The broken bunny...need help :(

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beccz

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I'm wondering if anyone can help me here. :) I have a spayed, female bunny who is approximately 7 1/2.

It started back in July when I noticed she had a bit of blood in her pee. I made a vet appointment immediately for the next day and while I waited did some research. It was there that I read and first learned about uterine cancer...and, the next day, I mentioned this to my vet. However, she seemed unconcerned and did a urine test (not a culture though) to discover what she believed to be a UTI...and I received ChlorPalm. However, the blood did not stop and eventually I took her in for Xrays and such (found nothing abnormal)...got a ultrasound/spay anyway...and my vet discovered a HUGE tumor. On the inside of the tumor it was infected and this is where the urine test was showing an infection. Luckily it didn't spread, it was removed, and she did great for about 2 months. Her binkying returned...as well as a ton of energy!

Then...the other problems began.

She started dribbing pee (October 10th)...or so it seemed. Took her to the vet and she tried to get a urine sample, but my bun refused. She gave me another round of ChlorPalm in case it was a UTI. The dribbling did stop, but the antibiotic upset her tummy and I had to quit. The dribbling started back up again after a while (Oct28) and I made another vet appointment hoping to get another urine test...or culture...or something because I was also wondered if it could actually be diarrea instead. I brought pictures along, too...as gross as it is. The only thing my vet gave was fluids and suggested I feed more hay less pellets. Bunni had also been sneezing occasionally at this time, but since there was no discharge, the vet said it must be allergies and not to worry...but to keep an eye out for anything.

Aside from having to get some flea treatment (friend came over from a flea-infested household and told me AFTERWARDS), she seemed to improve a little and I decided to wait it out because it may be a tummy upset from the antibioitc. The dribbling stopped for a bit, but she wasn't as active as she'd been those two months after the spay. It turned into mushy stools (at random...no change in diet) which turned into less poops and finally no poops + stopping eating + gas + bloat and I took her into the emergency vet. He felt a lump and thought it was possibly cancer and took some xrays. The xrays showed a massive poop blockage (I cried happily afterward in the car for it not being another tumor), for which he prescribed lactulose. However, he also told me not to feed her at all for a whole 24hours. My knowledge of rabbits told me that you should never fast a bunny, so I tried my best to get her to eat just hay and no pellets...which she accepted after the first laxative dose.

I had a vet recheck at my regular vet the next day, and she said that since the lump was gone and she's eating to quit the lactulose. So I did. She also gave her some fluids. She did a regular checkup and all seemed well...except for the scratching had begun again...and no matter what I did, the occasional sneezing was still there. She checked her ears for mites but found nothing (she was mostly picking at her ears)...so she suggested I try Revolution one more time in case it's fleas again.

Four days ago, I saw a weird gross-like yellow goop slightly below her nose. I called the vet and she said she'd fill me a prescription for Orbax and I could pick it up...and she's been on it since. I haven't seen anything other than a bit of wetness under her nose since. Her occasional sneezes continue. Her scratching continues. I tried a humidifier/air purifier because my house is very dry and I wanted to see if it helped a possible allergy, but it did nothing.

Now brings us to the present. She started spotting again, but this time it's more browny and there's a lot more of it. There are still poops, but they're mushy and a bit mishapen.

I decided to be a detective. I noticed that she was eating quite a bit of her poop (more than just her special night poop things), her appetite decrease (especially the interest in hay), the random sneezing, scratching around back of ear, the random block of poop in her intestine...and it hit me. Dental problems in the molars? Eating poop to sustain herself because it's softer. Not feeling like chewing on hay. Sneezing because it's irritating her nose/ear. Teeth grinding because it hurts.

Since I wanted to get the dribbling looked at again anyway, I made a vet appointment for today at the other vet (my usual vet is out of town until next tues). She said that everything appeared to be really good (she had the xrays from last time) except for a few sharp, pokey back teeth (nothing too extreme, because she's not drooling, but should get filed down). She didn't have the proper things to do this, so I have to wait until my vet gets back to get her teeth worked on. However...she determined that the dribbling must be coming from her but...soooo diarrea. She asked that I get her tested at my regular vet for other diseases to rule them out. Because I was still giving her the Orbax, I wondered if I should quit (that could be causing the spotting this time) and she said to finish off the dosage (even though I don't think it's helping the sneezing part at all) because this type of dental problem does not usually cause sneezing.

Now I'm supposed to keep an eye on her and make sure she's eating/pooping until Tuesday. My problem is that I kind of feel like the vets aren't addressing the problem at all. I try looking online and it says "Get to a Vet!" but what happens if my vet does not really solve the problem?

Anyway..any ideas what could be causing these water-poo magical events? If it helps, before it happens, she usually gurgles (assuming gas). She still loudly grinds her teeth...but it's not always hunched anymore. Whenever I hear gurgles I give her a bit of the simethicone (sp?) gas stuff. I'd just really like an idea of where to start....because unless I recommend a test, the vet will continue to suck out my money with pointless re-exams. These pointless recheck exams are expensive and I fear that I wont be able to afford it when the time comes that she seriously needs it.
 
I don't have any advice for your bunny (sorry, I don't have any experience in this kind of situation)

But I strongly recommend looking for another vet if you feel that your vet isn't doing all they could be. Call around to different vets in the area and ask if any of them have rabbit doctors. I went through FOUR different vets until I found one I liked and who I felt was doing everything he could for my bunnies.

You never know - you might come across a vet who has seen a patient like yours before and knows exactly what to do.

Good luck!
 
beccz wrote:
Anyway..any ideas what could be causing these water-poo magical events? If it helps, before it happens, she usually gurgles (assuming gas). She still loudly grinds her teeth...but it's not always hunched anymore. Whenever I hear gurgles I give her a bit of the simethicone (sp?) gas stuff. I'd just really like an idea of where to start....because unless I recommend a test, the vet will continue to suck out my money with pointless re-exams. These pointless recheck exams are expensive and I fear that I wont be able to afford it when the time comes that she seriously needs it.

this part sounds way to similar to my bunny situation. They always want re-checks but many times you don't feel like the rechecks are getting you anywhere and are costing a fortune. I'd look possibly for a different vet if this one can't help things soon. I haven't dealt with this exact issue either-I'msorry! Hopefully someone else can give some better advice.

First off I'll pray for your bunny :pray:

Anyway, what does she eat? Maybe something of treats or veggies or fruis could be upsetting her tummy? When my holland lop Jellywas about 6 1/2 her tummy was suddenly really sensive to every little thing.
 
Thanks for the replies. :)

Nancy McClelland wrote:
Are you anywhere near a veterinary school. Try talking to someone there as they are more likely to have experts and might be able to give you a better diagnosis.

No, I'm not near a veterinary school. However, I found another rabbit vet (friend recommended him) and made an appointment for tomorrow!

Bunnylova4eva wrote:
Anyway, what does she eat?  Maybe something of treats or veggies or fruis could be upsetting her tummy?  When my holland lop Jellywas about 6 1/2 her tummy was suddenly really sensive to every little thing.

As for what she's eating, just hay and a bit of her pellets. I haven't given her veggies lately because it just seems to make the problem so much worse...fruits right now are out of the question :(

I decided to stop giving her the antibiotic my usual vet gave me for the sneezing. She was doing a lot better last night and I was excited (I had made all the bedding to timothy hay so she'd be more tempted to eat it) and I thought maybe the problem is solved. Gave her the antibiotic. Thismorning she had poopy bum and diarrea water sludge. :( I had to give her a little bum bath. I don't care what that vet said...first priority is healing her tummy! I am almost positive now it's the Orbax. I can fix her sneezes later (because they've only ever been occasionally)

Hopefully the new vet I'm seeing tomorrow morning can put us on the right track! I'll update when I find out where she's broken. :)
 
Yep, antibiotics sometimes have the trend of making the tummy worse. They usually do with my bunnies and they end up with runny stools.
 
The new vet was a huge help. He noticed that her teeth were overgrown and that she was having trouble eating. It sort of makes me mad...in every checkup they told me "her teeth look good". Obviously not! She's getting them filed down tomorrow morning. :)
 
She's doing great. The diarrea stopped once I stopped giving her the antibiotic. Her sneezing and scratching also stopped and her appetite returned once her tooth problem had been fixed. He explained to me that the two other vets I had been seeing weren't well versed in rabbits...one saw mostly birds and the other saw mostly reptiles...both rarely seeing rabbits (even though when I asked during the first appointment they both ensured me that they knew rabbits very well).

What he thinks happened was that while she had her tumor, she wasn't eating properly. This caused an overgrowth in one tooth and snowballed from there...as it progressively got worse. Her diarrea from before must've been from the disruption in processing food and from the constant off-on antibiotics that the other vet was throwing at me.

What it ended up being was two molar spurs and two very overgrown molars. How my first vet did not notice this is beyond me...especially since she said "her teeth look good." the second one said, two days before I saw the new vet, that they "looked a bit uneven but shouldn't be the problem." Obviously they were...as she's completely fine now and her appetite is 100% back! Super happy to have her back in health.
 
I read your post the other day and thought I replied but i mustn't have lol

I m so glad she is ok. Makes me mad when this happens and when a vet wont just tell you that they dont have a lot of experience with bunnies as they think they are just the same as all other animals.

Happy she is all good this makes me happy :)
 
What a relief your bun is feeling better! I had to switch vets because they just weren't getting my bun better. They have a great reputation and work with the local rabbit rescue so they sounded like a good vet. Turns out they tend toward out dated methods.

My new vet has a rabbit of her own, so she keeps up with the new research. My bun is feeling much better and I hope this will be the last of it after this round of medicines.

It can be super frustrating when you are spending a lot of money and doing everything possible but your vet isn't giving the right advice. So glad this has a happy ending!
 
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