Dirty bum every morning

Hello, I have a rabbit who has a dirty bum every morning. She has had this problem for quite a few months, she has been on various medications and been to the vets a few times but nothing seems to work. Every morning after she has been inside for the night she has a big lump of soft poo stuck to her bum which requires washing every morning. She also does the hard small pellets in the night as well. She is outdoors in the day and comes in at night, do you think that could be a problem with the different temperatures? Her normal diet would be a smallish dish of burgess excel pellets, a piece of broccoli and apple and a handful of leaves. After researching I think it is to much to feed her every night. The last few nights she hasn't had anything except hay and some natural leaves and stuff but it hasn't helped at all she still has a very dirty bum. She is on Burgess Excel hay. I've been researching and found the Science Selective Pellets are quite popular, do you think they are any good? She is a little overweight but she can still reach her bum as I've seen her. Does anyone have any advice on what I can do and what sort of diet should I be giving her? Any advice will be appreciated. Thankyou

Hello

It would be a good idea to cut out all pellets as long as she is eating lots of hay. You may need to persevere for several days before any improvement occurs.

When you bring her in at night what sort of accommodation does she have ? Also, if she is in a centrally heated room overnight she cant then go outdoors during the day when winter arrives or when daytime temperatures are very low.

Has the Vet checked her teeth ? Dental problems can cause a Rabbit to have a mucky bum.

Getting her weight down to a healthy level is very important for her overall health. So that's another reason to cut out pellets from the diet and just feed a variety of hays and dried forage. Excel pellets in particular are known to cause some Rabbits to have a mucky bum. If you do intend to keep her on a pelleted feed then I would recommend these

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/rabbit-food-...are-plus-weight-management-formula-1kg-p-5640

I would not feed her any fruit or carrots as they contain a huge amount of sugar. If you wanted to add some fresh foods then herbs such as coriander are usually very popular.

Is she spayed ?

I agree with what Jane has already said.:thumb: Jane's advice is always excellent.

Jack's-Jane said:

Hello

It would be a good idea to cut out all pellets as long as she is eating lots of hay. You may need to persevere for several days before any improvement occurs.

When you bring her in at night what sort of accommodation does she have ? Also, if she is in a centrally heated room overnight she cant then go outdoors during the day when winter arrives or when daytime temperatures are very low.

Has the Vet checked her teeth ? Dental problems can cause a Rabbit to have a mucky bum.

Getting her weight down to a healthy level is very important for her overall health. So that's another reason to cut out pellets from the diet and just feed a variety of hays and dried forage. Excel pellets in particular are known to cause some Rabbits to have a mucky bum. If you do intend to keep her on a pelleted feed then I would recommend these

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/rabbit-food-...are-plus-weight-management-formula-1kg-p-5640

I would not feed her any fruit or carrots as they contain a huge amount of sugar. If you wanted to add some fresh foods then herbs such as coriander are usually very popular.

Is she spayed ?

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Hello. Thank you for you're reply. She isn't in any sort of heated room at the minute it doesn't get very hot in where she sleeps. Yes the vet has checked her teeth recently and they are fine it wasn't to long ago since her teeth were filed down. Yes she is spayed. Is there any other food which is low on sugar which I could give her?? Thankyou

Oliva said:

Hello. Thank you for you're reply. She isn't in any sort of heated room at the minute it doesn't get very hot in where she sleeps. Yes the vet has checked her teeth recently and they are fine it wasn't to long ago since her teeth were filed down. Yes she is spayed. Is there any other food which is low on sugar which I could give her?? Thankyou

Click to expand...

Is she a good hay eater ?

Hay, hay and more hay is the best diet. There are a huge selection of hays available :

http://www.thehayexperts.co.uk/edibles/hay-grasses.html

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/hay_and_bedding/hay_small_pets/186137

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/hay_and_bedding/hay_small_pets/229216

Then there are dried forages and herbs :

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/snacks_supplements/natural_plant_snacks/herbs/301238

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/snacks_supplements/natural_plant_snacks/herbs/301187

http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/small_pets/snacks_supplements/natural_plant_snacks/herbs/13321

For now I would stick with just Fresh Herbs if you want her to have fresh food. Herbs are gentler on the digestive tract than Vegetables. Just try coriander to start with. I have found that even Rabbits with extremely sensitive GI tracts cope OK with coriander

You could also give her some Fibreplex for 3-5 days, it is a pre/probiotic paste with added fibre

http://www.animeddirect.co.uk/protexin-fibreplex-for-rabbits-15ml-syringe.html

As already mentioned, if you do still want to give her a hard feed I'd recommend this:

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/rabbit-food-...are-plus-weight-management-formula-1kg-p-5640

I have no advice i'm afraid but can sympathise, my previous bun Poppy had this issue all her life, i went through a period of changing her diet etc to try & rectify the issue but in the end just learnt to live with it as nothing worked. My bun wouldnt eat hay for love nor money, she would rather starve, she was also a dental bun.

I hope u get the issue resolved, i know how unpleasent it can be, the hours I spent scrubbing floors-yuk!!