my rabbit can only eat banana

Hi i have a 3 1/2 yr old lop who slowly had stopped eating his mix and only ate carrot . I have had him in to the vets and he was treated for stasis at first because they did not see anything wrong with his teeth .He was back at the vets 2 days later to be knocked out for a dental because he had stopped eating , they still found nothing wrong with his teeth ! but she did take a tiny bit off just incase they were bothering him . I got a phone call to see if i wanted an xray done to see if it was root problems and i said yes but they found nothing wrong with his roots . That was over 3 weeks now and all he can eat is banana and a tiny bit of excel in water , his diet is mostly banana . The metacam he was on for pain makes no difference to what he eats so i have stopped this and his guts are working great since he had meds for stasis and syringe fed 3 weeks ago . I know at some point i will need to let him go because its not the best diet for a rabbit his teeth will overgrow since he cant chew anything hard but is there anyone who knows anything else that could be wrong with him ? he tries to chew hay and veg but cant any info welcome x

Is he pooing properly?

Also, is he eating any hay? I would definitely still make pellets and hay available at all times and try removing the banana and carrot for a time. Buns can get a sweet tooth and just start to refuse the good stuff.

What about other veggies? What other things have you tried?

I would suggest offering him some fresh herbs..flat parsley and coriander are favourites and are available at Asda and most other supermarkets..this may encourage him to nibble other things..you can try chopping up veg very small or even grating it to get him to take some
Obvious but fresh grass will often get them going too
Also try a different vet....may be worth it

Hope he picks up

This bunny sounds like it is in a serious condition, and needs the advice of a good bunny-savvy vet. I would get another opinion from another vet.
A bun cannot live on banana alone for long.
Try him on some other bunny favourites, cabbage, dandelions, nice long grass etc. If he isn't tempted by anything I would seriously try a different vet.

eta.. sorry honeybun, cross-posted almost same as you!!

Fresh herbs like basil or mint often get them going too because of the strong smell, they can't help themselves, lol.

This must be so worrying for you, I'm thinking of you.

I have a good vet . Dylan is in good condition considering what he eats he passes lots of poo and is happy enough running around in my kitchen as i type . I have also tried him with lots of different veg , herbs , fruit and even cooked carrots and apples puree'd . He has hay and redigrass always and i pull fresh grass , he does try to eat but cant . I have kept rabbits most of my life so know what i am doing but this is the first rabbit i have had thats taken so long to get back to eating hard foods after a dental , i am starting to think its a root problem even though the xrays have proved they are not bad enough to cause him ay problems and stop eating . I am just looking for any info of something that we could be missing apart from the obvious teeth probs

MY guess would be the teeth too. Say it's not molar, nor any overgrow teeth towards the upper jaw, what about abnormal angled teeth? That can cut his tongue and cause pain. Here's a check list from some other member here on teeth problem:

Signs of molar problems include :

Selective Feeding
Poor Hay consumption
Drooling/Excessive salivation
Reduced gut motility (small hard poos/very few poos)
Mucky bottom (a bun with molar spurs often cant/wont eat their caecotrophs)
Cheyleitiella Mites (a Dental Bun often cant groom themself very well)
Runny eyes/sneezing/'Snuffles'
Behaviour change (eg aggression to other Buns/people. Depression/nervousness in a previously 'happy' Bunny.
A lumpy jawline (from elongated tooth roots).

Now, I don't have any better suggestion on the teeth, but I had a bridge bun Goofball who had bone cancer, and in order to get some fiber in her, I use the following method very successfully for over 1 yr. post-surgery.

This method won't fix your bun's teeth problem, assuming it's teeth, but it can fix his lack of fiber problem:

Every 1Kg of bunny weight, get 100 ml of food inside him per 24 hr.

Get some blackberry or raspberry, smash it via juicer. You need about 6 oz. Get some hay stem, cut the stem in 1 mm length, mixed it w/ the blackberry. Put the mixture in a 35 ml syringe and force feed your bun. Your bun need the fiber to survive.

Has this Rabbit had a full blood profile taken?
Abdominal Xrays?
Is there any lymphadenopathy? (enlarged lymph nodes)
Is he losing weight?
Is he drinking more than normal?
Is his urine very cloudy white or very dilute?
Is he depressed or is his behaviour 'normal'?
Has he had Zantac (Ranitidine) as part of his medication regime?

Poor Bunny, perhaps it is painful for him to eat solid, I recommand that you go to a Rabbit Savvy Vet urgently to have his mouth entirely checked out as it can also be something stuck in his mouth or in his throat, and not necessarily a problem with his teeth. I had a female who developed giant herpes like spots in her throat and could not eat solid. So I think a thorough inspection should be done, if -xrays and all other tests have proven to be negative...

the bunny girl said:

I have a good vet . Dylan is in good condition considering what he eats he passes lots of poo and is happy enough running around in my kitchen as i type . I have also tried him with lots of different veg , herbs , fruit and even cooked carrots and apples puree'd . He has hay and redigrass always and i pull fresh grass , he does try to eat but cant . I have kept rabbits most of my life so know what i am doing but this is the first rabbit i have had thats taken so long to get back to eating hard foods after a dental , i am starting to think its a root problem even though the xrays have proved they are not bad enough to cause him ay problems and stop eating . I am just looking for any info of something that we could be missing apart from the obvious teeth probs

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I would take him back to your vet and have a chat and see what they feel the next step should be. If he is not improving just on supportive care then more investigation is needed to get a diagnosis as more specific treatment is required. There is also the possibility that although dental problems don't appear to be the cause of the problem that they have developed now, complicating the problem, as the molars grow a minimum of 2mm/week so can quickly become overlong. Even if the teeth are irregular now I would still look at further tests as there may be a completely separate problem responsible for the original refusal to eat.

I would go back to the vets, I would also consider getting another opinion from a more experienced rabbit vet.

I also recommend a rabbit specialist and put the bun under a deep sedation and do a full x-ray that covers every single bit.

Also, since you have banana, use a juicer and smash the banana in piece and cut the hay stem to 1 mm and force feed her via syringe. In other words, sub the blackberry on page 1 of this thread w/ your banana

@the bunny girl
My rabbit also similar symptoms as you have described in your post. Lucy, the rabbit, doesn't drink water. Would like to know if your rabbit recovered, if so, what have you done to fix her problem, kindly. Lucy eats Corriander, Mint , banana or pear but she doesn't eat hay at all and doesn't drink water. X-ray done, dental done. Still not sure what is the underlying problem. thanks in advance.

I would go to an exotic vet specialist, a rabbit shouldn't be surviving on just banana. They would do other tests to find out exactly what is wrong, he needs hay for his digestion. Have you tried mashed up pellets? Adding warm water to them makes them soft or critical care. My rabbit goes off hay and pellets when she needs a dental but if I offer her them soft she eats a lot so she is hungry!

mabushaik said:

@the bunny girl
My rabbit also similar symptoms as you have described in your post. Lucy, the rabbit, doesn't drink water. Would like to know if your rabbit recovered, if so, what have you done to fix her problem, kindly. Lucy eats Corriander, Mint , banana or pear but she doesn't eat hay at all and doesn't drink water. X-ray done, dental done. Still not sure what is the underlying problem. thanks in advance.

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it might be beneficial to start a new thread descibing the situation fully, but i supect the main advice would be to find a vet that is experienced with rabbits (even tho dental has been done & x-ray also).
how long has this been going on? being the weekend soon it would be good to get her seen tomorrow if possible. how old is she?

welcome to the forum btw

mikek said:

it might be beneficial to start a new thread descibing the situation fully, but i supect the main advice would be to find a vet that is experienced with rabbits (even tho dental has been done & x-ray also).
how long has this been going on? being the weekend soon it would be good to get her seen tomorrow if possible. how old is she?

welcome to the forum btw

Click to expand...

I have asked the Mods to split the thread

mabushaik said:

@the bunny girl
My rabbit also similar symptoms as you have described in your post. Lucy, the rabbit, doesn't drink water. Would like to know if your rabbit recovered, if so, what have you done to fix her problem, kindly. Lucy eats Corriander, Mint , banana or pear but she doesn't eat hay at all and doesn't drink water. X-ray done, dental done. Still not sure what is the underlying problem. thanks in advance.

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Do you offer her water in a bowl rather than a sipper bottle ? Rabbits drink far more from a bowl. Some Rabbits like tepid water rather than cold water. Some will drink a cool, weak peppernint/herbal or fruit tea

Is she passing 'normal' urine ?

If she isn't eating hay, have you tried getting her grass, wild plants (dandelion, clover, mallow, plantain etc) and things like apple twigs, willow, bramble, rosehip, hawthorn? Obviously make sure they aren't from a polluted or pesticide treated area but the fresh stuff might go down better than dry material.

She might just be a picky rabbit. My second rabbit Sealy had health issues since he was little and wouldn't eat hay- he only learned to after being bonded with my other rabbit who was a big hay eater. The vet saying "give him only hay, if he's hungry he'll eat it" led to him ending up in stasis. My current female, Pandora, used to eat a lot and then ended up being very picky- her eventual diagnosis was an enlarged heart which was pushing the foodpipe upwards and preventing her from eating properly. If it seems to be a health issue and the mouth is fine, further investigation might be needed to follow the digestive system until the issue is found.