rabbit not eating poorly tummy?

Ruby is not well. Last night i went to check on her and she was very quiet and sleepy...big change from her usual hyperactive self. I opened the hutch into the run and she did go in it but just flopped in various corners (usually she binkies for hours). Brought her indoors for a bit and she did have a hop around but not much. I also noticed her food was mostly untouched. I do have reggie also who lives with her so it is very hard to tell who is eating but i pushed a few pear leaves in front of her as she loves these and she didn't bother, didn't even sniff them! same response with carrot, kale and hay. Not sure if she has been pooing but there were less poos in the tray so poss not. I gave her some fibreplex which i had (which i hope was a good thing to do) and decided to bring them both in for the night to monitor them. She didn't eat anything at all last night which i could see. i did put a carrot in the dog crate with them. Ruby loves carrot but reggie is not fussed. This morning the carrot was gone as was the kale. Not sure who ate it, reggie loves kale so he probably ate that, he hardly ever eats carrot. It has not been hidden so i hope ruby ate it, it could [possibly have been the cat though...you never know with my cat i swear she thinks she is a rabbit!

Last night rubys tummy was making gurgly noises and she kept flopping on her tummy but looked uncomfortable and moved i tried giving it a little rub but she didn't like this.

She is a bit more lively this morning and has ate a tiny bit of kale, but no pellets (and usually she is head straight into the pellet bowl for breakfast) and no hay. She has ignored a fresh carrot i have put in too but she has had some water out of a bowl.

I am taking her to the vets at 11.30. i called the vets before i saw her eat the kale but i think i will take her anyway just to check as she is still pretty quiet, defiantly out of character.

have i done the right things? can anyone suggest anything and what should i ask for at the vets?

if it is stasis or poorly tummy what could have caused it? she gets plenty of hay and veg. She does eat everything green in sight though, she may have eaten some half dead pear leaves that dropped into the run and possibly could have eaten a pear that dropped off the tree, not a good pear either as my pear tree is in very bad shape this year, i think it has pear rust (i only feed her the good leaves when i do give them to her). Also slugs and snails get into her hutch and eat the pellets, would this cause any problems...i have found snail poo in the food bowl in the morning a couple of times!

All of my rabbits have done this at one point or another. Poppet usually snaps out of it within a day. Barney used to milk it out for a few days (typical man!) and only ate the bits he felt like eating. They have all got back to normal within 2-3 days.

Hope this helps!

Sounds way too much like stasis Poor Bun!

Definately needs the vets and pain meds and some gut stimulant.

Could be caused by teeth issues, has Ruby had any toothy issues in the past?

Vet is the only way forward, make sure they check teeth and give you pain meds to come home with too, just in case

I'm sure Jane will be along in a bit to post an expert comment

You are doing exactly the right thing taking her to the vets, they need to check whether she is in Stasis or whether she has a blockage (sometimes during moult their intestines get clogged with hair mixed with the waste which casues a blockage). If it's stasis they will give her something to get the gut moving again, if it's a blockage they will need to rehydrate her with fluids to try and move the blockage. Either way a vets visit is important. Let us know how she gets on xx

thanks

Her teeth have always been good. She was last checked in may and vets said she was fine.

Her tummy isn't hard, it feels quite soft if this means anything?

she has just started a moult and is washing herself quite a bit at the moment.

beki said:

thanks

Her teeth have always been good. She was last checked in may and vets said she was fine.

Her tummy isn't hard, it feels quite soft if this means anything?

she has just started a moult and is washing herself quite a bit at the moment.

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Could be a blockage as NLENG2000 says - vet should be able to help

Keep us informed as to her progress !

back from the vets.

She does not have bloat and the vet does not think it is stasis. Vet said she has some soft stuff in her stomach and gut so this isn't empty. She could feel a lump though kind of lower intestine area so it looks like she could have a blockage. This is a but sore as ruby kicked when she pressed it. Vet thinks it might be a hairball or could indeed be something she ate off my pear tree!

Vet has given her metacam and gut stimulant injections. I need to continue with the fibreplex and give her some pineapple juice (just gone to get some for her). I have made an appointment for her tomorrow evening for a check up and if the blockage is still there she might need x rays.

Poor baby.

Now i need to decide whether to go back to work. I have had to take the morning off as holiday and i might need to take a bit of time of tomorrow too to take her back to the vets. Apart from the not eating thing she has livened up a bit. She was jumping all over the place in the vets.

Oh she has lost a little but of weight too, a few grams since her last weigh in in May. Vet doesn't seem too concerned though as she was a little bit on the heavier end of the healthy weight range before anyway, she is a right piggy with food. She is still over 2kg though.

It will need to be fresh pineapple juice in order to have suffient amounts of the enzyme needed to help break down any hair. I give my lot papaya tablets as they will just eat one out my hand like a treat so it saves all the fuss of trying to syringe feed.

I may be wrong but I thought I read somewhere that if it was a true obstruction gut mobility meds could aggrivate the problem.

i got the squeezed stuff not the concentrate. i do have a pineapple though so i could try and squeeze that... perhaps with a blender? would that work?

i have put the juice i have for her in a bowl she has sniffed it quite a bit but wont drink it. i have a syringe but doesn't like me putting it in her mouth so i have got to wait for my boyfriend to get home from work so i can hold her and he can squirt. She wriggles and fidgets and even wrapping her in a towel doesn't help! half of the fibreplex got on me this morning!

where would i get papaya tablets? holland and barratt? i am going to go into work this afternoon so i could see if i can pop and get some if i am not too late as i need to be there for 2. Ruby seems to have perked up a lot. I left reggie at home when i took her to the vets and now she is all over him, kissing him licking him and sitting on him. Poor boy! she is twice as big as he is!

beki said:

i got the squeezed stuff not the concentrate. i do have a pineapple though so i could try and squeeze that... perhaps with a blender? would that work?

i have put the juice i have for her in a bowl she has sniffed it quite a bit but wont drink it. i have a syringe but doesn't like me putting it in her mouth so i have got to wait for my boyfriend to get home from work so i can hold her and he can squirt. She wriggles and fidgets and even wrapping her in a towel doesn't help! half of the fibreplex got on me this morning!

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Yes, blending some pineapple in a blender would work well. If she is feeling unwell she may not want to try anything, so I'm afraid using the syringe is probably the way to go. I know what you mean about wriggly bunny's though I have several like that too!! Is she still drinking water? The most important thing is to keep her hydrated as it may help to break down the blockage if there is one. If she isn't drinking I would syringe this into her as well.

yes she has had water today. i have a bottle and a bowl and i have seen her using the bowl twice in the 2 hours before i took her to the vets.

Going to try and temp her with some more kale.

Vet suggested dandelion leaves too. I am totally out as they scoffed them all and they haven't grown back. I am looking after a chicken for someone and i have noticed the huge amounts of dandelion leaves they have in their garden! am i OK taking some of these and washing them or will they be bad if the chicken has pooed on them? not going to obviously pick up dirty dandelion leaves but being a bit cautious.

thanks for everyones help by the way. I really appreciate it

just put a huge bowl of kale in (i left it wet so she can get some water off it too) and she is eating it

Glad to hear she's feeling a little better.

I checked with our vet when I fist got Peach, since she goes running around with our hens and he said there's nothing she could catch from the gals, so you'll be fine taking dandelions from your friend's garden.

Hope she's back to full fitness soon,

M

thanks for everyone's replies yesterday. Ruby is back to her usual naughty self, she is currently trashing the dog crate because she wants to come out (i have decided to keep her indoors a few days with reggie until i know she is definitely better), she is humping poor reggie who looks constantly annoyed with her and she has eaten her own weight in kale and left me lots of poops! well i can't guarantee they are all hers but there are way too many in the tray today for one little reggie to do, he is so small!