Cala is looking better

[Just Jack]

She started making this noise when Franky came near her (she's in the cage he is out). She sounds somewhere between a pigeon and hen cooing. She stopped making the sound when Franky went away. I decided to pick her up and give hera good once over and when I reached into the cage to pick her up she started making the same noise again. She stopped again once I had her and was holding her.

Something more concerning was that I found a brown wetness in the fur right around her genitalia/anus. Other than that she seems fine. Her tummy doesn't seem too stiff, no nasal discharge,nothing else of note.

She's still on a strict hay and pellet diet with no veggies yet. I have gotten down to the last bits of this bag of hay. I don't know if the finely shredded and dustier stuff can cause something like this.

 

[Spring]

Could it be her grunting? My rabbit Pebble's is very vocal. Her angry grunts are short and sound like burping sort of and her territorial grunts are a little more strung out and deeper. I don't know if this is what you'r hearing?

Did she have any smell to her? Could it have just been urine? If it was diarhea, it usually smells VERY STRONGLY of this musky skunk smellandavery ripe odor.

 

[naturestee]

It sounds like she's "talking" to him.But I don't know what the brown wetness is. Does she leave cecals around? When Fey gets too much alfalfa, she gets mushy cecals and a little bit of runny brown goo around her anus.

 

[Just Jack]

I haven't heard them it quite some time now but they were rather high in pitch I think.

I think what is concerning me more now is her behavior. She is definetly not acting herself. She hasn't moved around much, mainly staying in one spot for a half hour, then moving to another spot. She still seems to be drinking her water (I've even gone as far as to spoil her with some Aqaufina) though her interest in food is practically non-existent. When I was first getting her out of the cage she did take some bites from a yougurt chip, however now she isn't interested in hay, pellets,cheerios, or even her beloved yougurt chips that I've tried to hand feed her.

I'm not sure of her poops. Problem is I haven't had the chance to really clean up in a few days due to finals. So far I haven't seen any unusual poops.


She does have a strong smell right now. Problem is that since I've left her bowls of water so I can watch her drink, she has been splashing water all over her underside and feet. The smell,which smells like a normal stinky litter box (think it is a mostly uriney smell), I can imagine is heightened because she has soaked herself, much like how a dog smells when it is wet.

I pretty certain that I am going to have to take her to the vet,however I don't know whether I should do it tonight at the Emergency Clinic or wait till morning and go to the regular vet.

 

[Spring]

How long has it been since she's been off her normal eating? I just got over when my rabbit went througha sort of not eating acting abnormally thing. Any weird positions she's sitting in? Have you heard any tummy grumblings? One ofthe common reasons for a rabbit to go off diet is gas.

Is it possible to go to a drug store or something and get some baby gas medicine? I got the "Oval" kind in the pink box, but anything with simthecone will do. She could be having gas, and it's worth a try. My rabbit was showing similar symtpoms the last time she went off her food, not eating much and sitting there not very active. After simthecone, a few minutes of tummy rubbings Pepsi would eat a bit. It's worth a try.

If you've just noticed it today or fairly recently, I wouldn't go to the emergancy vet. If she's still drinking, then she should be fine until the appointment tomorrow. Try putting a warm towel for her to lay on and see if she'll want to get some exercise if you let her out because it'll help her intestines move.

Hope she's ok! Pepsi has gone through the loss of appetite many times, so hopefully Cala just has a bit of gas!

By the way, the simthecone won't hurt her even if she doesn't have gas.Are you sure she's drinking? If she is, that's a good sign.

 

[SunnieBunnie Rabbitry]

Hey Jack,

As far as the noise goes... it's called "Honking", "Grunting","Growling", "Talking", or whatever you'd like ... it's her way ofc ommunicating that she's not comfortable with the current situation. A breeder on another forum had once posted a video of one of her rabbits "honking"... but the link is no longer valid... I emailed her to see if she still had it. If she does, I'll post the link to see if this is what you were referring to. Does tend to be more vocal than bucks,it's their way of communicating their willingness and unwillingness to breed, as well as defend their territory against other rabbits, and to tell their kits that they're not in the mood to nurse once their kits leave the nest and start pestering mom.

Now, about that brown spot.... has it worsened? How do her vents look - are they clear? In case you aren't aware of the area I'm talking about... it's not her actual private itself... it's the pockets on each side. Sometimes when these get packed it'll leak (for lack of better term) and get a kinda musky, odd odor and it could also get on the tail.

If this is not the case... what type of flooring is she on?Is it possible that she's sitting over a "pile" of fecal pellets that could be touching her tail? It sounds like it could also bethe beginning signs of "wet tail". At the moment, I could only find an article relating to Hamsters... but it's generally the same thing for rabbits:http://www.petshub.com/hamster/wet-tail.php


Also, What do her stools look like? Are any of them jelly-like? You said that she's been getting her feet& belly wet... is she drinking a lot of water? More than usual? Is she grinding her teeth any? Don't take this the wrong way, It sounds silly and mean but that's not my intention.... if you pick her up and shake her a little, does her belly sound like a filled water bottle?

Please keep us posted.

~Sunshine

 

[naturestee]

How's she doing today, Jack? I'm worried about her decrease in activity level. Since she's so young, I'd probably take her in to a vet to be safe.

 

[Just Jack]

It's a mixed bag.

After being put in the lil "hospital cage" for over 16 hours there doesn't appear to be a single poop. Don't know if she ate anything while in there. She did eat a small amount of hay and pellets from our hands though when she was eating she sounded like her teeth were grinding. I inspected her teeth and from what I can tell they look nice and straight and I couldn't see any infection.

I checked her vents which seemed all clear, her butt was no longer poopy at all though Elsa did point out a kind of skunky like smell.

She seems a bit more active today, though when she is out I can still come up to her and pick her up casually without her trying to make any attempt to get away.

I think we will be taking her to the vet momentarily.

 

[Spring]

Good call, she probably should get seen by a vet if it's been 16 hours. Is she drinking?

Tell us how the vet went! Hope she's ok!

 

[Just Jack]

she appears to be doin better, I'll add more details later

vet - $233
*explodes*

 

[Pipp]

Just Jack wrote:

vet - $233
*explodes*

:shock:

 

[SunnieBunnie Rabbitry]

Pippwrote:

Just Jack wrote:

vet- $233
*explodes*

:shock:

That's quite a bill! With a price tag like that, I hope the vet at least gave some good advice & treatment - or ran some thorough tests!

~Sunshine

 

[Pipp]

:waiting:

 

[Just Jack]

yeah, we felt as violated as Cala probably did when they took her temperature. Basically it was $36 for the"routine checkup" $96 for X-rays (to check for any blockage) and then I guess about $100 in taxes and an assortment of shots and take-home treatment stuff.

The vet was certainly one heck of an experience. One thing that really bothers me are the "nurses" lack of knowledge when it comes to picking up a rabbit. Pretty much most of the nurses would pick her up like they would a small dog without supporting her rear so she's kicking like crazy. I was just in such shock that I couldn't say anything. These people are suppose to know how to handle animals. Sure they may primarily care for dogs and cats but they should still know the basics when it comes to rabbits.

Anyways, the actual veteranarian that specialized in rabbits was a lot more knowledgeable. She checked Cala pretty thouroughly and when she couldn't figure out the cause she suggested x-ray to make sure there wasn't any blockage. When she came back the x-rays she showed us that her tummy was completely empty though it was bloated with gas (suprise suprise it was what everybody thought it was) and from there she started talking about treatment.

There they gave Cala numerous shots. First one was this huge syringe that they injected into different areas of her body just under the skin to keep her properly hydrated. Then there were 3other shots. One I remember was a shot of B-12 to increase her appetite. One of the other shots was to help get her digestive system moving. The other I don't recall.

They then sent us home with two zip lock bags with some pre-filled syringes. Another large syringe for feeding her some Critical Care. Another syringe with a dial that is filled with some yellow gel type of medicine. And a small bottle with yet even more medicine. Unfortuantely I don't have the receipt printout with all the names.

We took her home and gave her the medicine and started feeding her some Critical Care. Unfortunately I made the mistake of doing 1part water to 1 part CC which made it very difficult with the syringe. Later I realized and added some more water making ita heck of a lot easier.

At first Cala seemed to quite enjoy the CC. But I guess she started getting tired/full of it and started squirming about a good bit. It took awhile (split into two servings) but we got herto eat approximately all 50ccs of it. I was suprised I had to feed her so much of it but that's what the clinic and the instructions on the CC said. (50cc per kg and Cala weighs about 2.2 lbs.

Last we checked she hadn't pooped but hopefully she will tonight. She certainly peed a good bit on the sofa while we were in the process of feeding her. That may have been one reason why she wanted to leave. Probably was pretty embarassed peeing right in front of us.

She definetly seemed a lil more energetic and at one point while she was out ran away when I was going to pick her up. Also I saw her a couple of times, munching on a little bit of hay.

Let's all hope there is poop tomorrow!

PS. I'm once again kicking myself for not just getting the medicines you all suggested to get which could have quite possibly gotten rid of her gas and saved us a lot of money... ah well live and learn. Luckily I just got a refund from a traffic ticket that I contested in court yesterday. But that's another story.

 

[Just Jack]

Pipp wrote:

:waiting:

:lol: sorry it took me awhile to post all that :lol:

 

[naturestee]

Um, wow!:shock: Why don't you move up here and share my vet? Is she at least eating by herself yet? And did they give her simethicone, as some vets actually don't?

I wish I had written it down somewhere, but when Mocha was in stasis I think my vet said to give her 30 ccs water and 15 ccs pellet slurry/pumpkin. She's a 2 lb bunny, and he said that the idea is to give them enough to get their intestines moving, but not so much that they feel full. That way they start eating again as soon as they're able. So if she's not eating yet and you need to give her more CC, you don't really have to force that huge amount into her.

So anyway, how's she doing now?

 

[Spring]

:faintoor Jack!

Isn't it funny looking when they inject them with the fluids? I know Pepsi's little shoulders were a bit swollen and she sort of looked like a football player ! When I went to the vet, the vet asked me if I wanted to pick her up and everything when needed just so she didn't have some big scary man handling her.

If your not already giving her the simthecone, I'd try it. That'll probably help her get back to normal. After the simthecone and belly rubs Pepsi was more active, ate a bit, and was more social and happy.

Yes, how is the little $233 Cala?

 

[Just Jack]

WE'VE GOT POOP! :bunnydance:

There didn't seem to be a lot of it but she definetly popped out several normal poops and there was one large squashed mass of poop. Probably because the cage is so small she'd always be stepping on it.

She's certainly on the more frisky side today. She's outrunning around with Pheebs right now, seeing how much of a mess they can make after daddy just vaccumed the place up.

So far today we've mainly just given her daily dose of meds.Her appetite is still in question though it appears like she may have eaten at least some of the hay in her cage... can't really tell for sure cause she may have just spread the stuff out real well all over the floor.

I should see about making a list and going to the grocery stores oon. Probably I'll have a longer list of food to get for the bunnies than for myself. :lol:

Here is the list of medicine and other charges I received from the vet.
Routine Exam - $36
X-Ray, 14x17 split $93.75
Reglan syrup 5ml/5mg - $12.50
Bene Bac Pet Gel - $9
Banamine - $12
Buprenex Amp - $12
Injection 3/Benamine - $10
Fluids SC, LR - $16
Injection 3/Vit B Complex - $12
Injection 3/Reglan - $10
Herbavore Critical Care - $10
Total - $233.75
If I'm being overcharged here let me know so I can go to a different vet.

PS Cala just dropped a huge mound of poops while I was writing this out :lol:
I think we are close to having a completely happy healthy (spoiled rotten) bunny once again :bunnydance:

 

[Just Jack]

AND WE HAVE[sub] small[/sub][sub] [/sub]BINKIES!:bunnydance:[sub][/sub]

 

[Maureen Las]

I have to pay those kind of prices here is Wi.,Jack, the positive thing about it is that you sound like you have a good vet. In time you will most likely learn to do a lot of the Gistasis and gas treatment yourself and hopefully will not have to rely on the vet. Its great that you took her inthough as you didn't know what was wrong...next time you visit why don't you teach the technicians to pick up a bunny..I have not run into that before.Glad that she's pooping......everyone on this site are poop worshippers