PLEASE HELP: 1.5 yr old bunny lethargic and has diarrhea

[Pet_Bunny]

Hay is the best. What kind of hay do you have? If he isn't eating one type, he might go for a different type (I use Alfalfa hayfor emergencies). Will he eat hay if you hold some in front of his face?

Be careful with the pumpkin too. Too much can cause poopy butts.

Oats will help dry up the poops.

 

[tonyshuman]

In this case, I wouldn't use oats. The high carb content can make diarrhea like this worse--it causes the bad bacteria in the cecum to overgrow. I don't know why it seems sometimes that oats can help with mushy poos; it doesn't make a lot of medical sense. It may help with mushy poos in other situations, but I would never use it for diarrhea.

If he's eating hay and pumpkin he should be fine for a few days. Any kind of hay is good right now. I would wait for the poos to be at least normal shape and size before adding back pellets.

 

[Pipp]

A few oats are a good idea, but just a few. If he's not eating the hay, he needs the nutrition and fiber. His poops are formed and he's drinking so a few flakes of oats and a very few pellets should be good. Just watch his output.

Whenever this type of thing happens, you have to re-introduce the food (esp. the veggies) carefully, one at a time, to see if anything causes a problem.

We don't at this point know why he's having the cecal dysbiosis, keep in mind that it's a symptom, not a cause. Its usually a diet-induced gut imbalance (from a veggie sensitivity, too many carbs or something like that), but not always. Other things can send it out of whack as well.


sas :clover:

 

[sweetrose]

Well I think I know the source, about 2 days before he got sick I gave each of the e-lops a little piece of a leaf of collard green ( my mini rex s love it) the breeder had never given them greens so i only gave a very little each my other 2 Dewey and Groucho were fine afterwards, but that is the thing that makes most since does that sound about right? but this serious of a reaction is scary

 

[ra7751]

I would stick with hay and a little pumpkin. I do not feed oats to rabbits. When you get a GI issue, the idea is to stabilize the ship. That means doing things the way it should be done....naturally. Hay is a natural food and is what will give you a "ready gut". But the primary thing it hydration. You can't get a good gut without hydration. Many people don't realize just how quickly domestic animals can get seriously dehydrated. Most domestic rabbits are at least somewhat dehydrated due to their artificial environment. An animal will die from dehydration much faster than from starvation. Food can't be digested in a dehydrated gut....or in an animal with a low body temp. Our rule in rescue is hydration before nutrition.

And this situation is another opportunity for me to mention a product called BioSponge. It is a horse product that is used for founder....and that GI condition in a horse is almost identical to a rabbit in a GI event. This product will bind and filter nearly all the enterotoxins caused by specific strains of Clostridium. And in a lucky break for rabbits, it is effective against the specific strains of Clostridium found in a compromised gut of a rabbit. We have used it in both rabbits and squirrels. We consider it a "miracle drug".

Randy

 

[Pipp]

Please note that my posts say, 'if he's not eating the hay'.

This is the school of thought that something is better than nothing. I don't think a little pumpkin alone is enough now that it's been nearly three days (and considering he doesn't have the diarrhea anymore, correct?)

If he's nibbling on hay, no problem.

How much pumpkin is he eating? It could be that he's eating enough to lose his appetite for hay. It's just something you'll have to gage. As Randy says, just take it slow and steady.

How is his output and demeanor now?

I've had collards and even cilantro cause upsets, and sometimes too much broccoli or cabbage, but it's most often gas with no poopy butt and its gone in 24 hours or less. But all bunnies are different.


sas :expressionless

 

[naterab]

Hey,

I had a similar prblem, tried a bunch of things and even bought a rabbit care guide only to find out the best thing to do was go see my vet!

good luck