Excessive Grooming, Appetite change, Pin Worms & Depression (?)

[lagomorphs]

Over the weeknedInoticed myNetherland Dwarf bunny has been grooming himself more then usual, tothe point that I would say is excessive. No particular part of the bodyis being favored though.

I believe he is molting right now and am wondering if this could be related to the increased grooming.

He has began to have adecreasedappetite and I haveheardsounds (like cogestion) comingfrom hisnasalarea more then usual (he sometimes 'snores' whensleeping, which I read some bunniesdo (?).

Because of this and another matter (below)I took him to thevet today (an experienced exotic) who saw no indication of any medicalproblems, however, we took 2 nasal swabs for testing of : Pastuerellaand an aerobic culture. This may take over a week to get back results.

I am now wondering, could these symptoms could alsobe related to molting?

The other matter I found over theweekend were pin worms inhis fecal matter which he is now being treated for.

Lastly, he lost his friend, a female bunny that lived in a cage next tohis about a month ago; and over the weekend a little guinea pig I wasfostering went to her new home. They had no direct contact, but livedin the same room and were in view of each other. Currently he is now myonly pet, although my intention has been to get him a friendsince loosing the other Bunny.

I am now wondering if the lonliness is actually the causeofall of these behaviors? Molting and boredom/lonliness; heis grooming more...andin turn thishas effected hisappetite and nostril passages?

Or could the pin worms be making him feel uncomfortable too, leading to the increased grooming.

Any thoughts or related experience is appreciated.

I have been so worried about how hehandlesthe loss of the other bunny.

 

[Flashy]

Ok, first off, well done for taking him to the vet That's always a good start.

What I am about to say is based purely on experience and also things people have told me, so don't take it as totally factual

I don't know what country you are in, but my bunnies are all having amoult at the moment, as it is that time of year. Spring seems to bringa huge moult, as does the end of summer.

It is possible that the excessive cleaing is due to his moulting, somaybe it is worth brushing his to help him along. I imagine it can't beoverly comfortable to lose all your coat whilst growing a new one.Brushing should help that.

I wonder if he is grooming so much that he has got lots of fur stuck inhis throat/mouth. There was a thread around here recently about that,called something like 'the weirdest bunny problem ever' so it might beworth checking that out too.

Boredom, I believe, can also lead to excessive cleaning, so maybe tryand give him lots of toys, exercise, company, etc to help stimulate andentertain him. That will also help with potential loneliness.

I've never come across pin worms though, so I have nothing to offer onthat, but you did the right thing by taking him to the vets.

Maybe it might be a good time to start looking for another bunny, ifthat is still your intention, although, if you do get one, obviouslyyou need to keep them apart until the worms clear up

 

[pamnock]

Molt can be a stress factor that has aggravated a rhinitis problem, or conversely, a health problem may be causing the molt.

Molting is generally seasonal, so it may be hard to determine the causeof a molt at this time of year when rabbits are generally moltinganyhow.

A diet too high in protein as well as parasites can be cause for molt.

Pam

 

[lagomorphs]

Thanks so much for all your responses.

Yes, I would definitly need to keep a new bunny separate.Dosage for this was today, followed by a 2nd in 2 weeks.After this they should be retested...although in this case there was noneed for the first tes, as I saw them with my own eyes...(yuck, smallwhite worms).

I am in the Northeast US and yes it is Spring. I did not know they moltlate summer too, thanks for this info. I read somewhere that they moltevery 3 months, but I gather as you point out that might beclimate/location related.

Its funny, he refuses to look at the coffee table where Priscilla (thefoster gp's cage was). I have put a bunch of large stuffed rabbits onit now, so as to try and make him feel better.

I will check out the thread you mention re:fur in the mouth. The vetdid check his teeth and said theyseemed fine except that shewas wondering if he was older then Ihave thought because histeeth were 'brown'. I suggested that this could be from the food he wasbeing given before I got him. He was a rescue bunny that originatedfrom aneglect situation on a farm. I know for a fact theywere given lots of bread and I don't think they evergot areal rabbit pellet. Instead,a neighbor to thisfarmwould bringleftoverfeedused forhis herd ofsheep.

 

[lagomorphs]

Interesting, Parasites can cause molt. Thank you. So these 2 issues could be related.

I had been wondering if the pin worms created some typeofannoying sensation or discomfort for them ...like feelingitchy.

I gather this is more understood with horses, since the remedies arethe same, just much lower dosages. Perhaps there is moreinformation documentedon the discomfort of worms with horses?

 

[ra7751]

Hi Lagomorphs,

You are quite correct in your statement concerning the treatment ofhorses and rabbits. Medically, they are treated the same justrabbits on a much smaller scale. We did have somethingsimilar happen to our "old maid" Squirt. She stated losingfur in an odd pattern. We also noticed that she went into avery light case of stasis at the same time. She was itchingso badly that she would make herself bleed by biting herself.We finally found she had intestinal parasites. Normaltreatment protocols and she has not had that problem since.You are most likely treating with Panacur. I would suggest afollow-up fecal after the last round just to make sure all the visitorshave been taken care of.

Randy

 

[pamnock]

I've worked with horses for many years and also found many similarities including GI stasis symptoms (colic).

Pinworms can cause rectal itching.



Pam

 

[lagomorphs]

Thanks Randy for the informative response. Ialso find it interesting that you mention your rabbit was having a mildcase of GI stasis along side this.

Poe was originally tested for parasites with my other bunnyBuni. All showed clear on him, but Buni wasdiagnosed with pin worms. She was put on Panacur (a tiny dosagefollowed by a 2nd, 2 weeks later). Aside fromthis,since Ihad rescued her, shecontinouslyhad small bouts of GIstasis.Theseepisodesseemed tocome about from her experiencing "stress" which unfortunatelywas all toooften andIbelieve was duetothe terribleneglect and unhealthyconditionsshe came from.

Right before her 2nd dose was due, she began to show mildsigns of GI stasis whichsuddenly worsened. I beganto syringe feed her along withotherhome careremedies and thefollowing day took her to the vet fortreatment.Despite this,I lost her 2 dayslater.

She had been given her 2nd dosage for pin worms while in GIstasis. She was on panacure. Due to this recent past, as aprecaution, Poe was prescribed Strongid, which I was toldissupposed to be a little bit safer. In my vet's words, Panacur cansometimes, very rarely, have a toixic effect. This is not to say thatit was the cause of Buni'sdeath.

I did not havea full necropsy done, becausepersonally it was very important to me to bury abody. I did have her stomach examined for any obviousproblems, none of which showed except the food/hair mass with noactivity at all in the lower intestines.

So in retrospect to this and your post, perhaps her GI stasishad beenconnected to the pin worms all along. If Irecall she also appeared to be grooming more (not as much as Poe) thatlast week, and I had wondered if she was molting and had that muchextra fur intake due to this.

Poe alsogot sluggish on Sunday, along withadecreased appetite. But unlike Buni, this was an unusalsymptom.

Thanks againfor your post.I will be watchingPoelike a super hawk right nowand as youraisefollow upwith testing afterwards to confirmthat the wormsare gone.

 

[lagomorphs]

Thanks Pam. I have learned alot from all of this.

 

[ra7751]

On the subject of parasites...and I found thisout the hard way so to speak...a fecal is not 100% accurate.And, a little off subject, neither is a bacterial culture. Weroutinely treat with several anti-parasitic drugs....panacur, albon andselamectin to name a few...and fortunately have never had an adversereaction. But buns are like people, some do havereactions. And parasites can come from many places...not justfood like many people think. Many come in on ourshoes....believe it or not. If you go "behind the scenes" insome of the zoos and aquariums, you will notice what I call a "bugrug"....it's an antibiotic shoe wash that you step in prior to enteringa sterile environment. Clothing is also something that willcarry things like this. In our rescue, we always work thesick rabbits last...and change clothes between sick buns.Sounds weird....but it's true.

Randy

 

[lagomorphs]

No it does not sound weird and the thought about clothing didcross my mind today.

In fact, I have been fostering a gp who just went to her forever homeon Saturday. I would have kept her but was advised strongly by my vetsthat there should be no contact between her and the rabbits due to thepossibility that each speciescan be perfectly healthy but acarrier of a bacteria very dangerous to the other. (I knowmany people do not follow this protocol but being that I have had myshare of dealing withserious and fatalsituationswith animals, I did not want to take the chance. Now I am concernedthat although no surfaces were shared between animals, and I alwayswashed my hands between handling thim, the one exception in this was myclothes. Unlike when I have handled ill animals and wouldwear a smock to protect contact to another, I did not do thishere, and am concerned that she could gottenthem aswell. That is if guinea pigs can contract pin worms?

I saw no odd whitespecs in her fecal matter but planon contacting the new owner (mom)to let her know ofthis situation.

These rabbits were my first direct (hands on) experience with aneglect, crueltysituation. Although I took them toan exotic vet within a week of bringing them home, I did not followthrough with the fecal testing right away. If they had any 'samples'available druing that visitI would have, but none were to befound; so it was put off for awhile.

I was completely unaware of the links this condition canhave to other symptoms and medical problems.