Help! My new bunny is not eating!

[mkw]

I might be overreacting, but I thought it'd be better to ask the experts on this one. I just got a Holland Lop bunny, today! He is a broken blue buck and 14 weeks old. We had a long car ride, about an hour or so. Then, I brought him in the house and set him up in his cage with water, food, and a litter box. I have not seen ANY poos, and he has not eaten anything. I am worried. He has been here since around 4pm, and it is now almost 8pm. Is this normal? Could he just be stressed from such an eventful day? If someone could please tell me whether or not I should be concerned and what I should do, I'd really appreciate it. I am just worried about my new baby.

Oh, I should mention that he is not acting sick at all. He is very active and playful and did tons of binkies and raced around the room for a long time!

 

[jcottonl02]

Have you seen him eat at all? Drink etc? If he is eating and not producing anything then that is a cause for concern.

As you say he is active, bright and binkying etc. then I would imagine it is the just the stress of moving into a new environment etc. that he is not used to.

Have you tried offering him the food? Taking a handful of pellets and putting your hand under his mouth? He may just be so excited/confused/stressed in his new environment that he might be forgetting to eat, as he is concerned with all these new sights and smells.

Has he eaten veggies before? As he is 14 weeks then it shouldn't be a problem to start introducing them to his diet once he has settled in. Perhaps offering him a tasty chunk of apple? Just a chunk, mind you, if he hasn't had any before, because you don't want to upset his stomach etc.

If a bunny is eating, but doesn't poop for 24 hours then this is a call for an emergency vet, immediately, as this is very serious. However, you are nowhere near this yet .

What has me sliigghhtttly concerned is the fact that he has moved into a new territory etc. and hasn't pooped around the place (marking his new territory). That would seem pretty normal behaviour for a bun in a totally new environment. Did he not poop or pee the whole journey?

Watch him carefully, over the next 5-10 hours. I would imagine that once he gets over having moved to his new home etc., he will find his food, realise he is hungry, and munch away

And congrats on your new bunny!!!!
Jen

 

[tonyshuman]

A couple of questions: did you give him any time alone? That can help. Do you have the same brand of pellet that he was on before? They need to be on the same pellet, and you should only switch to a new one slowly. Many bunnies won't eat a different pellet. Do you have the same type of hay that he had? It should be a grass hay. Also, is he drinking, and do you have the same water delivery system that he had before (bottle or crock)?

Finally, does his belly sound gurgly at all? If it does, he may have gas. Stress can often lead to gas. If you can hear gurgles, go out and get some baby gas meds with the active ingredient simethicone. Give 1mL/hr for 3 hrs. I would also get pumpkin puree and pedialyte. Put them each in bowls that he can get to. Also, you can syringe-feed him some of the pedialyte along with the simethicone (5mL or so every hour would be good). If he doesn't eat or poop within 3 hours, there are other things we can do to try to help. If you can't find pumpkin puree, squash baby food usually works pretty well. You can usually get all 3 things (simethicone, pedialyte, pumpkin/squash) at a pharmacy (where they can also give you syringes to use for feeding--insulin syringes are fine, just tell them it's for feeding a sick rabbit) or grocery store.

 

[mkw]

I had not seen him eat or drink at all... until RIGHT after I posted this, I heard munching. I turned around to check on him, and he had a piece of hay hanging out of his mouth. As soon as he saw me looking though, he stopped eating. Yay! I am new to bunnies, and I was getting worried. I know it is crucial that bunnies eat and go to the bathroom. I will try and give him some space. So hard since I am a worried mom! Haha.

 

[Pipp]

LOL! Glad he made you feel better.

For the record, its good to remember that rabbits don't eat and poop all the time (although sometimes it sure seems like it!).

I'm also guilty of worrying when my 'not feeling well' rabbits haven't eaten/pooped in six or eight hours, but then I have to remind myself its been during their 'down' time. Its good to log your rabbits habits for this reason.

I'm sure your guy was just checking out the new digs.

sas :bunnydance:

 

[jcottonl02]

Glad he's eating now!

Jen