Sick bunny! :( please help

[violet770]

I have a male Holland lop rabbit who is 5 years old. The last time he ate & drank was yesterday afternoon. He usually has a lot of energy, but he's been lethargic since last night. He won't accept treats either. I'm taking him to a vet tomorrow, but does anyone have an idea what could be going on?

 

[JBun]

You really need to get him into the vet today. By lethargic, do you mean that he isn't moving around as much, or is he very lethargic and laying down and isn't very responsive? Does his stomach seem bloated at all, or is there any loud gurgling coming from his stomach, any teeth grinding? If there is severe bloating or he is very lethargic and not alert, get to the vet immediately. He is most likely in GI stasis, where the digestive system slows down and a blockage is created, and they stop eating due to some sort of pain from gas, or another health problem. If you absolutely can't get into an emergency vet today, you have to get him eating and drinking. First, he's most likely cold. Check him and give warm packs or warm towels if he is. If he is responsive and alert, he needs meds, food, and water. If by chance you have metacam for your rabbit, then give him the proper dosage of that. Also giving simethicone(infant gas relief suspension) often helps. Give 1cc(20mg/ml) every hour for 3 hours, then once every 3-8 hours as needed. Syringe(no needle) slowly into the corner of his mouth, giving him time to swallow so he doesn't aspirate any. He also needs water. So you syringe that into his mouth slowly as well. Some electrolytes would also help if you have some unflavored pedialyte. And for food, if you happen to have oxbow critical care food mix, then make some of that up. You can also use plain 100% canned pumpkin(not the spiced pie filling), and syringe feed him some of that. If you don't have either of those, you can soak some of his pellets and try feeding that mush. You may have to blend it up to get it smooth enough to be able to syringe feed it. Syringe feed about 2-3cc/lb every 4 hours. Try dark leafy greens like green leaf lettuce, cilantro, or parsley. Sometimes a rabbit will eat those on it's own. But pain management and getting the GI moving and hydrated, is essential. Tummy massages and letting your bunny hop around, will also help.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f28/finding-vet-13366/
http://www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

 

[Imbrium]

I'm sure a lot of this is already covered in Jenny's post... but I'm lazy and I have a "form letter" response for GI stasis saved in a notepad file, so I'm just gonna copy/paste it and not bother editing out stuff that's already been said

bunnies can NOT go without eating - their digestive system will shut down and this can lead to death. you need to tackle this problem immediately - it's a medical emergency if a bunny goes 12+ hours without eating and/or pooping. if your vet is booked for today, explain that it's an emergency and ask if you could at least drop him off to be seen between appointments and then pick him up later in the day. if that's not an option, I recommend searching for another rabbit-savvy vet/emergency vet in your area.

you can buy a syringe at any grocery store. if you have critical care food (comes from vets), you can syringe feed that. if you don't, you can make a pellet slurry - take some pellets and add water or pedialyte; microwave. let sit for 5-10 mins so the pellets can "fluff", then mix together (breaking up the pellets as much as possible); add more liquid if needed to get it to a good pudding-like consistency for syringe feeding (using a food processor (before adding liquid to the pellets), a blender or a mortar and pestle (again, before adding liquid) will make it easier to break up the pellets). critical care will work with a syringe as-is but with the DIY slurry, you may find it necessary to cut the tip of the syringe off to make the opening larger.

you can also offer a little bit of canned pumpkin (PLAIN stuff, not the pie filling kind) and/or some fruit or squash flavored baby food... not a whole lot, as these foods are sugary - maybe 2 tsp or so. if he won't eat the pumpkin on his own, you'll need to water it down with water or pedialyte in order to easily syringe feed it. these things could also be mixed into the pellet slurry or critical care to make it tastier.

you should syringe water or pedialite if you're worried he might not be drinking enough and/or if you're feeding pellet slurry/critical care.

when you syringe feed a rabbit food or liquids, you want to aim for the gap between his front incisors and back molars and always squirt the food/liquid in sideways - never straight back - to make sure he won't accidentally inhale it. remember to give him time to chew/swallow. I find it easier (especially with liquids) to have the bunny wrapped in a towel, as things can get pretty messy.

here's a great video showing how to syringe feed - [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iGZVYVm5Bg[/ame]

you can also offer pain meds to make your bunny more comfortable - metacam/meloxicam if you have it (bunny painkillers); baby aspirin or low-dose aspirin if you don't. this website has dosing info for pain meds - http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Analgesics/safe_analgesics.htm

simethicone (any brand of over the counter baby gas medicine) can also be given. it may or may not help depending on the cause of the GI stasis, but it's *incredibly* safe for rabbits so it definitely can't hurt. you can give 1-2 cc every hour for 3h, then 1 cc every 3-8h as needed if it seems to be helping.

probiotics are also very helpful for tummy troubles (stuff like benebac/probios) - you can sometimes find them at pet stores or feed stores; failing that you can buy them online.

mind you, the above at-home remedies are NOT a replacement for taking the bunny to a rabbit-savvy vet to figure out the underlying cause of the GI stasis! if your bunny regains (and maintains) his normal appetite within half a day or so, you can skip the vet trip but if you continue having to force-feed him, a vet is a must.

here's a good listing of rabbit-savvy vets - http://rabbitsonline.net/view_forum.php?id=9

 

[FreezeNkody]

why do people post "sick bunny" Please just take him to the vet! you're just wasting precious time waiting on a response!

 

[Imbrium]

why do people post "sick bunny" Please just take him to the vet! you're just wasting precious time waiting on a response!

people ask for a variety of reasons... because they're unsure how serious something is, because they'd like to know what to expect when they go to the vet, because they're making sure there aren't any at-home remedies that are worth trying first, because having a sick bunny is scary and it's nice to have some moral support from fellow bunny owners...

as long as someone is willing to take their bunny to the vet if/when we say "the bunny needs more than the internet can give", then there's nothing wrong with posting/asking about the situation before they go.

 

[FreezeNkody]

I don't even play, i notice something wrong. to the vet i go

 

[Imbrium]

understandably... I'll rush to the vet over the littlest sniffle myself... my point is simply this:
~ chastising someone when their bunny is sick is adding more stress where it definitely isn't needed - carefully phrased constructive criticism is more effective.
~ getting on someone's case when they have a post count of "1" could very easily turn them off from ever wanting to visit RO again... meaning they'd miss out on all the information and resources we have to offer and we'd miss out on a chance to get to know (and help) a fellow bunny owner. first impressions are important!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Sometimes my bunnies just have an "off" day and then bounce right back. Hope all is well and the vet helps out.

 

[tonyshuman]

So, how's the bunny doing? I hope he got to a vet, as lethargy and not eating for >24 hours are emergency signs in a rabbit. Wanted also to mention that you don't want to force feed a bunny that has a low body temperature--warm them up with heating pads/rice socks first. Normal temp is 101-103F.

 

[napagirl]

I just want to say that I agree that it is totally ok to ask questions here- that should not be discouraged. I asked about Dimi last Sunday because she was lethargic, and I had no idea what could be wrong. JBun helped me out, and we took her to the emergency vet, but that vet who handles rabbits was ONE HOUR away, and it was almost midnight. My husband was there until 6am the next morning. Yes, I love my rabbit- obviously. But it wasn't clear to me at first what the issue could be- she was perfectly fine earlier in the day- and spending your entire night at ER vet an hour away is not trivial.

I personally welcome and appreciate the questions and answers. And we are very fortunate that we could afford the $600 to treat Dimi. Some good, loving pet owners don't have unlimited funds to run to vet willy nilly. JMO...

 

[Zeroshero]

I would also like to add that the advice and suggestions that I have received on RO has been more benifical to my bunny's health than received from the exotics specialists and emergency clinic veteranarians. I have learned that emergency clinics aren't even equipped or have staff trained to handle bunnies I called every emergency clinic in the valley. The vet tech asked me if my bunny had been vomiting, I should have left then! The vet had no clue how to treat him. The only good that came out of the visit was my bunny got fluids at my request. I am grateful for RO and its knowledgeable members that are willing to help solve our bunny troubles.

Edited to add that I DO however research, and have my bunny under veterinary care.