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Is it normal for older buns to become fussy with their food? UPDATE not good news :-(

Rabbers

Mama Doe
I've noticed that my rabbit Ozzie is becoming increasingly fussy. He soemtimes has a couple of days when he goes off all food apart from green things and treats (hard biscuit things, pieces of carrot). Initially I thought he needed a dental but thats not needed (He has had one in the past, but he doesn't need another one). He will do this for a couple of days and then just goes back to normal. He will continue to poop, walk occasionally, although he has slowed down overall and likes to sit more. Maybe he just doesn't need as much food because he isn't moving as much and maybe because he sits still more could it be that his stomach may get a little iffy occasionally and put him off his food? And do buns of any age show this sort of behaviour if they're depressed?

I have rushed him to the vets a couple of times over this in the past, but have now learnt that he eventually gets over it, so don't panic as much. I do monitor him more when he's like this, but he always seems to get over it. He is 8 years old.

Any advice is welcome.
 
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I have personally never had that, all the older bunnies i have owned have had the same food there whole lives. hopefully someone who can help will be along soon! xx
 
I have no knowledge on older buns to say whether it's normal or whether there's any underlying issues, I just wanted to share that I picked up Science Selective Mature food recently (just for a read) and it said it contained something 'to increase appetite' of older rabbits. Since then I've been wondering if older rabbits do go off their food in their later years :?
 
I have no knowledge on older buns to say whether it's normal or whether there's any underlying issues, I just wanted to share that I picked up Science Selective Mature food recently (just for a read) and it said it contained something 'to increase appetite' of older rabbits. Since then I've been wondering if older rabbits do go off their food in their later years :?

Thanks for your replies guys. Yeah thats what I was thinking too - the mature pellets always say something about appetite.
 
He may have a bit of arthritis. Pain from this can vary day to day and on 'bad' days the arthritic pain may make him go off his food.

I would get him checked over by your Vet :)
 
He may have a bit of arthritis. Pain from this can vary day to day and on 'bad' days the arthritic pain may make him go off his food.

I would get him checked over by your Vet :)

was going to suggest the same, iv dound coco (8yrs) to have a very large appitite much more than my youngsters(4 yrs adn 5yrs lol) and i also find kitty eats more when with him loneliness can contribute as feeding times are very social with rabbits maybe sit with him with food sof hand feed? x
 
Fred loved his food but after 9 he began to have arthritic twinges and flares and as Jacks- Jane has said- it certainly did effect what he wanted to eat. He became a house rabbit at that point as I used to wince with him as he tried to stretch on damp mornings.

Good pain relief helped reduce food refussal. If he did not want food I knew he needed metacam first give it 30 minutes then offer food.

He continued to eat SS pellets mixed with SS mature. He got VERY fussy over hay and would only eat fresh grass and dried herbs:roll: so I made sure he had plenty of fiberous fresh veg, twigs and plantain. Dried plantian and dandelion would help on days he did not feel great and a bit 'ow'.

If I was very concerned about him and he turned his nose up at toasted wholemeal bread crust or ignored a piece of Shreddie Wheat he went straight to the vets- often it was the first indication of a flare up and all he needed was a shot of metacam or steroids then home on vet bed by the fire with a bowl of his fave fresh leaves.

I swear on his better but cunning days he would hold out on me in the hope of a little apple peel with leaves and a hint of toast!
 
Hi everyone, thanks for all your advice.

I went to the vets with Ozzie today - over the weekend he got worse and became incontinent. The vet can feel a grape sized lump on his bladder :cry:

So the vet has suggested several options:

1) treat for any possible cystitis/EC etc (his ex-wife bun had active EC a couple of years ago and was incontinent) and see if there is improvment by the end of the week. This is to try and eliminate there isn't a simple reason for the incontinence.
2) If there is no improvement in a few days... then we can either operate or obviously keep comfortable with the view to PTS. :cry:

We've got Baytril and Panacur to see if that helps and the lump is just a coincidence. I have a very strong feeling that it won't be and we'll have a difficult decision later this week. He had lost a lot of weight (a result of gradual loss over months as well as the recent not eating properly) and looks sad. He's also uncomfortable with his bottom end. I've been bathing and drying and putting cream on, but it's not helping. He soaks it straight away.

What advice would you give? Would you put him through an operation?

Thanks x
 
Thanks Jane. The vet didn't mention baldder stones. From the links you gave it looks like they have to be removed surgically. Do you think I should mention it to the vet later this week and do you think I should put him through an operation (he is getting very thin and depressed and has lost a lot of condition)? I've never had experience of older rabbits. Any advice is very much welcome.
 
How do you think he'd cope with an operation? Does he get stressed easily or would you think he'd fight to recover? Think about how he was with previous operations. It's the hardest decision to make obviously and like I always say, you know him best. You'll know in your heart if he wants that chance to have the op and whether he'll recover and live happily for a few more months or even years. And you'll also know whether it's time for him. Don't let anyone make the decision for you both and then you'll know when you make it, what ever it is it'll be the right one.

Good luck.

*hugs*
 
Thanks Jane. The vet didn't mention baldder stones. From the links you gave it looks like they have to be removed surgically. Do you think I should mention it to the vet later this week and do you think I should put him through an operation (he is getting very thin and depressed and has lost a lot of condition)? I've never had experience of older rabbits. Any advice is very much welcome.

Personally I'd want bloods done and an U/S of his bladder/kidneys. *If* it is a urolith then his kidneys may also be effected. I would base a decision on surgery depending on the results. I'd want the diagnostics done ASAP as he may continue to lose condition. This would not be in his favour were he to have cystotomy.

I once had an 11 year old Doe undergo a successful Cystotomy to remove a large urolith.
 
Thanks Jenova and Jane. I'm not sure how he'll be with an operation really. He's had a GA whilst I've had him and it took well over a week for him to recover from that i.e. eating properly and that was with extra pain relief. And that didn't seem normal even to me.
I wonder if you can feel the difference between a urolith and a tumour... presumably the urolith will be harder (they certainly looked hard on the photographs in the links)? I'll ask the vet about ultrasounds too.


Thanks again.
 
Thanks Jenova and Jane. I'm not sure how he'll be with an operation really. He's had a GA whilst I've had him and it took well over a week for him to recover from that i.e. eating properly and that was with extra pain relief. And that didn't seem normal even to me.
I wonder if you can feel the difference between a urolith and a tumour... presumably the urolith will be harder (they certainly looked hard on the photographs in the links)? I'll ask the vet about ultrasounds too.


Thanks again.

Uroliths are usually mobile and you can move them about within the bladder. *DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DO THIS YOURSELF THOUGH* !!

A tumour is not likely to be very mobile and it may be possible to feel what it's attached to.
 
Thanks jane - that's really helpful to know. I'll ask the vet about this next time. Unfortunately I've had even more bad news. 6 hours after seeing the vet I was washing and drying him and applying the cream just like the vet said and I found minute maggots. I rushed him to the vets again and he's been shaved and cleaned up - they took all the bad stuff out. Loads of vaseline was applied too. I have him in the house now in a little crate and he's eating. I didn't get a chance to ask the vet about uroliths because I was pretty upset from it all and it was late.

I'll be watching him like a hawk. And if anything changes or I'm not happy with anything I have to take him straight back to the vets.

Poor old oz boz :cry: It doesn't look too good for him really.
 
Thanks jane - that's really helpful to know. I'll ask the vet about this next time. Unfortunately I've had even more bad news. 6 hours after seeing the vet I was washing and drying him and applying the cream just like the vet said and I found minute maggots. I rushed him to the vets again and he's been shaved and cleaned up - they took all the bad stuff out. Loads of vaseline was applied too. I have him in the house now in a little crate and he's eating. I didn't get a chance to ask the vet about uroliths because I was pretty upset from it all and it was late.

I'll be watching him like a hawk. And if anything changes or I'm not happy with anything I have to take him straight back to the vets.

Poor old oz boz :cry: It doesn't look too good for him really.

Oh no :cry:

Did the Vet give him any Ivermectin ?

Millions of vibes for him xx
 
Um I don't know actually. :oops: Would that be something he would be better with? I've googled it and seen its an anti-parasite/bacteria drug. Sorry I didn't really know about that until now.
 
You're doing all you can for now. Perhaps you should write down everything you want to ask and ring them up, that's what I do because I always forget important things.

Good luck.
 
Hi everyone. Very sad news this morning. Ozzie had taken a turn for the worse overnight - although he was eating and drinking (he drank three small bowls between 6pm and when i went to bed around 11pm), he was very floppy and quite clearly not well this morning. So i took him back to the vets. They did offer to put him on a drip but I just felt it wasn't fair to keep him going - he'd 'gone' already. The vet did agree with my decision after i made it too. So that made me feel better. I sat with him while he went.:cry:

I loved that rabbit so much. I hope he had a good life for the 4 years he was with me.

Binky free Ozzie boy xxx

Thanks for all your help. x
 
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