• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

Uneaten soft poos... some advice please!

M

Morrigan1981

Mama Doe
Hi all

Since Frankie's GI last Weds I've kept both buns on mostly hay and SS in the evenings. Occasionally during the week I saw a few uneaten soft poos, from Frankie. Today I tried to introduce spring greens again (at about 9am) and by 12 the run had some uneaten soft poos in it, again I guess from Frankie. The poos that are in the hutch are still fairly dark considering how much hay they have had.

My vet said no veg at all for either bun: he believes firmly in a hay and pellet only diet (but mostly - 80% - hay)

What should I do for the best: keep them on hay only for a few days until their poos seem right again? Or try and stick to their normal veg/hay/pellet diet? I'm so confused :? Both are definitely eating plenty of hay.
 
I agree with your vet - I think you are rushing things if it's only been 4 days since tummy problems.
 
Did the Vet check Frankie's Molar teeth when he was in stasis? Dental Buns often dont eat their caecotrophs.
Too many pellets as opposed to Veg is more likely to be the culprit causing excess ceacotrophs. Its excess protein that leads to a Bun not eating their caecotrophs. I disagree with your Vet about not feeding any Veg. A Bun in the wild is not likely to eat a pellet feed after all so a hay/veg diet is much more 'natural'. Veg I would avoid feeding for now are Carrots, sweetcorn and also avoid feeding all fruit.
Blackberry leaves are excellent for a Buns guts so if you can locate some I'd feed them too.

I would also feed the pellets in the morning rather than at night. It works better for a Buns digestive pattern. Whilst Ceacotrophs are often refered to as 'night faeces' they are actually produced during the day in the wild rabbit. They are produced several hours after morning feeding, during a quiet time of the day. So again the morning feeding of pellets is also more 'natural'.

Janex
 
Thanks for the replies.

Jane, the vet did check his molar teeth (with an octoscope (sp?)) and couldn't see any cause for concern... although tbh, Frankie eats so much hay I'd be really surprised if he were to have dental problems. I know it's still a possibility though :(

The reason I started to reintroduce veg was to try and keep their diet as close as possible to what it had been previously (mostly hay, plus veg in the morning and pellets in the evening) so tat it wasn't too much of a shock to them when I started to feed this again. It was the comment about never letting them have any veg that threw me, plus confusion over whether or not it would be 'safe' to let both rabbits have only hay for a few days whilst Frankie's tummy setttled down.

I'm still not sure that the veg really was the problem for Frankie's GI anyway: my rabbits only ever had small amounts of veg, maybe an inch of carrot each, the same of celery, a leaf of spring greens between them and either a slice of cucumber or a cherry tomato :?

Thank you for the tip about feeding them their pellets at night: I'll make that change as soon as I start giving them pellets again :D
 
elve said:
I agree with your vet - I think you are rushing things if it's only been 4 days since tummy problems.
Click to expand...

Sorry... being a bit thick here :oops: Do you mean that you agree with my vet that buns shouldn't have veg full stop, or do you mean that you think they need to be on a veg free diet for a while until Frankie's tummy has settled down? Thanks :)
 
I just meant while he had a dodgy tum - I would leave it a couple of months to settle down, then re-introduce veg as if he's never had any before - just a tiny mouthful on day one, then watch his poos day 2, then a bit more day 3 etc. over a fortnight, till he has an adult portion by the end of 2 weeks assuming his tum is still OK. They don't need a lot of veg, but they do love it, so it's a shame if they can't ever have any.
 
A couple of months... wow :shock: I can see now why you thought leaving it just a few days was rushing things! :D Thanks for the clarification: it's greatly appreciated. I've found the whole business (and knowing what to do for the best for Frankie) so confusing :?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Griff
Advice on VERY low calcium diet please
Replies
12
Views
685
Griff
Griff
Sonja05
Pellet free diet - how much veg????
Replies
2
Views
740
Sonja05
Sonja05
S
Bunny gone off majority of food
Replies
3
Views
659
Steve m
S
Back
Top