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Widowed doe : When is too soon to be looking for a companion?

hi all,

I haven't posted in a few years as life has got in the way a bit etc. Sadly on Thursday my netherland dwarf Adelaide was admitted to the vet hospital (rabbit savvy before anyone asks) with gut stasis, unfortunately she rapidly deteriorated and sadly passed away in the middle of the night leaving her bonded sister widowed.

Unfortunately Violet was not able to say goodbye to Adie which probably hasn't helped the situation. Whilst violet seems quite bright (she is grooming, rearranging her fresh straw, playing with toys) she does seem unsettled and I am having a real tough time trying to get her to eat. She will happily eat parsley, corriander, dill and has had a couple of mint leaves over the past couple of days. She has had a nibble on a little bit of carrot and broccoli which I save as rare treats but she didn't seem too keen. She hasn't touched any of the kale I have given her which again was a treat but something they both loved. She doesn't seem to be touching her hay or her pellets (I'm replacing it with fresh stuff every morning but not much is gone by the next morning. Someone has recommended syringe feeding oxbow critical care to me which I am considering (has anyone got any experience of this please?). She is drinking fine

She is urinating and pooping as normal so the vets said they are not worried but I can still bring her in for a checkup if I'd like which again I am considering.

She is spending all her time in their sleeping area on the towel I took adie to the vets in but doesn't seem to want to move from the towel.

Whilst she seems bright I am worried she is just not coping being alone so I was wondering whether I need to start searching for a new companion for her or is it too soon?. I would obviously prefer another Nethie but understand this may not be possible. I have never bonded rabbits before so I think I may be better going to a rescue as I have had a couple recommended to me who do 'bunny speed dating' which will allow violet to choose a companion and they provide support during the process. Again I am not sure whether a male or female bunny would be easier to bond her too so again I am hoping they can help me with that.

The only issue is I am just about to go back to University for a month to finish my final year exams and dissertation so I am not actually going to be home to supervise bonding so right now really isn't a great time but I don't know whether I am being cruel to violet by wanting to wait a few weeks until my situation is better. I'm honestly not completely sure what to do as I just want to do best for Violet
 
I'm very sorry that you have lost Adelaide:cry: Did the vets suggest what they thought what causing the gut stasis?

I think I would be concentrating on getting Violet 100% healthy before trying to introduce another rabbit and so I would take her to the vet for an examination and so that they can assess whether she should have any gut medication. They could also advise whether you should be giving her some supplementary feeds.

I presume that both rabbits were fully up to date with both vaccinations to cover RHD1/RHD2/Myx?

Sending Violet lots of vibes.
 
I am absolutely devastated :( I had a very lengthy chat with the vet when I went to pay the bill and they weren't sure. I took her in the morning as she had a bit of a pooey bum in the morning and was reluctant to eat. She was examined and she had limited gut sounds so was admitted and started treatment for gut stasis but went downhill rapidly after a few hours of being in.

They where 2 weeks away from their first annual vaccination so I am guessing they were still covered. Violet will still be going as planned

Would you say this is something that can wait for an appointment tomorrow or should I be taking her sooner rather than later?
 
Sorry to labour this point, but when you say "first annual vaccination", which one do you mean? Rabbits should have two vaccinations, usually Nobivac to cover RHD1 and Myx and also Filavac to cover RHD1 and RHD2 (or Eravac to cover just RHD2).

I would personally get Violet to a vet as soon as you can, so that she can start medication sooner rather than later. As she is not eating very much, any gut treatment will be more successful the earlier it is started.

I'm sorry that the vet could not provide any clues as to what the underlying issue was with Adelaide. It must have been a big shock for you :(
 
by first annual vaccination I mean Nobivac, I normally book them in for the RHD2 vaccination 2 weeks after the first annual vac.

ok I will give the vets a call now

It was a massive shock and totally unexpected :(
 
by first annual vaccination I mean Nobivac, I normally book them in for the RHD2 vaccination 2 weeks after the first annual vac.

ok I will give the vets a call now

It was a massive shock and totally unexpected :(

I hope it goes well for her.
 
I am sorry you have lost your bunny and hope your remaining bun starts eating normally soon. I would be inclined to wait awhile before finding her a friend, making sure she is healthy etc.
 
I’m so sorry you lost Adelaide :cry: I hope Violet has improved, sending lots of vibes for her xx
 
Hi everyone,

Sorry for not replying sooner last night was a bit hectic. I ended up seeing the same vet and vet nurse who treated Adie so they fully understood the situation which I think made it easier.

She was a bit fired up and was not a happy girl when she had her temperature taken and her teeth looked at. She was ok to have her gut listened too and her belly was ‘prodded’ which she was fine with. We put her back in the basket and she had a good groom and re arranged some of her bedding so the vet said she is bright which is a good sign. There was some loose poo in the carrier which she had done in the journey which the vet had a look at and checked her bottom and said it’s probably a combination of stress and eating nothing but greens for the past couple of days.

I’ve ended up leaving her at the vet hospital (so another big vets bill this week :( ) as I was worried by the lack of eating. They where going to monitor her and try and convince her to eat and if she wouldn’t eat then they would start syringe feeding and give her a painkiller (I can’t remember the name but it’s not metacam). We had a mad dash to find a late night supermarket open so we could buy her some herbs as the ones they had are ones she doesn’t like. So ended up coming back to the vets with massive bags of parsley and coriander and even a carrot. When I dropped the herbs off they said she had settled in well which is good. Now the good news is I haven’t had a phone call in the night which means she hasn’t gone downhill which is what I was worried about. They will call me this morning to discuss how she is etc and whether she needs treatment / what treatment she has had overnight so I will do a proper update then when I know exactly what is going on. So sorry it’s a bit vague for now!
 
Thank you for the update, what a stressful time you are having. I hope Violet had a good night at the vets, and hope she has been eating for herself. Sending loads more vibes for her, and hope she is home soon xxxxx
 
I’m just hoping violet gets back to normal and feels like eating soon :( thank you I’m hoping so too. They’ve not rung me yet so I’m feeling a bit nervous but they are probably in the process of changing over staff so i’m Just going to wait patiently and hope I hear from them soon. Thank you I really hope she is home soon too as the house is awfully quiet without her ☹️Xxx
 
Sending lots more vibes for Violet. I hope you receive some positive news soon from the vets.
 
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