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Hi older bunny

G

gremlin

New Kit
Hi everyone,:wave:

This is my first post so I don't know if im posting in the correct area. My bunny is nearly 9 so is gaining in age. He has been going to the vet recently because he developed fur mites (apparently nothing i did just unlucky) and they wont shift regardless of treatment because apparently his older age.

The pressing matter is my rabbits a house bunny, he was litter trained very well to the point if there was no litter in his tray he wouldn't go but now hes going everywhere to the point im having to clean it all the time, which causes me pain because I have arthritis but I don't mind because I love the little devil to pieces. The problem is because of the mites he's got a bald patch on his bum which means he's sitting in his wee until I can clean it. Obviously this is making that bald patch sore and that's the last thing I want so is there any better bedding that is absorbent but also wouldn't be dangerous if he ate it? he's rather weird.

Also he's been losing weight and having alot of diarrhoea which seems to patented off as i've put him on a mix of excel pellet food and russel rabbit (because he was on mix previously) and also excel hay. Is there anything else anyone can suggest?

The vet has told me its towards the end now but that hes very happy in his self and that he feels no different.

I just want to make sure he remains happy

Many thanks
 
Hello there and welcome to the forum :wave:

Aw, it's a shame the fur mite treatment didn't work (my bunny recently had fur mites too), sounds like you're doing a good job for him though and keeping him happy and comfy as possible. Always sad when they start to get old, just like with people really.

I'm sure someone with more knowledge than me will be along soon with feeding and bedding suggestions, but just wanted to say hi :)
 
Hi :wave:

I've got a few elderly bunnies too. I use vet bed for my indoor buns...the wee can soak through but the top stays dry. You put towels underneath the vet bed to soak up the wee.

It tends to be quite pricey from shops, so I buy mine through ebay.
 
:wave:

Hello!!!!!

I have a number of suggestions.
My fabulous gentleman rabbit of 9 years (5 with me) passed away peacefully last week after a traumatic month but that's by the by......

Your lovely man is highly likely to have some arthritis in his spine (mine boy had shocking spine arthritis) and this may be accounting for his piddling everywhere and him sitting in it. I would discuss with your vet starting him on some meloxicam. It's a fabulous pain killer and the doses in the vets medicine book are 0.3-0.6mg per kg but given his age I'ld sugest go low and split the dose into two. Get your vet to explain the regime to you.
Fenegreek helps boost appetites (apparently) so give that a whirl.
While I wouldn't advocate radically changing his diet I've been swapping mine over to oxbow bunny basics T but the other bunny basics has more calories in it to help him with his weight loss. Also oxbow critical care is EXCELLENT. Petie would eat it out of a saucer when mixed into a paste. Petie would also eat it off my finger and then lick my finger clean like a pussy cat!!!!!! :love:
Something else I'm trying to help keep guts going is oxbow (heck I sound like an advert for them!!!) pappya and pineapple supplements. They taste fine to buns as Petie ate it simply when offered and his widowed doe is happily eating one each morning. You can give pineapple or pineapple juice but I've read all the sugar in it encourages clostridium (nasty bacteria) which clearly is bad.
Bedding wise I have no idea about house rabbits but the guys on here have recommended megazorb to me but after all the changes my poor girl has had to handle I'm not changing that as well!!!!
Sorry for babbling!!!!!What's your man's name??? xxxxx
 
I agree with Hannah I suspect arthritis also in the hips and spine in a bunny of this age with this soiling issue. He may also have a urinary tract infection. His weight loss may be age related but it may also signify the onset of renal or liver disease. The diarrhoea is also a concern especially as we are headed into summer. What diagnostics has your vet performed? Any bloods taken?

We use megazorb on top of newspaper for our house bunny and then a layer of carefresh on top of the megazorb to hold the megazorb in as it does tend to go everywhere otherwise. Carefresh is larger chunks (but too expensive to use alone). A low sided litter tray - plant tray may be more appropriate if he is having difficulty using his tray due to pain (arthritis). As Hannah says - daily NSAID's can make a huge difference to quality of life from this.

ETA as Abbymarysmokey says also vet bed with towels or litter underneath is also a wonderful surface to use.
 
Last edited:
Thank you for all your replies and i’d like to apologise for my late reply not well myself and sorry if I miss anything.

Abbymarysmokey – do you just wash the vet bed then? If so do you have more than one per bunny?

Hannah.mc- I don’t think he’s got any arthritis in his spine, as his movement seems unrestricted and as fine as it always has been (jumps around still), the problem seems like his balance seems to get abit ‘off’ at times. He also doesn’t seem to have any swelling or cracking either. Also he nods of just about anywhere, he fell asleep with his face in his litter tray woke up with a startle as soon as I came through the door with litter all over his face.

Also regarding his appetite that hasn’t gone down he’s always demanded food and is still doing the same just with the bouts of diarrhoea (which have settled atm) he was losing weight quicker than what he was eating it. He’s always been a slender bunny so didn’t have much to lose. Saying this oxbow sounds interesting just don’t know if he could handle it if it was rich? His names areo but like the chocolate bar but spelt wrong il put up a pic.

Pretty lupin – He’s not soiling himself just going piddle in both his litter tray and in other places in his hutch..... it seems like forgetfulness more than anything. No diagnostics taken other than weight which has dropped from 2.6 to 2.0.5, temp, teeth and feeling his tummy which where all fine.
Now hes an odd boy so is metazorb going to be bad if he ate a load? I’m asking because he ate part of a rabbit toy once.

Blue vix – thanks for that might give that a wirl. Cheers it’s been hard to get him here at times he was a very poorly kit, pneumonia followed by chest infections, an abcesss and various times scaring me half to death with his tricks but hes the most soppy little thing ever, although now when I cuddle him and he lies flat on my front he drowls as he’s fast asleep.

Many thanks
 
gremlin said:
Abbymarysmokey – do you just wash the vet bed then? If so do you have more than one per bunny?
Click to expand...

Yep, you just stick it in the washer on 40 degrees. Some people put it in an old single duvet cover to stop bits of fur and hay clogging up the washer.

I have 2 pieces per rabbit, and have one in use whilst the other is being washed. I find that anything up to a 4ft length is fine to put in the washer. I just give mine a good shake and put them in without using a duvet cover...I just make sure I clean the filter out regularly.
 
Petie had rotten arthritis on XR but still jumped around, periscoped, 2 pawed face wash and even binkied in his last 6 months of life despite a wrecked back!!!!
Good luck with your geriatric!!!!
 
gremlin said:
Thank you for all your replies and i’d like to apologise for my late reply not well myself and sorry if I miss anything.

Abbymarysmokey – do you just wash the vet bed then? If so do you have more than one per bunny?

Hannah.mc- I don’t think he’s got any arthritis in his spine, as his movement seems unrestricted and as fine as it always has been (jumps around still), the problem seems like his balance seems to get abit ‘off’ at times. He also doesn’t seem to have any swelling or cracking either. Also he nods of just about anywhere, he fell asleep with his face in his litter tray woke up with a startle as soon as I came through the door with litter all over his face.

Also regarding his appetite that hasn’t gone down he’s always demanded food and is still doing the same just with the bouts of diarrhoea (which have settled atm) he was losing weight quicker than what he was eating it. He’s always been a slender bunny so didn’t have much to lose. Saying this oxbow sounds interesting just don’t know if he could handle it if it was rich? His names areo but like the chocolate bar but spelt wrong il put up a pic.

Pretty lupin – He’s not soiling himself just going piddle in both his litter tray and in other places in his hutch..... it seems like forgetfulness more than anything. No diagnostics taken other than weight which has dropped from 2.6 to 2.0.5, temp, teeth and feeling his tummy which where all fine.
Now hes an odd boy so is metazorb going to be bad if he ate a load? I’m asking because he ate part of a rabbit toy once.

Blue vix – thanks for that might give that a wirl. Cheers it’s been hard to get him here at times he was a very poorly kit, pneumonia followed by chest infections, an abcesss and various times scaring me half to death with his tricks but hes the most soppy little thing ever, although now when I cuddle him and he lies flat on my front he drowls as he’s fast asleep.

Many thanks
Click to expand...

Are your vets concerned by his weight loss? Some bloods for liver and kidney function might be helpful in case there is any supportive/palliative treatment that might be appropriate to make him more comfortable. Nino had advanced osteoarthrits and you would never have known it from his gait and activity levels - all quite normal and energetic. Diagnosed on Xrays - but a GA may be too much for your old man. NSAID's would help but may not be appropriate if his kidneys are not working properly - hence need for bloods. Older bunnies can and do lose weight sometimes with no real cause just like elderly people. You may need to boost his food with a richer pelleted feed and maybe some porridge oats (softened in water) if he is struggling to maintain his weight. x
 
I had a bun with arthritis and you could tell as she walked rather than hopped.
She had a course of Cartrophen injections one a week for 4 weeks and it made a massive difference to her mobility. The course was repeated every 6 months till she went to the Bridge aged nearly 12yrs.(You would need to get the vet to diagnose arthritis for this treatment though.)

For sore skin I would recommend Calendula cream from the health shops. (I have tried it on my own eczema and it is soothing and heals fast)

sue:wave:
 
Hi everyone,

Unfortuantly i was right about it not being arthrtis as ive taken him to my vets today and they say its kidney failure.:(

They havn't done any tests but have said its that from his symptoms, also he was 2.2kg and has dropped to 1.8kg in the space of a month despite my efforts.
They wanted me to have him put down there and then but i wanted time with him hes nearly 9 and they have said hes in no pain.

Dont know what else i could do
 
Sorry to hear that. I know I wouldn't have put him down either if he's not suffering and would take more time with him also. If you are still looking for litter ideas I will share one that we use now and I swear by it. We used compressed horse stall pellets under hay. The pellets are compressed and bust open when full and are great because they do not smell. We get them at our local pet shop and our local rabbit rescues use them. Our rabbits are chewers and these are completely safe and harmless for them. Just another idea for you.

I'm really sorry your bun is not well and I hope you get some more quality time with him. :love:
 
thanks

well the vet was pretty much bullying me to have him put to sleep there and then. I said friday and she wanted it done tomorrow. I wanted to wait untill i could have someone with me.

By what i can see even with treatment they couldnt progress it further than about 9 months
 
Yikes - that is not nice. I would have hoped for a better bedside manner from your vet. I would want time to make the decision especially because your bun is not suffering. If your bun was in pain that would be a different story.

Sending you much love as I'm sure this must be a very hard time for you. :love::love::love::love:
 
037-2.jpg


Heres a picture of my little fighter, beautiful in everyway, took a few years ago i just wish it was better news
 
I wish there was another option for you to my dear. I'm sorry for your situation but I feel warmed to see a bun that is so loved by it's owner! :love::love::love:
 
Just want to ask is it normal for a vet to diagnose without doing tests? i dont know if i should take him for a second opinion or just let him be.

I just want to make sure if there was something that would give him a better quality of life then fair enough but im not talking about extending his life for the sake of it.

Really could do with some advice
 
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