eating problems

[Pipp]

The Critical Care is the best thing.If she doesn't like the pumpkin, or the Critical Care mixed with a little pumpkin, don't stress her out. I like keeping the relationship between my bunnies and pumpkin as loving as possible (which usually means drying it out a bit and warming it up), I'dwant them thinking of it as a so-so treat rather than a dreaded medicine.

But make sure you soak theCritical Care REALLY well -- leave it in the water for at least 10 minutes. (I try for30 minutes). It really aborbs a lot of liquid, you want it saturatedso it doesn't draw liquids internally.

And if she shows any sign of pain ormuscles spasms (watch herface) after the Reglan, discontinue it immediately!

Gut motility drugs are controversial in treatment, no oneagrees if they're good or bad, but most accept they shouldn't be prescribed if there's a total blockage, and that they can cause painful muscle spasms in some cases.

The Laxatone isn't accepted universally, either. Many are of the opinion it will coat an impacted fecal mass and not hydrate it amd allow it to break up naturally, so the logical thing to combat that is to hydrate her first, THEN give her the Laxatone.

Giving her fluids orally is important, so are tummy massages, gas meds, pain meds and mild exercise.

Hope she's okay.:?



sas :clover:

 

[Ivory]

I know it's a more "alternative treatment" and it isn't always the best, but one way of getting fluids is actually pineapple juice. Yeah, yeah I know everyone's heard of it. But it can help a little. It does actually digest mucus to an extent.

So maybe that is an option.

 

[MsBinky]

Just an opinion, but I would cut back on the sugary stuff such as craisins while her system gets back into shape.

Lots lots of hay, and plenty of fluids. You can try cuttin the pumpkin into tiny pieces and maybe smearing them with pineapple juice if she prefers pineapple.

 

[shelly316]

Pineapple juice huh? Looks like tonight is homemade hawaiian pizza night We both benefit!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

shelly316 wrote:

Pineapple juice huh? Looks like tonight is homemade hawaiian pizza night We both benefit!

Good deal!

I agree on the less treats thing. We want them to eat but sometimes they will get worse with the treats.....

 

[naturestee]

Ditto on the no or at least less treats. Since her intestines are already moving slowly she is more likely to have a problem with overgrowth of bad bacteria. The sugars in treats can just increase that problem.

IMO I'd rather use Pedialyte for hydration instead of pineapple juice. I haven't seen any evidence that the enzymes in pineapple juice actually help, and the Pedialyte has less sugar in it. Even the yummy flavored stuff (Mocha recommends apple, by the way!).

Keep up the good work!

 

[shelly316]

hey guys,

the pooping problems have since cleared up since my last post, but now she's peeing all over herself. i dont get it, she has a litterbox and i see her sitting on it, but she's peeing and pooping all over the floor of her cage which then gets all over her. does anyone know why she'd be doing this and what i can do? and what's the best way to get her cleaned up?

 

[naturestee]

I'm really glad the poop problems are better!

She might still be feeling badly from her poop problems, leading to her peeing and pooping all over. When did she start peeing outside of the litterbox? Was it around when the poop problems started? Did she pee as much as normal when she was feeling ill?

IMO best to take her to the vet again and ask them about testing for a bladder infection, bladder stones/sludge, or other similar problem. Bladder problems are a common cause of a sudden change in litter box behavior. It's also not unusual for a problem like that to actually cause the GI stasis/poop problems you saw. She feels sick so doesn't eat or drink as much, throwing her GI system out of whack. Especially since you mentioned seeing her sitting in the litter box for a long time- she might have been trying to poop, or she might have been trying to pee.

If your vet doesn't find anything wrong with her urine/bladder/kidneys, make sure he checks for other potential problems that might cause her litter box habits to change, including arthritis.

I hope you can get to the bottom of this! :clover:

 

[shelly316]

i'll definitely be calling the vet again tomorrow to make an appointment asap. As soon as she started pooping again she was pooping and peeing outside her litterbox, although i still see her sitting on it from time to time. I can't tell how much she peed when she was sick bc she was still going in her litterbox at that time! She may have been peeing less though. She's definitely peeing quite a bit now though bc she stinks to high heaven!

 

[ra7751]

Just got back into town. Thought I would add a few comments to this thread. I do have the thrill of dealing with stasis/ileus quite a bit. First....it is so easy to panic and do too much. As I have mentioned to several that I have helped via PM....correcting a GI issue or any medical issue is like a ship at sea going thru a storm. It may list heavily to one side but a skilled captain doesn't over react. If you over react, things may go too far the other way. Steady the ship. I think the notion that a rabbit not eating, pooping, etc in a period of time is somewhat of misinformation. I think that may have come from the more old school stuff where people didn't watch their rabbits as closely as everyone on this forum does. We have buns that have not eaten for nearly a week. Not to say it should not be of major concern because it should. But not to the point of panic and doing too much. The rabbit is already stressed and by doing all this force feeding....more stress is added. Plus, we all know how many of our rabbit's guts do not like quick change and now we are adding all sorts of new stuff in there. The mucus you saw was the body's attempt to protect the lining of the GI tract. They are quite prone to gastric ulcersduring GI events.If you were to do a bacterial culture....it would most likely find a high growth of a toxic bacteria called clostridium. Here are a few comments on my protocols....some are controversial..but I have lost only 2 out of hundreds of rabbits thru here to GI issues....one came in already on her side and another suffered from a severe case of mycotoxin poisoning and died from a ruptured gastric ulcer (we had 18 very sick rabbits at once). The toxin came in from a well known supplier of hay. Here are some comments on my protocols here...and I am sure they will create some discussion which will benefit us all...but I have been successful with them.

Best stasis/ileus treatment->Prevention. High fiber...unlimited hay. Limited pellets and treats. Extra grooming during molts.Know you rabbit's habits...one thing that is very important is that the earlier youcatch this condition, the easier it is to rectify. Motility drugs->NEVER...as long as their isa breath in my body not a single one of my rabbits will be administered these drugs. None of my vets will even consider them at any time. While they work great on dogs, cats and humans....a rabbit's gut, especially if there is a full impaction or an ulcer....will not respond well to these drugs. Hydration->Most efficient way to rehydrate is by sub-q fluids. Giving Pedialyte by mouth is better than doing nothing. But forcing a syringe is usually stressful and at least moderately unsuccessful. There is always the risk of aspiration into the lungs which will walk your rabbit into another serious issue. Once you learn how...a full dose of fluids can be administered sub-q in seconds. Pineapple juice->No real proof it works but it seems to help our rabbits. I use it to mix in Critical Care to add a little pressure to the GI after a day or so of hydration. Use only the fresh fruit and hand squeeze the juice. The canned/bottled/concentrate have way too much sugar which will add to the problems. Laxatone/hairball remedies->I don't use them. Rabbits rarely have true hairballs. This stuff is a lubricant which means to be effective, it must be on the exit side of the impaction. There are some vets that feel that the gel actually binds with the mucus of the ingesta adding to the size of the problem. Some people have attempted doing an enema...that is about as scary as using motilitly drugs. The walls of the intestines are quite thin and easily rupture. Heat->Yes. When a rabbit goes into stasis...it is much like going into shock from a severe injury. A heating pad on lowest setting and covered by a towel works great in conjunction with a light tummy massage. Warning...most pads do get quite warm to the point of causing a burn. Must be monitored. I use this a lot with wildlife and put the pad directly underneath the housing (wildlife all have solid bottoms). Food->We allow them to start eating on their own. We offer pellets (which is so rare around here that they are considered a treat), all type of hay including alfalfa and greens. We have noticed that most rabbits will eat dandelion greens quicker than anything. And remember that greens are a source of hydration which is the key to overcoming stasis. No treat type stuff at all. Mucus->I do administer a drug call Metronidazole (Flagyl) when we have a major GI event. This is a very controversial treatment in the vet community. It is one of those times I will "shotgun" an antibiotic. That drug is very effective at targeting clostridium which will grow in the GI during an event and can cause undesirable results.Other stuff->Get back to basics as that is the best way to get a "ready gut". Follow up vet visit->I would get a full blood panel to get a good look at what is going on. I think I saw that she is an older rabbit. She mayhave arthritis which is causing the problems here. She could have some type of infection. Look at the kidney values closely. Do a fecal to check for parasites. A dental issue is not out ofpossibility. As they get older, the teeth can loosenup (especially the molars) and creat a situation that was not there whenshe was younger. Basically...a full physical. Good luck.

Randy

 

[maherwoman]

How is your sweet girl doing?? I hope she is okay...