My bun isn't eating his pellets

[Hoosierock]

Hey guys!
I'm new here and I need some advice. My 6 year old bun hasn't been as excited about his pellets as he usually is. It's been a week and a half now. He's been eating hay and drinking fine. Eventually he does eat, except tonight. He hasn't touched his pellets, even when I put a treat I there. I haven't seen him use the bathroom or drink water since I got home, but he nibbled on a little hay. I'm thinking of giving him a little pineapple juice tomorrow. I feed him the Oxbow adult formula. Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Hoosierock]

I lied. I saw him pee once, but that's it. He seems to be resting a bit more lately. Any ideas?

 

[Hoosierock]

He's pooping now. Should I take him to the bet over the weekend? I'm kinda worried it's GI related.

 

[JBun]

How long has it been since he ate or pooped? If it has been more than 12 hours, this is an emergency and your rabbit needs to be seen by your vet immediately.

A rabbit not pooping, or very little, has something called GI stasis, where the digestive system has slowed down or stopped completely. This is a life threatening health problem and needs to be addressed and corrected immediately or it can progressively get worse and possibly be fatal. GI stasis can be caused by diet, stress, medication, dental problems, and underlying health problems.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html
http://rabbit.org/sluggish-motility-in-the-gastrointestinal-tract-2/

If it has only been a few hours then you can try a few things like simethicone(dosage in link) and a pain reliever. Metacam is the best but requires a vet prescription, aspirin is considered safe for rabbits if there is no internal bleeding, however I've never used it myself. But after 2-3 hours and the first couple doses of simethicone, if you don't see improvement and your rabbit starting to eat better and be more active, then you need to get to a vet. If this does help, then it's likely something about your rabbits diet caused this, either too many sugars/carbs, not enough fiber, and/or a sensitivity to a certain food. If your rabbit doesn't improve, then there may be another health problem at the root of this, and you will need a vet to check teeth and run tests.

 

[Hoosierock]

Last he ate was this morning. He pooped just a bit ago. I haven't seen him drink yet. I'll try giving him more hay and cutting down on the treats. He seems to be OK otherwise, just not interested in pellets tonight.

 

[Hoosierock]

Last he ate was this morning. He pooped just a bit ago. I haven't seen him drink yet. I'll try giving him more hay and cutting down on the treats. He seems to be OK otherwise, just not interested in pellets tonight.

I mean to say the last time he ate his pellets was this morning. He nibbled on his hay a bit too.

 

[JBun]

A rabbit not eating it's normal food means there is something wrong. If your bun is behaving perfectly normal aside not eating it's pellets, it could be dental related or a problem with the pellets. If your bun is quieter than usual or acting abnormally, then it isn't feeling well, is in pain from something. Rabbits won't eat much or at all when they are in pain.

If this is due to diet, you don't want to feed any treats or pellets as the sugars and carbs will continue to cause a bacterial imbalance in the gut. Hay and any non cruciferous leafy veggies that you normally feed, are the best things to get your rabbit feeling better, but you have to ensure your bun is eating this. If this isn't diet related and due to a health problem, diet changes aren't going to make a difference and your rabbit will continue to get worse.

 

[Hoosierock]

He nibbled on some hay just a minute ago. I'm thinking of trying a different brand of pellets. Should I? I assumed him resting a little more was due to the fact that he was getting old. I'll keep an eye on him over the next few days and see what happens.

 

[Imbrium]

Bunnies' digestive systems are designed to be constantly moving very large quantities of food, and if they don't eat enough to keep things moving at full speed, their GI tract can come to a stop - an event that can easily be fatal. Even if a bunny is still nibbling on food, if they're eating a fraction of what they normally do, that needs to be taken very seriously to ensure that they don't go into stasis.

While it's not abnormal for some mammals (humans included) to just not have much interest in food one day and then have their appetite return to normal the next, bunnies are an exception - suddenly not wanting to eat (or not wanting to eat a certain type of food they normally love) indicates that there's a problem. Until the underlying issue is resolved, the bunny is at risk of going into stasis.

Pain is the most common reason for a rabbit to stop eating; when only certain foods are avoided, the most likely culprit is a tooth issue - veggies, hay and pellets each require different chewing motions than the others so a bothersome tooth may only be aggravated by one food in the beginning... however, tooth problems tend to get progressively worse if not addressed, which can lead to them not eating at all.

The sooner you can get him into the vet, the more likely it is that you can avoid him going into GI stasis and the easier it will be to get him back to full health - it's far better to only have to treat the underlying cause than to have to treat the cause and severe stasis at the same time!