Buns getting eachothers bacteria??

So on Tuesday, my little girl Lily came down with really bad diahorrea :shock: we rang the vet and they told us to not feed any greens that night and check in the morning. We did this, however in the morning, there was diahorrea everywhere :roll:. My dad took her to the vet that morning where they told him she had a bacteria that she had contracted from my other rabbit, James, as every rabbit has their own bacteria in their gut, and these are transferable. Apparently this is very common, especially in rabbits that have come from shelters. Both rabbits are now on medication, of which they need another dose next week :roll:. I was just wondering if anyone else had heard of this??
Also, the vet said that she was 100g underweight, she gave us some pellets, of which they need a tablespoon each a day, and also told us they need to eat an entire litter tray of hay a day each, as well as a 2L ice-cream container worth of greens each per day!
The first few days we gave them this amount of greens, and they did not eat it all, they also wouldn't eat the hay in the litter trays, as once the peed on it, they didn't want it. We resorted to putting the same amount in their hay racks, but they still have yet to eat it all in a day. I was just wondering how much everyone else feeds their buns??
Thanks

If they ha e serious diarrhoea then I would have them on a hay only diet with the special pellets - are they profibre? That said, I wouldn't go against the vets advice without checking first.

Hope they are back to normal soon.

I too wouldnt be giving them loads of greens right now, especially if theyre not used to them. Giving your bunny greens they are not used to or larger amounts than they are used to can upset their stomachs. Are you sure he didnt mean that for the future, not now? Are you sure your vet is bunny-savvy?

Is she still having diarrhoea? Diarrhoea in rabbits is not like it is in other animals, it is lifethreatening and extremely dangerous. Is she keeping hydrated? A bowl may encourage her to drink more than a bottle.

What hay are you using? It may be that they dont like that type very much, you could try some different types or get a sample pack here: https://www.thehayexperts.co.uk/Hays,+Grasses+%2526+Herbs.4/ I wouldnt introduce them to readigrass until she is better though.

This is a thread about how much hay peoples bunnies eat: http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?318716-How-much-do-yours-eat

My two prefer a hay rack as well, although it has to be one with big holes so its easy for them to get them hay out, or they dont eat as much. It also helps if you give them fresh hay several times a day, as they prefer it fresh from the packet/bale.

I wonder whether you could find out from your vet if your bunny has coccidiosis because we could help you much more & the management is different from a normal "mucky bum". It's the main infectious diarrhoeal disease in bunnies.
You have to do a special cleaning procedure at the right time to prevent reinfection.
Although common in wild UK bunnies it's not often seen on this forum, but there are a few members who have 1st hand experience.

It's pronounced kox idi Osis.

aliduncan1 said:

If they ha e serious diarrhoea then I would have them on a hay only diet with the special pellets - are they profibre? That said, I wouldn't go against the vets advice without checking first.

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The pellets are oxbow

nessar said:

I too wouldnt be giving them loads of greens right now, especially if theyre not used to them. Giving your bunny greens they are not used to or larger amounts than they are used to can upset their stomachs. Are you sure he didnt mean that for the future, not now? Are you sure your vet is bunny-savvy?

Is she still having diarrhoea? Diarrhoea in rabbits is not like it is in other animals, it is lifethreatening and extremely dangerous. Is she keeping hydrated? A bowl may encourage her to drink more than a bottle.

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The vet said that the amount of greens is what they should get daily, always, and they are definitely rabbit savvy as we took them to the Melbourne Rabbit Clinic :lol:
We did give her a bowl, and they drink, but there has been no diarrohea since saturday, and she is now starting to act more like her self

thumps_ said:

I wonder whether you could find out from your vet if your bunny has coccidiosis because we could help you much more & the management is different from a normal "mucky bum". It's the main infectious diarrhoeal disease in bunnies.
You have to do a special cleaning procedure at the right time to prevent reinfection.
Although common in wild UK bunnies it's not often seen on this forum, but there are a few members who have 1st hand experience.

It's pronounced kox idi Osis.

Click to expand...

This is the virus they actually had, sorry, probably shoud have said that

Thanks Nissa. It would help us if you edited the thread title & put coccidiosis in it.

I'll pm one of the members who has 1st. hand experience of coccidiosis, but as you know, there are times when although willing, we just don't have enough time to help on RU.

He nitza. Has it been confirmed that your buns have coccidiosis? Was a stool sample tested? Both my buns had it twice in quick succession, about 3 years ago now I think. It's a nasty disease that needs nipping in the bud as soon as. What medicines are they on? Are they inside or outside at the moment? It's very important that the organisms that caused their illness are killed off so they don't reinfect themselves. The reason my babies became reinfected is that I put them out on their grass again. I had to dig up all the contaminated grass from their run and returf it to avoid them becoming ill again. What we did was bring the buns inside for 3 weeks, but I don't know what happens if you don't have that option. It's not a great time of year to bring them into a warm house, then put them outside again without their full winter coats either. What I would do in your situation is bring them in but keep them in a room with a wipe-clean foor. Don't allow them on carpet as if it becomes contaminated it will keep the vicious cycle going. Turn off the radiators in that room so the temperature change isn't too great, and be sure to use a hutch cover and snugglesafes when you do put them back in their shed. I can't remember exactly what the cleaning regime is now, but I think you have to scrub the hutch/shed with a strong antibacterial disinfectant as soon as you can, again after 2 weeks and again before putting them back when they've been pronounced healthy again. It was complicated in my boys though as they had worms at the same time.

With diet, I can't remember doing anything special except feeding recovery diet to get some calories into them, as they weren't eating properly. As the others say hay is very important, so try and tempt them with special 'treat' hays like orchard grass, alpine hay and readigrass. I would up their pellets too if they've always tolerted them well in the past, but I wouldn't give them so much fresh food. An icecream tub's worth sounds like an awful lot!

Sorry not to be much use - it's not yet 6 in the morning an my brain is still switched off! My sister is a vet, so I'll have a word with her and see what she recommends. In the meantime, keep your buns warm (feel the base of their ears to see what their temps are doing) and give them a bowl of water as well as a bottle. Cucumber is good for keeping them hydrated too. Keep us updated and I'll try and speak to my sister today.

ETA: Just realised you're in Australia - probably don't have to worry about the snugglesafes then!