Thank you Griffski.
I now have Benjie back to normal GI function & behaving much more normally. However he's still cradling indicating that he still has some abdominal pain. He's also eating less lavender. As he has improved, the skin on his ears & nose has improved in colour.
I've no idea what's been wrong, no idea why lavender & lemongrass helped, & it was all chance that I offered them. I certainly don't recommend them as a routine for a dysbiotic bunny, maybe only as a last resort for a very nervous
ill & "toxic" dysbiotic bunny. I now think that the changed skin colour was most likely pain, but in retrospect could have been a response to surmised bacterial toxins.
2-3 sprigs of lavender have been widely used to calm nervous, stasis prone bunnies for travel without ill effect.
I would now say not to give lavender to a bun who hasn't recovered fully from a GA. What else could I do? I had a legless bunny who was going ballistic at home, & kept rolling with a high risk of internal bleeding at the slightest injury.
In addition to it's calming properties, lavender has antimicrobial properties. (The oil which I don't use for rabbits because I have no training in using potent extracts) is proven to be superior to saline & povidone iodine in preventing infections & promoting wound healing when applied directly. I also prefer feeding sprigs because of the high fibre. The oil is extracted by steam &
highly concentrated and will
not contain the water soluble components. I just feed rabbits what they choose to eat. i am
not doing herbal medicine, rather learning from rabbits.
A superficial look at the properties of lemongrass indicates antimicrobial properties, pain relief, easing GI gas & detoxification.
I have yet to research side effects.
Blackthorn & brambles (tannins) also have antimicrobial effects as do both the plantains to a lesser extent. I gained a strong impression that unlike fresh blackthorn, dried blackthorn doesn't enter the caecum to any extent. A possible reason could be that the activity is in the juices.
In terms of GI dysfunction. High anxiety can slow down the GI tract per se. I know of a few stasis prone bunnies where loss of a sense used to detect predators - hearing /smell, was a big factor in causing stasis. They may not appear unduely frightened but seem to be slightly aggressive.
I would also say that most buns aren't as OTT about predator awareness as Benjie.
I've noticed a behaviour in both Thumper & Benjie. When 1st going out into the garden, they would run in zig zags, jump, & twist, as if thrilled to be outside. IMO they are practising predator escape, just to be sure they are fit enough in the eventuality they need it.
As a young rabbit Thumper did a lot of predator escape practice. It evolved to become ever more ornate, with twists & 180 degree turns & double bucks mid air. He seemed to like an audience (me) Why predator escape? He'd always give a warning thump near the beginning of his display. To me, it begged the unanswered question of whether rabbits have an imagination?
Trying to find some answers re Benjie I wondered what was the 1st. thing I noticed wrong? It goes back to end Sept when he started to become ridiculously nervous, even starting to the sound of me putting on a nylon anorak! I knew it was a fear of being stalked by a predator (buns in general dislike rustling sounds) Occasional uneaten caecals & changed posture came about a month later. Again I dismissed it as the stress of a sudden cold snap plus the stress of a large moult & having to increase his energy intake to grow a new undercoat fully.
Perhaps it's an example of "unusual behaviour" or changed behaviour (neurotic potential predator awareness) indicating underlying illness. There's been plenty of "unusual behaviour" from the human partner bun!
Neither do I know whether his platelets will recover or deteriorate. But I have a happy Benjie who is eating well. pooping well & licking which ever part of me he can reach.
Maybe we've cracked it, maybe not. Who knows what the future holds? For certain I'm not going to ask for a check platlets test just to satisfy my curiosity. It won't affect management & is definitely not in
his interests
My apologies to those of you who have stood beside me, for missing your threads. I can only plead that it's time consuming & quite hard work both nursing & being partner bun to a sick bun. The constant allogrooming / partnership bond is an important anti stress measure, & often the only way I could persuade him to take a little food.
I am deeply grateful to all of you for your support. I find it scary when my rabbit tells me "none of the food you are offering me helps me" & have no idea what to try. I've seen this in Thumper also. It's different from the inappetance of stasis, because as soon as the correct food is offered, they'll eat it willingly.
I think I left one of Omi's questions unanswered - the praying position to relieve pressure on a painful abdomen. I can only say that the lower abdomen is lifted high & weight taken on the chest & towards the front of the hind feet. This would relieve pressure on the hocks. However IMO it requires strength & muscular effort from the hindquarter muscles, plus rabbits have very little respiratory reserve, which
may be why it's not commonly seen in rabbits.