Nell is sick U/D Dental. She was eating her hay!

I am sorry to keep posting about my bunny Nell.

My Nell is sick again. She has had a problem with recurrent colic like symptoms since September (approx. every 2 weeks). She usually bounces back quickly with Infacol and tummy rubs, though she seems to take longer to bounce back each time now.

She was well on Friday night and ate her usual treat when I got in. I also saw her eat some hay. Then an hour later she was uncomfy, rejecting her veg, panting and drawn in around her flanks. I started her first aid then

(I have seriously cut down veg in her diet (gradually) and she only gets herbs and an occasional bit of sweetcorn.)

I took her to the vets on Saturday morning (with Nicole's little Dougal) who felt a lot of gas in her tummy. She had eaten in the early hours of Saturday so I wasn't so worried. She got Metaclopramide, Prepulsid, Metacam. She plummeted yesterday and ate nothing all day so she was syringe fed and given meds. She has eaten a little today and has had a syringe feed too. She is still uncomfy though.

She has had Metacam, Prepulsid, Infacol so far today. She still looks uncomfy. I am about to go and rub her tummy again.

Very worried about my little baby.

I think I will ask for an xray tomorrow. She has had dentals in the recent past, though nothing hugely obviously wrong with her teeth when examined under GA (Just a little overgrown, so vet filed them back).

What would others do? She took ages to come round from her last anaesthetic 6 weeks ago

Fiona x

Poor Bunny

Has your Vet given any indication as to a cause of her recurrent abdominal pain?
Has bladder/kidney stones been excluded?
Sorry, I cant recall what Nell had the last GA for :? Was it a Dental or an abdominal X-ray?
Is Nell spayed and if so how long ago?
Are her Poos normal in between her 'poorly episodes'?
Does she ever pass UNFORMED caecotrophs, more like a splodge than the normal 'bunch of grapes' appearance.
Sorry for all the questions, just trying to look for clues as to what might be wrong

It must be such a worry for you not to know WHY Nell keeps having abdominal pain.
At least you always recognise the symptoms early and promptly take her to the Vet.
I hope that she will soon feel much better

Janex

Jack's-Jane said:

Poor Bunny

Has your Vet given any indication as to a cause of her recurrent abdominal pain?
Has bladder/kidney stones been excluded?
Sorry, I cant recall what Nell had the last GA for :? Was it a Dental or an abdominal X-ray?
Is Nell spayed and if so how long ago?
Are her Poos normal in between her 'poorly episodes'?
Does she ever pass UNFORMED caecotrophs, more like a splodge than the normal 'bunch of grapes' appearance.
Sorry for all the questions, just trying to look for clues as to what might be wrong

It must be such a worry for you not to know WHY Nell keeps having abdominal pain.
At least you always recognise the symptoms early and promptly take her to the Vet.
I hope that she will soon feel much better

Janex

Click to expand...

Hi. Thanks for your reply.

Vet feels at a loss to explain the abdo pain. We always presumed it to be her teeth initially though now we are not. So her last GA was to have teeth burred.

Nothing else has been excluded yet though my vet had suggested an xray an dpossibly some bloods now to see what is happening. She builds up gas very quickly. I presume the pain comes from that but of course there may be another cause underpinning all of this to make it happen in the first place.

Nell was spayed at 8 months old. She is now 3 and a half years old.

Her poos are completelynormal in between these episodes. I have never seen any unformed caecotrophs from her. I think her guts work quite well and then something happens that cause gas to build up VERY quickly. She never used to be good at eating hay though she has been getting better. Her pellets are Oxbow.

It is such a worry, I dread that she might have a tumour or something. Thanks for the questions you asked. Do my answers point you to anything?

Fiona x

Hi Fiona how's Nell doing now?

nicole said:

Hi Fiona how's Nell doing now?

Click to expand...

Thanks Nicole. She isn't great. Has eaten a tiny amount, some small poos lying around. I'm popping her out to see the gang as she misses them. Apart from them, she is lying on her side or continuously trying to get comfy. I've rubbed her tummy which does still feel hard(ish). Hope Dougal is feeling better now

Fiona x

He is feeling a bit better, still wanting snuggles.

Fionabun said:

Jack's-Jane said:

Poor Bunny

Has your Vet given any indication as to a cause of her recurrent abdominal pain?
Has bladder/kidney stones been excluded?
Sorry, I cant recall what Nell had the last GA for :? Was it a Dental or an abdominal X-ray?
Is Nell spayed and if so how long ago?
Are her Poos normal in between her 'poorly episodes'?
Does she ever pass UNFORMED caecotrophs, more like a splodge than the normal 'bunch of grapes' appearance.
Sorry for all the questions, just trying to look for clues as to what might be wrong

It must be such a worry for you not to know WHY Nell keeps having abdominal pain.
At least you always recognise the symptoms early and promptly take her to the Vet.
I hope that she will soon feel much better

Janex

Click to expand...

Hi. Thanks for your reply.

Vet feels at a loss to explain the abdo pain. We always presumed it to be her teeth initially though now we are not. So her last GA was to have teeth burred.

Nothing else has been excluded yet though my vet had suggested an xray an dpossibly some bloods now to see what is happening. She builds up gas very quickly. I presume the pain comes from that but of course there may be another cause underpinning all of this to make it happen in the first place.

Nell was spayed at 8 months old. She is now 3 and a half years old.

Her poos are completelynormal in between these episodes. I have never seen any unformed caecotrophs from her. I think her guts work quite well and then something happens that cause gas to build up VERY quickly. She never used to be good at eating hay though she has been getting better. Her pellets are Oxbow.

It is such a worry, I dread that she might have a tumour or something. Thanks for the questions you asked. Do my answers point you to anything?

Fiona x

Click to expand...

Well if Nell were my Bun I think once she is through this 'episode' I'd opt for further investigations :? I am not sure how useful a full blood work up will be as far as providing answers goes but it will at least check the function of her major organs and provide a 'baseline' to refer to :?
Has Nell been wormed? Might be worth discussing that with your Vet too.

My only suspicion in reference to her diet is the Baby Corn. I do know of some Buns that cant tolerate it at all :?

Perhaps you could do a process of elimination. Start with a week of just hay/pellets then a week with ONE type of veg added. If all OK after another week try introduceing another Veg and so on to see if you can identify anything she is particularly sensitive to.

I'd also ask the Vet to test Nell's wee.

Hope you get to find out whats up as I do know how worrying it is

Janex

Jack's-Jane said:

Fionabun said:

Jack's-Jane said:

Poor Bunny

Has your Vet given any indication as to a cause of her recurrent abdominal pain?
Has bladder/kidney stones been excluded?
Sorry, I cant recall what Nell had the last GA for :? Was it a Dental or an abdominal X-ray?
Is Nell spayed and if so how long ago?
Are her Poos normal in between her 'poorly episodes'?
Does she ever pass UNFORMED caecotrophs, more like a splodge than the normal 'bunch of grapes' appearance.
Sorry for all the questions, just trying to look for clues as to what might be wrong

It must be such a worry for you not to know WHY Nell keeps having abdominal pain.
At least you always recognise the symptoms early and promptly take her to the Vet.
I hope that she will soon feel much better

Janex

Click to expand...

Hi. Thanks for your reply.

Vet feels at a loss to explain the abdo pain. We always presumed it to be her teeth initially though now we are not. So her last GA was to have teeth burred.

Nothing else has been excluded yet though my vet had suggested an xray an dpossibly some bloods now to see what is happening. She builds up gas very quickly. I presume the pain comes from that but of course there may be another cause underpinning all of this to make it happen in the first place.

Nell was spayed at 8 months old. She is now 3 and a half years old.

Her poos are completelynormal in between these episodes. I have never seen any unformed caecotrophs from her. I think her guts work quite well and then something happens that cause gas to build up VERY quickly. She never used to be good at eating hay though she has been getting better. Her pellets are Oxbow.

It is such a worry, I dread that she might have a tumour or something. Thanks for the questions you asked. Do my answers point you to anything?

Fiona x

Click to expand...

Well if Nell were my Bun I think once she is through this 'episode' I'd opt for further investigations :? I am not sure how useful a full blood work up will be as far as providing answers goes but it will at least check the function of her major organs and provide a 'baseline' to refer to :?
Has Nell been wormed? Might be worth discussing that with your Vet too.

My only suspicion in reference to her diet is the Baby Corn. I do know of some Buns that cant tolerate it at all :?

Perhaps you could do a process of elimination. Start with a week of just hay/pellets then a week with ONE type of veg added. If all OK after another week try introduceing another Veg and so on to see if you can identify anything she is particularly sensitive to.

I'd also ask the Vet to test Nell's wee.

Hope you get to find out whats up as I do know how worrying it is

Janex

Click to expand...

Thanks again for your advice. I can't actually remember if it was the vet who suggested bloods or if it was my mind working overtime. I think I will see her through this episode (hopefully) and go on to a hay/pellet diet like you suggest, gradually building up any veg I introduce

Sorry to ask a stupid question, how on earth do I get a wee sample??

Jane what investigations would you see fit here, urine test, full body examination (again!) xray etc?? Do you think I could wait and see whether cutting out veg makes a difference or just get it done now?

Sorry to be a pest

Fiona x

Jack's-Jane said:

Has Nell been wormed? Might be worth discussing that with your vet?

Click to expand...

Meant to say, yes she has just completed a 28 day course of Panacur along with all of my others.

Fiona x

Fionabun said:

Jack's-Jane said:

Has Nell been wormed? Might be worth discussing that with your vet?

Click to expand...

Meant to say, yes she has just completed a 28 day course of Panacur along with all of my others.

Fiona x

Click to expand...

If she has had a full blood work up recently then there is no point in another one if all was OK
Is she a particularly 'nervy' Bun? Sometimes gut problems can be the result of psychological stress such as bullying by other Bunnies or the presence of a predator (eg Fox) near the Buns accomodation.

Hopefully the strict monitoring of her diet will help. If she is on oral Metacam and is not eating much I would ask your Vet about prescribing an anti-ulcer med (Ranitidine-'Zantac' or Cimetidine-'Tagamet')

Janex

Thanks again Jane. She is on Zantac twice daily, sorry forgot to add that.

Yes she is a nervy bunny. Hmm, must think about that one.

She seems perkier but still refusing food. Ate a little oxbow pellet when I stuffed it up close to her. Had a leaf of spinach too. Poor girly. I have syringe fed her and given her a lot of oral fluids much to her disgust. I spent about an hour rubbing her belly there and it did feel a bit softer by the end. She is furiously cleaning herself now and the others are helping get the syringe feed off from around her mouth. :roll:

I will see what tomorrow brings then.

P.s. She hasn't had any blood work done yet.

Thanks again

Fiona x

Fionabun said:

P.s. She hasn't had any blood work done yet.



Fiona x

Click to expand...

Hmmmmm, well on the one hand it'd be useful but then again more stress will just exacerbate Nell's problems :?
I'd have a good look at her emotional/psychological situation. Where is she in the heirarchy of her friends?
Bunnies really are such delicate little souls when it comes to their 'feelings'

Janex

Like Jane said, and I believe I mentioned that in your other thread, that you should cut the baby corn for the time being.

To get a pee sample, all you need is to monitor the bunny for a few hours, if he sits on a spot for say 3 - 4 hr., without going to the bathroom, you take her to a spot where you have a litter tray. Make sure the tray is at a corner of the room, preferable her favorite spot. That way, she'll pee on the corner on the tray. Once she's done, take her off the tray and pour the tray's urine in a plastic jar that your vet should have give you. You should immediately drive to the vet as the sample changes inside after a while.

Hi Fiona
How is your little Nell doing? Hope she is getting on ok. Wishing her and you well, stressful being a bunny mum isn't it!!!

xx

I think Fiona is collecting Nell from the vets just now.

I hope it's good news, or at least a reason for the statis.

Sending vibes.xx

Hi there. I thought I would update you on my bunny Nell. Sorry this is a bit long.

I took her along to the vet this morning. She has been pretty much off her food since Friday, had an occasional nibble on a strand or two of hay or a few leaves of spinach. She has been syringe fed food and fluids over the weekend.

Vet and I made the decision for her to have a dental. She also got an xray and bloods done.

Her dental did show up some small molar spikes which were burred. Her xray was normal in appearance (totally fascinating) and confirmed that she must have eaten a little more than I thought overnight as her little belly showed lots of poos making their way through the system. There was a little gas in her tummy but not overwhelming.

In terms of her blood results, her liver result (?albumin) was one point below the bottom end of the scale which vet wasn't hugely concerned about. Cholesterol was a little low but vet does not think significant. Glucose was high but apparently affected by stress. All other results were normal. A sample has been sent away for more complex analysis (blood cell count etc) Her temperature is normal. She got Metaclopramide, Prepulsid, Norocarp, Vetergesic and sub-cut fluids.

She is back home as shell shocked as ever and spent the first couple of hours wandering around as if she had never seen the place and being groomed by her friends.

I have given her more prepulsid and brought her inside and syringe fed her. She has just started to eat some veg which I am pleased about, though I have been here before so I am keeping level headed.

My vet has suggested making a referral to Edinburgh Vet School to see the rabbit specialist there. I think that will be a positive step. She has very little quality of life for at least 2 weeks each month Poor Nell.

She hates me too. I can tell.

I must absolutely consider what is going on psychologically with my bunnies. They had a change of house 2 weeks prior to this all starting. She seems to be high in the pecking order and constantly demands grooming from the others who oblige, though Sumi and Marcy seem to 'hang around' together a bit more and get up to all sorts of shenanigans.

Fingers crossed for lots of eating overnight

Thanks, you have been great support. I had a massive rant to Nicole about the pain of looking after sick bunnies today. Poor Nicole just listened whilst she was sat on the bus :lol:

Fiona x

Thats what I'm here for.

Hope things improve for Nell and you VERY SOON

Janex

Nell is still not eating. She had a tiny nibble at some pellets (maybe 3?) over night and I've seen her with one strand of hay. She is snapping hay and grooming herself.

I will just have to continue with the meds and syringe feeding.

Poor Nell, I hope she improves soon. She needs some bunny vibes!

Fiona x

Sending lots of vibes for Nell and hope she starts to improve soon. When are you seeing the specialist bunny vet at Edinburgh? hopefully they'll get to the bottom of the problem.