Need help with a possible sick bunny

[JBun]

Cute little guy Yeah, cat litter isnn't good for them. Clumping litter is really bad, so if it's that you'll want to stop using it immediately, as it can be deadly to rabbits. Cat litter can also cause respiratory problems. His sneezing problem could have something to do with the litter. Try one of the ones suggested and see if the sneezing goes away.

If the probiotic that your using has dairy in it, that could be causing the weird poops. Don't give it to him and see if his poops are better tomorrow.

I'm not sure where you should go from here. With him not eating and drinking like normal, that means that something is still wrong with him. If it's a bladder sludge problem then hold off on the kale for a while and give him green leaf lettuce and cilantro instead. Kale is high in calcium and can contribute to bladder sludge problems. You could try that and see if it helps. It's also possible that parasites could be causing the problem, but you'd need to get a fecal done at the vets to know for sure. If you do take him back to the vet, definitely try to find a better vet to go to.

 

[Ape337]

I'd still change litter. But it's ultimately up to you.
The dark poos look like his cecotropes. He should be eating them so normally you wouldn't see them. It's normal for cecotropes to be in bunches of grapes like that and very smelly. Usually bunnies that don't feel well may not eat them. The color of his fecals look normal, just small, but I can't see the shape from the pics.

I'd consider stopping veggies and pellets, and just feeding hay and critical care. His system may need a break and time to readjust. Idk if he's on meds or not. I wouldn't introduce anything new at all because his system is already out of whack. Carrots are sugar so I'd definitely stop them until he is back to normal. Check your pellets for sugar also, most have it.

I have a bunny with digestive issues too and I've had to become extremely strict with his diet. Prayers for your bun ray:

 

[I_heart_Fraggles]

Honestly I think he has been ingesting the litter.

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

So what should I use for litter?

I just picked up some Benebac probiotics which he hadn't had yet.
And you know what if he is eating his poop and its that toothpaste looking stuff bits and pieces of litter are getting stuck to it so i dont doubt he is eating it.

If that is the case will changing it and just feeding him his oxbow slowly get it all out or would he need surgery?

 

[JBun]

Yesterday's News is a pelleted paper litter, pine pellets, aspen bedding, and Kaytee soft granule bedding are all rabbit safe litters. You can get these at petstores, and sometimes walmart will have some of these. Stay away from cedar and pine shavings. They are marketed for rabbits but they have oils in them that are bad for rabbits. A lot of people on here will use the pine pellets just cause it can be cheaper if you get the 40 lb bags at a horse feed store, or even the pine pellets sold for burning in wood stoves, are ok as long as there is nothing added to them like accelerants. A bag is usually $4-7.

If he's been pooping the last several days, then I doubt there's any blockage problems anymore. Now it seems like his digestive bacteria is all messed up and needs to get back in balance. The benebac should help with that. It might not be too hard getting your bun to take it. My bun loves his, in fact it's his favorite treat

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

I dumped out the litter and put timothy hay in it for now but Id defintely like to put something in there thatll make it easy to monitor his poop and pee.

Im willing to bet he does have fur mixed with litter in him now that you all mention that.

Anything I can give him to help move the litter or just keep doing what Im doing?

He also seems to keep digging in the opposite corner of his cage away from his litter box which he never does. He never burrows but he's been doing it a lot the past couple days.
Actually i think he just went pee or poop in the opposite corner. Does that mean he doesnt like his litter box with hay in it?

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

JBun wrote:

Yesterday's News is a pelleted paper litter, pine pellets, aspen bedding, and Kaytee soft granule bedding are all rabbit safe litters. You can get these at petstores, and sometimes walmart will have some of these. Stay away from cedar and pine shavings. They are marketed for rabbits but they have oils in them that are bad for rabbits. A lot of people on here will use the pine pellets just cause it can be cheaper if you get the 40 lb bags at a horse feed store, or even the pine pellets sold for burning in wood stoves, are ok as long as there is nothing added to them like accelerants. A bag is usually $4-7.

If he's been pooping the last several days, then I doubt there's any blockage problems anymore. Now it seems like his digestive bacteria is all messed up and needs to get back in balance. The benebac should help with that. It might not be too hard getting your bun to take it. My bun loves his, in fact it's his favorite treat

Nope he took his benebac pretty easilly infact. So should I ONLY give him the benebac? Or can I give him his acidpholius for digestive stuff too?
Kind of confused on what to give him for digestive help and I trust this site more than I do the vet Im using now.

 

[JBun]

Just give him the benebac, that's all he'll need. Yeah, the hay in the litter box may be confusing him and that's why he peed outside of it. Try and get one of the other litters as soon as you can.

Just keep making sure he's eating and drinking, and helping him if he's not doing it on his own. And making sure he's still pooping. Are you still giving him the baytril?

If he doesn't start improving and eating on his own like normal in a few more days, you should probably take him in to the vet, just not the same vet There may be something else causing all these problems that you may not be able to just fix on your own.

 

[woahlookitsme]

If he is having any types of soft stools he needs to be getting fiber in him. Try some other hay if timothy isn't enticing enough like orchard maybe? Canned pumpkin can also be given to add substance to the stools.

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

He hasnt had a poop like that since those ones that I saw. Well atleast I havent seen it happen again.
Im really just wanting him to drink more water. Picked up some green leaf lettuce for him.

Heres a couple more pics of him

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

Oh also i did call the vet and asked her if there was anyway that it could be something else other than a hairball and she told me she was sure it was a hairball from the xrays.
If it WAS cat litter would she for sure know it was from the xray or does anyone know if it looks the same when coming up on a xray and she has it mistaken for a hairball.

Now this has me really worried that he has eaten some cause I want to say that from when i changed from the real fine sand like cat litter to this rocky kind is about when he started doing this. But I can't be sure.

Hes been using sand fine cat litter for well over a year now. But never this rocky stuff.

Gotta be a way to flush it out before it hurts him?

If he dies and its from litter I don't know what Ill do other than be depressed and blame myself forever.

 

[Hyatt101]

Those poops were cecotropes (sp?) It's gross, but rabbits eat them!

 

[JBun]

I don't think you would be able to tell what is causing a blockage from an xray. I think all you would know is that there is a blockage, unless of course, some solid object was swallowed and caused the blockage, then it could be obvious on the xray. But being able to say for sure that hair is causing the blockage just by the xray, it just doesn't seem like that's right. I could be wrong, but considering the other mistakes your vet made, I think your vet was just making an uneducated guess from inexperience with rabbits. I'm sure that the vet could see a blockage, but it could be many different reasons why it happened.

Since your rabbit is still pooping, anything ingested will eventually come out. So if he ate some of the litter, it'll come out, if it hasn't already. The clumping kind of cat litter is the kind that is really bad for rabbits and can cause a blockage, but if what you have been using isn't the clumping kind then even though it isn't good for rabbits, it's not as bad as the clumping litter. Non- clumping cat litter isn't good because it can cause respiratory problems with rabbits.

The thing with him that has me confused is that he's pooping but isn't eating or drinking like normal. Usually once they start pooping again after a blockage, they will usually start eating and drinking again, and get back to normal pretty quickly. The blockage causes the pain, which causes rabbits to stop eating. But as the blockage breaks up, the rabbit will start pooping again and eating because it is no longer in pain. So that's why I'm thinking there may be some other reason why your rabbit still won't eat and drink like normal. I quess just keep an eye on him for a few more days to see if things get back to normal again. That's good his poops are back to normal. I would guess the acidophilus probably had a dairy base and that caused the problem. Rabbits can't really handle dairy. If he'll eat the green leaf lettuce, that will help him get extra water, which he needs. If he's not used to lettuce then take it slow and only give a small amount the first couple days and make sure his poops don't get soft. After that, if his poops stay normal, I would give him as much as he wants to eat. If he'll eat a bunch, you won't have to syringe as much water to him. Are you still giving him Baytril?

Those pictures of him with your dog and cat are sooo cute!!! So are they all best buddies?

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

You know what I just realized I never gave him any Baytril, think I should give it to him? Isnt it for killing infections? Maybe if he has one in his stomach thatll do the trick I dunno?

Im going to call a vet about 20 miles away that I found on the net for being very good with rabbits.
Hope this is the last vet because things are getting costly but Ill spend whatever to save him.
Just worried maybe Im freaking out too much instead of just waiting. It has been a week though

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

The thing that weirds me out the most is he doesn't act like he's not feeling well. If I let him out he will run around and act like his normal self. If he goes outside he still jets across the yard and just doesn't act sick.
I just can't believe he isnt drinking more than an ounce a day.
How can I see for myself if he is dehydrated?

He probably gets some more hydration from the mix oxbow I give him and alil pedialyte, like 2cc worth. But he used to drink half a large bottle a day and eat tons of wet veggies

 

[Imbrium]

symptoms of dehydration in rabbits: http://www.helium.com/items/1641618-dehydration-in-an

 

[JBun]

Yeah, I'm glad you found a different vet. Hopefully they'll be really good If you are taking your bun into this new vet then you may just want to wait on the baytril. With your bun acting so normal except for the eating and drinking, it still makes me think that it might be his teeth or even possibly a bladder problem. Ask your new vet about these things, and make sure they check those back teeth really well, and also if there are any sores in his mouth. I know, it can all get very expensive, but trust me, it's a lot better than losing your bun, especially if you have a close bond with with your guy. It can be just heart wrenching to lose them.

You can check for dehydration by pinching the skin at the back of the neck. If it stays tented up and doesn't return to normal after a couple seconds, then your rabbit is probably dehydrated. If he starts acting sluggish or lethargic, then he's severely dehydrated and you would need to get him to the vet right away. But from your description he seems pretty active for a sick rabbit. That's why I'm really thinking teeth here. It would make him not want to eat or drink, but it wouldn't make him feel sick or in pain unless he was trying to eat. But the not eating from teeth bothering him is what could have made him sick and caused the GI stasis and the blockage in the first place. I could be wrong, but it's all I can think of that would match the symptoms that he's been having. If you take him in, it will be really interesting to see what this new vet says.

If you aren't going to the vet right away, you could try the baytril, but honestly if his poops are coming out normal, I don't see a need for it, and it could actually mess up the balance in his digestive system. Even though the eating and drinking isn't normal, as long as his poops are, if it were me, I wouldn't give the baytril.

Is he still not eating his hay at all? Is he eating anything on his own?

I'm really interested to know too, if after a few weeks of changing his litter, if you notice any changes in his sneezing. I'm just interested to see if maybe the litter may have contributed. Rabbits can be such tricky animals to raise. It can be hard to know what and what isn't good for them. I've had lots of rabbits over the years, so I've been able to learn a lot, mostly when things went wrong. But when I got my first pet rabbit, I didn't know anything. It certainly is always a learning experience with them.

 

[Ilovemyrabbit]

ray:

 

[Lifted07Duramax]

I have an appt at 330 today for him to be looked at by a vet who used to work at the local zoo which had those huge rabbits and the receptionist says this doctor knows rabbits very well

 

[JBun]

That's great! I really hope this new vet is able to help your bun get better. Good luck at the vets!