GI Stasis Treatment?

[tolstoibunny]

As far as I know allergies are very rare in rabbits so I would definitely ask vet about a possible infection. My vet said it's fairly common that sneezing rabbits become picky eaters, though I had never heard this before. But she's one of the best rabbit vets I know.

Echinacea can be given low dose for a week or so but I don't know if it can be used together with an antibiotic. I don't know what kind of vaporizer you have, but I used baby nebulizer that has a small mask. If your bunny doesn't fear the vaporizer (nebulizers are noisy) too much you could give it a go. The vapor shouldn't be too hot. Old style would be putting bunny in a carrier box and a pan with hot water outside the box and cover both with a towl. This should help if the sneezing is caused by some irritant or if there's phlegm in the bunny's nose.

 

[kelilindsey]

He's been on Baytril and Benebac for three days now. We'll see how everything turns out. : )

10pm: .8ml Baytril
12am: pea size drop BeneBac

 

[kelilindsey]

All right. It's been a while. The Baytril has made no noticeable difference in him whatsoever. He's still huffing/sneezing when he lays down, and his eyes and nose are still ever so slightly wet.

It's the eating I'm not very happy about. He's lost a lot of weight. I can tell because I can feel and see his spine and hipbones. I have to encourage him to eat what he does eat, and I have to force the rest (but he mostly lets it run out of his mouth). I don't understand what's wrong with him, and no one can seem to give me an answer. I have some more Critical Care coming in the mail for him. I'm hoping it will arrive in two days max. I've also placed an order for some fresh oat hay. I'm definitely not holding my breath, though. Unless some miracle happens, he won't even touch it.

It's hard just to get him to nibble on greens, and he's uninterested in pellets completely. I'm so frustrated.

 

[JBun]

Can you go back to the vet? I think they need to thoroughly look at him, xrays and all, to try and figure out what is going on. There is something obviously wrong, more than simple GI stasis. There is something causing him to not want to eat. I'm so sorry he hasn't gotten better.

 

[Imbrium]

baytril is a good broad-spectrum antibiotic, but if he's been on it this long and you're not seeing any improvement, that generally means it's time to have cultures done and switch to a targeted antibiotic.

I recently ordered some Sierra Valley hay - an 80% orchard/20% alfalfa mix that my girls (aka the pickiest hay-eaters EVER) are going absolutely nuts over. I'd all but given up on getting them to eat grass hay in any decent volume before I got this stuff. it's *incredibly* fresh and, while alfalfa isn't normally supposed to be fed to adult rabbits, it can be given in moderation for rabbits who need to gain weight. if you'd be comfortable with PMing me your address, I'd be happy to send you a small box of it to try out .

 

[kelilindsey]

It's been much too long for him to be like this. I'm just hoping the Critical Care comes quickly. I'll be scheduling another vet appointment soon. I want him to go over the xrays he took earlier (he didn't show them to me before), take another look at his nose and ears, listen to his lungs, and do a cultures test.

I tried giving him fresh alfa alfa hay from my local feed store when he first started snubbing his timothy. He dug in it but ate very little.

 

[tolstoibunny]

Have you read http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/rabbit_dental.pdf ? It's just one possibility but overgrown teeth roots can cause sneezing, runny eyes and pain so that bunny stops eating. It may not always be easy to see if the roots are overgrown.

 

[JBun]

You may want to try giving him metacam. I'm assuming he's experiencing pain from something, so maybe metacam each day will help to control the pain and get him eating again. If you don't have any, talk to your vet about getting some for him. Another possibility is that the baytril is causing an upset stomach and him going off his food. You may want to ask your vet about taking him off the baytril to see if his appetite improves.

 

[kelilindsey]

I had x-rays taken, and the vet said his teeth look normal. I'm going to have them fax the x-rays to a different rabbit vet, though, because when I asked him about the possibility of overgrown roots, he said that was impossible because rabbits' teeth don't grow upward. lol That made me less confident in him.

He's been off of Baytril for a long time. I only put him on it for a week, and the Benebac for ten days. During the appointment, I'm going to demand that he finds what is wrong with him. I'm tired of being shrugged off and shooed away as if nothing is wrong with my bunny. :I

 

[JBun]

You know what, I wouldn't go back to that vet either. Here are two articles that talk about overgrown tooth roots.

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?A=472
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/dental.html

I'm not saying this is what is wrong with your rabbit, but clearly this vet must not know rabbits very well. Have you tried looking through the RO list of vets. You may be able to find a better one there. Don't let them tell you it's just GI stasis either. This has gone on for so long and there is clearly something deeper going on with your rabbit.

Lol, maybe that should be a question you ask the different vets, when you call to book an appointment over the phone, if they believe a rabbit can have overgrown tooth roots. If they say no, then tell them you will find a different vet, thank you!

 

[kelilindsey]

Yeah. I'm pretty irritated about the underqualified vets in my area. The one who told me that said he was the expert on rabbits in this area, AND a rabbit breeder recommended me to him. Ha!

Well, if there wasn't a dental problem before, I fear there is now. He hasn't eaten hay in over a month, and I think his teeth might be getting too long. They appear slightly longer to me, and he's trying really hard to eat his dandelion greens, but they just keep falling out of his mouth! I'm scared that that's why he won't eat his pellets anymore, too. He's also dropping little, sticky cecals and not eating them.

 

[JBun]

I really hope you can find a good vet really soon! He's gone far too long not eating well. A rabbit dropping food out of their mouth can be an indication of a tooth problem. I wonder if all along it really has been his teeth. I hope you are able to get him in before the weekend. Poor little guy! I feel so bad for him. He's been such a trooper though.

 

[Imbrium]

ray:

 

[HEM]

Our thoughts are with you and your bun
Hopefully, you find a quality vet that can give you some real answers and real help
We are hoping that your bun gets well SOON!!!

 

[kelilindsey]

I looked for another experienced rabbit vet, but found none. I took him to his regular today, and found he'd actually gained 3 ounces since the last time I took him in. The vet said he appeared as healthy as could be. I had him thoroughly examine Boots's teeth, but he said there were no barbs or sharp points. He also said that he saw some long hay fibers he was still grinding with his molars. If that's true, then Boots might be eating some of the new oat hay while I'm not looking. I also had him check his ears to make sure that the minor ear infection he had was gone, and it was. He said that as long as he keeps gaining weight and pooping, I shouldn't be too worried. He said that he should start accepting hay if I keep switching it up and encouraging him.

I don't know how happy I am with this assessment, as I expected to find something wrong with him.

I noticed lots of dandruff on top of his head today. I hope it's not mites. They're very hard to get rid of. Perhaps my humidifier allowed a population growth?

Boots ate some of his hay pellet mush I prepared for him earlier. I hope his poops become bigger, as in the last few days they've grown smaller in both size and count. He's laying with me on my bed now, and seems content. I'll update soon on his condition.

 

[sarah222296]

If your bunny isnt eating you can mash up his pellets into a powder and mix them with some canned pumpkin and organic banana baby food with a little bit of electrolyte powder(you can find it in the baby isle at any pharmacy). Try and put it on a plate and see if your bunn eats it if not syringe feed it, my bunn is 3 lbs and i just went through stasis with her i gave her 2mls every 3-4 hrs except at night obviously. A big bowl of water is important too. Also if you dont have simethicone(baby gas drops) go get some, you can give 0.3mls first hour and than 0.1ml the next 3 than stop, the gas drops should help with pain from gas bubbles and make it easier for her to eat and drink. If your bunny is prone to stasis gas drops once a day 3 times a week are a good idea it wont stop the stasis from happening but it will keep the bunn eating most of the time.

 

[JBun]

You may be able to find a better vet that is a little bit further away from where you are. I don't see how your rabbit can be considered healthy when he won't eat regular food and you have to prepare a pellet mush for him, and he doesn't have normal poops. The vet can't tell if your rabbit has a tooth root problem by a visual inspection. He would only be able to see that in an xray. Maybe you could find a vet that specializes in rabbit dental problems.

Will Boots eat his pellets on his own or do you have to keep encouraging him to eat? What if you don't make his hay pellet mush? Will he just not eat?

I'm not sure of the dandruff. It may indicate mites. You could just keep an eye on it. It may somehow be linked to the other problems he's having.

 

[kelilindsey]

I had x-rays taken, and he said everything looked in order but also stated that it was impossible for the roots to grow into the sinuses (to which I scoffed). I am giving him simethicone for gas and frequent tummy rubs.

He seems to be feeling a bit better, as he's starting to seek out food without my encouragement. He eats his leftover mush in between feedings, and he's eaten TONS of washed greens over the past two days. I can see a difference in his weight now, in terms of gaining. This morning I even caught him nibbling at the tasty oat hay I ordered from BinkyBunny. I'm now encouraging hay whenever I can.

I've noticed him doing the "bunny flop" a lot lately. It's adorable. I hope that indicates he's feeling comfortable.

I'll let everyone know how he's doing soon!

 

[tonyshuman]

It can take a while to recover from stasis, so the course you're describing could just be a slower recovery from stasis. If the x-rays looked ok, that's a good sign. I would try to give probiotics as well.

 

[kelilindsey]

Hey, everybody. I'm sorry it's been so long since my last update. I've been busy with so much stuff. My fiance moved back in with me, I'm gathering as much cash as I can....

Anyway, I took Boots to a specialist two hours away, and she gave him a thorough check up. She confirmed that the problem was his molars. They've been forced deeper into the jaw, and he has a lot of swelling in the bone. It could abscess very soon. Sadly, they weren't willing to make any payment plans with me, and the entire bill estimate was $3,361. I'm working nights at a gas station, and currently looking for a day job to pay for it. I signed up for Care Credit but was only approved for a $500 credit line, and the vet wants it in full at the time of the procedure.

He needs the tooth/teeth removed ASAP, and a major filing. He'll get an antibiotic bead in the gum to release concentrated medicine for two years. He'll need another culture test done to identify the types of bacteria in the area. He'll be kept overnight on IV and pain medication, then we'll take him home with some pain medication. Before all this can happen, he has to have Xrays taken (again) to see with tooth/teeth are causing it.

If anyone is interested in helping us out, I've started a fundraiser to help get Boots treatment faster. Here's the link:

http://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/w342/savebootsthebunny#

Thank you all very much for your love and support!