Devastated over bunny loss..help

[Barbed]

Hi all, I lost my 21 month old mini lop, Midnight, on Sunday and I’m heartbroken. Every night I usually give her some greens and sometimes fruit so she can munch on overnight but last Thursday morning I realized she hadn’t touched any of her food. So I thought she had gi stasis because she’s had it before and overcame it. So I did what I did last time, gave her mylicon for gas relief, pineapple juice and tummy massages. I did this all of Thursday and most of Friday. When I realized she wasn’t improving, I called the vet and brought her in on Friday. They prescribed metcam and reglan for pain and gut motility. They did not do xrays, not sure why. The vet told me if she didn’t improved by Sunday (I believe she said evening) to bring her back in. Well she didn’t improve...and Sunday evening I noticed she was very weak and shaking, could barely stand up. I was trying to administer her meds but she wasn’t even licking the syringe anymore. I called the animal hospital and they said to bring her in, as we were about to she passed in my husband’s arms. In hindsight I feel so guilty! Should I have force fed her? Should i have asked the vet take an X-ray? Should I have used pineapple juice? Should I have called the animal hospital earlier in the day?
On top of that I seem to be the only one in the house who’s taking her death so hard. If I see anything that reminds me of her I lose it from her cage to her little poops around the house. My husband doesn’t understand why I’m hurting

 

[bunnylove2024]

I am so sorry. It is not your fault and u did nothing wrong, it is hard losing an animal and its even harder when others don't uderstand. I will be praying for you. The vet should have done something else instead of just giving u medicine. I am so sorry for your loss.

 

[Catlyn]

Hi all, I lost my 21 month old mini lop, Midnight, on Sunday and I’m heartbroken. Every night I usually give her some greens and sometimes fruit so she can munch on overnight but last Thursday morning I realized she hadn’t touched any of her food. So I thought she had gi stasis because she’s had it before and overcame it. So I did what I did last time, gave her mylicon for gas relief, pineapple juice and tummy massages. I did this all of Thursday and most of Friday. When I realized she wasn’t improving, I called the vet and brought her in on Friday. They prescribed metcam and reglan for pain and gut motility. They did not do xrays, not sure why. The vet told me if she didn’t improved by Sunday (I believe she said evening) to bring her back in. Well she didn’t improve...and Sunday evening I noticed she was very weak and shaking, could barely stand up. I was trying to administer her meds but she wasn’t even licking the syringe anymore. I called the animal hospital and they said to bring her in, as we were about to she passed in my husband’s arms. In hindsight I feel so guilty! Should I have force fed her? Should i have asked the vet take an X-ray? Should I have used pineapple juice? Should I have called the animal hospital earlier in the day?
On top of that I seem to be the only one in the house who’s taking her death so hard. If I see anything that reminds me of her I lose it from her cage to her little poops around the house. My husband doesn’t understand why I’m hurting

I too was the only one in my family who took Musti's (my sweet first bunno's) passing so hard and heavy. I feel you! Just mentioning him is enough to bring up my tears! I'm flowing now as i write.... i totally get your pain.
You don't have to be feeling guilty-know that you did the best you could to help her recover! Maybe asking to do an xray pic would've made a difference but we never know.
I too wonder if i should've instead kept my mouth shut at the vet when we went in with our boy. We managed to land on a second bad opinion and got some horrible advice from it.
The great vet after that helped us make the decision and 1.5 months later i still sometimes lowkey regret not trying out the amputation treatment but i've mostly accepted that i did it for him, not myself. We never know what might be if we had done something different but we'll never find out.
But i'm better now and know that you will too. Eventually the grief of loss will fade and only good memories will remain. We have to stay strong! You'll pull out of it, i believe in you!
All the love and support a letter can give

 

[Barbed]

I am so sorry. It is not your fault and u did nothing wrong, it is hard losing an animal and its even harder when others don't uderstand. I will be praying for you. The vet should have done something else instead of just giving u medicine. I am so sorry for your loss.

Thank you so much

 

[Barbed]

I too was the only one in my family who took Musti's (my sweet first bunno's) passing so hard and heavy. I feel you! Just mentioning him is enough to bring up my tears! I'm flowing now as i write.... i totally get your pain.
You don't have to be feeling guilty-know that you did the best you could to help her recover! Maybe asking to do an xray pic would've made a difference but we never know.
I too wonder if i should've instead kept my mouth shut at the vet when we went in with our boy. We managed to land on a second bad opinion and got some horrible advice from it.
The great vet after that helped us make the decision and 1.5 months later i still sometimes lowkey regret not trying out the amputation treatment but i've mostly accepted that i did it for him, not myself. We never know what might be if we had done something different but we'll never find out.
But i'm better now and know that you will too. Eventually the grief of loss will fade and only good memories will remain. We have to stay strong! You'll pull out of it, i believe in you!
All the love and support a letter can give

I can’t wait to get to that stage...I’m sorry for your loss as well

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Sometimes, no matter how hard we strive to keep them healthy we still lose the fight. We've rescued 48 over the last 2 decades and lost some for no reason--Finn, a sweet little boy was fine in the morning and gone in the afternoon with no signs at all. Every loss hurts a lot and it never gets easier--our hearts go out to you and your little girl.

 

[TreasuredFriend]

Condolences on the loss of Midnight, Barbed. A caring individual will always grieve a beloved bun's passing. Ditto what Nancy wrote. Each loss takes a chunk of our hearts... I personally believe the more you care, or the stronger you bond with your pet or an animal, the harder the death/loss will affect you.

To this day I still can get moist eyes thinking about my avatar girl's passing in 2011. I have kept her stuffie pals in her room by her cremation urn, and she's in a picture frame on the wall w/her bondmate.

A GI obstruction occurred in one of our recent rescues, and a gentle PTS was needed a week ago. Our 13 1/2 y.o. boy with enlarged liver diagnosis was gently PTS (euthanized in a compassionate manner) a few days ago. His hospice care situation took a turn for the worse quickly. Looking at his ex-pen area in our family room, and remembering all the times he scampered thru the house will leave a scar. I will keep his dishes in a prominent spot for a while. Plus I'll hold onto his stuffie pal that he often groomed.

If someone is willing to get rid of their things in a flash, then I ponder their depth of emotion?

Please Take as much time to heal as needed. Surround yourself with humans who have the same compassion level as you do! Know that others endure your heartache.

Healing AFter the Loss of your Pet - by Linda R. Harper // The psychologist's article will offer tips.

Blame and guilt come easily after a loss. I wanted to blame our well-qualified DVM numerous times when two of our buns died in surgery unexpectedly.

I hope in time you gradually hurt less. Midnight was fortunate for every ounce of care you provided for all the time she lived with you! Perhaps a time will come when you can reach out and let your love carry on to another. {{Sending tons of hugs}}

 

[poopandpee]

._. I shouldn't have read this, now I'm bawling, the thought of losing my buns one day will devastate me for sure.
So sorry for your loss.

 

[Toffee and Valentina]

I used to cry at the thought of losing my buns. Now I'm going through it. It hurts like crazy. The only thing distracting me from my pain is focusing on his surviving partner and making sure she gets through this ok. Sending hugs to you in your grief.

 

[ChloeBunny]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Many here can empathize - we've been there. It's been 8 months since my mini-lop Chloe passed away. She had been to the vet 2 days before developing stasis. My family didn't understand how I took it so hard for the first few months. Buns are sweet, intelligent darlings and sometimes we feel it harder as their caretakers. You're not alone in that. It does get easier and that special place you hold in your heart will always be there.