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Poorly Bunny?

K

KarinB

Warren Scout
Wonder if anyone can give me some advice please.

Went outside today and checked, as I always do, on my two bunnies. Smudge, 8 year old Netherland Dwarf, male, was lying stretched out in his dark side - which is unusual for him. I went to stroke him and he ran into the day side and was sitting shivering. He felt very cold, his ears were cold. I brought him indoors and wrapped him in a fleece blanket and after a while he seemed to be warmed up so I took him back outside. He immediately went and lay down stretched - as he and his lady friend often do if they have gas. He got up and moved a few times but kept just lying down. So I brought him back in and held him whilst gently jigging him up and down to try and ease what could be a gas problem. After almost an hour I put him back in his hutch but when I went out to check on him he was still lying down and looking sorry for himself.

He is now in my daughter's room in a carry box lying on a towel with a fleece blanket on him. He has had some water from a dropper but seems quite uninterested in anything. He is normally quite a still/scared bunny whenever he is brought indoors (which is not very often) so it is quite hard to tell if he is any different really.

He still feels quite cold.

He as recently lost a lot of his winter fur and I was wondering whether he could be feeling the cold as it has only been about 10 degrees here today.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Why have you not taken him to a Vet ?

Has he eaten today ?

What about fecal output ?

What is his respiratory rate and effort like ?
 
Well I fed them both this morning in one bowl as always and I did notice there was food left in their bowl when I went out to feed them at teatime. But I do recall them both coming up to the bowl this morning when I put it down.
 
KarinB said:
Well I fed them both this morning in one bowl as always and I did notice there was food left in their bowl when I went out to feed them at teatime. But I do recall them both coming up to the bowl this morning when I put it down.
Click to expand...

But did you actually see him eat ?

Has he passed any feces today ?

If he has not and you are not certain if he has eaten then he is likely to be extremely unwell now, given his low body temperature.

You need to call a Vet tonight. He is probably in pain and so at the very least he needs analgesia. He almost certainly needs other treatment too, depending on the Vet's findings after examination.

The best advice I can give is to get him to a Vet tonight. If you call the Vet you normally use there should be a recorded message about what number to call in an out-of-hours emergency.
 
I did not actually see him eat anything but from previous behaviour, they only come straight to the food bowl if they want to eat and he was there. After being fed they both went into the garden for some exercise as usual and then went in about an hour and a half later of their own accord as it was drizzly.

I have spoken to the on call vet and she says that if he is breathing normally and drinking then I should monitor him tonight and has booked me in for tomorrow morning at 11.
I am not one for expecting any animal to lie in pain but he did just get up and come to the opening of his carrier box and is still drinking so I will go with the vet's advice for now. However, if things deteriorate then I will not hesitate to have him seen.
 
There have been faeces in the day side of their hutch but as I said he lives with his lady friend so they could all be hers. His breathing is normal and is not have to put any effort in to try and breathe.
 
Your rabbit sounds really poorly and, if it were me, I would be on my way to the emergency vet. I certainly wouldn't be happy to leave him until the morning and am extremely surprised that the vet advised this, given all the symptoms you describe.
 
KarinB said:
I did not actually see him eat anything but from previous behaviour, they only come straight to the food bowl if they want to eat and he was there. After being fed they both went into the garden for some exercise as usual and then went in about an hour and a half later of their own accord as it was drizzly.

I have spoken to the on call vet and she says that if he is breathing normally and drinking then I should monitor him tonight and has booked me in for tomorrow morning at 11.
I am not one for expecting any animal to lie in pain but he did just get up and come to the opening of his carrier box and is still drinking so I will go with the vet's advice for now. However, if things deteriorate then I will not hesitate to have him seen.
Click to expand...

If their teeth hurt they may want to eat and be interested in food but be unable to eat due to the pain. How long has it been since the last time he definitely ate something?
 
He does not have his four large incisors - they were removed when he was about 6 months old. He definitely last ate yesterday evening.
 
Sorry to be blunt here, but if he A- Has probably not eaten for 24 hours, B- Cannot maintain his body temperature, C- Has possibly not had any fecal output today and D- is behaving as if he is in pain then leaving it until 11am tomorrow for him to receive Veterinary Care may be a decision you bitterly regret :cry:
 
Update: he has ventured out of his carrier, had a drink out of his water bowl and eaten 6 pieces of science selective mature rabbit food. He is looking a lot perkier in himself. I am now going to bring in his lady friend to see him.
 
KarinB said:
Update: he has ventured out of his carrier, had a drink out of his water bowl and eaten 6 pieces of science selective mature rabbit food. He is looking a lot perkier in himself. I am now going to bring in his lady friend to see him.
Click to expand...

I was going to recommend you bring his wife bun in, bonded bunnies should not be seperated.
I too feel it is VITAL you take him to the vet tonight, but obviously that is a decision only you can make.
Try and tempt him with lots of different types of foods- parsley, dill, basil, mint, carrot tops, bramble leaves and fresh grass. He really needs to start eating or him will go in to full on statis.

Good luck and I hope he is better soon
 
I think he might just be cold or has gone into shock from something, maybe from a dog or wild animal? Its probably the cold.
You could try to give him this to warm him up and its also healthy!

To get your bunny warmed up:
- 1 tablespoon of their pellets
- 2 tablespoons of warm drinking water
- 1 and a half tablespoons of hay (the powdery particles at the bottom of the bags are best)

Mix it all together and feed it to them on a spoon or just like that.
 
Last edited:
Sorry for the delay in updating but I have a hubby recently involved in a RTC to deal with too.

I brought his lady friend in to be with him and he continued to go in and out of the carrier. He ate some parsley and his ears started to feel a bit warmer so not long before midnight I took the decision to put them both back in their hutch outside as I know they are not happy being inside away from their surroundings.

Next day he was fine so I cancelled the vet appointment and now is back to his usual self.

I am grateful for all you help/advice and I know I didn't take notice of it all but I went with my gut feeling and this time I was right.
 
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