I have read that surgery in the cecum requires immense experience regarding bunnies which vets here lack. They have no knowledge about rabbits. Is there no other option other than surgery ? This is a picture of his poop. Some of the poops are oval.
Need advice for m bunny
- Thread starter KutuKuti
- Start date
Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:
Metronidazole helps with gut motility, it could potentially help with caecotropes? I’m not sure. To help with caecotrope formation definitely make sure he eats lots and lot about of hay and only has very few pellets and only veg as a treat.
I would not like to tell you any medications are safe for sure without seeing the rabbit!
I would not like to tell you any medications are safe for sure without seeing the rabbit!
D
Do you think it could be worms that are resulting in the swelling of his cecum ? I did his stool test a few months back but worms were not found in it. I have attached the report in the later post. Is deworming him now going to help ? Also aren't deworming medicines very strong and risky to give ?
Last edited:
If there were not worms then I would not expect it is worms causing the problem now. It shouldn’t cause a problem to givedeworling treatment anyway, I can’t see why that would be a problem. fenbendazole will kill roundworms, mebendazole for tapeworms and pinworms.
There was protein in the urine. That isn’t good, does possibly suggest something wrong with the kidneys? But if it was a dipstick I don’t know how reliable this is. And this was a few months ago now.
Have we had a blood test done?
How is he in himself? Eating? Drinking? Poops? Urine? Active/lethargic? What do you feed him.
I am really worried about this mass. If they won’t do a fine needle aspirate or biopsy, can they do an ultrasound? Check out this mass, and also have a look at the kidneys while they are there?
I’m running out of ideas
There was protein in the urine. That isn’t good, does possibly suggest something wrong with the kidneys? But if it was a dipstick I don’t know how reliable this is. And this was a few months ago now.
Have we had a blood test done?
How is he in himself? Eating? Drinking? Poops? Urine? Active/lethargic? What do you feed him.
I am really worried about this mass. If they won’t do a fine needle aspirate or biopsy, can they do an ultrasound? Check out this mass, and also have a look at the kidneys while they are there?
I’m running out of ideas
He is given SPS third cut timothy hay, Oxbow organic pellets, Leafy greens and very rarely fruits such as apple or carrot as treats. He is not peeing much since yesterday. He ate and pooped but not much. He is pooping less. But he is urinating very less. Also today it appears that he is trying to urinate cannot. Do you think he is having a renal failure ? He does not drink much water so I feed him water.
With renal failure they will drink and urinate more, not less. If he is straining to urinate it could be urolithiasis, or crystals causing a blockage. In the original X-ray do you know did they introduce a contrast medium into the bladder? If not, it is very white and looks like it has a lot of mineralisation.
Sorry for being so late to reply. I do not think that they introduced a contrast medium to into the bladder. He does passes a lot of calcium in his pee but now he us not being able to pee. What meds are given during blockage of the kidney ? For deworming a vet recommended me albendazole. Is it good for deworming ?
In that case, it looks like bladder sludge, far too much calcification in there. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a blockage! It would be blockage of the bladder/urethra rather than the kidney.
If it is bladder sludge and it is not blocked too badly they should be able to pass a catheter to try and flush the bladder out. They should have done similar with dogs and cats so it is not a difficult procedure.
And yes albendazole should be fine. Anecdotally, some people say it can have adverse side effects in rabbits. I think I safer option is fenbendazole? Though I don’t know for sure.
If it is bladder sludge and it is not blocked too badly they should be able to pass a catheter to try and flush the bladder out. They should have done similar with dogs and cats so it is not a difficult procedure.
And yes albendazole should be fine. Anecdotally, some people say it can have adverse side effects in rabbits. I think I safer option is fenbendazole? Though I don’t know for sure.
Last edited:
Can it also be UTI ? Will giving him Olfloxacin and Septran( Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole) help ?
A UTI wouldn’t show up on an X-ray - it is possible there is a UTI at the same time as the sludge bladder, and bladder sludge is not always symptomatic. Without more urine testing it is not possible to know. I wouldn’t give antibiotics without due cause.
This webpage might help (the section on sludge is most important, it does not look like stones are present):
https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/further-reading/urolithiasis/
This webpage might help (the section on sludge is most important, it does not look like stones are present):
https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/further-reading/urolithiasis/
I will get his urine and stool test done. Thank you so much for helping me. I am syringe feeding him water since he does not drink much water. Do you think he is very serious ? He is not bring able to pee.
He has peed and there is as usual a lot of sludge in his pee. Is there any ways to reduce the sludge other than to flush the bladder out.
About the megacolon...Its genetic and its the most common in spotted rabbits that have two spotted genes- which means they are mostly white with no spots on their back. So if your rabbit has that pattern he could have it.
I've had a megacolon bunny. The biggest symptom is the poos are twice as big as other rabbits and sometimes oval.
About water
If he's not drinking water and you syringe it- I would make sure he is getting the right amount of fluids a rabbit needs per day so he is well hydrated— because if there is an impaction or blockage lots of fluids will help it move through. A rabbit can't digest things right if it isn't hydrated. Also I would mix a week solution of electrolytes or pedialyte for infants.
One source says rabbit needs:
A rabbit's average daily water intake is 50-150 ml/kg of body weight, and a 2 kg (rabbit drinks about as much water daily as a 10 kg dog.)
Another source says
Meaning, expect a 4 pound rabbit to drink one cup of water a day, or less.
So I would make sure your rabbit gets the right amount of water in him.
I've had a megacolon bunny. The biggest symptom is the poos are twice as big as other rabbits and sometimes oval.
About water
If he's not drinking water and you syringe it- I would make sure he is getting the right amount of fluids a rabbit needs per day so he is well hydrated— because if there is an impaction or blockage lots of fluids will help it move through. A rabbit can't digest things right if it isn't hydrated. Also I would mix a week solution of electrolytes or pedialyte for infants.
One source says rabbit needs:
A rabbit's average daily water intake is 50-150 ml/kg of body weight, and a 2 kg (rabbit drinks about as much water daily as a 10 kg dog.)
Another source says
Meaning, expect a 4 pound rabbit to drink one cup of water a day, or less.
So I would make sure your rabbit gets the right amount of water in him.
Thank you for posting the article here. I read it.
