Rabbit isn’t eating or doing the toilet

[Ross_Scott]

Hi.

My rabbit Benny hasn’t been eating or doing the toilet for the last 2 + days now. We took him to the vet where he was kept in over night and they did X-rays. It showed no blockages or anything unusual. We took him home and he still wouldn’t eat or do any toilet. We’ve since took him back and the vet doesn’t actually know. They are going to do blood tests.

Our other bunny is with him at vet to keep him company.

Has anyone experienced this before and know what it could be? It is very unusual how he won’t do anything.

The only thing they could find is a slight discomfort for him in abdominal area. He’s had pain relief medicine and gut medicine but he still isn’t eating.

 

[Omi]

Hello I'm sorry that your rabbit isn't eating or pooing. Sorry in advance for all the questions.

Could you list the medication that the vet has prescribed? How old is Benny? Sometimes when a rabbit has GI Stasis, it can take a few days for any improvement. Did you continue the gut medication and pain relief at home?

It's good news that the x-rays excluded a blockage. Has the vet been giving him syringe feeds, as there is no blockage? Has the vet examined his teeth (although back teeth are difficult to examine in a conscious rabbit)? It's usually beneficial to give the rabbit fluids. Has this been suggested?

Is your vet rabbit savvy?

 

[Ross_Scott]

Thank you for responding and lots of questions is good, it will hopefully help us.

Benny was prescribed 1.1ml of Metacam to be take twice daily and also 1.7ml of emeprid to be taken twice daily.

We only managed to give Benny the meds twice but he was still not eating after being home around 18 hours. We tried critical care in a smaller syringe but he was still not swallowing it. Just sat in his mouth.

Benny will be 3 in Feb / March next year. We adopted him so don’t have the exact age but we know he’ll be around 3 then.

The vets have not yet gave us a proper update after we took him in this morning but they did confirm he was being syringe fed. He does have a catheter in his ear so must be getting fluids through that. They did not say if they were giving him fluids through a syringe.

They haven’t mentioned his teeth but will be sure to ask when we next speak to the vet.

It’s rare that have the same vet or nurse when we visit. There used to be an “exotic” vet that we would see but he no longer works for the surgery.

 

[Omi]

I hope you have had an update from your vets this evening. It's reassuring that he's being given fluids. Hopefully he will start to improve soon.

Does he have a favourite type of strong-smelling herbs that you could tempt him with when you visit? Sometimes if you crush them to release the smell and push them in the rabbit's face, the rabbit will bite them in annoyance. Dandelions are also something to try. Also, make sure anything that you offer is wet to get more fluids into him.

How is he behaving? Is he moving around?

Hoping for some good news soon. Let us know how he is.

 

[Ross_Scott]

So he was referred to exotic vets. They are taking blood and urine samples from him. Aswell as treating for GI Stasis.

However the vets found a mass between stomach and kidney were he seems to hurt most.

The vet school he’s at now are going to wait for meds to wear off before they give this area a full inspection. They said he otherwise is healthy and has good colouring (whatever that means!) I am worried about this mass.

If anyone has anything reassuring they could provide insight into this regard. The vet did seem calm and upbeat in regards to it

 

[Omi]

It's excellent that Benny is now being treated by an exotic vet in a vet school. At least you can have some confidence in this.

Did the vet offer any suggestion as to what the 'mass' could be? Is Benny still not eating by himself and pooing?

I hope that their diagnostics will proivide an indication of what the problem is likely to be. Hopefully it will be something which they are able to treat.

Sending Benny lots of vibes and I hope you get some positive news soon.

 

[InspectorMorse]

Benny is obviously now in the care of Rabbit Savvy Vets. I am sure that they will carry out any diagnostics they deem to be necessary. They might want to do an abdominal Xray to try to ascertain what the mass might be. Sometimes a lump of impacted matter in the intestines can feel like a ‘mass’ when palpating the abdomen. By saying that Benny has a ‘good colour’ the Vet was referring to the mucous membranes which must have been of normal appearance, a healthy pink rather than very pale. Hopefully you will receive an optimistic update from the Vet today.