I also put out a bowl of Pedialyte.

                                I haven’t seen her eating hay lately, but she does seem to be on the upswing as of the last 24 hours so it could happen soon… if she’s eating dried flowers (clover blossoms and roses) would that help with the fiber? Oh, I don’t want to traumatize the poor bunny with syringe feeding (she absolutely won’t take it while sitting, even up on my lap, so I have to burrito her and sit her up against my knees, and she haaaates it). But I will if there’s no other choice.

                                Thank you again!


                              • Meg
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                                  Oooh, she just started eating a little hay!


                                • LittlePuffyTail
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                                    Glad to hear it! Hope she’s back to her normal self really soon!


                                  • jerseygirl
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                                      Yay!


                                    • Meg
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                                        : ) But it was only a little. If she’s eating kale, dill, dried flowers, and a few pellets, does she still need CC by oral syringe?


                                      • Meg
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                                          Oh my goodness, you guys!! Just as I was thinking maybe I *should* go back to the CC, Athena seems much better this evening! Eating more hay, grooming Teddy with enthusiasm, chewing on their willow toy, and just seeming much more like herself. I think she may have a little ways to go still but I am SO happy to see this progress!!


                                        • Meg
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                                            WOOOHOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!! Athena seems all better now!!! She ate all her dinner last night, and breakfast and lunch today, and then at dinner time stood expectantly in the spot her food usually comes, giving me her “cute hungry bunny” look, like she usually does!!! Oh man, I’ve been dreaming about seeing her do that again. I am so thrilled!!!

                                            Thank you so much to all, especially Jerseygirl, for all your wonderful advice and support!!

                                            And just so I know for next time (knock on wood it won’t be for a good long while)… At what point in recovery do you usually stop syringe feeding? How do you know it’s time? (For a bunny who’s very stressed by it)

                                            Thanks again!!!


                                          • Bam
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                                              Really glad to hear it!!!

                                              I stopped syringe-feeding when my bun was back to normal appetite, seemed happy, willingly took a treat and was back to his old self personality-wise. That Athena is eating hay is great! I’d keep an eye on the poop, if they get smaller in size, I’d support-feed once daily with a bit of CC.

                                              Clover should be given sparingly although I don’t know about the flowers as compared to the leaves. Dried roses are good. If you have access to rose leaves, that’s great food too (only make sure there are no pesticides on the plant).


                                            • jerseygirl
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                                                These are the updates I love to hear! I’m relieved that she has finally come good.
                                                Sending on some good health {{{vibes}}} for them both.

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                                            Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Bunny recovering from stasis too slowly? What should I do?