Dirty bum, don't known what to do

Hi,

Never posted here before, and hi to everyone. TBH I just sought out the first rabbit forum I could find.

I have a 1 and a half year old very fluffy lion head rabbit, who's the first rabbit I've cared for. I'm a lot happier in terms of knowledge dealing with rats!

He really HATES being picked up and kicks, which worries me as I don't want to hurt him and I know it can lead to spinal problems that can be very serious...

However I do pick him up to examine him, clip his nails etc, and I've noticed that he gets poop encrusted in his bum sometimes. I use a damp cloth to try to clean it, cut out pieces that are stuck in his fur, but sometimes there is poop in parts of his bum, and today I saw what I thought might be a slight abrasion.

I'm really worried about him. He's a rescue rabbit and I love him very very much. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to him.

I'm going to take him to a vet as soon as I can, but is there any general advice about this subject?

I've read lots of online health stuff and never come across this problem, so I don't really know what I should and shouldn't be doing.

Thanks in advance for all your help

Barry & Ghibli

Hello

There are quite a few reasons as to why a Rabbit may have a mucky bum. Top of the list is usually a dietary problem. A Rabbit fed too much protein/carbohydrates (pellets/muesli type mix) and not enough long fibre (hay) will often not eat all their cecotrophs (the soft feces a Rabbit should eat directly from his/her anus). Other problems that can be involved if a Rabbit keeps getting a messy bum are Dental problems (which again can be traced back to an inappropriate diet), mobility problems such as arthritis or obesity and stress such as the frequent presence of a predator, bullying from any Rabbit companions, lack of space etc.

So could you let us know the exact diet you feed your Rabbit, both food types and quantities.

Is your Rabbit neutered ?

agree with above post. I used to have a rabbit fed on Rabbit royale mix and would give a massive bowl full per day- it made her overweight and she was really mucky round her bum. i have since learnt much more about rabbits diet! I now feed mainnly fresh hay and only a small palm full of Burgess excell pellets per day. and veg now and then, but not so much carrot or fruit as the sugar content can cause mucky poos too. all the best!

Agree with the above posts. Diet is very important for rabbits.
I have two lionhead x rabbits, both are very fluffy. For these fluffy breeds it is important to brush them too. So I would recommend to slowly introduce regular grooming

NewStreetPhoto said:

Hi,

Never posted here before, and hi to everyone. TBH I just sought out the first rabbit forum I could find.

I have a 1 and a half year old very fluffy lion head rabbit, who's the first rabbit I've cared for. I'm a lot happier in terms of knowledge dealing with rats!

He really HATES being picked up and kicks, which worries me as I don't want to hurt him and I know it can lead to spinal problems that can be very serious...

However I do pick him up to examine him, clip his nails etc, and I've noticed that he gets poop encrusted in his bum sometimes. I use a damp cloth to try to clean it, cut out pieces that are stuck in his fur, but sometimes there is poop in parts of his bum, and today I saw what I thought might be a slight abrasion.

I'm really worried about him. He's a rescue rabbit and I love him very very much. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to him.

I'm going to take him to a vet as soon as I can, but is there any general advice about this subject?

I've read lots of online health stuff and never come across this problem, so I don't really know what I should and shouldn't be doing.

Thanks in advance for all your help

Barry & Ghibli

Click to expand...

Depending upon the age of your rabbit, the usual cause of a mucky bum is feeding too much dried food. An older bunny with arthritis can pose the same problem, with not being able to reach round to eat their soft poos.

Too much dietary protein will mean the bun doesn't feel the need to eat the soft poos which they must ingest to complete their vitamin B profile. Cutting down on dried food and introducing more tasty hay or readigrass may be a first step forward in your case :thumb:

FloLo said:

Agree with the above posts. Diet is very important for rabbits.
I have two lionhead x rabbits, both are very fluffy. For these fluffy breeds it is important to brush them too. So I would recommend to slowly introduce regular grooming

Click to expand...

That's certainly good advice. It can sometimes be necessary to have the very long fluff clipped off.

Jack's-Jane said:

Hello

There are quite a few reasons as to why a Rabbit may have a mucky bum. Top of the list is usually a dietary problem. A Rabbit fed too much protein/carbohydrates (pellets/muesli type mix) and not enough long fibre (hay) will often not eat all their cecotrophs (the soft feces a Rabbit should eat directly from his/her anus). Other problems that can be involved if a Rabbit keeps getting a messy bum are Dental problems (which again can be traced back to an inappropriate diet), mobility problems such as arthritis or obesity and stress such as the frequent presence of a predator, bullying from any Rabbit companions, lack of space etc.

So could you let us know the exact diet you feed your Rabbit, both food types and quantities.

Is your Rabbit neutered ?

Click to expand...

He's a rescue rabbit who's around 3 [I should have said that we've had him for a year and a half] years old now. He eats a handful of veg twice a day, lots of fresh hay, and absolutely no pellets or musli. He's not caged, and has free run of the living room 24/7 256 days a year which has been bunny proofed. We try to enrich his environment with tunnels and toys but he's reluctant to play, except with one toy. A small ball that he like tossing in the air, and bally, which is and wicker bally filled with dried hurts and grass clippings. He often prefers hay to veggies, and he's a good weight [you can feel his ribs and spine when you stroke him] so he's not obese. He gets excise and runs around a lot, though he hasn't binkied for a while which bothers me! He is very shy, and since we got him I've found it difficult to bond with him. He tends to have periods where he gets close to me, then backs off for a while, and that also bothers me. I don't know his previous history, but he seems to have a fear of brooms and often gets aggressive with my girlfriend when she tries to feed him, or sits in places that I sit when I give him treats. I don't know what else to say! Generally he's pretty self sufficient, but he appears to be happy. He often lounges with his body fully outstretched, and relaxed. He has fresh hay in his pen [which I only go into to clean] and on his lit tray [which he sits in for some reason. He's also my first rabbit. There's some more info on him on his website

https://ghiblitherabbit.wordpress.com

You are not feeding actual grass clippings from a lawn mower are you?
Also where is he for the 109 days he's not free range in your living room?

tabithakat64 said:

You are not feeding actual grass clippings from a lawn mower are you?
Also where is he for the 109 days he's not free range in your living room?

Click to expand...

No, it's ready grass that we buy from the hungry horse [animal feed company] along with his hay, some dried herbs, and he's always in my living room. I'm just dislexic!

i would perhaps try halving the amount of veg. My boy bunny charlie gets mucky poos if he has veg every day as he has a sensitive tummy. sometimes i have to cut all veg out until his poos go to normal then introduce a small amount back again.

lucy24 said:

i would perhaps try halving the amount of veg. My boy bunny charlie gets mucky poos if he has veg every day as he has a sensitive tummy. sometimes i have to cut all veg out until his poos go to normal then introduce a small amount back again.

Click to expand...

Probably wouldn't be very popular, but it's the best idea that I've heard so far. I've been slowly reducing the amount of veggies he gets [target of one handful a day] to see if that makes any difference. The other thing I didn't mention [but is obvious from the photographs if you saw his website] is that he has long hair. Is it possible that he's cleaning himself, and the hair is ingesting his stomach?

I'll cut down his veg to a handful a day and keep and eye on him. Thank you for the advice, it's most welcome



There's a photo of him

not sure about the hair but he is GORGEOUS! just had to say! it might be cos he has long hair its harder for him to clean his rear end perhaps? just a guess though as ive not had a fluffy bun before. see how her goes and keep us updated!

Oh my, he's adorable

How much readigrass does he get? Readigrass is extremely rich and can cause excess caecatrophs like you describe. I'd have thought that was more likely to be the culprit than the vegetables as it's much more concentrated.

Good luck with your little lad

lucy24 said:

not sure about the hair but he is GORGEOUS! just had to say! it might be cos he has long hair its harder for him to clean his rear end perhaps? just a guess though as ive not had a fluffy bun before. see how her goes and keep us updated!

Click to expand...

Will do, and he is really beautiful. I love him so much. [he has his own blog http://ghiblitherabbit.wordpress.com]. The other thing is that he's an only bunny [he always has been, even before being rescued], and he seems to have bonded to me, but not to Alice [who's my fiancee]. That would be fine, but I'm bipolar, and I worry that he's being effected by my mood swings. He gets ridiculously jealous of Alice when she is here, but he fine when we are apart and she's with him. However if she tries to feed him sitting on the cushion that I sit on when I give him treats he growls at her. I'm a photographer, so I'm at home a lot and I spend the most time with him. The big problem is I'm also bipolar, and when I go through a manic spell I spend most of my time working on new projects. I plan time for him, but when I'm down he gets lavished with ridiculous amounts of affection which are totally out of proportion to periods where I'm immersed in work. I'm wondering if this hasn't played a part in things. He gets very demanding, like he'll grunt and stamp his feet if he wants affection and isn't getting it, but I love him, so I give him it. Could it be emotional?

Thanks again for your help...

Barry

Ok, he loves the stuff. Maybe half to a quarter handful a day. It makes up the base layer in Bally I'll cut him back, I'm going to be very unpopular :-(

And he's already sulking with.me because I'm having to work a lot at the moment :-(

P.S Thank you very much for helping with this. I've been worried sick about him. Also feel free to tell me about your bunny and put pics up. I love bunnies, there my new favourite pet now

Hi there :wave: I agree with the others, he's gorgeous!

One thing to try is to slowly introduce forage (dandelion, plantain, nettle etc) and replace the veg with that. My bun had the same problem as yours and I've found that ditching the veg and giving her forage made a massive difference and she very rarely gets a messy bottom now. I think most buns like forage so hopefully he won't sulk too much at having less veg.

Forage? Like nettles and brambles and other foraged stuff. I've been meaning to go pick some for him for a while, but I'm still unsure what to get him. I know that nettles are safe, and the woman at the rescue place told me they can eat brambles, but that's as far as I know. If it's going to help I love to give it a go. Is there a resource on the Internet that particularly useful?

Thanks in advance for all the help

I should say that he mainly gets fresh herbs. I kind of lump it all together, but it's real about a third veg and two third herbs...