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Recurring GI Stasis

R

Rescuebuns

New Kit
Hi, looking for a bit of advice.... So we have two rabbits, a neutered male lionhead and a neutered female lionhead, they are both rescues so don't know how old they are, they don't get on so are housed separately but next to each other - they can touch noses but that's as close as they can get.
They have both had several cases of GI stasis and we are tearing our hair out looking for a cause. Can anyone help?
They both have a constant supply of long stemmed Timothy hay, half a cup of burgess nuggets daily and a small handful of veg (Kale, Celery, small bit of broccoli, dandelions, pak Choy),both a bowl of water and a bottle, they also have access to a play area so not confined to their hutches all the time. We really can not work out what is wrong. Today the vet suggested that if they don't get on they maybe stress each other out? Seems unlikely to me but something I had never even considered. Although today after returning from the vets with female rabbit, she was really stressed out and hopped right over to sit next to the male rabbit where he was nibbling hay at the other side of the fence - to me it looked like she was getting some comfort from him being there.
Both have recovered well in the past with a painkiller and a course of ranitidine bit this time the female bunny is taking considerably longer to pass droppings and regain interest in food... I am really worried about her and have started trying to give her some critical care - it is proving difficult and stressful though. Hoping she pulls through but really want to get to the route of the problem - has anyone got any ideas for us?
Thanks in advance.
 
Rescuebuns said:
Hi, looking for a bit of advice.... So we have two rabbits, a neutered male lionhead and a neutered female lionhead, they are both rescues so don't know how old they are, they don't get on so are housed separately but next to each other - they can touch noses but that's as close as they can get.
They have both had several cases of GI stasis and we are tearing our hair out looking for a cause. Can anyone help?
They both have a constant supply of long stemmed Timothy hay, half a cup of burgess nuggets daily and a small handful of veg (Kale, Celery, small bit of broccoli, dandelions, pak Choy),both a bowl of water and a bottle, they also have access to a play area so not confined to their hutches all the time. We really can not work out what is wrong. Today the vet suggested that if they don't get on they maybe stress each other out? Seems unlikely to me but something I had never even considered. Although today after returning from the vets with female rabbit, she was really stressed out and hopped right over to sit next to the male rabbit where he was nibbling hay at the other side of the fence - to me it looked like she was getting some comfort from him being there.
Both have recovered well in the past with a painkiller and a course of ranitidine bit this time the female bunny is taking considerably longer to pass droppings and regain interest in food... I am really worried about her and have started trying to give her some critical care - it is proving difficult and stressful though. Hoping she pulls through but really want to get to the route of the problem - has anyone got any ideas for us?
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Hello

Has your Vet ruled out dental problems ? Has he/she run any diagnostics to try to ascertain a primary cause of the recurring problem ?

These links may be useful to read

http://anyflip.com/dvpt/hzvv

https://vetgrad.com/show10MinuteTopUp.php?type=&Entity=10MinuteTopUps&ID=41

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ac07/9915d6e64fe1afe442204871cb21c282f31b.pdf

http://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/pdfs/ROWinter10p7.pdf

I have found that many Rabbits with recurrent GI tract problems often do a lot better on a pellet free diet. An example here :

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view

Although a pellet free diet is not suitable for all Rabbits and it is something that needs to be discussed with a Rabbit Savvy Vet.
 
Thank you for this, we will have a good read.
Not really no, the vets tend to have a listen/feel of the gut for blockage/gas. Teeth were looked at today but no comment made. We live in a very agricultural area so although the vets are really caring and eager to help they are more geared towards farm animals/equine. They always give the same suggestion - give them more hay. Well hay is always available and fresh grass too when we can so don't know what else to do! Will look into a pellet-free diet I think.
 
Rescuebuns said:
Hi, looking for a bit of advice.... So we have two rabbits, a neutered male lionhead and a neutered female lionhead, they are both rescues so don't know how old they are, they don't get on so are housed separately but next to each other - they can touch noses but that's as close as they can get.
They have both had several cases of GI stasis and we are tearing our hair out looking for a cause. Can anyone help?
They both have a constant supply of long stemmed Timothy hay, half a cup of burgess nuggets daily and a small handful of veg (Kale, Celery, small bit of broccoli, dandelions, pak Choy),both a bowl of water and a bottle, they also have access to a play area so not confined to their hutches all the time. We really can not work out what is wrong. Today the vet suggested that if they don't get on they maybe stress each other out? Seems unlikely to me but something I had never even considered. Although today after returning from the vets with female rabbit, she was really stressed out and hopped right over to sit next to the male rabbit where he was nibbling hay at the other side of the fence - to me it looked like she was getting some comfort from him being there.
Both have recovered well in the past with a painkiller and a course of ranitidine bit this time the female bunny is taking considerably longer to pass droppings and regain interest in food... I am really worried about her and have started trying to give her some critical care - it is proving difficult and stressful though. Hoping she pulls through but really want to get to the route of the problem - has anyone got any ideas for us?
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...


Hi there and welcome to the Forum :wave:

So sorry to hear of your rabbits and the stasis episodes.

I think the vet would need to look into causes of this, even though on many occasions a cause is never found. Stress could be a factor, and possibly moulting at this time of year.

I wouldn't cut out their pellets completely, unless on the advice of a rabbit savvy vet. Rabbits get vitamins and minerals from pellets. Though you could think of cutting them down, or changing to a higher fibre pellet?


Theres a comparison of dry brand feed here:

http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/rabbit-food-comparison.asp



Some more info here

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view


http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/components-rabbit-diet.asp

http://rabbit.org/faq-diet/

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-diet/

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/Food/feeding_en.pdf



If you want to find a good vet in your area (and I understand in your position there may not be one locally) then you can start another thread in Rabbit Chat with the header:


Rabbit Savvy Vet needed in (your location)

...and members will help you out with their recommendations.

Alternatively you could look here:

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/vetfinder/vets-owners-recommendations


http://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/
 
Hi. I have one bun out of a pair with recurrent and random stasis. It is so frustrating as I feel I just need to work out what is triggering it but haven't yet found the answer. Currently trying lots of forage hawthorn, willow, apple as they eat the twigs of these too so seeing if increasing this type of fibre makes a difference. Obviously also feeing hay and now fresh grass. I think all buns are different and it is just trial and error for each individual. Good luck[emoji4]

Sent from my SM-G361F using Tapatalk
 
Thank you, I looked into the dry food comparison early on and they are now on the burgess excel nuggets, burgess long stem Timothy hay and burgess Timothy with dandelion and marigold. I did wonder about molting as they are both long haired, I have been trying to brush them both twice a day but female can be a madam and put herself in awkward positions!!
I will try forage next!
 
I have had problems with two of my bunnies and I do believe that burgess excel wasn't helping for sensitive tummies. I took the advice from here and increased the fibre and went pellet free. My bunnies get pear twigs, apple twigs, the leafs, birch leafs, black current leafs, plaintan, chicory etc. I order my hay from timothy hay.co.uk which my stasis bunny really enjoys. Maybe they could be stressed too?

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk
 
Rescuebuns said:
Thank you, I looked into the dry food comparison early on and they are now on the burgess excel nuggets, burgess long stem Timothy hay and burgess Timothy with dandelion and marigold. I did wonder about molting as they are both long haired, I have been trying to brush them both twice a day but female can be a madam and put herself in awkward positions!!
I will try forage next!
Click to expand...


Welcome :)

A few forage links!

http://www.kanin.org/?q=node/193

http://www.actionforrabbits.co.uk/Plants toxic to rabbits.pdf

http://www.actionforrabbits.co.uk/Toxic & Safe Plants v2.pdf

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/gallery/Rabbit food/plants-to-avoid

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/articles/free-food-for-rabbits


And a very good book written by Twigs Way called 'Foraging for Rabbits' which can be purchased from the RWAF bookshop
 
Thank you everyone for being so supportive and providing good links and advice. Thankfully bunny has started nibbling today, not out of the woods yet but a positive start! Will try adding some twigs to their diet I think. Luckily I have good access to safe trees and lots of weeds!
 
Rescuebuns said:
Thank you everyone for being so supportive and providing good links and advice. Thankfully bunny has started nibbling today, not out of the woods yet but a positive start! Will try adding some twigs to their diet I think. Luckily I have good access to safe trees and lots of weeds!
Click to expand...


:thumb:
 
Rescuebuns said:
Thank you everyone for being so supportive and providing good links and advice. Thankfully bunny has started nibbling today, not out of the woods yet but a positive start! Will try adding some twigs to their diet I think. Luckily I have good access to safe trees and lots of weeds!
Click to expand...

Glad to hear that she seems to be improving. Monitoring poo output is as important as monitoring what Bunny is eating. Hopefully your Bunny's poo output will improve as she eats more. Fluid intake is also important as when a Bunny is in gut stasis any ingesta within the GI tract quickly dehydrates, making it more difficult to pass through. So I'd try to encourage Bunny to drink as much as possible, most Rabbits will drink more from a bowl than from a bottle. Feeding fresh veg that is left wet from rinsing will also aid water intake.

Is Bunny still active ? Exercise helps promote gut motility. It is usually a good idea to continue giving prokinetics until both input and output have returned to 100% normal. Hopefully your Bunny will be back on top form very soon :)
 
Coming from a different angle, my single bunny used to get stasis semi regularly, never that serious and she would bounce straight back after meds, but since she has been bonded (8 weeks now) we have had *touchwood* no stasis episodes. She is a very stressy / anxious / defensive bunny and I really think having a friend has helped her, she no longer seems on ‘alert’ as much and does huge DBF’s.

Could you consider trying again bonding your pair? If introduced in the right way, I think it’s unlikely that two bunnies will never bond - especially as it sounds like they like each other’s company.
 
Thanks Jacks-Jane, bunny is becoming more active today and poo's becoming more frequent although still extremely small and crusty. She has both water bottle and bowl but hasn't had very much to drink. Have been feeding her fresh celery, kale, dandelions and grass and she's been picking away at it so hopefully picking up some moisture there. Going to continue with ranitidine today and see how she goes.
 
Last edited:
This has made such interesting reading mightymax, thanks for sharing with me! Will definitely be on the hunt for bramble leaves! Easy access to Apple twigs so going to try that and should have some leaves on the trees soon!
 
Rescuebuns said:
Thanks, bunny is becoming more active today and poo's becoming more frequent although still extremely small and crusty. She has both water bottle and bowl but hasn't had very much to drink. Have been feeding her fresh celery, kale, dandelions and grass and she's been picking away at it so hopefully picking up some moisture there. Going to continue with ranitidine today and see how she goes.
Click to expand...

Well being more active should help her gut motility. I hope that she will continue to improve throughout today x
 
Catherine, trying to bond again is worth a shot. I haven't tried for about a year as their was flying fur last time and I've been worried they do each other serious damage! In hindsight 3 months after my girl Carrot lost her bonded mate was too soon, think she was totally heartbroken. When we took the boy Alfred home she became very territorial and launched herself at him. Tried two further short meetings in mutual territory, one Alfred nipped Carrot, one they ignored each other (was pleased with this one). Third meeting, again in mutual territory, they both flew for each other and I had to step in getting a nasty bite in the process (yes I should have been more prepared!). Since then they have lived next to each other, hutches about half a meter apart and play area separated by a sturdy chicken wire fence. They sometimes sit near each other, sometimes have a sniff but sometimes have a scratching match at the fence. Now a bit worried that their relationship may have something to do with the recurring stasis. Anyone got any thoughts?
 
Rescuebuns said:
This has made such interesting reading mightymax, thanks for sharing with me! Will definitely be on the hunt for bramble leaves! Easy access to Apple twigs so going to try that and should have some leaves on the trees soon!
Click to expand...


Bramble leaves are ace for stasis prone bunnies :D
 
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