Bi-lateral Cryptorchid

[Watermelons]

Maybe it will be easier if you can find a single bale of hay he likes the taste of?

If he doesn't like it, it goes to the horse so no real waste. If he does like it, you know you have enough for a LONG time.
An 80lb bale of orchard grass has lasted over 2 years for my guys, and I have sold numerous flakes to other so I'm sure I could have gotten more then 3 years out of that single bale for my 2.

 

[JBun]

If you are seeing that new vet, it might be worth it to you to have a fecal test done again. Maybe Zero has a parasite, or something else, causing all this digestive upset with him. I know that ultrasounds can also be done to check the movement and function of the digestive system, to make sure the cecum is emptying properly, and maybe find a reason for all this gas buildup that he gets.

 

[Zeroshero]

I bought him a bale that looked good but there were weeds in the field that caused digestive issues almost immediately. The bale I bought was nearly 60 lbs for $15 I was stoked! I wish I could buy it by the bale once I find a lot number he really likes I usually go buy everything they have. (He's so expensive!) Timothy hay isn't a popular hay in AZ so the quality is not very good thus I continue feeding bagged Oxbow. I do have some really nice Bermuda hay for my horse perhaps I will see what Zero thinks of it, I could store a bale just for him and at least he would have one consistent food.

 

[Zeroshero]

Jenny I think that has been part of his problem all along with his cecum, I haven't seen him pass any ceccotropes for a long time but when he was having his free time in the bathroom (on tile) he would go several hours without defecating then finally pass a well formed ceccotrope then fecal pellets would be everywhere, like a dam broke. I will email the new vet and see if I can get him in next Saturday and email the old one to find out if I should bump his Cisapride back up to .3 ml once daily.

 

[Zeroshero]

Have either of you ever fed these pellets to your buns?

http://www.mountainsunrise.com/timothyhay.html

I have fed them to my horses and their quality is awesome! (not sure why I didn't think of these before) I think it's a 50lb bag if I remember correctly, the pellets are rather small (not as small as rabbit pellets) and break apart easily so I don't think Z would choke on them. Is there any reason why he shouldn't be able to eat them or should I have the Timothy cubes ordered in?

 

[Zeroshero]

Oh well it looks like they only currently sell the alfalfa cubes darn!

 

[Watermelons]

Do you guys have hay wholesalers/transport companies down there?
I know other places do, we do up here.
Few companies that travel very far to bring high quality hay closer to home. I can get my hands on hay from Alberta, Iaho, Washington, Oregon, and of coarse all over BC, from right at home.
I LOVE my Washington orchard grass. No way I would have driven to WA to look for it but I got it in BC.
Its hit or miss local too, I pass so many fields and just look thinking... ew I wouldn't feed that to a horse.... And every so often 1 field pops up and I just drool over how amazing it looks and smells from the road!

I would try the Bermuda, see what he thinks Or any other type of hay that you can get, that's good quality for that matter. For him I think it will be the consistency of having 1 hay he likes that works for a long time. With the bags we don't have that luxury because the hay comes from so many different fields odds are you wont get something exactly the same again.

I wish you could try the Martin pellets. They just seem so different in consistency then other pellets, it makes me think his tummy could handle it easier then regular pellets.

 

[Zeroshero]

I checked on the Martin pellets and they are only available in Canada, I wonder how difficult and expensive it would be to have some shipped? Hmmmm AZ grows a lot of Alfalfa hay and seems to be the feed of choice for most horse owners. I might try the Mountain Sunrise Timothy pellets, they have always been consistent when I have fed them to my horses in the past.

 

[Watermelons]

The offer stands. I can send you a few pellets by mail to try if you want. Im headed down to do some shopping in WA in the next week or 2 and could mail it then, just a few kibble to see what his tummy thinks. But try some other pellets you can get down there too Just keep in mind what you can actually return to the store so youre not spending $$$$$ and having to toss it. Unless you can give it to the horse if Zero wont or cant eat it.

Alfalfa might be too rich of a hay for him... and it might not be, but hey give it a shot. That would get him some extra protein and calcium he probably could use right now. Even if you can mix a few hays together, why not.

 

[Zeroshero]

I wish he tolerated alfalfa, it gives him loose stool/ diahrrea.

 

[Zeroshero]

Wow, I do not know how anyone lives with an unaltered male rabbit in their house. Zero is a stinky boy! Is it normal for their urine to have such a strong smell? I clean his box twice a day, it is was dumped and cleaned out with vinegar Monday night. He hasn't had any out of his box accidents. It's horrible! Does the odor go away after they are neutered?

 

[JBun]

I KNOW!!! They stink, haha. Zeus isn't neutered yet, and boy he's a big stinker. It almost makes me gag sometimes. Their urine is stronger, but I also think that the smell from their scent glands is also stronger as well. So when they do their poop marking, it has that nasty skunk smell too. I'm not going to say it's a for sure thing that he will be less smelly once neutered, cause I don't know for sure. But in my experience, all my fixed buns are less smelly. So it most likely will help a lot.

 

[Zeroshero]

Poor Z, he really hated that other bag of hay. He went through the middle sized Oxbow bag of Timothy in four days (most of it went into the trash) I bought him a new bag and he hasn't stopped eating. He didn't even stop and come running for his Cisapride. My poor little guy I wish I had made it a priority to get him hay from a different lot number days ago. I am feeling like a really bad caretaker

 

[JBun]

I wonder what was wrong with it? It can be so strange how they decide what hay tastes good and what doesn't. When I had my horse, I would think I was giving him this lovely green hay, and that he would love it. He would pass up the lovely green stuff and go for the yellow crappy looking hay. These animals confuse me sometimes :?

 

[Zeroshero]

Jenny, he ate constantly from 6:30pm until 10:00pm last night. I was listening to him ravenously eating then total silence. I looked at him and he flopped out in his box. My first thought was OMG he died! Poor little guy, he is still eating like a mad man he even nipped me this morning when I was pulling more hay out of the bag. Guess I wasn't doing it fast enough :dunno:.

 

[Zeroshero]

My horse is just as picky with his hay, what I think seems like amazing hay ends up strewn around his stall or left in the bottom of his feeder. They are brats both of them!

 

[JBun]

:yeahthat:


I guess they're just lucky we love them so much

Hahaha, Zero! I guess he REALLY likes his new hay. That dead bunny flop gets to me too sometimes. Ever since my little Dash died, I have an instant moment of panic when I see one of my buns flopped out. I have to look close to make sure they are breathing. But it also makes me happy, because I know that they are very content and happy buns.

 

[JBun]

Here you go. A good visual demonstation. Oh, and I meant that my animals were brats too, not to say yours were, haha, sorry

WARNING: No rabbits were harmed in the taking of this picture!

 

[Zeroshero]

It's okay Jenny I said it first LOL. Poor Zero, most of the time I leave him alone when he flops, he flops all the time. I have to be careful about what is around him because he flops when I give him scratches and he hits his head. Last night his silence woke me up there is no way I was going to leave him alone and lay up waiting for him to decide to move. That bun is adorable and looks super comfy.

I am not sure if the photo is too dark but it is Z partially flopped on his cat mat too lazy to get up to see what I had for him. I wish the incessant fear of him dying would go away, I still dread checking on him for the first time once I get home from work.

 

[JBun]

He looks so much bigger! He looks like a big boy now

I think that fear will gradually fade as he starts having fewer problems. After Dash died, I dreaded opening the door to my rabbits, not knowing if I was going to find someone dead. Then after a while and every one being ok, I gradually stopped worrying about it as much.

It's like they both don't have a care in the world. Oh the life of a bunny