anorexic bunny :( need advice in weight-gaining

[beccz]

Sorry this may be a long post, but I'll try to summarize as best i can. She is almost 8 years old and I have no idea what the breed is. She was sold to us as a dwarf, but she is much bigger than one.

The background story:
She had uterine cancer back last August. She had a spay and it was completely removed with no problems. She was fine until she started developing bloat/gas/GI problems in November. I changed vets in December and he found a dental problem which I had her get fixed. However, the GI problems did not go away, so my vet put her on a straight-hay diet which, originally, was supposed to only be a week.

After it didn't get better, he told me to continue the hay-only diet and told me that she'd be fine (I was worried about her needing more nutrition than just hay like veggies and such). This continued for almost a month. Friday night I called her over to get a treat of basil even though I wasn't supposed to...and she excitedly ran over. However she didn't quite reach me...as she stumbled, fell, and had trouble getting back up. I made the next vet appointment I could and found that she had dropped to 1.4kg. I knew she was thin, but stupidly, I trusted my vet and didn't worry about it...and now she's dangerously underweight.

The other vet I took her to last night also found a lump on her stomach (which surprised me because I supposedly had paid for four "exams") and requested Xrays. I had just got some on Thursday so I said I'd wait until the other office was open and get those examined.

Now to the present situation:
Anyway, at this point, I'm trying my best to help her recover. The vet gave me critical care, but I don't quite understand how I should do this. If she wont eat it, how often should I give it to her?

She's eating veggies and such, with a little big of critical care i rolled into balls, but she seems reluctant to drink water...so I've resorted to syringe-feeding it every four-ish hours.

She improved since last night and was able to run away from me without falling and thumped her foot in protest after being given water (lol), but for the most part all she does is lay down. I've been told that it's probably time to put her down, but when I look at her, I feel like she can recover. I don't just want to give up.

Anyway, any advice on what else I can give to bulk her up (like certain foods, fruit, etc) or stuff to help relieve/help the bloat (aside from Simethicone or whatever) I'd be grateful the vets around here aren't much help I feel terrible that I let her get like this and didn't even notice.

 

[pamnock]

Black oil sunflower seeds, oatmeal, a little corn oil on feed, Nutri-cal (for cats dogs). Make any diet changes slowly. Nutri-cal is especially good for ill or geriatric rabbits that are having difficulty absorbing and metabolizing food.

 

[LakeCondo]

I'm sorry you had such bad luck with vets. Hay only is a starvation diet. What you do depends on what the x-rays show.

 

[Maureen Las]

I agree that a "hay only" diet was not a good suggestion. Back in the 90's some vets promoted this dietpossibly as a back lash against the habit of feeding rabbits a "pellet only" diet. We might suggest a "hay only diet"if a rabbit has runny poop or GI upset but this is not meant to be long term (although to be honest I think that some vets still promote 'hay only" diet .Rabbits need a small amount of pellets for trace vitamin and minerals that they are missing in their diet . For example indoor rabbits would not get vitamin D ( no sunlight in the house)

I am not sure why you are feeding critical care unless your rabbit is unable to eat pellets .? Critical care must be mixed with way more water than given in the directions and allowed to sit for about 15 min prior to feeding . Critical care is like a sponge and if you are not mixing it with a lot of water and allowing it to absorb that water then it is going to draw fluids from your rabbit's system and actually dehydrate the rabbit.
i have no idea why your vet did not like you feeding greens unless your rabbit has a super sensitive GI tract and could not tolerate them andthis is rare ....

In terms of the mass it is possible that the cancer has spread so the mass should be biopsied . Just as in humans it is not possible to ever know if the cancer is contained even if you think that you "got it all." That is why humans go for long periods of chemo even after what appears to be a successful eradication of cancer by surgery .
Is she unable or unwilling to eat pellets on her own .

 

[Pocky]

I also do not think that a "hay only" diet is a good idea. For her hay, a mix of 60% timonthy hay/2o% alfalfa hay/and 20% oat or orchard grass might make it more appetizing.

You should definitely get her started on pellets again to gain the extra nutrients. A bit of alfalfa pellets mixed with timonthy based pellets should be okay for her digestive system. Alfalfa is very rich so it should help with a bit of bulking.

Some treats such as dried papaya and pineapple can be mixed into the feed (about 4-5 small cubes.) These two fruits are actually GOOD for the rabbit's digestive system. Mixing it in there is more like a bribe for the rabbit -- it can encourage eating.

I really think you should start implementing some veggies into her diet because she NEEDS the nutrients. I don't see why your vet would say not to. (Unless the digestive system is ultra-sensitive...a little bit is fine.) Avoid giving her iceberg lettuce, cabbage, and carrots. Got for darker leafier greens, herbs, etc. Oh, and a bit of corn can go a long way!

About her water, I recommend using a shallow heavy water bowl since she's laying down most of the time. Add a pinch of sugar in the water. Rabbits have a sweet-tooth and will actually drink water more frequently if you do so.

I hope this helps. I really hope your rabbit will be okay. ^^ Keep us updated! And I think your bunbun will recover as well!

-Bee

 

[beccz]

Thanks for the replies everyone. He suggested the hay-only diet because he said there was no other way to get the system back to normal. I didn't quite understand it, but he told me it had worked with several other patients. I got her the critical care because she couldn't wouldn't eat very much of her pellets. She seems to like eating the critical care on her own. (which is great because I feel like a terrible person if I force-feed)

Thanks for the tip on adding more water. I'll definitely do that. I have given her some veggies (parsley, basil and choy are all i have atm) but I'm going at it slowly. Ah, I also gave her small bit of carrot...I should've looked into that more beforehand...

She has GI has problems as it is. I'm going to buy a bit of alfalfa pellets to mix in tonight. I'll buy some pineapple and papaya as well then! I will look into getting a biopsy...unfortunately I have to wait until my next paycheck because I assume it'll be over $100.

She won't eat the timothy hay, but she has been munching on the alfalfa hay. I'll also try the seed and nutri-cal suggestion. Thanks again everyone!

 

[beccz]

Oh, I almost forgot. Her water bowl is the shallow type. She just doesn't seem interested. Hmm. I can try the sugar though...I was also thinking about spiking it with a bit of apple juice

 

[beccz]

 

[Pocky]

Oh, also, I forgot! If she has trouble eating the pellets, you might want to try to find a smaller finer pellet. If she doesn't chew, you can actually add a bit of warm water and mush the pellets (I had to do this for my bunnies before.) But if you do decide to mush the pellets, work about 1/8 cup at a time for around every 4-6 hours and change it out each time. :')

 

[beccz]

I put a teaspoon of apple juice in her water and she drank it like a madman! She seems to be getting her energy back too...she came to see me when I let her out of her cage and curiously inspecting me while I was getting some pineapple ready. She still kind of stumbles but seems to have more balance! I'm so excited!

 

[ZRabbits]

Good news. Hoping this is the turn you been waiting for.

K

 

[Tokki]

Yay!!! ^^ I'm so glad she's getting better!

 

[LakeCondo]

Keep us informed with her progress.

 

[beccz]

^^ I tried to post a picture of her exploring today. If that doesn't work heres a link to anyone who wants to see (because I'm just so happy she seems to be feeling tons better and I'm not very experienced in these forum things...hehehe) http://www.flickr.com/photos/77940970@N04/6834368588/in/photostream/

She doesn't seem to fall or stumble at all and can get in/out of her cage with no problem She's starting to eat her pellets on her own again as well..and drank a bit of water too. I'm going to the vet on Thursday (he offered a free checkup...I think he's embarrassed he missed the lump on her tummy as well as because I called him out about the 'hay-only diet').

I will eventually get that lump checked out as soon as I can, and when I do, I'll give everyone an update on her condition thanks again for all your advice!

 

[LakeCondo]

Yes, she looks good.

 

[wendymac]

She looks good. Hope she's completely back to normal soon.

 

[beccz]

Hey everyone, I thought I'd give an update.

She's eating/drinking on her own just fine, though she still seems reluctant to eat timothy hay.

The lump that was on her gland is gone...the vet I saw said it was probably just a fluid mass. He told me that uterine cancer usually spreads to lungs, livers or kidneys in most cases and that all seemed to be okay...I'm getting her a bloodtest soon just to check.

Thanks again for the weight-gaining tips...they're working well. she had been boney since the uterine cancer (the vet I was seeing at the time told me that she was boney because she was old...sigh) so it wasn't a noticeable difference when she lost more weight...however...I can totally see her getting a bit back. She has full balance again. For a few days she'd sway a bit when she hop-ran after me for treats, but now she seems to have no problems at all.

She also doesn't seem to have any gas problems anymore...I'm starting to wonder if it was the lack of pellets/veggies or perhaps because she's been getting a little chunk of pineapple every day.

Anyway, all seems to be well!

 

[LakeCondo]

I'm glad to hear she's so much better. If she doesn't like timothy, orchard hay is just as good & she might like it better, or timothy 3rd cutting.