bisc - teeth,tummy,spondylosis diary - fibafirst +readigrass!

after seeming really happy, being all hoppy and energetic, he suddenly seemed in discomfort and generally run down. this was followed by a snuffle flare up and reduced eating. so off we went to the vets for a thorough check over.

he's either bruised and hurt his lower back as a result of being energetic (he jumped onto his wooden bridge and seemed to land awkwardly), or he has/is developing spondylosis (this was suspected over a year ago and checked via xray during other tests but there was nothing visible but it could have started by now but not 100%). his back end seemed 'trembly' to me. the vet felt his spine and there is a very tender part on bisc's lower spine in the exact place i thought there would be a problem. so he's now on higher metacam - 1.5ml 2x a daty for 7days, 1ml 2x a day for 7days, and then back to 0.5ml 2x a day and see where we're at then. he may need it higher or we may have to increase it and do this metacam routine regularly during times he is more stiff.

this would tie in with the other symptoms he has been having which is generally being not 100%, not being completely clean underneath, and not being able to get comfy when urinating which may have led to the uti's he seems prone to.

his tummy is a bit gassy from the stress and he's the most snuffly he's been in ages and i've had to start nebulising him again. this seems to be due to being run down and for bisc to be this snuffly, i knew something was really upsetting him.

it also explains why he is suddenly really bright and happy, and then suddenly quiet and in discomfort. he probably feels sore after running and jumping.

teeth were checked and are fine for now so that doesn't seem to be the cause.

the vet also expressed some of the wax in bisc's ear whilst we were there. i'd been trying but obviously hadn't been doing it hard enough. i think his ear may have been annoying him aswell. but if anyone saw my other thread... the lump is definitely not an abscess but obviously we need to get this wax out and we don't want to resort to him having to stay in etc.

i think that was it.. :?... oh, we went through his sore hock routine as that has chnaged. now we do nothing unless they crack. if they do crack, we have to use savlon liquid (1:7 with water) to bathe them, and then anusol cream to apply.

bisc has lost a bit of weight. he's down at 2.23kg so a sign something is bothering him. previous weight was 2.27kg, ideal weigh 2.3kg.

he was stressed on the way there, but always looks much happier on the way home again. so hopefully he will start to feel better again soon.

sorry for the essay!

Poor lad I hope the increase in his Metacam dose will keep him more comfortable.

I always thought that Savlon Liquid was toxic to Rabbits, I know it is to cats as it contains Benzalkonium Chloride.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/forums/16/speakers-corner/298104/alert--savlon-disinfectant-liquid/

http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB...sidue_Limits_-_Report/2009/11/WC500010967.pdf

:?

Jack's-Jane said:

Poor lad I hope the increase in his Metacam dose will keep him more comfortable.

I always thought that Savlon Liquid was toxic to Rabbits, I know it is to cats as it contains Benzalkonium Chloride.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/forums/16/speakers-corner/298104/alert--savlon-disinfectant-liquid/

http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB...sidue_Limits_-_Report/2009/11/WC500010967.pdf

:?

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thanks. he always seems happier when we realise what has been bothering him. like he's been trying to tell us and we have finally understood! hopefully he will feel more comfortable now and get back to his happier self. spondylosis makes sense with all his symptoms, although he could have really bruised himself when he jumped on his hut. he seemed to misjudge it and landed quite awkwardly. i can't remember the exact term the vet used, but something about muscle spasm in one area there.

i didn't know that about the savlon so will ask again should we have to use it for bisc. it would only be when/if his heels really split and crack so i'm hoping we won't have to. he has three small patches now sore hock wise, whereas he used to have one. one is more on the back of his heel. the other two on the base of his heel.

anyway, hopefully things will settle down again for him again now. although i have to be tougher with getting the wax out his ear and he didn't like the vet doing it too much so that will be fun! but better than an infection and abscess i've told him!

x

Sending millions and millions of vibes to Bisc. Xxx

Sorry to hear you're a bit poorly Bisc, hope you will be feeling better soon sweetheart xxxxx

His ears may be getting more gunky due to his sore back. Rabbits with any sort of mobility problem effecting their back end often get gunky ears as they are less able to groom themselves.

If you wanted to consider an alternative to Savlon should the need arise then F10 antiseptic solution is very good. It can also be used in a nebuliser for 'Snuffles'

http://www.f10products.co.uk/F10H257v3/F10H257AS/index.html


As is the F1O Barrier Ointment

http://www.f10products.co.uk/F10H257v3/F10H257GBO/index.html


I use them for Lydia's sore hocks.

Barn Yard Bunnies said:

Sending millions and millions of vibes to Bisc. Xxx

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Pets mum said:

Sorry to hear you're a bit poorly Bisc, hope you will be feeling better soon sweetheart xxxxx

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thanks both. he already seems a bit happier now and is eating a bit more. and i hope once his tummy settles back down again and the higher metacam kicks in, he will feel alot better x

Jack's-Jane said:

His ears may be getting more gunky due to his sore back. Rabbits with any sort of mobility problem effecting their back end often get gunky ears as they are less able to groom themselves.

If you wanted to consider an alternative to Savlon should the need arise then F10 antiseptic solution is very good. It can also be used in a nebuliser for 'Snuffles'

http://www.f10products.co.uk/F10H257v3/F10H257AS/index.html


As is the F1O Barrier Ointment

http://www.f10products.co.uk/F10H257v3/F10H257GBO/index.html


I use them for Lydia's sore hocks.

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thanks for this. will definitely double check about the savlon before using it. i'm hoping bisc's heels won't become that bad that we need to use something alot stronger, but we'll see. vet said i could also stick to bathing them as i have been so i'll do that for now.

i did wonder if bisc couldn't reach that ear very well, or whether it was just a lop thing. he's been shaking his head and picking his ear quite a bit the last couple of hours, so think the vet dislodged quite a bit. it's so thick though so needs quite a bit of pressure to shift it.

thank you for the info :wave:

Poor bisc - hope he's feeling better soon

dumblepaws said:

Poor bisc - hope he's feeling better soon

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thank you.

he's quiet again but usually is for a day or so after the vets.

he just seems a bit run down but i'm keeping a very close eye on him of course. x

Sending vibes to him, hope he's feeling better soon :thumb:

Wow...sounds so much like Mimzy. He had early onset arthritis at three, so he's been on metacam for that long. He's now 8. Somewhere halfway between those two ages his doc diagnosed him with spondylosis and hip spurs. He's one gimpy boy but when he's had his pain relief you wouldn't know it! :roll: The trick is keeping him comfy, but not having him bomb about like a loon and pay for it afterwards.
Sending all the vibes I've got to Bisc that he will feel better soon. I can identify with having a bad back, poor bub, it's the worst, isn't it, buddy?

Jack's-Jane is right about the connection between the gunky ears any back problems. My bunny has arthritis in his back, and gets Medicam daily. Last week I had to clean his ears. He hated it, yet forgave me within an hour. I used a small drop of oil to dislodge the wax better.

I am so glad you have a diagnosis.

thanks for the replies. bisc is confusing me a bit. he's quiet but wanted to go outside yesterday. he grazed on some grass and tried to do some little binkies which showed how stiff his back end is. they were a bit odd! so he's feeling ok if he wants to binky but then he's quiet aswell and not eating as he should be.

the thing that is confusing me is that he doesn't want any hay or pellets. tiny amounts but he just wants a bit of grass then normal amounts dandelions, fresh thyme, and dried coltsfoot and his profibre.so he's been having what he wants to keep him going, but i'm concerned about the lack of hay. so either his teeth are starting afterall or he can't smell much apart from the strong smelling foods that he wants. poops are still smaller than they should be, and not as many as there should be either, although the vet thinks they should pick up again once he feels in less discomfort and is able to pass all the gas he had. basically his tummy may need to gradually settle and get back to normal.

he's resting quite alot but he's bright-ish. he never normally does much except sleep through the whole middle of the day so i never really know how he is until the evening. last night he seemed himself from the evening onwards.

just realised aswell that i forgot to get some saline from the vets. i have a different one to normal, just a normal saline. when i need the hypertonic 7.2% one, which matt always had. so i need to order that and will also update them about his eating and whether he may need something else to help his tummy. it was very gurgly when we went to the vets but i can't hear much gurgling now.

so we're just taking it a bit at a time for now, but i'll update the vet again tomorrow and see whether we keep going like this for a bit, or whether we should give him something else. i know it will take time for any swelling to come down on his back. it was very trembly yesterday, like a muscle spasm type movement. so i think the muscles there are quite tight and stiff. i've been warming my hands and placing them onto that area and he seems to really like that. we're also giving him lots of reassurance aswell and lots of love and attention as always

he's brightened up loads this afternoon and evening up and about more, eating more, and his movement already seems to have improved. in his face and eyes he looks brighter aswell

That's great news that he's a bit perkier, poor little chap, you just want to take it away for them don't you ? Hope you feel better soon Bisc xxxxxx

Pass us some Metacam Bisc, it is obviously what I need for my creaky back !!

Glad he is a lot brighter now L

i would definitely take it away from him if i could. the metacam is definitely helping, and he loves having more (metacam junkie!)

he's still not eating enough hay, but he's back to eating most of his pellets now, and some pure timothy hay pellets which i'm pleased about because then at least he's getting fibre that way. but if he doesn't start eating hay properly soon then i'm worried he will end up needing a dental. although he is eating small amounts of grass so that's something. he is still quite sneezy and snuffly so think he is being picky because of that, and wanting the strong smelling foods.

one thing that keeps making me panic is his random 'twitching' (not sure what word to use)... it's like a muscle spasm on his back end. not sure if it's good or bad, and whether it's the muscles loosening, or it's bad and hurts him. he dreams alot anyway and twitches in his sleep, but this seems to last a bit longer.

poops wise.. there are still not as many as there should be. i'd say they are a tiny bit bigger than they were though. his urine is quite dark aswell. the vet wants to look into a potential bladder issue next as bisc is prone to these and hid one extremely well last year. aswell as looking more deeply into all the other symptoms. it's strange because he's had these in-depth tests twice now and nothing ever shows. but obviously something might by now so we'll have to do all that next if he doesn't seem to improve.

x

ooh... i forgot to say... last night when bisc was washing, he twisted so far round to clean. o/h and i couldn't believe how far and it made it so obvious to us that he hadn't been able to do that for a while. so it definitely seems to point towards his issue being movement. when the vet gently pressed on that area of his back, bisc would jump.

gradually eating more hay now. and 3x the amount of poops when i changed the tray :thumb: he seems to be sneezing less, although around his nose is still damp. but he does seem brighter than he was, and improving gradually each day.