Is Amoxicillian safe?

[Pipp]

As Randy and Ivory said,immediately start giving him a probiotic such as Bene-Bac. and"lots of hay and hydration. If you can do sub-q fluids (or IV) that would be great....if not, unflavored Pedialyte is the way to go."

(Their opinions differed on Pepto).

They know their stuff. (Wish we could say the same for thevet).



sas ray:

 

[Orchid]

Pipp wrote:

As Randy and Ivory said,immediately start giving him a probiotic such as Bene-Bac. and"lots of hay and hydration. If you can do sub-q fluids (or IV) that would be great....if not, unflavored Pedialyte is the way to go."

(Their opinions differed on Pepto).

They know their stuff. (Wish we could say the same for thevet).



sas ray:

No kidding...Sucks these people go to school for taking care of animals and in the end it seems like they have too much pride to own up to..they don't know enough and just think they can follow same suit and all will be well.

Keeping you guys in my thoughts!

 

[momof3b1g]

Where do I get Bene-Bac?

 

[ra7751]

The main concern is not really the diarrhea (but diarrhea is still a major concern due to it's dehydrating effects)...it's the die off of the beneficial bacteria in the GI tract....primarily the cecum. A rabbit is a hind gut fermenter and depends on a high level of helpful bacteria to break down food into nutrition. The cecum isa very specialized organ that basically stores lots of this bacteria along with undigested food. It is excreted and eaten usually at night....we call them cecotropes, cecals or night poops. They are usually shaped like a string of grapes, very moist and smelly. Reingesting this is how a rabbit can get proper nutrition from low quality food like grass and barks....and it can't handle lots of proteins/sugars. Night poops are loaded with calories, energy, bacteria and vitamins. And when an antibiotic (or other issue thataffects the gut)causes problems with the bacteria, the rabbit can't properly digest it's food.

Whenever the beneficial bacteria starts to die off, the decaying bacteria is toxic. That event also leads to the growth of harmful bacteria....mostly clostridium and sometimes E Coli. Both of these are also toxic. This leads to diarrhea which leads to dehydration. It is a vicious cycle. When this happens, the pH in the gut also changes. A rabbit's gut is normally acidic and that is what climate it takes to allow the beneficial bacteria to recover and repopulate. That is why I would never use any antacid such as Pepto or Tums with a rabbit. You need to stabilize the gut back into the proper acidic pH in order to allow a good environment for good bacteria to grow. The use of an antacid is contrary to what needs to happen. It lowers the acidity. The use of acidophilus is helpful in these situations....not because of the bacteria, but look at the first four letters....acid. It acidifies the gut back to a more normal state. An antacid is used when you want to reduce the acid which is not what you want in a rabbit. One of the most beneficial cultures in Bene-Bac is L Casei. Good stuff. Note->this culture can also be found in yogurt and many suggest yogurt for rabbits....not good.

There is an antibiotic used in some situations with gut issues like this later in the event. Metronidazole (Flagyl) is one of the best drugs at controlling clostridium. It's use is hugely controversial in the vet community. I use it quite a bit with weaning cottontails and with domestics with chronic GI issues. Clostridium is usually indicated by mucus being passed in the poops.

In my non-professional opinion based on my years of experience dealing with things like this is to keep things basic. Use the Bene-Bac, lots of hay (don't really worry about pellets at this time) and lots of hydration. If there is going to be a negative reaction, that should start showing up maybe later tonight or tomorrow. I would suspect the next 72 hourswill be the time to be watchingclosely.

Randy

 

[Pipp]

momof3b1g wrote:

Where do I get Bene-Bac?

You can get Bene-bac at pet stores or a vet's office, or an equivalent pro-biotic (Acidophilus) at health food stores. (Don't use yogurt).

Bene-bac is better than Acidophilus, but whatever you can get the quickest.



sas :clover:

 

[momof3b1g]

I tried the feedstore, as the vet didn't have anything in stock. I got Lacto Bac is that ok?



I just got back from the vet and she gave him, Ciprofloxacin. It is pill form so she had to cut them down. She said to crush it and mix it with water or something. She mentioned baby food. What can i mix it with? I usedPedialyte this first time. But would rather have something easier to make sure he gets it all in is mouth.



Oh and I put Pedialyte in his water bottle.

 

[Pipp]

Yup, Lacto-bac is good I do believe.

I'd give him a crock of Pedialyte separate from his water, though, or even see if he'll take it from a feeding syringe.

How's he doing?



sas :clover:

 

[Pipp]

Uh... What do you mean by something to 'mix' with the baby food? I'm sure the vet meant jars, not the cereal stuff if that's what you're referring to.

Honestly, I wouldn't give him any of that at all regardless.Canned pumpkin is better than baby food jars, I'd go for that if need be.

ETA: Why did the vet suggest baby food in the first place? Is he not eatinghay on his own? Hay,Pedialyte and the Lacto-bac are still the best bets,you really don't want to give himcarbs like cereal.



sas :?


ETA: PS: Can you put your location in your profile? Thanks.

 

[timetowaste]

OH man, this is bad news bears right here. What a crappy rabbit vet, if I do say so myself. Your bunny should take the pedialyte in a bowl by itself, but if he doesn't, dont fear. Use a feeding syringe to squirt it into his mouth and down his throat. It's what best for him, be brave chica.

I'm so glad that you took him to another vet and now he will get better. If nothing bad happened yet, it PROBABLY won't now that he is on pro biotics and has pedialyte in him. Please keep us updated!

Tracy

 

[momof3b1g]

He is doing ok. She mentioned mixing the crushed medicine with something and i searched and found pumpkin a good idea. How long does he need to be on lacto-bac? Is it ok to just let him have pedialyte in his water bottle? or should he have water and that? He's never drank from a bowl so not sure he will. If i did a syringe how much and how often?

 

[momofmany]

I've been following this thread and it's great that you went to a different vet. I hope your bunny is well on the road to recovery now!

I can't answer all of your questions because I'm not experienced enough, but I did just read a post in a different thread on this forum by Pipp who said something about Pedialyte shouldn't be added to water and that plain water should always be offered at the same time since some rabbits may be finicky and just want plain water without anything else mixed in.

ETA: Here is the link I read that in:

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=33617&forum_id=16&jump_to=441608#p441608

I'm sorry I can't offer more specifics, but I'm sure someone else will be along so to help out. Good luck!

 

[Pipp]

How's your bunny?

Hope all is well.



sas :clover:

 

[momof3b1g]

He is doing ok, but his wheezing and stuffyness is not. I hope that medicine starts to work soon! I feel so bad for him.