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Bunny not drinking much?!

Charliesangel

Warren Veteran
When oliver got neutered (about 1 month ago) we had a problem with him not drinking or eating after the surgery. I had to take him into the vets everyday for him to get fluids and have a check-up. We finally declared him "ok" and stopped going to the vets as often. Since the surgery, oliver has never really gotten back into the habbit of drinking.

Blaise and daisy go through at least half of their water bottle a day easy, and oliver barely makes a mark in his. I have his water bottle and a bowl of water set up for him, but he doesn't really drink. He has been to the vets and he is very healthy and happy. What do you think this is?

I spray his veggies with water before he eats them, so he might be getting some moisture that way, but its just so weird that he never drinks, but he is so healthy. Anyone else have bunnies that dont drink a lot of water, or has anyone been through something like this before?
 
Hiya,

I went through the same thing with Sophie after her spay, but after a few weeks, she was back to normal.

If you are spraying the veggies with water, you might find that your bun is getting hydrated from this. Veggies contain some fluids anyway. If you bun isn't usually a big water drinker, you might find they are getting enough from their veg sprayed with the extra water!

As long as the vet says they are healthy and you know your bun... then maybe your bun is going through a phase, Sophie does that sometimes! :roll: I'm sure she does it to make me panic!!!! :lol:

Also, at the vets I'm assuming they were giving the bun something to hydrate him... depending on when this stopped, he may still be hydrated from all this! That's what happened to Sophie. :wink:
 
I will be interested in some answers to this also....my bunny doesnt drink anything either!
I put water in his pellets so I know hes getting something.
But I have never seen him drink and by the measurements on his water bottle he isnt drinking!
So Oliver is not alone !!!

Leesa.
 
Don't quote me on this... but I'm sure it has been mentioned before that you could add a bit of "elderflower" (not sure in what form :oops: ) to your buns water.... to make sure, I think it was MandyM who may have mentioned this to me... might be worth pming her!!!!
 
Oooh, thanks I'll check out that link in a minute :D

Its been about a month since his drinking habbit has gone down, and even though he is very healthy, it still concerns me! Thanks!
 
hi

I was worried about Benny not drinking - I would always see Pepsi guzzling half a bowl of water, and Benny would just have a sip...I wet his greens for him, and now I've started putting only a small amount of water in his bowl, I see him drinking quite often - when it was full up to the top he didn't - can't figure it out but I'm relieved! :)
 
leesabuntine said:
I will be interested in some answers to this also....my bunny doesnt drink anything either!
I put water in his pellets so I know hes getting something.
But I have never seen him drink and by the measurements on his water bottle he isnt drinking!

When did it start? Did you inject him w/ SQ fluid (NaCl) behind the neck?

======================

Charliesangel said:
Its been about a month since his drinking habbit has gone down, and even though he is very healthy

Is his diet normal, did he eat just as much before and after the surgery?
 
He was not much of an eater before the surgery, and after it just decreased a little. He is a very small nethy and usually eats a small bowl of greens, a small bin of timothy hay, and a handful of pellets a day. He usually finishes it all, but sometimes not.
 
that's very normal, especially on hot weather like this, even inside rabbit don't eat the same amt. everyday.

How about cool water and let him knkow it's cool water by 3 times a day of syringe force feed of cool water, so he knows the water is cool? At this hot weather, it should be an incentive.

Or haave a small dish bowl that's about 1.5" deep, put small carrot w/ green leaf, he should eat the green leaf. Make sure the green leaf & the carrot is in the middle of the dish bowl, that should tell him to dip some water, and he'll know the wate is nice and cool, and at the very least, he would have drink some from the water drops on the green leaves of the carrot.

Make sure the water is not too deep but just right so he can taste the water. If the water is too deep, his nose will touch the water and all will happen is his sneeze.

If he pull the leaf off the dish bowl and try to eat the leaf and the carrot off the water, as soon as he finished bite off one of the stem of the leaf, put the carrots and the leaf back to the dish bowl. And repeat the above until he finish off eating all the leaf and even the carrot. He should get used to the water in a few weeks.

If carrot & leaft is not his favorite, switch to whatever that is his favorite.
 
hi

When I got my girls on Tuesday they were getting through about 4 bowls of water a day - at least...Now I've started them on grass and wetted cabbage they are only drinking half that - I guess (hope!) that's why - they must get a lot of moisture from veg.
 
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