Why is my rabbit drooling?

[Flashy]

We had a bun with his back molars growing out of control.

He wanted to eat, and they didn't seem to hurt him, but whenever he did eat, the food fell out of his mouth, so he stopped trying. We gave him bread as that had been the only thing he could eat last time it happened (6 years previous) and were very grateful that his op was the next day.

Maybe your bunny is not in pain, but just struggling to eat. So maybeis chewing as a normal rabbit would, because chewing may not require his back teeth, just his front ones, which may be ok.

 

[stephiemarie78]

Thats a very good point.

 

[Pipp]

Yup, my bunny would pick up her food and drop it. She could eat certain things but not others -- in her case, she could eat her soft pellets but no veggies or hay (not that she ate any, anyway). Eventually she stopped eating everything excepther daily oat treat -- which is only three or so flakes. (She's totally wired to oats).

I wouldn't want to give Snoopy bread, though. I think the bunnies in the UK are used tostore food and grass with higher carbs,so it works in an emergency, but that's not the case here. A sudden influx could causea gut imbalance and add to his problems, especially if his diet is already compromised by not being able to eat certain things he's used to.

Have you tried the pumpkin yet?



sas:expressionless

 

[stephiemarie78]

I sent my boyfriend to the store to get hard veggies and pumpkin he forgot the pumpkin so he's went back. Now snoopy at the broccoli and cauliflower he hasn't ate any pellets yet ,i did soak some in water and he ate a little of it. I'm totaly frustrated at this point. I start my new job tommorow. Theres noway i can ask for anytime off. Thats why i wanted to take care of this friday. I'm calling them in the morning and going to figure out what to do now.

 

[Pipp]

Well, most vets here when they're doingsurgery will want the bunny dropped off at 8 AM and not picked up until 5 PM, so that part might work out.

sas

 

[stephiemarie78]

well that would work lets hope. i've not had a good week losing cooter and now problems with snoopy. So thanks for reading my ramblings, im just a little stressed.

 

[stephiemarie78]

Im going to watch him for a few more days. All food and water was gone this morning and lots of poops. Thats and he's acting more like himself. The dog we are sitting is going home today,he hardly has left the cardboard house since after the vet visit. This morning he's all over the place, and last night he wouldn't even eat treats he is right now. So tommorow morning if all the food/water is gone then things might be improving. I'll keep him on the hard veggie diet and mixture of pellets and different hays.

 

[Haley]

I'll be keeping Snoopy in my thoughts and prayers. If hes eating, thats a great sign. Sometimes molar spurs can wear down on their own if the bun eats more hay and hard veggies.Hopefully thats the case here.

 

[stephiemarie78]

Thanks =) i did wet down some pellets and put some non wet ones in and both bowls were empty and i know it wasn't chloe lol plus he was really starting to worry me cuz he wasn't pooping much but this morning there was a normal amount in the cage and litter boxes. His are about twice the size of Chloe's so we'll see in the morning! im hopeing for the best

 

[Flashy]

His food bowls, etc, might be empty, but he could be chewing and it falling out, the same with any fresh goods, so also keep an eye on whether or not he is losing weight. Losing weight was the first sign with our bun the first time round, so it is very key.

 

[stephiemarie78]

well if the food was falling out it would be on the bottom of the cage and it was clean. he can still chew i saw him last night eating broccoli like nothing.

 

[stephiemarie78]

ARG they wanna sedate and do an oral exam!!!! what should i do.

 

[Haley]

You said he checked his teethlasttime, did he usean otoscope to look at the molars? My vet dentist can look at Maxs molars that way without sedating.

Did they quote you on how much it would cost? Its a tough call because you dont want to pay forexpensive procedures if hes still eating properly, but then it might be worth it to catch something early before any real problems start. They can go downhill so fast.

But ishe still drooling pretty bad? If so Ithink I would have them do it to be sure.

 

[Pipp]

Just a visual exam? If so, I'd phone around and see if there's a reasonably-priced vet better equipped.

If they're going tosedate him, better to do an x-ray than a visual.

Is hestill drooling? And Flashy's right, weight loss is a great indicator.

Is it easy toput a divider between them,or side-by-side cages for a day or two? That willgive you a better idea of how much of what he's eating.



sas

 

[stephiemarie78]

I hate to do that but yes I can sperate them. At this point Im just wetting down his pellets and i have seen him eat them. He tried to eat hay but didn't. I can tell its painfull for him he doesn't make noises he just doesn't eat like he used to. He is not drooling a lot. They did not use anything to look at his teeth it was just visual. I did call and every vet in my area said they would have to sedate him to exam his molars. I'm so frustrated. Its going to cost me $65.00 just to knock him out and check them. Then what? are they going to do something if they see it or want to wait. I just feel like crying.

 

[Pipp]

$65 including the vet visit? or in addition to?

I think my vet will do the exam andif needed, immediately do the filingunder the same sedation and exam fee. Not sure how tight your finances are, but I'd be inclined to book sedation,anx-ray and the procedure in one swoop.Head x-rays can pick up all sorts of hidden problems.

And you can drophim off in the morning and pickhim up after work.

I'd be interested to know what they use for sedating him, too.I picked my vet because he used the most up-to-date meds in the vet journals --Domitor/Medetomidine.They're only knocked out for a very short period of time. I had called three vets, the second one used aa Ketamine/Zylazine mix (which I think is good,too, similar duration), the third one said they didn't expect to use sedation for the exam, they have a special scope. (I didn't trust avisual at that point).

Oddly enough, whenmy bunny has spurs coming in, she'll eat grated carrot and broccoli (sometimes ungrated), but no other veggies. She still eats her soft pellets, but she won't eat them wet.

Whathappened with the pumpkin?



sas

 

[stephiemarie78]

Well i've tried everything to get him to eat some i end up wearing more then i get him to eat. I've tried in a bowl, and surging. Suggestions?

Oh and 45$ to sudate 20$ for the rexam. she didn't go into any other prices said they would have to wait to find out the problem!

 

[Pipp]

With Pipp, I have to dry it off in a paper towel and warm it up. Fussy diva.

None of mine seem to eat it rightaway, only after it'sbeen in the bowl for awhile, so maybe warmer and drier is the ticket.

You may try mixing it with something you know he likes, like apple sauce.

If he's drooling, and had been making a chewing motion, I'd probably ask for sedation, an oral exam and if that doesn't show spurs, an x-ray, andfiling the spurs if/when they confirm them. That's the most thorough and cost effective.

Those are all the steps you'll have to take even if they don't spot anything. You know there's definitely something wrong, don't try to piece-meal the treatment, you'll just keep paying for duplicated services.



sas

 

[stephiemarie78]

I don't care how much it cost, I just want snoopy to get better! They closed early today I'm going to see if i can get him in friday or saturday. I don't wanna prolong this so im hoping when they find out whats wrong they'll be able to take care of it right then.

 

[slavetoabunny]

Sparky had molar spurs a few years ago (same symptoms - drooling, not eating as much). Thevet sedated her to look at her molars since he was unable to see anything from a visual exam. He filed down her molars while she was sedated. The whole thing cost me $67.