Bunny with very noisy tummy.

[Jadecm]

Hi,
I’m wondering if anyone can help me and my mini lop Sunny...

2 days ago, on getting home from work- we noticed Sunny wasn’t her self, staying in her bed and not venturing round the house.
We then heard really loud gurgling noises from her tummy and could see she was in pain.
I gave her loxicom, tramadol, zantac syrup and some colic drops, and the noises settled right down. She then ate some parsley and kale and seemed much happier.
However, the following morning her tummy was just as noisy as before, so I administered another round of the same medicines and waited for the vets to open.
I didn’t see her eat anything in the morning, however she was passing small poos and cecotropes.
she went to the vets, they did her routine dental early as they were looking bad (her normal appointment was booked in for next week-done every 8weeks as she’s a long sufferer of terrible teeth). They also took bloods and an X-ray as she had dropped quite a lot of weight. The bloods came back with an elevated kidney level, and X-ray showed slightly enlarged kidney...so now we are awaiting for blood tests for e.cuniculi too.

They discharged her and when she got home, she started eating immediately and seems okay in herself. Pooing more normally too, however her tummy is still INCREDIBLY noisy?!!
I’m sat hear now listening to it and can’t help worry- does anyone know what may be causing this, she’s never had this before-even during episodes of stasis!
Any advice would be greatly received.
thanks
Jade.

 

[Mariam+Theo]

Give her Infant Gas Drops. She can have 1-2 ml every hour for 3 hours, and then 1-2 ml every 8 hours (or as needed). I hope she gets better!

 

[Jadecm]

Give her Infant Gas Drops. She can have 1-2 ml every hour for 3 hours, and then 1-2 ml every 8 hours (or as needed). I hope she gets better!

I’ve been giving her 0.5ml gas drops every few hours, so probably not enough. I’ll up the dosing and frequency to 1ml every hour. Thanks!

 

[Preitler]

How many ml depends on the concentration of the Simethicon, it can vary widly. About 10-20mg Simethicone per serving is ok. Isn't that critical, but from what I read it doesn't work well if it's too little.
I nugde my rabbits to move more when this happens, or give a gentle belly massage to help pass the gas. That you hear gurgling at least means that gas is moving.

Maybe something in her diet she doesn't tolerate well?

 

[JBun]

Had she been given any new foods just prior to this happening? What is her current diet?

 

[Jadecm]

Had she been given any new foods just prior to this happening? What is her current diet?

No nothing new at all. She’s 6 now, I’ve had her since a baby, diet always the same....staple diet consists of Timothy hay, burgess excel indoor rabbit pellets. Parsley, kale, basil, coriander, cauliflower leaves and the odd bit of carrot/apple. And on the very odd occasion her fave treat, a piece of popcorn!

I’ve never heard her tummy before, Its so weird and really worrying.

 

[Jadecm]

How many ml depends on the concentration of the Simethicon, it can vary widly. About 10-20mg Simethicone per serving is ok. Isn't that critical, but from what I read it doesn't work well if it's too little.
I nugde my rabbits to move more when this happens, or give a gentle belly massage to help pass the gas. That you hear gurgling at least means that gas is moving.

Maybe something in her diet she doesn't tolerate well?

hmm I really don’t know, her diet is very consistent and I’ve never heard her tummy before. Thanks for the tips, have given her a massage and made her venture out for a little hop around the lounge. Noises seem to have quietened a little, so hopefully she’s on the mend. It’s hard to know if she’s subdued because of her tummy, or if this is just her normal reaction to her dental. She’s always pretty quiet for a few days after having her teeth done.
the vets went down the route of attributing her tummy issue, to her teeth- as they were due to be done next week and looked pretty bad. I’m not sure though, very different to her any previous times she’s had tummy trouble.

 

[JBun]

As rabbits get older, they can sometimes become sensitive to foods that they used to tolerate. I would suspect that may be what's going on with your rabbit, if the noisy gut sounds continue even after she's recovered from her dental.

If so, then it's just a matter of elimination to find the offending food. The sugary foods or cruciferous ones would be the most likely to cause digestive upset issues. But I've had rabbits develop problems with pellets too, so those are a possible culprit as well.