Sadly, we will never find out what it was. Infection for sure from the blood work, and liver functions elevated that responded to it. My guess is that he could have been a carrier of something bad, then after Thumperina died, under stress his immune status dropped and bad things proliferated. His diarhhea 2 weeks ago most likely was related to all this and how it all began/ progressed. Not sure why fecal flotation was never done. None of the vets suggested it. I actually suggested it once when i took him in with diarrhea mentioning clostridium and the response was "its hard to detect, so no", but maybe we would detect coccidia this way.
I have lost 3 rabbits within the last year. FooFoo died last October after she stopped eating and i didn't catch it early. I just know that she had rear limbs paralized at the very end. I read that it can happen with coccidia.. but she never had diarrhea. I have a feeling she also had high fever at the end because she was shaking and breathing heavily just like Paul
Thumperina also never had any diarrhea in her life. She was eating poorly at the end but presumably because of pain from cancer and she lost weight. The first time Paul was of concern when i posted "my sick bun" and it was in May i believe.
However... today before we did PTS, i talked to my vet. I was hoping till the end... did i take his temperature right? He took it and it was 105. Then he palpated his tummy and Paul was very uncomfortable. At home, he was lying flat and his back legs were sliding down stretching out (he couldnt keep them under his body). The vet said yes its time. I said : even with the right treatment would he be able to recover? He said , unlikely. He said he had a rabbit that had liver disease going on for months, he sent him to the university 2.5 hrs away with still no result.
After paul was already sedated and they flipped him to make lethal injection he was making sounds that made me ask if.he was really sedated. The vet said he had difficulty breathing... so maybe you were right popsicles and he had problem in his lungs?
But mainly, his eating habbits were already so unhealthy that it would nake recovery hard... plus depression after he lost all his rabbits.
He eas clinging to life till the end. Hard to believe, he was still eating on his own but only kale. He was producing poop. Even cecal poop. But he was also lying flat on his tummy making sounds that would wake me up at night. Even with buprenex.
Sweet dreams by big bunny boy. I love you.
