Merry's Poops

[Krissa]

Ever since I got my mini lop, Merry, two weeks ago, she has had off and on runny poops which smell very bad and are difficult to clean up. Originally it was my fault, I fed her the same diet as I was feeding Frodo -- a alfalfa based diet -- and the poor girl was really bad. (The alfalfa food was what Frodo's former owner fed him, I was switching him to a timothy hay diet). I took all her food and only allowed her timothy hay for 24 hours and it cleared up

Now she randomly has runny poops without any change in her diet. She has unlimited access to timothy hay and is on a timothy hay pelleted diet. She loves fruits and veggies, but I have cut these out trying to stop the runny poops. I have limited her to one small piece of fruit or veggie a day (very very small), but it is difficult to vary her diet like that. I also take her and Frodo outside often, but I have to clean her bottom very carefully because of her longer hair to get all the poop off before taking her out (she hates this).

I have taken her and my other rabbit, Frodo,to the vet and her stool sample did not have anything wrong with it. The vet said both were inperfect health.The vet gave me some pills to reculture her digestive system with the correct bacteria in case her system was upset by stress. I have to give these to her for the next week.

I would like to house her with Frodo soon, but I want to wait until this poop problem is cleared up so I can monitor her. They get along very well and like to cuddle.Also the vet does not want to spay her until this problem is cleared. (Frodo is neutered so no baby bunnies by accident).

Any suggestions as to how to stop the runny pooping? Is it caused by the veggies? Also, I keep reading about pineapple juice, papya, and Nutrical. Could someone explain these home remedies, what they are used for, how much to give, since I'm a new bunny owner (or point me to a post that does).

 

[CorkysMom]

The papaya, pineapple are more for helping toprevent blockages (GI Statis)...the nutrical helps boost their systemand gives them extra nutrients when they get sick or are having issues,it might be a good idea to get some and give it to her. You can get itat the petstore, don't need to see the vet for it.

You might try pretty much removing her pellets for now and giving herLOTS of timothy hay and some rolled oats, that may help to get her moresolid again...and when she is, slowly start introducing her pelletsagain.

When you swtiched her pellets, did you do so gradually? Ifyou don't that can upset their system as well..its best to do so over aperiod of time gradually mixing in more of the new and phasing out theold.

Good job taking the stool sample to the vet, glad to hear they are both healthy.

Hope some ofthis helps!

 

[JimD]

Hi Krissa,

PGG has already given some great advice!

How old is Merry?

An unbalance in GI flora can cause runny poops and cecals. We've had 2bunnies go through this and used Benebac paste with good results. Themed that your vet prescribed will probably have the same results.

S'more went through GI stat recently due to a GI infection. She hasfully recovered, but is now on a diet of limited timothy pellets (1/2oz for each lb of normal buns weight), unlimited timothy hay, 1teaspoon of rolled oats daily, and a leaf of romaine daily. No treats.

~Jim

 

[naturestee]

There has been some really good advice posted already, so I'll just add a few new comments.

When Merry gets runny poops, are they all runny or are some hard andsome runny? Runny normal poops can have different causes thanmixed runny poops, where the runny poop is usually cecal.

Oats can help clear up soft poops. I use Old Fashioned QuakerOats. Start with a very small amount and see if it helps heror makes it worse. Some rabbits, especially older ones, havedifficulty digesting the carbs in oats and will get runny poop fromit. Oats seem to help both of my bunnies.

I would suggest not feeding veggies for now. She may not havehad them before, and it could contribute to her GI upset. Howold is she? Young rabbits are more senstive to food changesand are more prone to diarrhea from fresh foods.When you start feedingveggies to Merry again, feed just one veggie for a week or more to makesure she is okay with it. Then you can add one more,etc.

I hope Merry gets back to normal soon!

 

[Carolyn]

Welcome aboard,Krissa,

When she does have runny poops, make sure you keep herhydrated. Dehydration can quickly become fatal forrabbits.

Agreed with the others about no treats, limited pellets, and unlimitedhay until she dries up. The causes of occasional soft stoolcan be numerous (parasites, diet, illness, etc.). Here's asite with info on managing the diet of a rabbit with intermittent softstools:http://tinyurl.com/2ctlzIf you are feeding him alfalfa hay in addition to alfalfa pellets,leading to a rich diet and soft stool. Most rabbitfanciers feed timothy hay because it has less protein and more fiberthan alfalfa. Don't know if you have timothy available nearyou.

As Naturestee pointed out, some people confuse cecotrophes as runnystools. If you notice a few, and they look like a tiny groupof grapes and seem to be a bit darker in color thanregularpoops sometimes.They are filled with nutrients that arenecessary for the health of your rabbit. They look quite different froma normal stool.An excessive amount of them could be caused bya diet that's too rich for your rabbit or not enough of fiber.

Soft pudding-like stool could be sign of disruption in the rabbit'sintestinal system. I would continue with alot of Timothy Hay and/oroats. I'd stop all other treats, including all fruits, until yourlittle one's stool returns to normal.

The Dutch rabbit in your avatar is gorgeous!

Keep us posted on your little one. You definitely were wise to have taken her to the vet and have her tested.

-Carolyn

 

[Carolyn]

Krissa wrote:

I'm a new bunny owner (or point me to a post that does).

Would suggest you check out this thread:http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=3005&forum_id=1It's a "Cheat Sheet for Rabbit Care" and has notes, website links, andbook recommendations. I'm sure you'll find at least one ortwo things interesting in there. Make sure to check out thelink on "Rabbit Language". It's one of the best sites on howto learn their body language.

-Carolyn

 

[Snuggys Mom]

One of my rabbits had this problem and it wasdue to the protein content in his pellets. I switched to alower protein feed and he's fine now.

Good luck!

Laura

 

[Krissa]

Thank you all for the good information. She is a young rabbit so will take all your advise, and I'll find some of that Nutrical.

oh, and the bunny in my avatar is my baby Frodo. I'll have his website up soon for all to see his cute pics.

Thank you all, I feel much more confident that my baby will get better now.

 

[Krissa]

I just wanted to update everyone on my bunny,Merry. The pills the vet gave me worked great. She is runny poop free(no more smelly bunny). Thanks for all the information.

 

[naturestee]

That's great news!

Do you know the name of the pills your vet gave you? Irescued two girls who have soft poops from the cheap pellets they wereeating. I've been wondering if something like that mighthelp.

 

[Krissa]

The pills were labled as "Acidophilus Tab" theywere gel caps so I had to cut a hole in them and squirt it into hermouth (not a happy bunny). One pill a day for a week cleared itup. The vet said that the normal flora of her gut (thebacteria that lives there) may have been upset by stress.

Hope this helps.

 

[Pet_Bunny]

That is something new to me. :great:

I wonder if you can give it to your bunny as amaintenance treatment to prevent problems before they occur.

Rainbows!

 

[Krissa]

I dont see why it would be a problem,considering it is just a culture of the rabbit's normal gut bacteria.It would be good to have on hand if you ever have to take your rabbitsomewhere stressful, like an airplane ride. I may run the idea by myvet next time my buns need a check up.