Sick Rabbit

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

I have a 7 week old rabbit, and he's currently sick. He's still eating (especially timothy hay) and his pellets, and he's drinking water, but he's not moving around the cage. I had to position everything around him. He smells like diarrhea. I cleaned him off a little yesterday, but he did it again today. I don't know what to do. To be honest, the last rabbit I had had gotten sick and I took him to the vet, but I think the medicine the vet gave me just caused him to die quicker. So, I'm apprehensive about seeing the vet. Also, its a weekend...

Please, somebody... what should I do? Any home remedies? I really don't want to lose this bunny...

pennick · Oct 23, 2005

Post this question on guinealynx, they are knowledgeable on medical questions.

If you don't have faith in your vet then you better find another one, hopefully an exotic vet. Your rabbit should be seen by an exotic vet.

VoodooJoint · Oct 23, 2005

What kind of veggies are you feeding him? If he's getting veggies that cause loose stools that could be the problem.

Honestly though it could be several things.

Is he still pooping? - you weren't clear if he just smells like diarrhea or has diarrhea.

Make certain he has unlimited hay available. At only 7 weeks of age he should be getting alfalfa not timothy.

You really should take him to a good exotic vet as soon as possible. Rabbits can go downhill so quickly.

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

voodoojoint said:
What kind of veggies are you feeding him? If he's getting veggies that cause loose stools that could be the problem.

Honestly though it could be several things.

Is he still pooping? - you weren't clear if he just smells like diarrhea or has diarrhea.

Make certain he has unlimited hay available. At only 7 weeks of age he should be getting alfalfa not timothy.

You really should take him to a good exotic vet as soon as possible. Rabbits can go downhill so quickly.

He has alfalfa and timothy. I originally had him on only alfalfa, but when he got sick, I gave him some timothy since timothy is supposed to help the digestive process. He has diarrhea smudged on his body aroound his tail, though its hard to tell since he's a dark brown bunny. Also, I'm not feeding him veggies at all at this point since he's just 7 weeks old.

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

pennick said:
Post this question on guinealynx, they are knowledgeable on medical questions.

If you don't have faith in your vet then you better find another one, hopefully an exotic vet. Your rabbit should be seen by an exotic vet.

what is guinealynx? Is that a different website?

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

On second thought:

His "diarrhea" as I've been calling it isn't watery. It's actually more like the fecal pellets that they're supposed to eat themselves. Maybe he hurt himself somehow (dunno how he would have, though) and is having a hard time bending over to eat them? It smells really, bad, so my initial reaction was to presume it was diarrhea.

VoodooJoint · Oct 23, 2005

To help him get through this until you can get him to a vet I recemmend cutting way back or cutting down o the pellets. May absolutely certain he has plenty of fresh hay. He needs to keep eating to keep his digestive track moving. Also monitor carefully his water intake to make sure he is staying hydrated.

There is a chance he may need an antibiotic to cure whatever is causing this so getting him to a vet is crucial.

If you haven't already, read this site https://rabbit.org/

naturestee · Oct 23, 2005

It sounds like he really needs to go to a vet. Maybe these sites will help you find a better vet if you don't think you can trust yours.
(broken link removed)
(broken link removed)

You can also call a local shelter that has rabbits and ask who they use. If you still can't find anyone better, then take him to the vet you used before. He may still be able to help.

Is he moving at all? When was he last able to move? Does he flinch or respond as if he's in pain if you touch him? Is he grinding his teeth? That's a sure sign of strong pain. Was he ever dropped, or did he kick while being picked up?

Since he is not moving he is unable to clean himself which is where the poopy bottom problems are coming from. Make sure you keep him clean and dry.

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

naturestee said:
It sounds like he really needs to go to a vet. Maybe these sites will help you find a better vet if you don't think you can trust yours.
(broken link removed)
(broken link removed)

You can also call a local shelter that has rabbits and ask who they use. If you still can't find anyone better, then take him to the vet you used before. He may still be able to help.

Is he moving at all? When was he last able to move? Does he flinch or respond as if he's in pain if you touch him? Is he grinding his teeth? That's a sure sign of strong pain. Was he ever dropped, or did he kick while being picked up?

Since he is not moving he is unable to clean himself which is where the poopy bottom problems are coming from. Make sure you keep him clean and dry.

He is now moving a little bit. He seems pretty "alert". When I open the cage he tries to come up to me and his eyes are pretty normal looking, but its clear he's still not fully well. He's not grinding his teeth other than normal hay eating and "purring" when I pet him on the nose. Well, I will try and take him to a good vet tomorrow, unless he makes a miraculous recovery tonight...

naturestee · Oct 23, 2005

Well, that at least sounds a little better. I was worried he may have had a spinal injury (unfortunately fairly common). But then he would be dragging his back legs when he did move- you'd notice it.

Does he have any normal poops? Or are they all mushy? Cecotropes do smell awful. I can really tell when one of my rabbits decides not to eat one. Eww! Out of curiosity, what pellets are you feeding him?

I just looked back at your post about your last rabbit. Yeah, don't go back to that guy unless you absolutely have to.

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

naturestee said:
Well, that at least sounds a little better. I was worried he may have had a spinal injury (unfortunately fairly common). But then he would be dragging his back legs when he did move- you'd notice it.

Does he have any normal poops? Or are they all mushy? Cecotropes do smell awful. I can really tell when one of my rabbits decides not to eat one. Eww! Out of curiosity, what pellets are you feeding him?

I just looked back at your post about your last rabbit. Yeah, don't go back to that guy unless you absolutely have to.

Well, he WAS dragging his back legs, especially last night. Today he seemed to be moving about more normally.

I actually cannot tell if he's been pooping normally or not.

His personality seems more normal today, so he does seem to be recovering. If he keeps getting better, do you think I should still take him to the vet?

https://imageshack.us

Cavy Tamer · Oct 23, 2005

naturestee said:
Well, that at least sounds a little better. I was worried he may have had a spinal injury (unfortunately fairly common). But then he would be dragging his back legs when he did move- you'd notice it.

Does he have any normal poops? Or are they all mushy? Cecotropes do smell awful. I can really tell when one of my rabbits decides not to eat one. Eww! Out of curiosity, what pellets are you feeding him?

I just looked back at your post about your last rabbit. Yeah, don't go back to that guy unless you absolutely have to.

Oh, also, he's eating the Oxbow Baby Bunny Pellets and a Combination of Oxbow alfalfa hay and (since he's been sick) Kaytee timothy hay.

naturestee · Oct 23, 2005

I would still take him in. If he did have, say, a cracked vertebrae, he would do better with steroid treatments. That doesn't mean that is the problem, as I am not an expert.

And the pellets sound good. I just wanted to check because some types can actually cause intestinal issues (like anything from Walmart).

naturestee · Oct 25, 2005

Hows the little guy doing? I hope he's feeling better!

Cavy Tamer · Oct 26, 2005

naturestee said:
Hows the little guy doing? I hope he's feeling better!

Thanks everyone for all your help! I took him to an exotic vet on Monday, and the vet thought he had a back injury, possibly spinal trauma. She gave him a steroid shot and I have to give him an anti-inflamatory medicine for 5 days. He can't be let out of his cage for 2 weeks. I have to go for an appointment in a week for the vet to see how he's doing.

He does seem to be getting better and more like himself. So at very worst, I think he'll just have a slight limp, and at very best, he'll be totally normal.

naturestee · Oct 26, 2005

I hope he makes a full recovery!

If you need advice on caring for him, I think there is a Yahoo group for special needs rabbits. This list of articles may help you, too. (broken link removed)

Keep an eye out for urine scald and fur mats or feces on his bottom- these are common problems in rabbits that are unable to move normally (disabled, arthritic, obese, etc.)

Best of luck to both of you!

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Sick Rabbit

Cavy Tamer

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VoodooJoint

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