Bunderground bunny has poo issues

[Ape337]

Hi all,
Freckles is one of the Florida rescue buns that just came to us on Saturday night/early Sunday morning. He is a dwarf (actual pic is in the great transport of 2012, his name was Pogo)

Diet-pellets provided by the shelter, Timothy, orchard, bermuda (small amounts), oat hay (small amounts). Small amounts of wheat grass, yesterday afternoon about 1/2c of leaf lettuce. Since yesterday around 6pm he has had only hay.

His actual waste poos are various sizes, some are very small, some normal size, some have a "tail".
some cecotropes were very liquid, some like pudding/mud, some well formed but I don't think he is eating any of them. Sara from the shelter said she had some trouble with his poos too, and maybe he shouldn't have pellets every day. Since he's not eating his cecotropes I removed his pellets. And I'm worried about veggies bc of the recent watery cecotropes. So I thought I'd give him just hay for a day or so to let his system calm down, then introduce veggies slowly.

Any advice is appreciated,

He is behaving normally, eyes bright, eating well, active.

He has an appointment with my vet on Saturday morning.
Thanks. This post was quick bc I'm at work, but I can add more info if needed.

 

[MiniLopHop]

Oh poor Freckles. I just said to my husband last night how lucky we were that everyone made it through transport without issues. Hay and water is probably a good idea until he can settle in a bit. Sorry I don't have experience with thoes types of issues.

Panda and Bunnicula send nose bonks, feel better soon Freckles! :hug:

 

[LakeCondo]

According to Rabbit Health in the 21st Century, veggies are more likely to be the problem than pellets are, but it COULD be the pellets, as wheat grass & leaf lettuce usually aren't problems.

Is he shedding or anything like that?

As he's still settling in, I'd think it could be a number of things, including stress or the change in the drinking water upsetting him.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We have two with the same problem--we cut way back on the veggies and problem solved. Strung together means he's been ingesting hair, so hay is the answer to that--I hate shedding season which seems to last forever with our satins.

 

[Ape337]

MiniLopHop wrote:

Oh poor Freckles. I just said to my husband last night how lucky we were that everyone made it through transport without issues. Hay and water is probably a good idea until he can settle in a bit. Sorry I don't have experience with thoes types of issues.

Panda and Bunnicula send nose bonks, feel better soon Freckles! :hug:

Thanks Brandy, I guess the travel was a bit much for him.

 

[Ape337]

LakeCondo wrote:

According to Rabbit Health in the 21st Century, veggies are more likely to be the problem than pellets are, but it COULD be the pellets, as wheat grass & leaf lettuce usually aren't problems.

Is he shedding or anything like that?

As he's still settling in, I'd think it could be a number of things, including stress or the change in the drinking water upsetting him.

Thanks Orlena, I believe he is starting to shed. I really need to get that book. Wow, I had no idea a water change could be an issue, that's interesting.

 

[Ape337]

Nancy McClelland wrote:

We have two with the same problem--we cut way back on the veggies and problem solved. Strung together means he's been ingesting hair, so hay is the answer to that--I hate shedding season which seems to last forever with our satins.

Maybe it was just too much too fast. Poor bunny. Thanks Larry.

 

[LakeCondo]

I don't know how likely a water change issue can be. I just know that people suggest when you get a rabbit from a different area or you move with your rabbit you take along a gallon of the old water & transition to the new.

I'm hoping that a new edition of Rabbit Health ... is in the works. It's from 2003, so may not contain the latest information. Plus, it's not indexed, even though it's the 2nd edition. It's age is just one of those things, the not being indexed I don't understand.

 

[Maureen Las]

There could be SO Many reasons for this to occur. In addition to what other members have suggested you may want to give a dose of a probiotic like benebac. it won't hurt.

 

[katherine at sacred stories]

I am so sorry to hear Freckles isn't feeling well. I know he'll respond to your care and love. Sending good thoughts and bunnie kisses!

 

[Ape337]

Freckles had his vet visit today and he's perfectly fine :biggrin:

His vet is thinking it was travel stress. His poos look great now, especially today. And I don't see anymore cecotropes, yay! He is still on straight hay and water, which his vet agrees with.

I will say his vet isn't a fan of pellets. She believes pellets were created to make bunnies big, fast. She was funny today when she asked me if he was supposed to be a meat rabbit, and she covered Freckles' ears when she asked! She told me to give hay, veggies, and graze him outside. She gave bene-bac and suggested giving him activia. I'm not giving him yogurt, I just don't think it's a good idea. And I'm worried about no pellets. Both of my other buns eat pellets, veggies/herbs, and hay and they are fine. I'm afraid I won't provide proper nutrients without pellets.

Thoughts? Much thanks!

 

[Ape337]

katherine at sacred stories wrote:

I am so sorry to hear Freckles isn't feeling well. I know he'll respond to your care and love. Sending good thoughts and bunnie kisses!

Thanks Katherine :biggrin:

 

[katherine at sacred stories]

ray::flowerskiss:

That is WONDERFUL! So glad Freckles is doing fine! I thought it was probably the trip. Yipppeee!!!

In terms of what the vet said about pellets: I've heard that alphalfa based pellets are designed to fatten rabbits quickly for meat. (cover your ears, Freckles, Harvey and Halo.) But that timothy based pellets are not designed to fatten and that's why they're recommended for pet rabbits. Is it possible she's thinking about the alphalfa and not aware of the value of timothy based pellets? Also, everything I've read cautions against overfeeding pellets because they might stop eating their hay.

I've never heard of giving yogurt to rabbits but I've wondered about it. I'd be interested to know if anyone has tried that.

Once again, I'm overjoyed that Freckles is well!

 

[wendymac]

Well, pellets ensure your rabbit is getting a complete, balanced diet. I'd be a bit leery of a vet that said not to feed them. If you're not giving pellets, then you're going to have to follow a very broad and varied veggie diet every single day.

I also question the yogurt idea. I read that dairy products aren't good for rabbits.

I'm glad that Freckles is doing well! I can't wait to see lots and lots of pics.

 

[LakeCondo]

Ape337 wrote:

Freckles had his vet visit today and he's perfectly fine :biggrin:

His vet is thinking it was travel stress. His poos look great now, especially today. And I don't see anymore cecotropes, yay! He is still on straight hay and water, which his vet agrees with.

I will say his vet isn't a fan of pellets. She believes pellets were created to make bunnies big, fast. She was funny today when she asked me if he was supposed to be a meat rabbit, and she covered Freckles' ears when she asked! She told me to give hay, veggies, and graze him outside. She gave bene-bac and suggested giving him activia. I'm not giving him yogurt, I just don't think it's a good idea. And I'm worried about no pellets. Both of my other buns eat pellets, veggies/herbs, and hay and they are fine. I'm afraid I won't provide proper nutrients without pellets.

Thoughts? Much thanks!

I'm so glad Freckles is better. But the vet's logic is not the best & her views about pellets are outdated. Yes, pellets were created to fatten rabbits up, but that has nothing to do with whether they're good for rabbits or not. If ice cream were invented by [fill in name of bad guys in history here], would we refuse to eat it? Not I. And the pellets for adult rabbits aren't identical to those invented for fattening, so it's even less relevant that my ice cream analogy.

I'm glad you're an experienced rabbit owner & know what's the right diet. Besides benebac, there are other probiotics that are vegan, so appropriate for rabbits. Vets are so busy with their practices that they don't have time to keep up with things, especially when it's about 'exotics'. People who are researchers & spend most of their time dealing with rabbits are much more likely than vets to know what's what, in my opinion anyway. The only reason I'd want to cut back on pellets would be if Honey needed to lose weight & I'd never eliminate them completely unless she turned out to be allergic to an ingredient or some such unlikely event.

 

[Ape337]

Yea, I'm not going anywhere near yoghurt (except for me). And I definitely plan on feeding pellets. I know his vet is all for a natural diet, but I really do think pellets are important for proper nutrition. And there's no way in heck I'm grazing my bunnies outside. In her defense she is about 90 minutes north of my house so she is totally unaware of what kind of torture any warm blooded animal experiences outside here. This is the tidal marsh so by night we have salt water Mosquitos, and by day we have Asian tiger Mosquitos and no-see ums. Absolute murder and bunnies can't swat them or wear repellant.

I plan on giving Freckles an intro thread when I heat up my laptop. I'm usually on via my iPad so I can't upload pics into the gallery. Coming soon! :biggrin:

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:clapping::yahoo::clapping::yahoo::clapping::yahoo::clapping:

 

[SOOOSKA]

I was told by a Exotic Vet to give Buttercup BioBest plain yogurt when he wasn't feeling well. I must say this was the best advice I was ever given.

For years when Buttercup, Wilbur and Jackie and Daisy Mae went off food and were not feeling well the first thing we did was syringe yogurt, it worked 99% of the time. So I totally believe that it works. Trust me it saved all of them at one time and a lot of Vet bills too.

I also agree with giving them Timothypellets. I like the Oxbow brand. They have a new one that I'm trying to find up here in Canada.

Susan

PS

Glad to hear your bunny is feeling better.

 

[LakeCondo]

It's a shame some vets aren't aware that there are non-dairy probiotics available. I don't know when benebac was put on the market, but health food stores have had them for at least a decade.

 

[MiniLopHop]

I think you are making the right choices. Pellets provide vitamens, making sure the bases are covered. I stay far away from dairy as well but like benebac. I cringe every time I see the yogert drops in the pet store. So many people think if there is a rabbit on the package it is good for them. I'm very lucky that my vet has a rabbit as a pet herself, so she keeps up with the latest and greatest in their care.

What a relief that Freckles is feeling better