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Loads and LOADS of water.

Hele

Warren Veteran
Not sure whether to put this here or in health... so guessing!

I have 2 baby buns, I think mini lops or lops, about 10/11 weeks old and who live indoors (the heating is off).

They have always drunk a lot of water and for the first few days I thought I was filling their bottle up a lot. Now I have moved them into their larger house they have a bowl, one of those topsy turvy self filling ones that holds 600ml. I change it every morning and evening, which I would do anyway but it's always almost empty!!!

They are going to the vet later in the week anyway (as I've been a bad owner and had to pay for a sick car and they still need their jabs :oops:) but does anyone think that there may be a problem? It seems to be mostly Thor doing all the drinking, their wee looks normal and does not smell, though there is a lot of it! They also only get minimum veg as more of a treat, handfed thing. But still I have never had a pet that could drink 600ml in 12 hours!!!

Getting a bit nervy really.
 
There are a few reasons why a Baby Rabbit may drink a lot, so I would discuss it in full with the Vet before any vaccinations are given. Sometimes it can be behavioural and resolves after a few weeks. But it can also indicate a health problem.

Good Luck
 
There are a few reasons why a Baby Rabbit may drink a lot, so I would discuss it in full with the Vet before any vaccinations are given. Sometimes it can be behavioural and resolves after a few weeks. But it can also indicate a health problem.

Good Luck



Thanks, I will discuss it, I've already got the sneezy one to discuss before he goes anywhere near them with a needle :roll: though the sneezing is very very mild thank goodness.

What sort of health problems? I lost my first rabbit to kidney stones so kidney stuff jumps to mind... I just prefer going to the vet with a basic idea of what might be going on. I find their ideas and diagnosis are easier to follow that way!
 
Really it probably wont be helpful to speculate as to what, if anything, may be wrong. Drinking a lot as a stand alone symptom could appear to point towards lots of things.

Far better to get the Vet to obtain a full picture after a thorough examination. As one Bun is sneezey it could well be that there is a bacterial infection going on. Rabbits do sometimes drink a lot when incubating a bacterial disease, almost as if they are trying to flush it out of their system.

But as I said before, it could be behavioural. I have had a litter of hand reared baby Rabbits who all drank copious amounts of water after they were weaned. No health problems were found and eventually their water intake reduced to normal. I think they just found the act of lapping water from a bowl comforting,the way the did with the Goats Milk they were reared on. For them the excessive water intake was behavioural.
 
We had a period, not long after the lops moved from one room into my bedroom, where they would drink and drink and drink. They were drinking around about 1.5L a day between them. Took them to the vets who did urine tests which were clear. One vet thought he saw spurs on Mischa's teeth so he had a dental just in case and not much was found.

I think it was just warmer in my room and they drank more to compensate. It settled out after that and now they drink about 500ml between them a day. Plus I'd started buying baled hay which they much preferred so they were also eating more dry food which made them thirstier.

But as Jane says there are lots of possible illnesses it could be a symptom of so it's best to get them checked out thoroughly by someone who knows what they are doing.
 
Best of luck with the bunnies. :thumb:

I hope that there is nothing sinister regarding they're drinking alot of water.
 
My two will drink over 2 litres in a day sometimes, its not Annabelle, its Barney, he drinks so much, at least 1500ml of that is him. Unfortunately we havent been able to find a proper cause, but he has a few things up with him and he's not what you'd call healthy. I had his kidney function tested to rule out problems in that area.
 
Thanks guys, hearing that other rabbits also drink that sort of amount a day is very helpful. They do only get dry food, and very very small amounts of herbs/veggies which is possibly a contributory factor here! They are at the vets this evening so hopefully they will get a clean bill of health!!!

I'm not too worried about Loki sneezing, he tends to do it whilst he has his nose stuck in hay or just after he's eaten, even though they have lovely, fresh, long stranded and non dusty hay! :roll:


Sorry for not responding quickly.... still have not worked out if you can get notifications of responses so unless I see it at the top of the 'new posts' page I tend to miss things :oops:
 
At the top of the thread, click the thread tools button and choose subsections to thread. Them you will get notifications.

How the vet visit goes well.
 
Thanks guys, the vet was supremely unbothered, listened to my worries asked all the right questions, was checking them out from the moment I got in there to make sure I knew how to look after them and compared Loki to a box of chocolates. :love::love::love:

So all in all the buns are nice and healthy and the amount of water seems to not be an issue I just need to watch them. She checked Loki out for sneezing but when I said he has been doing so for over a week now and shows no other signs of ill health and it seems to be linked to when he is eating hay she told me that it is most likely dust but to watch him.

They have also had nasty needles stuck in them and so are nice and safe now, but Loki may have a slight complex as Thor was a male no questions there but she wanted to double check with Loki so we had them both upside down and compared them!!! :roll: :lol::lol:
 
Glad to hear it went well. Keep an eye out for runny eyes, damp noses, or grubby paws that may indicate snuffles. Dustfreehay is meant to be good if you hay that isnt dusty.

Also, just checking, as they are boys, that you know to have them neutered as soon as their balls drop to stop them falling out when they hit puberty :wave:
 
Yep, thanks, they are provisionally booked in to be 'done' as soon as they are 5 months old unless there is any fighting in which case the vet is happy to do it earlier!

They were all sleepy after their jabs, but I think Loki has woken up. BIGGEST BINKY EVER :shock::love::love::love:
 
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