Loud stomach grumbling + losing litter training... ??

[kohler51]

Hi All,

Lately, I've noticed that Romeo's stomach seems to be rumbling quite loud (I can be sitting across the room, with the TV on, and I can hear it!). He also seems to be becoming less and less litter trained, although it seems to be happening slowly. He is still eating, although a bit less than before, but still is super excited about hay (timothy) and lettuce. His output seems more or less normal. This has been going on for about a month or so now - I thought at first that it would just go away, and wasn't too worried since he was still eating/peeing/pooping relatively normally.

Is he just getting old? Where does the rumbling come from? Should I be worried/take him to the vet?

Thanks!!

(I should mention that I adopted him about 2.5 years ago, and they told me he was about 5-6years old at that time... making him now 7-8 or even getting close to 8-9 now I guess)

 

[JBun]

You actually do want to be concerned. This can be the start of GI stasis, as the loud gurgling sounds could be gas and from an imbalance in his digestive system. You say he is pooping? What do those poops look like? Are the the regular sized round poops, or are the smaller or larger than normal, irregular shaped, or soft? As long as he is still eating and pooping pretty good, you may be able to adjust his diet to clear it up. Do you also feed pellets and if so, what kind and how much? Also, do you feed any other veggies or treats besides lettuce?

I would hold off on pellets for now and feed him unlimited hay. You may be ok feeding the lettuce, depending on which kind he's getting, but if the sounds don't clear up in a few days, you may also want to try cutting the lettuce out. You don't want to feed any sugars, grains, starches, or carbs as these are most likely what is causing the problem. If his consumption of food, or poop output significantly decreases, I would get him to the vet right away. I had a rabbit that had the gurgling sounds and she got a full blockage and ended up dying, so finding a way to correct the problem is pretty important. There is also the possibility of parasites or bacteria, or some other medical issue, being the cause and if so you would need meds from the vet, so if the condition doesn't clear up with in a few days or if he gets worse in any way, I would get him into the vet.

 

[tonyshuman]

That is a very loud rumble and I would be concerned about it. Make sure to give him some probiotics and you might want to do some simethicone treatment in case there is gas. Lettuce can be helpful in early cases of stasis or gas as it is wet and keeps things moving through. Definitely want to know what his poops look like. Rumbling guts are not due to being old.

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f22/bloat-gas-10385/
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f22/loss-appetite-10386/