Sunny has diahrrea and is making soft/weird grunting noises??

[Maureen Las]

Not eating and GI stasis often are the SYMPTOMS of another issue. For ex. a human with a gallbladder attack is not going to be eating because he will be in pain. If your rabbit has gritty crystals in his urine it may be very painful for him thus causing him to lose his appetite. Sounds like this issue is not resolved ...

 

[TaylorKat]

I called the vet and he said this was normal. He is a rabbit vet and he is supposedly pretty good. Even after the pain meds, sunny still isn't eating I literally don't know what to do.

 

[JBun]

Did the vet give you critical care food mix so that you will be able to syringe feed him, and is it metacam that the vet sent home with you? I strongly suggest trying the simethicone. Whenever my rabbits have gas and have stopped eating, I give metacam and simethicone, and usually within a few hours they start eating again.

Is your rabbit still pooping, and are the poops still soft?

 

[TaylorKat]

No he did not. As soon as he got the pain medicine yesterday, which is Metacam, he started eating. It is really hard for me to give him his medicine with the syringe because he jerks away and it will not take all of it. His poops are a little soft but he is still grinding his teeth very loudly

 

[TaylorKat]

Would it be okay to give him another dose of Metacam? Or should I just wait for my dad to bring me the infant gas medicine?

 

[JBun]

Metacam is given once every 24 hours, so if it's been about that long since the last dose, then you're ok to give the next one. For syringing meds/food, you can burrito wrap your rabbit snuggly in a towel, you may also have to hold the back of his head/neck firmly, so he can't pull away, but still you have to do it gently so you aren't squeezing, then syringe into the side of his mouth. If it's been more than 12 hours since your rabbit last ate or drank anything, you are also going to need to syringe him food and water. If his body temp is cold, you need to warm him up first with a warm pack or warm towels, before feeding him. If you can't get any critical care from the vet right now, you can use plain canned pumpkin(no added spices) or if you can't get that you can soak pellets, blend them in the blender so it will be smooth enough to syringe feed, but only do that if you absolutely can't get the pumpkin. But try the simethicone first, and after a couple doses an hour apart, it hopefully will start helping and he'll start eating on his own. If he doesn't start eating on his own an hour after the second simethicone dose , then you are going to have to do the syringe feeding, and syringing water if he isn't drinking. Just make sure to syringe slowly and give him time to swallow, or he can breath it into his lungs, which is bad. Then tomorrow get some critcal care from your vet. Also, keep grass hay in front of him. That is going to be the best thing for him to be eating right now. Some of those veggies that the vet suggested can cause gas with some rabbits, and may have made it worse for him.

 

[TaylorKat]

Thank you! I've been massaging his tummy as well. Should I give him the gas relief before I try the pumpkin?

 

[JBun]

Yeah, unless it's been close to 24 hours since he last ate. Then he really needs food. If it's only been 12 or less hours since he last ate(like if he was eating this morning), then you can wait on the pumpkin to see if the simethicone is going to work and get him eating again. So give 1cc then an hour later give another dose, then see if he is eating an hour after the second dose. If he isn't then go ahead and feed him 2-3cc per lb of body weight, every 4 hours. You also need to be syringing water if he isn't drinking, and you especially need to do it when you are giving the metacam.

 

[TaylorKat]

I gave his first dose about 20 mins ago and he's just sitting in my lap. I've tried lifting up his back end but I don't know how to tell if that helped. I'm going to wait and give him a second dose and then lock him in his cage (usually his cage is open 24/7). I bought him some fresh Timothy hay and I'm going to put a little pumpkin in his cage as well. Do I need to mix it with water? Thank you so much for helping me

 

[TaylorKat]

Also is it safe to mix all of these drugs?

 

[JBun]

Simethicone is just an anti gas medicine, and is pretty safe. The pumpkin you will need to syringe feed, the same way you give the meds. It's just if he won't eat on his own. Then you have to force feed him by syringing it slowly into his mouth, giving him time to chew and swallow. He has to have food to keep his digestive system moving, and water so he doesn't get dehydrated. If he won't eat on his own, then you have to help him by syringing it into his mouth. Make sure it is the plain pumpkin and not the pie filling with spices in it. It should say only pumpkin in the ingredient list. You don't have to dilute it with water unless it is a little too thick for syringe feeding. If you want, you can mix the pumpkin with the water you would be syringing him, but then you need to feed him a little bit extra, because of the added water.

Does his stomach seem severely bloated at all, like it's balloning out, or does it just look mostly normal?

 

[TaylorKat]

His stomach looks mostly normal. I gave him the gas relief and the motility med, and I will give him the pain medicine in about an hour. He started drinking some water and I'm trying to get him to eat a little bit!

 

[JBun]

That's good that he's drinking. If he drinks from a bottle, you should also offer him a water dish. Rabbits that are sick will often drink better from a water dish than out of a bottle. If it's been an hour since the second dose of simethicone, you can go ahead and give the third dose. After the third dose, you give it once every 3-8 hours if he still isn't feeling well. I hope the simethicone helps. Once you give the metacam, that should help too.

 

[TaylorKat]

I just gave the Metacam, no third dose of the gas relief because I already put him to bed. After the Metacam he took a few nibbles of kale and ate a couple pieces of hay and started acting like his normal self (trying to go out the door with me). Hopefully he does better tonight, I left a TON of hay in his cage along with a piece of kale, a few clover leaves, and some pumpkin.

 

[JBun]

I'm glad he's eating something, that's really good. I would suggest not feeding kale or clover to him. Both of those have the potential to cause gas problems. And since he is already having difficulty with that, it wouldn't be good to chance making it worse. If you feel that you need to feed some leafy greens, I would suggest giving something that is less likely to upset his digestion, like cilantro or parsley.

 

[TaylorKat]

I gave him all 3 medicines this morning and about 30 mins after he ate a whole spinach leaf, a little bit of Kale, and drank some water. When I get out of class I am going to buy him some parsley and cilantro!

 

[JBun]

Yay! I bet it's a relief to see him eating again. Hopefully he'll eat some hay while you are gone. You'll want to keep an eye on his urine, just to make sure he doesn't keep having gritty stuff in it. And also make sure to only give the metacam once every 24 hours, unless your vet said to give it twice a day.

 

[TaylorKat]

Oh it is, even if its just a little! What can I do to make him eat hay more, because I went and bought some fresh hay from Tractor Supply and he will only nibble a little bit of it. I definitely will, and yes my vet said twice a day!

 

[JBun]

He should gradually start eating the hay on his own, as he starts feeling better. When my rabbit was sick and stopped eating, the first foods he would eat on his own, were cilantro and parsley. As he started feeling better, he started to eat some hay. So as long as your rabbits stomach isn't feeling as bad, he will continue to improve.

 

[TaylorKat]

I sure hope he starts eating more! I gave him another dose of the simethicone, how much longer should I give it to him?

I also have not noticed really any poop or pee today.