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Please help - 9 year old bunny

Rose24

Rose24

Warren Scout
Hello

My gorgeous 9 year old bunny Joey has spent the last two days in and out of the vets. He had his teeth done and today has been given three types of gut stimulant to help get him eating. He seems bright enough but apart from the odd bit of cracker and recovery food, he won't eat. Can any suggest anything that could interest him please? My vet is brilliant but says its just a wait and see now. He is on pain killers and antibiotics.

Anything that could work I want to try

Thanks so much in advance xx
 
A lot of bunnies like to have a nibble on fresh grass and herbs when they are feeling a bit poorly. I have found that the favourites are generally parsley and basil. :)
 
Rose24 said:
Hello

My gorgeous 9 year old bunny Joey has spent the last two days in and out of the vets. He had his teeth done and today has been given three types of gut stimulant to help get him eating. He seems bright enough but apart from the odd bit of cracker and recovery food, he won't eat. Can any suggest anything that could interest him please? My vet is brilliant but says its just a wait and see now. He is on pain killers and antibiotics.

Anything that could work I want to try

Thanks so much in advance xx
Click to expand...

These are things my bunnies like, as tempting treats:

Coriander, Parsley, Rose Leaves, fresh picked grass, porridge oats (just a few) ..

Are you syringe feeding him? Baby food, such as Ella's kitchen (bananas, apples and pears, carrot and parsnip etc) is very tempting, especially mixed with critical care or ground up pellets.

Was he not eating before he went in for his dental?
 
MightyMax said:
Are you syringe feeding him? Baby food, such as Ella's kitchen (bananas, apples and pears, carrot and parsnip etc) is very tempting, especially mixed with critical care or ground up pellets.
Click to expand...

Ooo yes, I forgot about this! My little man absolutely loves the strawberries and apple Ella's Kitchen mixed with critical care when he's poorly, soon gets him eating again. As he hates being syringe fed I make it to a really thick consistency and that way he will eat it on his own because he enjoys it so much. It's also good for disguising liquid medicine in too, but shh, don't tell him that! [emoji6]
 
i dont know if he can use his teeth or not, but if he can would he try jumbo oats. i wouldnt have thought they would be interested in oats but i tried everything to help squiggles build herself up when she was feeding the babies and i put a teaspoon of oats down and you should have seen them all scuffle for them. i had to take her out the hutch to give them to her. i dont know if oats are bad but i do know they are fattening. hope your buns better soon
 
Dandelions, fresh grass and celery leaves work for mine. Keep up with the syringe feeds until he is eating for himself. It can be mixed with some of the veg -based baby food to make it easier and tastier to feed.

You could also ask for the pain relief to be reviewed by your vet - maybe ask to try a maximum dose for a day and see if it helps. The effects can be quite quick, so you can soon judge if the meds are helping or not. It can be dropped down again as he recovers.
 
Thanks so much for all the advice. He had stopped eating before he had his teeth done and now he won't start it again. I'm going to try Ella's Kitchen. So just plain oats from the bag? I'll try that too. He's eaten a bit of apple and crackers. Plus a couple of shreddies. Giving him critical care but I don't want to overdo it as he isn't using his litter tray a lot. He's on three types of gut stimulant and 0.75 of pain killer.

I'm so worried
 
If he isn't eating for himself, doesn't have a blockage (if he does, he shouldn't be on gut stimulants), then he really does need the Critical Care feeds. If there is no input, there won't be any output. Work out how much he should be eating per day, split it into workable feeds every 2 hours or so, and check his weight every other day. Keep going until he is eating enough to maintain his weight by himself.

Critical Care will meet all his needs for now. It will also provide water. Anything he eats by himself is a bonus at the moment, but he needs those feeds and the fibre in order to keep his gut moving.
 
Rose24 said:
Thanks so much for all the advice. He had stopped eating before he had his teeth done and now he won't start it again. I'm going to try Ella's Kitchen. So just plain oats from the bag? I'll try that too. He's eaten a bit of apple and crackers. Plus a couple of shreddies. Giving him critical care but I don't want to overdo it as he isn't using his litter tray a lot. He's on three types of gut stimulant and 0.75 of pain killer.

I'm so worried
Click to expand...

You're welcome. I really hope he turns a corner here. It's so difficult with bunnies who won't eat because of their teeth, and you have to get the teeth done, but the anaesthetic knocks them back a bit more.

Yes plain oats are fine, but just a few and make sure you are also syringing him water if he's not drinking for himself. His mouth may still be sore.

I am glad you have pain killer, make sure you give that regularly so he will want to eat on his own.

You can try fresh grass if he will eat it, as it has moisture in it. You should also syringe feed him several times a day, with ground up pellets or critical care (with Ella's Kitchen or water) as he won't have enough in his gut otherwise. If you can try and get even 5 ml into him at each sitting, and build up until he's eating on his own, that would be good. Take your vet's advice on how much and how often to feed him. This stage shouldn't go on for long once you get his gut up and running again.

Good luck xx
 
Thank you for this. The vet advised that I don't over feed. Approximately 8-10 mil of the critical care feed. His weight is 1.9 - how often would you say I should feed him. I was so worried that I would overdo it that I haven't syringe fed him since 11. I have just been to the shop and got the Ella stuff - this is going to sound mad but is it the porridge oats you mix in or the liquid in the pouch? I'm so overtired that I'm struggling to think straight.

Thank you for all your support
 
Which powdered feed are you using?

The Oxbow tells you how much you should be feeding per kg on the pack.

The Supreme Science Recovery comes in small sachets - 1 sachet per kg per day, so 2 sachets per day for your rabbit. It also comes with a feeding syringe which takes 15-20ml.

You can make them up with enough water so that they are syringe-able, or add a bit of baby food puree to make it easier. It can also be spoon fed, or left on a saucer if he will feed himself. The consistency can be adjusted to suit.
 
It is the supreme. I gave him 10 mil at midnight, then 5am, 10 am and just now. I'm going to phone the vets again to double check how often. At this speed I won't get through two sachets. When I spoke to the vet last night I asked if I should feed him every two hours but they were concerned that this was too often. He takes it really well so I think I could feed him more often. I didn't mix the Ella baby food in but syringe fed him a tiny bit after his critical care and he loved it.

He seems bright in himself. I think the main issue is that he has a mass in his head which over the past year has grown. There is nothing that can be done about it, it was a case of him being happy and healthy and so he has been on antibiotics and pain medicine everyday, just in case. The hope was that it was spurs on his teeth that stopped him eating but now I worry that it wasn't that at all. I think the feeling is that although he is bright, it could be this that has stopped him eating. I just want the best for him

Thanks again everyone
 
Rose24 said:
Thank you for this. The vet advised that I don't over feed. Approximately 8-10 mil of the critical care feed. His weight is 1.9 - how often would you say I should feed him. I was so worried that I would overdo it that I haven't syringe fed him since 11. I have just been to the shop and got the Ella stuff - this is going to sound mad but is it the porridge oats you mix in or the liquid in the pouch? I'm so overtired that I'm struggling to think straight.

Thank you for all your support
Click to expand...

The porridge oats is quite separate from the critical care/recovery food and Ella's Kitchen. Just a pinch now and again so long as he stays well hydrated :thumb: Leave it out, if it's complicating things.

Sounds like you're doing great, given you're worried and sleep deprived xx
 
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