how is it possible...

that Pearl is still alive... her whole chest area feels of huge slow heart beat.. how is she still going... i dont get it at all... if i stopped meds i reakon shed be dead with in hours.. yet she still beats up alvin for a crunchie and runs from one room to another for pellets

i have never never come accross a total love of food that keeps a body going... maybe she knows if she lets go.. no more food ever again :?

wish i beleived in the bridge i could tell her that its lush grass and treats all day long there, no more illness and theres loads of RU bunnies waiting for her there

Donna, the bun in the sanctuary that has bad heart problems has pulled through some really bad episodes - I remember 6 months ago watching him mouth breathe with his head high in the air, thinking he hadn't got long, and yet (touches lots of wood) he's still here.

I guess Pearl has too much to live for to contemplate giving up yet.

Awwwh Donna Big hugs for Pearl Shes a little fighter xXx

BB Mommy said:

Donna, the bun in the sanctuary that has bad heart problems has pulled through some really bad episodes - I remember 6 months ago watching him mouth breathe with his head high in the air, thinking he hadn't got long, and yet (touches lots of wood) he's still here.

I guess Pearl has too much to live for to contemplate giving up yet.

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i hope thats why shes hanging on and not just the food :lol:

does the bun in the sancturaries heart feel so big too? i would of let her do the xrays to see the size but even the vet said it wasnt worth the stress when she saw the state of pearl that time... shes clinging on to something.. i know its Alvin really but i want it to be me

donnamt said:

i hope thats why shes hanging on and not just the food :lol:

does the bun in the sancturaries heart feel so big too? i would of let her do the xrays to see the size but even the vet said it wasnt worth the stress when she saw the state of pearl that time... shes clinging on to something.. i know its Alvin really but i want it to be me

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I'll find out when I go Tuesday.

BB Mommy said:

I'll find out when I go Tuesday.

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thank you hun Pearls heart just seems so wrong now, i cant imagine it pumping for much longer.. would give me a tiny glimmer of hope if your sancturay bunny has the same wrong feeling heart and is still going on

It always amazes me how some things ( animals and humans can keep going and others give up very quickly) I think it comes down to strength of character, and, more so, in animals they have a huge will to live. With animals they don't know they are on limited time so don't dwell on it the same as people and i think that helps, the fact she is so well looked after and is having every chance given to her by you makes a big difference.
I have seen animals on the brink of death due to neglect, but as soon as they get a bit of care they perk up and suddenly want to survive again.
You should be proud that she is still going and even if it is for Alvin, you have made that life for her, so ultimately it is through you.

halfpenny said:

It always amazes me how some things ( animals and humans can keep going and others give up very quickly) I think it comes down to strength of character, and, more so, in animals they have a huge will to live. With animals they don't know they are on limited time so don't dwell on it the same as people and i think that helps, the fact she is so well looked after and is having every chance given to her by you makes a big difference.
I have seen animals on the brink of death due to neglect, but as soon as they get a bit of care they perk up and suddenly want to survive again.
You should be proud that she is still going and even if it is for Alvin, you have made that life for her, so ultimately it is through you.

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thankyou.. i guess when i weigh her tomorrow ill find out how well or bad she is actually doing

Hopefully she hasn't lost any weight, and I understand the dread and apprehension you are feeling.
I am trying not to think about Samson's cancer, which is easy at the moment because he looks so well, but another lump has appeared and not gone away, this time, so I know things are progressing within. All I can do it keep an eye on him and know I couldn't have done things any sooner. I have to be at peace with the fact I couldn't change anything and at least I know what I am dealing with and know nothing can be done further, you are in a similar position, sometimes at the end of the day that is the only consolation that you have.

halfpenny said:

Hopefully she hasn't lost any weight, and I understand the dread and apprehension you are feeling.
I am trying not to think about Samson's cancer, which is easy at the moment because he looks so well, but another lump has appeared and not gone away, this time, so I know things are progressing within. All I can do it keep an eye on him and know I couldn't have done things any sooner. I have to be at peace with the fact I couldn't change anything and at least I know what I am dealing with and know nothing can be done further, you are in a similar position, sometimes at the end of the day that is the only consolation that you have.

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some days its not enough but some days that amazing little girl shows me, even at deaths door life is worth clinging on to

and atleast im armed with the signs of a heart bunny now... no other in my care will be left two months on the wrong treatment if they get the same symptoms... its so common i really had no idea :shock: i think its the guilt of letting her get to this stage is what tortures me.. i let her down << not saying that for peeps to say im a great bun mum and ive done my best, its not what i want to hear tbh..i ignored my instincts and let the vet fob me off

Donna, if I got a pound for every time I'd been in that situation I'd be a rich woman.
The animal can't tell you or the vet how it feels, and most vets treat the symptoms, and work on the premise that if something is common there is a high chance that the problem is likely to be that. You did not walk away, and leave Pearl, you kept going back and looking for an answer, that is all you can do. I'm sure most of us on here had no idea how common heart conditions were in buns, so there is even less chance your vet thought about- not saying they are bad at all, but only that they are human too.
Not only have you done a huge amount for Pearl, but by posting on the forum and making your vet aware of the possibilities, you will have helped many other rabbits, in the future.
I get a great feeling when somebody at my vet comes in with a rabbit with an abscess and they say' we looked up Jess's notes' to get the dosage for the penicillin injection, or somebody uses an inhaler for their respiratoty bun, thanks to Smokey. They had a good life when they were with me, sure I would like to have changed many things about how quickly I dealt with it, but they were loved and looked after and didn't die, lonley, in a tiny hutch, unloved and unnoticed.

OK Donnamt, I was in on Pearls illness from the start through RU.
a) I know you kept going back to the vet. even when you were called paranoid.NOT YOUR FAULT.
b) Several buns had similar symptoms eg Lyonel - he has pneumonia.
Thumper had rapid breathing but he was just hot. The only person on that thread with a cardiac bun was natandfluffs, but Nat has different symptoms.

We do not know whether an earlier diagnosis & treatment would have given Pearl a few extra days of life. We do know that she's hanging on in there & enjoying what she has now. Can you try to follow her example, & treasure each moment like your chippie night?

thumps_ said:

Can you try to follow her example, & treasure each moment like your chippie night?

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i am trying not to dwell on it.. i think because im so tired and work is so pants and ste is so far away im just winding myself up as per

the fact shes still here is a credit to you too, obviously she loves her mom her alvin, as halfpenny says they wont dwell on things they dont know about, its all positive things


she will pass over when shes good and ready and not before, shes enjoying life too much

Aww hun try not to worry about her, she is enjoying her time with you and Alvin, she is a fighter and won't give up easily for whatever reason. She found a home with you for a reason, so you could be there for her when this happened, big hugs xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

angeleyes said:

Aww hun try not to worry about her, she is enjoying her time with you and Alvin, she is a fighter and won't give up easily for whatever reason. She found a home with you for a reason, so you could be there for her when this happened, big hugs xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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I agree everything happens for a reason, it's not time yet. She will let go when she is ready or maybe she is waiting for you to be ready? Who knows, either way she is a brave little girl by the sounds of it. You have to remember her spirit and strength when the time comes for you to need it.