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Can rabbits start eating again on their own after an episode?

kaths101

Warren Veteran
After sooty not eating her greens the other morning and me rushing her to the vets, is it possible for buns to recover or do they need the vets to get the injections they need to get their gut moving?

My OH said maybe leave it a day next time but I know how quickly buns can go down hill but I also wondered whether I should have left it a few hours to see if I could get her to eat.. I know sometimes tummy rubs help but sooty would not sit there and let me do that without losing a few fingers!
I think I panicked but I guess if you end up going to the vets anyway, it's better so go sooner rather than later! I'm not very confident in my own ability to treat at home!
Sorry I'm waffling, I hope you understand what I'm trying to say!
 
After sooty not eating her greens the other morning and me rushing her to the vets, is it possible for buns to recover or do they need the vets to get the injections they need to get their gut moving?

My OH said maybe leave it a day next time but I know how quickly buns can go down hill but I also wondered whether I should have left it a few hours to see if I could get her to eat.. I know sometimes tummy rubs help but sooty would not sit there and let me do that without losing a few fingers!
I think I panicked but I guess if you end up going to the vets anyway, it's better so go sooner rather than later! I'm not very confident in my own ability to treat at home!
Sorry I'm waffling, I hope you understand what I'm trying to say!

If it's a rare occurrence I always think it's best to get them checked by a vet.

I'm on red alert with Clover at the moment cos he's started a major moult - every spring and autumn he gets a bad tummy when he's moulting. I used to rush him to the vets straight away, but now I have metacam prescribed for use at home, he gets a dose of that, a dose of gripe water, tummy rubs off Nanny Pat and a cuddle in a warm blanket - 9 times out of ten he's eating within a couple of hours, and if he's not then he goes to the vet for a check up / gut stimulants etc.

Better safe than sorry :)
 
My bun has episodes every 4 weeks ( this has been since we got him nearly 3 years ago and he is now nearly 8 yrs old) he refuses food or drink and is obviously in discomfort ( tummy pressing and shaking). He has seen a vet almost every time:roll: and I have all the meds for tummy troubles.

He gets better himself always within 12-16 hrs and is totally normal then whether i give hm meds or not.

Next tests are urine analysis and then x ray but up to now all vets think it is stomach ache.

The advice now from my vet is I can leave him 24 hrs but if he still hasn't eaten or drunk then its emergency admission after that time, but this is only because we know he gets better himself and is well known to vet.

If its first time for your bun then I would say get to vet if not eaten or drunk or peed or pooped after 6 hrs max.

There are others on here who are mightily more experiened than me this is just whats happening with my bun.
 
I've had a few instances of lola not eating and I think she's only had to go to the vet one of them, Rambo also refused once. If I have a bun who's not eating then I try to force him/her to move around for a while and stick tasties in his/her face (mint, lemon thyme and herb robert are favourites), in my experience that's usually successful but I think I've probably caught it in the very early stages and just the movement helps their gut get back in to action. If after half an hour of trying they're not eating then I'd be calling the vet.
 
I would never consider leaving to see if they pick up themselves..... they usually dont :(
I have one bunny who regularly goes a bit "off"... doesnt eat and presents signs of tummy ache / gass
I have meds in.... so the first sign I give her meds and I can usually turn her around in a couple of hours... without the meds that wouldnt happen ...and if i didnt have them in it would have to be a vet trip. x
 
My OH said maybe leave it a day next time

They can do...but the problem is, if they don't, you've then got a seriously ill animal on your hands by the next day, which makes it far less likely that they will recover quickly and easily - if at all.

Also, if the bun is clearly in pain, I would want to go to the vet anyway even if it wasn't life threatening - because I think it's only fair that the animal gets pain relief. If I had dreadful tummy ache or toothache, for instance, I'd be wanting pain relief now even if it probably would get better on its own by the next day. Fortunately for humans we can self medicate for most things like that, but with animals we have to go to the vet to get them what they need.
 
I give mine an hour to get themselves out of it before I go to vets. I only give them an hour because Milly has a habit of refusing to eat for half an hour or so at a time if something that she doesn't approve of happens (like next door being loud).
 
[QUOTE=Santa;5909685]They can do...but the problem is, if they don't, you've then got a seriously ill animal on your hands by the next day, which makes it far less likely that they will recover quickly and easily - if at all.

Also, if the bun is clearly in pain, I would want to go to the vet anyway even if it wasn't life threatening - because I think it's only fair that the animal gets pain relief. If I had dreadful tummy ache or toothache, for instance, I'd be wanting pain relief now even if it probably would get better on its own by the next day. Fortunately for humans we can self medicate for most things like that, but with animals we have to go to the vet to get them what they need.[/QUOTE]

Totally agree :thumb:
 
I make a decision based on the bun and their history.

Faye will always stop eating when Furby needs a dental - it is weird. There would be absolutely no point taking her to be examined as for her this is 'normal'. She does go with Furby anyway and once he has come around from the dental she will start nomming again even though Furby sometimes needs syringe feeding for a day or so.

If she stopped eating and Furby didn't need a dental she would be at the vet straight away as this would be very odd for her. When Furby first became ill recently she ate far less but didn't stop altogether and now he is nomming for himself she has regained her appetite.

George will occasionally go off his food. I keep an eye on him but it doesn't last long and he never shows signs of pain. If he seems himself in every other way then I don't take him to the vet as he gets so stressed. If it continued then of course I would take him to the vet but sometimes he just doesn't seem interested in food. It has never lasted.

If any of the trio stopped eating they would be at the vet straight away as this has never happened with any of them! The same for Hovis and Frangipan.

Furby goes to the vet at the first sign of eating less as it usually means he needs a dental. I don't wait for him to stop eating altogether.

It possibly sounds like I am not taking my buns to the vet often enough but they are all different and I have got to know what is 'normal' for them. If in doubt - they go to the vet. I err on the side of caution.
 
I have in one instance left Smudge to it when he wasn't eating. The reason being was that I knew he'd eaten just an hour previous. I only left him for half an hour and when I came back he was back to normal.

I usually give them (them because it was Mini last time!) a half hour and if nothing happens I give the meds I have on standby. Then if several hours pass with no improvement we go to the vets. Since I've had the meds at home I haven't yet had to then go to the vets. A couple of times I've phoned the emergency vets for advice and each time was told that there wouldn't be much more they could do other than what I was doing anyway so taking them in would do more harm by adding to the stress.
 
Thank you, I'm glad you all got the gist of what I was getting at, I did maybe wait an hour before I took her.
My OH had the best intentions and wouldn't leave an animal in pain, he just doesn't understand bunnies all that well and how serious it can get! He also didnt see her, she did look in pain. Rolling about and looking very uncomfortable!
 
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