Tips for next time?

How to get medicine into a bunny that's not eating/drinking and who struggles violently against syringing, to the extent that it might be more stressful to continue...

Just had a worrying couple of days/nights with Muppet, who stopped eating sometime during the day on Wednesday and was clearly 'not himself'. I discovered this at 7pm, observed him for awhile to be certain and then off to the emergency vets at 8.30pm. They gave him an opiate-based painkiller and suggested 'wait n see' [but to come back if obviously worse, of course]. I'm not persuaded this was the best course but I'm a novice at this and I guess they thought it's only been a couple of hours (though I'm convinced it was probably mid afternoon ish). In fairness he perked up enough at 3.30am to have some water, nibble a strand of hay and notice he was in my bedroom rather than downstairs, but still clearly not right.

Went to my usual vet in the morning and was given Science Recovery to syringe into him along with Promax (a probiotic gut stimulant in the form of a paste in its own syringe). So I'm a novice and probably cack-handed, but syringe feeding just got worse and worse. He more or less submitted initially (he doesnt like being held anyway) but struggled more as time went on, to the point where I began to think that he'd hurt himself or have a heart attack and the stress couldnt be good for an ill bunny!

Luckily he's started to eat and poo - it's slow but he's getting there - and is more himself. If he hadnt, I think I'dve had to go back to the vets and say, "You do it!" Now he's eating a bit, mixing the Promax into a small piece of banana seems to be working out, but when he wasnt eating at all that wasnt an option.

Any tips for next time? (I'd rather there wasnt one but best to be prepared...)

pippette!

We had this problem - and in one case where the rabbit was very ill and had to be fed for a couple fo weeks, we think in the end it contributed to pneumonia - via her getting some liquid food in her lungs whilst struggling and breathing.

So last time we had to do it we asked the vet if there was anything other than a syringe - and they gave us some plastic pippettes with long nozzles that you squeeze the bulbous bit at the top and they suck up the liquid feed (as long as it is quite liquidy) and then just drip it in t the rabbit much more gently and with no danger of a sudden 'push' on a syrnge as bunny struggles..

These have been brilliant!!!

They don't tend to use them at vets as they only hold a really small amount of feed so it would take the vet nurses ages to do all the animals like it - but if you are at hoe with a single bunny then time is not vital and non-stress is!!!

Non-stress is definitely vital - for me as well as him!

Thanks, sounds easier for the food, will bear that in mind. I think the promax paste is far too paste-y though.

I had to do this with Zinniea (on the chair in my sig) a couple of nights ago, and at Christmas - and she's more or less feral - I don't handle the 4 girls at all. I chased her about a bit when I first noticed, at tea time, as that sometimes gets their guts moving again (worked with Primrose at Christmas) - no change 3 hours later so I had to catch her :? Wore full body armour, including gloves, and just held her tight on the floor till she stopped struggling - she'd have broke her back or something if I'd picked her up before that stage.

Scooped her up once she'd stopped fighting me, brought her in the house and put her in a pen, and syringed half a ml of infacol first, then warm (from the kettle) water into her - about 10ml - It was a mixture of 200ml warm water, half an asprin and a fruity rennies, but I doubt much of the 'medicine' went into her - it just made the water taste nice. She was sucking on the syringe anyway

Then I left her an hour in the pen, came back and she was eating hay At Christmas she needed another 10ml of water syringing and another hour, plus dandelions (very tempting, so let some grow in your garden)

To actually do the dirty work, I knelt on the floor, put a towel over her, dragged her between my legs and (I learnt this at Christmas, when I got badly kicked and bruised inner thigh - ouch!) clamp my legs onto her quick, to hold her firmly.

Then, wrapped in the towel with her head poking out, lifted her upper body in my left hand, holding her front paws with my fingers, so she was more or less sitting up straight on her back feet. Only half fill the syringe if your hands are small like mine, and put your head next to hers so you can see her mouth clearly - pop the syringe in sideways, just in the gap behind the front teeth, and squeeze a little, stop, squeeze a tiny bit more, stop etc. till it's all gone.

With my first bunny Pepsi, I rushed him straight to the vets, was told to force feed him and basically fed him to death - his gut ruptured due to the gut stimulants and extra food being forced down him

Sadly I didn't have enough experience to know that the main thing he needed was warm water, infacol and maybe sitting them up straight helps too - when I'd finished with Zinniea's first lot she did a lot of lying and shuffling about looking uncomfortable, till there was a big gurgle in her tummy - and that was the blockage shifting along at last

Swaddling bunnies in a towel like you would a baby I find helps because they can't struggle and generally calms them down as they're supported and feel safe.

Also I was given advice by the vet to mix in a small amount of ribeana with any meds you're giving the bunny as it's full of vitamin c and tastes nice so bunny is more likely to swallow the meds.

I found a towl is a good idea as is having 4 hands (i.e. someone to syringe whilst you hold)

Poor Muppet - he'd got loads better, was starting to eat and had done a nice pile of poos and was being his normal bouncy self yesterday evening. Even this morning he was perky when I came downstairs, but he didnt eat any breakfast and now he's back to square 1 all over again

So it's back to syringe feeding. Will give the towel method a more tightly-wrapped try. Unless I grow two arms shortly, then I've only got two hands though.

with a previously critically ill bun she was unable to eat solid food but would eat liquid on her own ie we mixed up her food with warm water adn tea spooned it to her she licked it off. try this too. the swaddling seems to work and i have found making sure syringe is going into the side of mouth it is easier that way.baby food works well too as it tastes nice to them or puree up some veg/apple etc .

Muppet2 said:

How to get medicine into a bunny that's not eating/drinking and who struggles violently against syringing, to the extent that it might be more stressful to continue...

Just had a worrying couple of days/nights with Muppet, who stopped eating sometime during the day on Wednesday and was clearly 'not himself'. I discovered this at 7pm, observed him for awhile to be certain and then off to the emergency vets at 8.30pm. They gave him an opiate-based painkiller and suggested 'wait n see' [but to come back if obviously worse, of course]. I'm not persuaded this was the best course but I'm a novice at this and I guess they thought it's only been a couple of hours (though I'm convinced it was probably mid afternoon ish). In fairness he perked up enough at 3.30am to have some water, nibble a strand of hay and notice he was in my bedroom rather than downstairs, but still clearly not right.

Went to my usual vet in the morning and was given Science Recovery to syringe into him along with Promax (a probiotic gut stimulant in the form of a paste in its own syringe). So I'm a novice and probably cack-handed, but syringe feeding just got worse and worse. He more or less submitted initially (he doesnt like being held anyway) but struggled more as time went on, to the point where I began to think that he'd hurt himself or have a heart attack and the stress couldnt be good for an ill bunny!

Luckily he's started to eat and poo - it's slow but he's getting there - and is more himself. If he hadnt, I think I'dve had to go back to the vets and say, "You do it!" Now he's eating a bit, mixing the Promax into a small piece of banana seems to be working out, but when he wasnt eating at all that wasnt an option.

Any tips for next time? (I'd rather there wasnt one but best to be prepared...)

Click to expand...

I've found wrapping a towel around the rabbit with only the head poking out seems to calm them and also sitting them in something they're use to rather than just doing it on my lap whilst struggling to hold on/feed at the same time. My rabbit was happy being syringe fed whilst sat in his basket or litter tray on top of the table. Obviously make sure they're never unattended! Also I found it easier in the long run using a smaller syringe. Herbert refused the large one provided by the vet but was quite happy to take food from a 1ml size.

Glad your rabbit is feeling better.