Bunny becomes listless

Hi,

My bunny is Bentley, about 7 1/2 years old. Three times in the past month, I have found laying flat on his belly, with no energy. Within 30-60 minutes, he gets his energy back. The first time we took him to a Vetanarian, but by the time she was able to see him, Bentley was fine.

Does anyone have any suggestions about what I can give him (vitamins, pills...) to prevent this from happening again?

I am 12 years old, and Bentley is my favorite pet!

Sam

I'm not sure,is bunny eating,pooing normally? Sounds like gut problems ,buns stretch out if uncomfortable etc.Maybe a more savvy vet is needed.

SamKaz said:

Hi,

My bunny is Bentley, about 7 1/2 years old. Three times in the past month, I have found laying flat on his belly, with no energy. Within 30-60 minutes, he gets his energy back. The first time we took him to a Vetanarian, but by the time she was able to see him, Bentley was fine.

Does anyone have any suggestions about what I can give him (vitamins, pills...) to prevent this from happening again?

I am 12 years old, and Bentley is my favorite pet!

Sam

Click to expand...

Hello Sam

It is hard to say what, if anything, may be wrong with Bentley as the behaviour you describe could be completely normal for a resting Rabbit. A Rabbit who is not well and/or in pain is likely to stop eating, they may sit all hunched up.

You say that Bentley lay down flat on his belly- 'belly pressing' where a Rabbit is restless, stretches a lot and keeps pressing their belly to the floor usually indicates abdominal pain. But then again a relaxed Rabbit may lay stretched out on the floor, often with their hind legs stretched out behind them.

So without actually being able to see what Bentley has been doing it is not really possible to say what is/was going on. Well done for taking him to the Vet though, that is always the best option when we have any concerns about the health of our Rabbit. If you could video Bentley if/when he has another 'episode' this could be useful to show the Vet.

At the moment I'd just keep a close eye on him, especially on exactly how much he is eating and if there is any change in his poo output. Also, observe him as he hops about to see if he appears a bit stiff in his back/hips. Arthritis is not an unusual finding in Rabbits as they reach 7-8 years of age. If he did have a bit of age related arthritis this could cause him to feel intermittently sore and so not wanting to move about much.