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Messy Bottoms

K

Kenno

Warren Scout
:wave:
A colleague at work has asked me to get some advice for her.

She has a female rabbit and she said she's got a lot of poop stuck to her bottom which has dried and gone hard. She wants to know how she can get the poop off her as she doesn't like to be picked up and she's wise to what my friend is going to try and do when she comes near her.

She wanted to sit her in some vegetable oil to soften the poo and then wash her bottom after but I didn't know whether that would be ok.

So if anyone's got any advice for her she'd really appreciate it.
 
Cornflower has been recommended before, although I've never used it myself.
We've bathed Squidgy in some warm water before, but it's so cold at the moment, I probably wouldn't recommend it.
 
Either use cornflower (which you just dust on nd rub in i think!) or wash!
Personally my bun who gets poorly with his tum - I hold him as you would a baby and i wash him in my sink with some warm water in and a bit of jhonsons baby bath which gets rid of the smell! she would need to make sure only the bum and legs of bun got wet tho and not full body and she wud need to keep bun warm and snug till bun was dry! i wrap phoebe in his big fluffy towel and give him cuddles then pop him in his box. I only choose to bath as i find this is easier for phoebe as a) hes used to be being bathed from bein about 5 weeks old b)he loves being picked up c) he gets so messy cornflower wudnt do the job
Id try the cornflower 1st as it extremley cold and if bun dosent like bein picked up, shell need to be strong hold bun long enough to bath him properly without him getting to stressed or hurtin himself
 
I would recommend wrapping the bunny firmly in a towel with her head and bum popping out and wipe round her bottom with a wet cloth. If she is an outside bunny she needs to make sure the rabbit is dry before going back outside or she will get very cold.

She also needs to take her to the vet and get her weighed and her teeth checked as she needs to find out why she has a messy bum. She might be better just being fed hay for a while with a small amount of green leafy veg if she is used to it.
I think most rabbits get messy bums from bad diets and being overweight. Usually it is because they are being fed too much muesli type food.
 
Agree that a vet check is needed - most messy bums are either diet related (usually not enough hay or too much commercial mix), teeth problems or bunny overweight. x
 
I agree she needs to go to the vet and have her rabbit weighed. She can then ask how much food she needs to have a day according to her bunnies size, the gradually cut down how much she has accordingly.

Rowan used to be awful for getting a messy back end when she was over weight but as soon as she lost it she's been clean ever since.

At Rowans worst I ended up taking her to the vet for them to clean her off as she got so stressed with me turning her on her back trying to wash her. If she doesn't like being held that may be the best option.

Also make sure she checks her bunnies bum for fly eggs at least once a day. Although it's unlikly at this time of year it is possible for rabbits to get flystrike at any time and that would be the main concern, even if she's a house rabbit.
 
Kenno said:
Her rabbit is abit overweight I think.

Thanks so much for the help, I'll let her know. :D
Click to expand...

Our Mini Lop use to get messy bum alot and O/H use to have to hold her down while I carefully cut away the mess! We sorted her diet out to see if anything specific causing messy bum and she now basically does not get messy bum! Anyway since she got ill before xmas with GI Stasis she has lost weight and if she does get a tiny bit of poo stuck to her bottom she can now cut the mess out herself!
 
cornflour is brilliant - I'd never use water again - it works like magic and you won't believe it till you try it :)
 
Well thank you so much for all the advice.

She's going to give it all a go and see what happens. Not sure if she's gonna take her to the vets but I've told her she really should do. She's embarassed that bunny's overweight and got a messy bum. She thinks the vet will think she's not looking after her properly. :roll:

I'll get her to go though, they can give her some advice on diet changes and perhaps help with the messy bum.
 
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