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Fur balls

F

FattyBunBun'sMum

Young Bun
Hi all,

My friend has told me today how his rabbit died choking on a hair ball - can this happen??? WHat can I do to prevent it???

Thanks!!
 
I don't know about choking exactly but bunnies can get tummy problems due to fur accumulation.

In fact only last night one of my buns went into gut stasis very late last night. He wouldn't eat or drink and was not pooing. Having brought him and his brother in and having stayed up with him all night, he eventually started to eat again at about 4am. When the poos came out they were all linked together with fur called 'string of pearls'. As he is back to normal totally now, I am sure that this is what made him feel ill. I would always recommend a bunny who has gone off his food and not drunk, weed or pooed for more than a couple of hours should go off to the vet.

The best way to prevent this happening is to groom your bunnies to get rid of excess fluff, especially when they are having a heavy moult. My bunny that was ill is the head groomer out of the two brothers so I am no surprised that he has ended up with a problem.

Some people recommend either pineapple or papaya tablets (or juice) as this is said to help the stomach build up some acid which helps to break down the fur in the gut.

Helen
 
Regular grooming to avoid ingestion of too much fur
A good hay based diet (hay/grass forming 80% of Buns daily food intake) to promote a healthy GI tract
Lots of exercise, again to help keep the GI tract functioning well
Access to fresh water 24/7

Furballs are a secondary symptom as opposed to a primary problem. When the GI tract is sluggish due to a poor diet, dental problems, lack of exercise, then it cant cope well with the fur ingested during normal grooming.

I am sorry to hear of the loss of your friend's Rabbit

:cry:
 
Jack's-Jane said:
Regular grooming to avoid ingestion of too much fur
A good hay based diet (hay/grass forming 80% of Buns daily food intake) to promote a healthy GI tract
Lots of exercise, again to help keep the GI tract functioning well
Access to fresh water 24/7

Furballs are a secondary symptom as opposed to a primary problem. When the GI tract is sluggish due to a poor diet, dental problems, lack of exercise, then it cant cope well with the fur ingested during normal grooming.
Click to expand...

And I agree with Jane on all of the above.
 
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