Tummy Problems?

laureenj · Aug 17, 2010

Hi! My bun, a Dutch of about 6 lbs and 3 yrs. of age, has been having intermittent diarrhea for the last few weeks. Its odd as he is typically very healthy. He eats and drinks very well. I will notice that he has "poop" accumlating near his tail and sometimes some loose poop in his cage, but I also see lots of regular feces there as well. Could it be that he is just not cleaning his rear end from his daily loose poop? His behavior is otherwise normal! ALso, there has been no change in diet to bring on intestinal problems. A friend gave me some probiotics and extra Timothy hay for him. I haven't adminstered it yet. Thanks for any help you can give me! Laurie and Bun

Pipp · Aug 17, 2010

Its possible that whatever he's being fed was suitable when he was younger but as he's aging, it's too high in protein. What kind of hay and pellets does he get now, and how much?

What is his weight like in terms of body mass? Is he overweight? Is he apple shaped as opposed to pear-shaped, and/or does he have extra folds of skin on his body?

Parasites are another possibility, especially if it seems to go in cycles. A fecal test and a dewormer like Ivermectin or Panacur might also solve the problem.

sas :clover:

laureenj · Aug 17, 2010

Thanks for the reply! He eats a mixture of pellets with vitamins, for veggies he prefers the parsley that I grow or purchase, romaine lettuce, basil, apples and grapes, and a fruit mix from the pet store (his absolute favorite...goes nuts when I open the bag, but it contains raisins and I worry that it might contribute to the loose bowel movements.

He is a little bit pear shaped, no large folds under chin or anywhere else. Should I try the probiotics for a couple of days and restrict the pellets giving more hay? THanks so much!

tonyshuman · Aug 18, 2010

Probiotics are always good, in my book.

I am curious as to what type of poop it is--are they the cecal poops that he's suppose to eat as they come out of the bum? Cecal poops normally look like blackberries and smell awful. They're produced by an extra intestine that bunnies have where bacteria break down undigestible fiber into something the bunnies eat again and can get nutrition from. These poos can be smushed into the fur if the bunny can't or won't eat them, but they still kinda look like a much of small balls mooshed together. Mushy fecal poops look more like cat poop.

Overweight bunnies can't eat their cecals (because they can't reach their bums), and bunnies with too much protein in their diets won't eat them because they get so full on protein that they're not interested in eating the cecals. What is the first ingredient in his pellet? It should be timothy hay at his age, not alfalfa hay. Do you limit the amount of pellets you give? I have a ~5yr old dutch that I give 1 tablespoon of timothy pellets a day, and he's pretty healthy (maybe a tiny bit plump). That's a good amount for a bunny his age. You don't want to decrease too drastically though.

This is a good document to help you determine if he's overweight--it can be really hard to tell for bunnies. At the shelter and even at home my first clue that a bunny is too heavy is if they have poo mashed "down there"--that's a sign to me that they can't reach over their bellies to clean. The document was written by a forum Sr. Mod who is also a rabbit expert.

http://nockrabbits.com/RabbitWeight.pdf

laureenj · Aug 22, 2010

Thank you for responding! Everything you mentioned sounds just about right. I think that they are the cecal poo as it definitely smells horrible, can be together in a "bunch" of not so round smushed together poo. Through out the day, he has normal dry round droppings and only occasionally will he have the other.

I think you are right and that he can't quite get back there to reach the cecal poo. Therefore, it becomes mashed into his hair (that I try to keep trimmed very short for that reason).

I gave him the probiotic last night for the first time and he certainly wasn't happy about it. He did get it down though. I will give it again tonight. I have cut way back on the pellets and am giving him timothy hay and fresh veggies/fruit.

Well, thank you again and I will post in a couple of days with his progress hopefully!

~Laurie