My Bertie bun is 12/13 years of age, he's a house bun and is a very lively and happy bun. He does like his rest and sleep after a lively 1/2 hour. He eats like a horse but with being elderly struggles to keep the weight on him, he's not skinny by no means but I do have to monitor his weight. One thing he does do, when he wakes up after sleep he really stretches his back Paws and it's not always after his nap. I'm positive he's not in any pain but he does seem like he's stretching those old bones. A lot of his poops are good hay poops but he does leave a lot of poops that he should be eating, is there anything anyone can suggest? I'm aware he could have athritus but is there anything that a vet can give him?. His eye sight isn't brilliant anymore so I know taking him to the vet would stress him out terribly.
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Caring for an elderly bun
- Thread starter karen354
- Start date
MightyMax
Banned
Is Bertie an only bun? That makes losing his eyesight and vet visits a bit more difficult for him but not impossible!
Maybe your vet could give you some metacam to use when you think he may be stiff? I think that stretching the back legs is normal, especially for our older bunnies, and so long as they can hop and stretch, I think they are doing really well!
I have looked after rabbits who have got to that age, what an honour and a privilege it is
I think you have to accept that if you give him a bit extra food to keep his weight up, he's going to leave a few cecals lying around now and again. Just make sure he keeps his back end clean and tidy (or help him ).Heat is good, and a heated pad sometimes helps when the weather is cold, or even not so cold
Jack's-Jane
Wise Old Thumper
Hello, Bertie may have a bit of arthritis in his spine which may be causing him some stiffness. Elderly Rabbits with any spinal stiffness/discomfort can have trouble reaching their bum to eat their cecotrophs. After examination a Vet may feel it to be appropriate to prescribe him a daily dose of a non steroidal anti-inflammatory such as Metacam to see if that helps. Many of my eldely arthritic Rabbits have responded very well to Metacam to manage their age related arthritis. Some have also received Acupuncture and/or massage and those whose arthritis became more severe went on to have additional analgesic cover too, a drug called Tramadol.
So yes, there certainly are several treatment options available if your Vet feels that arthritis may be an issue. He/she should be able to elicit some information from a hands on examination and from an account of his symptoms as you have described them on here. Xrays are an option and would give confirmation of the presence of arthritis. But personally I would not want to have to risk a GA for such an elderly Rabbit unless absolutely essential xx
