Cecotropes

[katiecrna]

My 2 year old spayed lionhead is leaving a lot of cecotropes around. At first I didn’t know what it was because her carpet was smeared with poop and I saw regular round poop. Then I realized that she is just stepping in her cecotropes and that’s where the smears are coming from. Also she smells... I cut a couple poops that were stuck to her fur around her butt. And today I picked her to inspect her butt and saw a cecotrope stuck to her butt hole.
I don’t know what’s going on. She is eating enough hay, drinking enough water, eats her 1 cup of veggies everyday. And I have been cutting back her pellets lately and now she only gets a 1/4 cup a day, sometimes even less. She is acting the same, running around and doing binkys. Please help!

 

[sidney_bunny]

Is she overweight or have any condition that makes it tough for her to reach down with her mouth? Theoretically, you should never see the cecotropes because they are injecting them directly.

Alternatively, she could be producing too many or they are not well formed. That could be a reaction to something in her diet. Are the hay or pellets alfalfa based? What type of veggies?

 

[doodlebugger]

I agree with Sidney_Bunny. When I start seeing cecotropes, I get concerned. One of our mini rex buns had this issue when she was overweight. The other one only did it when she got way too hot, or when she was in a molt. We had our vet check them. Our overweight rabbit couldn't get down to get them and sometimes would leave them behind and eat them later. We would pick them up out of her cage and put them in her litter box. Our vet told us as long as they are eating, drinking, pooping, and peeing, and acting "normal", there is nothing to be concerned with. When you say "a lot", my question would be how many? Is she in a molt? And I would ask the same questions about her diet - what kind of pellets, what kind of veggies? And has anything changed around her surroundings? Could she be getting too hot? Is her fur too long around her butt? If so, a rabbit savvy vet could do a sanitary clip down there to help keep them from sticking to the fur, but as Sidney_Bunny said, she should be able to reach down there and eat them (which is what our lion head does a large majority of the time - I have only seen two times when she left as many as two cecotopes in her cage).

 

[katiecrna]

Ok so I stopped feeding her pellets and veggies for a couple days and she no longer was leaving cecotropes. Then I started to give her a small amount of veggies and pellets and she is no longer leaving cecotropes but she is smearing some stool on the blanket. I think maybe this she is a little over weight and that’s why she is having a hard time getting them and that’s why she is smearing. It’s hard to tell if a little lionhead is overweight but I think she may be. Thanks everyone

 

[Popsicles]

Best way to tell is can you feel her ribs? Can you feel her spine? They should be easily felt without pressure, but not too sharp. If you have to use pressure to feel them then she is overweight.

 

[katiecrna]

Ok so now I’ve witnessed twice... she pooped th cecotrope on the carpet and went back later and ate it. And that is what is making the smear stain on the carpet. She eventually eats it but I’m not sure why she waits so I’m assuming she is overweight.

 

[Popsicles]

This is how to determine if your bunny is overweight. If she is, you might consider putting her on a diet:
https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/further-reading/body-condition-score/

 

[katiecrna]

Wow what a little fatty I have. She drops a cecotrope then turns around and looks for it and eats it. Sometimes it sticks to her butt fur and I watch her try to find her cecotrope. What a chunk. She had been on a diet for a while now. No more pellets, and I’m forcing her to run around more. Needless to say she is not happy.