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Urine scald- self medication or vet needed?

B

BrummieEm

Young Bun
Hi everyone,
My lop /dwarf cross bunny recently recovered from fly strike - three nights in the vets and loads of tlc at home since. She was outside with another bun but since the fs she's spent time in a large plastic hutch indoors. She's always been a messy bunny and poor at cleaning herself which probably contributed to fs so since then she's not been having greens (as seemed to give her runny poos and awful bum) and I've not been using sawdust in her litter tray just kitchen roll as sawdust would get all stuck in her bum / poo as well. I've been keeping her hutch really clean but noticed tonight that her fur is going/ totally gone around her genitals and back of feet. My heart sank thinking she'd got FS again but no sign of anything and have been spraying her. She's really energetic still but what can I do? If I go yo vets it may be a short term solution. I've bathed her botty this evening and put sawdust in her tray. I saw somewhere about using sudocrem? Is there anything I can do or is it a vet trip? I feel totally useless bunny mummy after the fs and now this :(
Thanks in advance
 
I would take her to the vets. There could be something underlying that is causing the scalding, like a urinary tract infection or similar.

Bathing her to clean her up is fine, but make sure not to get her too wet, even washing with a damp cloth is good.

I used Sudocrem on Inca and found that it worked well. Just a thin layer.

I also found it good to just pat Inca dry with a dry towel / kitchen roll, I did this every so often throughout the day and it helped keep the urine from her skin.
 
Thanks kermit. I just washed her using a damp kitchen roll and dried using same.
I think it's through sitting in her litter tray with just kitchen roll - you can't do right for doing wrong. Maybe I need something more absorbent like puppy training pads or something.
I'll pop some sudacrem on and make a vets appointment
 
A lot of people use the puppy pads so that could work well.

I use wood pellet litter in my trays which doesnt really stick like the sawdust does. There are other litter alternatives such as Megazorb and fitch that are both meant to be good.
 
It sounds like it's possible she's got something underlying and that may be why she got they flystrike to start with. I imagine the vets treated that as an emergency but she may now need to go back for a little more investigation into why she's not staying clean and dry.

In terms of nursing, a damp cloth to clean her up a couple of times a day, dry her off and they applying a thin layer of sudecreme or vasline will help stop her getting sore. I'd suggest paper or wood based non clumping cat litter for the tray, it's super absorbent and because it's pellets it won't stick like the wood shavings do.

Looking at her diet may help if she's got an issue with poop still, particularly if the changes so far have made a difference - what's she eating?
 
She's not getting as messy as she did before but can be very hit and miss. She has hay and pellets and that's it. She's over five now and I've always been cleaning her up but when she was on greens I'd be faced with massive clumps of poo which would be a nightmare to remove. I don't have that anymore at least but it is a bit soft at times.
I will clean her again in the morning with a damp cloth and apply some sudocrem.
I think she's just very lazy! She's definitely eating and drinking and moving about at speed!!
 
Sorry to hear this, especially when you've had so much going on with flystrike.

I agree with cleaning her up. Damp cloths don't really do it for me, and I find I have to give a butt bath in one inch of water. Dry as best as possible. Neither do I like sudocrem, as it's not really meant to be eaten :shock: However, I know vets use it a lot, and recommend it.

With urine scald, I would take her to the vet if it continues more than a day or two, as there could be an infection there. Can she clean herself up OK?

Re the sawdust, I don't use it - it surely also gets stuck onto her damp fur?
 
How will I know if it's getting better? Less red and hair re growth?
I'll try the cat litter.
She's never been great at cleaning but she does have a go.
Thanks for your response.
 
I would definitely take her to the vets to see what the problem is and also to get her shaved around that area. Doughnut was wet for about a year, we didn't know why and it was because she was constipated. I got her totally shaved as the wet fur pulls on her skin and when she was shaved you could see little nicks on her where it had pull. Like someone pulling your hair. It will also be easier to keep your rabbit clean. They didn't put sudocream on but gave her a soothing bum bath and leg bath. I can't remember the lotion they put in the bath or what they gave me.
 
Ah let's see a photo. I also wouldn't use sawdust, some bunnies can have respiratory issues with it. I line Doughnuts litter tray with newspaper and then put the recycled paper cat litter pellets down. These wouldn't stick to your bunnies bum!
 
BrummieEm said:
How will I know if it's getting better? Less red and hair re growth?
I'll try the cat litter.
She's never been great at cleaning but she does have a go.
Thanks for your response.
Click to expand...

If you wash and dry her, then you'll know when she gets wet again. The skin will look red and angry.

I would find out the reason why she doesn't clean herself properly. Has she some arthritis or spine disorder?
 
Yes will definitely get some. I think it's my fault for just using kitchen roll although been changing 3-4 times a day. Was just trying yo do right thing and messed up. Argh!
 
MightyMax said:
If you wash and dry her, then you'll know when she gets wet again. The skin will look red and angry.

I would find out the reason why she doesn't clean herself properly. Has she some arthritis or spine disorder?
Click to expand...

No she had full check up at vets when she had fly strike which has a couple of months ago. She moves with no problem at all. I think she's lazy
 
I do agree with mightymax most rabbits are clean so there may be an issue. Doughnut seems to always be cleaning herself. Kitchen roll is absorbent enough. The recycled litter pellets are good. Don't blame yourself we've all made mistakes with our rabbits and have to find what rights for them. A big bag is £6.15 I think so it will be cheaper than all that kitchen towel :)
 
BrummieEm said:
No she had full check up at vets when she had fly strike which has a couple of months ago. She moves with no problem at all. I think she's lazy
Click to expand...

I can imagine a healthy bun getting fly strike if fed too much protein and getting a sticky bottom. However, urine scald is a different issue. Either the sawdust she was sitting in was making her fur wet, or she has an infection or bladder sludge.

Rabbits are not normally lazy about cleanliness. There's a reason they are dirty, as it's just not their nature. Please don't think it's because she's lazy!
 
Ha ha ... Yes I think I've spent a small fortune on the stuff. Thanks for all your help.
Having issues uploading a pic btw!!
 
Oh well hope to see them soon. Anyway see what the vet says and also change the litter and see what happens. Good luck and let us know.
 
I think it's because she s been sitting in the litter tray which has only had kitchen roll in. I haven't used sawdust since she had fly strike.
She does clean herself but doesn't seem to do the best of jobs or as much as my other rabbit. Things are definitely much improved since cutting out greens apart from this wetness issue now.
 
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