• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

advice needed! weight loss U/D Ellie has bloat :(

Vegan_Bunny

Vegan_Bunny

Warren Veteran
Noticed last night that my Ellie has lost a hell of alot of weight :( She is perfectly ok in herself and is pooing, peeing, eating and drinking and is just as bright as usual.

Only difference is that her stomach seems to be making alot more noise than usual.

Got a vet appointment at half 6 but could anybody tell me what i should expect the vet to do?

And should i Take her husbun with her for company or leave him behind?
 
Last edited:
I would take her husbun to the vets aswell. My buns don't like being separated and having him with her will help with the stress of the vet trip.

I am not sure what it could be, but as the vet to check her teeth. Weight loss can be a sign of dental problems.

Sending lots of vibes xxx
 
yes i mean its happened over like 2 days so im really worried.

To check her teeth would mean a full aneasthetic right? Would that be wise if she is unwell?

I mean she's eating perfectly ok, not selectively or anything and her behaviour hasn't changed much apart from she wanted snuggles off me this morning and then peed on me :roll: She hasnt done that before and she isn't kicking me or struggling when i pick her up which is unusual.
 
The vet can look in her mouth using an otoscope but a GA would need to be done check properly and to fix any problems with her teeth.

Are her poos bigger/smaller or a different colour than usual?
Is she drinking/weeing more or less?

If she doesn't normally wee on you it could be a sign of a urinary infection. Is she straining when she goes to the toilet or weeing in different places to usual?

Eta-
Also is her tummy harder than usual? If you are hearing popping type noises it could be a build up of gas. You could try giving her a gentle tummy rub or some infacol/gripe water if you have some.
 
Last edited:
She doesn't seem in pain and i haven't seen her straining.

She seems to have been drinking more than usual and so that wouldmean peeing more. But as they are together its difficult to tell who's peeing where. (they decided that their litter tray is only good to use sometimes)

I mean with the weight she has lost i thought she'd feel at least tired and energyless but she is hyper as usual.

I have no infacol or gripe water :( I felt her tummy and it felt normal.

I just dont really know what the vet should do. Should he give her metacam? i need to know if he gives her the right stuff.

I hope she will be ok :(
 
Definitely take her bonded friend.

I wouldn't suggest doing anything else for her before you go because those symptoms are so miscellanous it could be anything.

My suspicion would be teeth, but there are so many other problems that could cause that too its hard to guess.

She will need a thorough check over, teeth, heart, lungs, feel of the gut, etc, and then go from there.
 
I'm not sure how to change the name of this thread to update it.

She's been diagnosed with bloat :cry: I've been given metacam for her. 2.5mls daily which ive given her.

Also got given some recovery feed. The vet told me to get as much down her as possible.

I have a few questions. He gave her a 60% chance of survival :( is this what other people would say?

Also with the sachets do i mix a load of it at once and use it out of a bowl or mix it as i need it?

He said i should at least get 2 sachets down her daily but the more the better. I dont want to waste 2 sachets if i cant keep it for long while its mixed.

Also why do bunnies get bloat? is there a reason? Diet or other factors?

I really need some help and vibes im so shook up that this has happened. I dont know what to do with myself :cry:
 
Did he feel her tummy? Any signs of a blockage? Has she had sub cutaneous fluids (fluids injected under her skin) to help with keeping her guts hydrated?

Also, can I ask, what Metacam is that? 2.5mls, to me, seems a lot, but if she is a bigger bunny then it may not be a lot.

I don't know much about recovery feed, sorry.

I would suggest giving her a heat pad as well so that she can get some heat if she starts to struggle.

I personally think I would be concerned if a vet said that to me about my bunny and gave that treatment. Something just doesn't sound right to me.
 
Sending a tonne of vibes your way hun!
Only ever a call away

I mixed when needed when I got given the sachets for Chibi so I'd say to do it that way with Ellie
xxx
 
He was really good. The best vet i've seen. im sure he knew what he was talking about.

He gave her no fluids but im going back in 2 days time to make sure her weight is at least stable. He's told me to weigh her as well.

I have to take her back as soon as she seems to be worsening. My room is pretty warm tbh so i think temp wont be a problem.

on the invoice it just says "metacam oral syrup" She is a large bunny oh! i didnt mean 2.5 i meant 0.25mls. im really sorry. im in a bit of a daze.

He felt her belly and said it felt full of water or gas and he suspected both. i told him she'd been peeing more than normal and he said bunnies with bloat drink more but noone knows why.

He had a good look at her teeth and said she has 2 spurs one side of her mouth and 1 spur on the other side. He said he wasn't overly concerned about that because they hasn't caused any damage but if she got through this she'd deffo need a dental at some point.
 
Do you have to syringe feed the recovery food?

Ellie adores it and i had to fight Fiver off it. lol

Would it be ok just to give her a bowl of it?
 
When I have had to syringe feed buns I have mixed up the recovery powder with cooled boiled water as I have needed it and fed the bun every 2-3 hours. I have also found that making the hole in the syringe bigger with the prong of a fork helps as it can be hard to get the feed up the syringe.

When my rabbits have had gas I have found that a tummy massage has worked wonders, although I'm not sure if this is a good thing to do when the bun has bloat so hopefully someone more experienced will come along soon.

Also if you can go to the supermarket and get some infacol/gripe water this might help with the gas, they don't react with the drugs and I have found them helpful before- my buns have preferred the taste of gripe water.

Sending lots of vibes to Ellie xxx
 
marleyandme said:
Is she eating it without you having to syringe it to her then?
Click to expand...

yeh she wolfed it down. absolutly loved.

I asked about infacol and the vet said that basically the best thing to do is to just get food into her and that the more persistant you are (i.e every 2 hours day and night) the better her chances. so i'll be giving her it all through the night i think.

i have work tomorrow but only for 4 hours so im gunna tell my mam (who has the day off) to give her the recovery food. It wil be so much better if we don't have to syringe it into her.

I think maybe its the starting of bloat. He can't be 100% sure but he knows the guts are not working so he is trying to get her guts working again. The advice he gave me seems to be really good by what i've read on this forum about gut problems.
 
It must be the very start then, when my rabbits have been very poorly they have refused all food-even treats like bananna and herbs. I would think that if she has a healthy appetite and is pooing etc. then her chances would be much higher than 60%??

This article has some more info about gut problems:

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html
 
My bun had bloat a couple of weeks ago and he wasn't eating or drinking. The vet reckoned he wouldn't make it, but he is still here and doing OK.

When we first got back from the vet he spent quite a few hours lying on a heatpad, which was only slightly warm since he is a house bun. I warmed it for him every 2 hours so it didn't get too cold.

It's good that your bun is still eating. Is she drinking too? She might need help with her bottle or would drink better from a bowl maybe.

God luck with her.
 
hi yes it is just the start but the vet knows that buns can go downhill very quickly so i'm doing everything i can to increase her chances.

She is drinking alot more than usual which the vet said happened with buns with bloat. She already has a bowl :) I don't like using bottles.

With her losing weight she is eating but obviously not eating enough. With having 2 bonded buns its difficult to tell who's eating what when it comes to hay.

I am going to seperate them but they'll be in the same room so they can see each other and interact through the cage.

He advised me on this so i could monitor her intake of food and see if her digestive system is working properly.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

D
Weight loss
Replies
9
Views
665
Zarla
Zarla
C
Advice - one week after teeth clipped
2
Replies
22
Views
1K
joey&boo
joey&boo
B
Mouth Ulcers and Pus
2
Replies
22
Views
1K
InspectorMorse
InspectorMorse
Back
Top