Need help with my rabbit. She is sick and I can't afford a vet.

My rabbit appears to be sick and I need advice.

On Friday (three days ago) I noticed that she wasn't eating or pooping. I brought her into the house to keep an eye on her and she sat quietly feeling very sorry for herself. She started grinding her teeth and wouldn't eat or poop. I left her overnight and she did about 6 large, soft poops. Yesterday she ate a tiny amount and still no poops. So I gave her pineapple juice and cat-lax. Within 10 mins of me giving her the cat-lax she was eating EVERYTHING as nromal and she pooped loads. She was jumping and skipping around and even did a few binkies. I left her last night and this morning I saw that she had pooped quite a bit and eaten some pak choy and broccoli. Then today she is quiet again and hasn't eaten anything or pooped at all. I have tried tempting her with her favourite greens and she has fresh hay on tap but still no joy. I just gave her some pineapple juice to see if that will work. I'm at a loss as to how to help her. I don't understand why she was back to her normal self last night and now she has gone downhill again. I know that I need to take her to a vet but my husband has just been made redundant and I have $140 to last until Feb 3rd. Family can't help as vet bills in Sydney Australia are $180 for a consultation (without factoring in diagnostic measures or treatment.) I just want some advice if anyone has any, please help

Would your vets accept payment in installments? She really needs to be seen, could you use a credit card?

Do you have any RSPCA shelters or places like that where you get assistance with or free vet treatment. The teeth grinding really does mean that the little one is in pain.

Bex said:

Would your vets accept payment in installments? She really needs to be seen, could you use a credit card?

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I can only agree with this regarding payment. She really does need to be seen urgently by a vet.

It sounds like she might have stasis, trapped gas or may be having trouble passing some fur through. Is she moulting at the moment atall?
Im afraid she really does need to see the vet for a proper diagnosis and treatment. My vets are very good about me paying at a later date if Im stuck for funds, so its worth having a chat with yours to see if they will do the same.
In the meantime keep an eye on her temperature, especially when shes quiet and tooth grinding. Offer her a warm hot water bottle if her ears feel very cold. Syringing cooled boiled watwr will help keep her hydrated and will help any fur to pass through
:wave:

Thanks everyone for your advice. I contacted my vet and they don't offer installments. I need to pay up front or they won't see her. She seems a little better. Tooth grinding has stopped and she is eating lots. She is pooping but they are a bit small. I hadn't thought about RSPCA but I will definitely look into that. In the meantime I shall keep her warm and toasty and keep praying that all will be good. Thanks again.

Glad to hear she's better

Keeping her gut moving by keeping her active should help and keep tempting her with hay and her favorite greens.

I've heard sugary foods like pineapple can make stasis worse. I can't remember exactly why but there's been a couple of threads about it recently.

Glad to read she's a bit better. I would avoid gassy veg such as brocolli or cabbage until she's 100% and then only feed it in very small amounts. Sounds like she could have had gas and this passed but giving her veg again may have caused more

Stick to pellets, hay and maybe some fresh herbs to tempt her to eat. Pain relief is vital though.

Hope she's ok x

William said:

Glad to hear she's better

Keeping her gut moving by keeping her active should help and keep tempting her with hay and her favorite greens.

I've heard sugary foods like pineapple can make stasis worse. I can't remember exactly why but there's been a couple of threads about it recently.

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Pineapple and papaya contain enzymes which are good for gut function and are recommended by some vets.

However, there is a little controversy around this, as sugary foods are generally not good for the rabbit gut and some people consider that the sugar in these fruits may cancel out the beneficial effects.
I have noticed more reports on the forum of pineapple & papaya being useful than not. (However, I feed it in a sugar free tablet from oxbow,, which also contains more enzyme than similar sized pieces of fruit to be on the safe side.)

I don't know what vet charges a consultation fee of $180 in Sydney, but I would seriously look for another. For a pet parrot I go to an avian specialist who chages $77 for a consultation which usually lasts from 30 minutes to an hour. I am outside Sydney and my very rabbit savvy vet in this area charges $40 for a consultation.

The RSPCA has a veterinary clinic at Yagoona.

http://www.rspcansw.org.au/vet_services/sydney_-_yagoona

I am hoping that she is starting to come out of it. She is now constantly nibbling on hay, carrot tops and celery leaves (I removed the cabbage and broccoli - thanks for that advice). I can hear quiet, gentle gurgling noises coming from her stomach which I've heard is a good sign. She is still not pooping a great deal but they are coming. She is active again and seems happier. I do think the pineapple juice helped because since then she has improved. Thank you again. It means so much when you are in stress over your darling pet, can't doing anything to help her and complete strangers offer their support and advice. This is my first time using a forum but it has given me strength to read your replies. I will do this again. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Lobo said:

I don't know what vet charges a consultation fee of $180 in Sydney, but I would seriously look for another. For a pet parrot I go to an avian specialist who chages $77 for a consultation which usually lasts from 30 minutes to an hour. I am outside Sydney and my very rabbit savvy vet in this area charges $40 for a consultation.

The RSPCA has a veterinary clinic at Yagoona.

http://www.rspcansw.org.au/vet_services/sydney_-_yagoona

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The vet I take her to is in Waterloo. Maybe it was so expensive because it was after hours, I don't know but that was the quote I was given. I will definitely contact the RSPCA at Yagoona if she doesn't improve. I just figured it was that much because she's a rabbit but obviously I was wrong. I will look elsewhere now I know how much your rabbit savvy vet charges. Thanks

Smallsam said:

The vet I take her to is in Waterloo. Maybe it was so expensive because it was after hours, I don't know but that was the quote I was given. I will definitely contact the RSPCA at Yagoona if she doesn't improve. I just figured it was that much because she's a rabbit but obviously I was wrong. I will look elsewhere now I know how much your rabbit savvy vet charges. Thanks

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I guess that vet would be Alex R. Very good vet who also specialises in birds but not the one we use even though his wife keeps the same species of parrot we have. Another excellent vet especially with rabbits is David Vella in Crows Nest.

http://www.davidvella.com.au/