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Cleaning up Messy Bums- Incontinence problems etc?

Ambience

Warren Veteran
Is there anything i can do except wash ava regarding her messy bum.

She is messy again and it's stuck to her fur and won't come off with washing. I'm taking her to the vet tommorow for cleaning up as i don't want to hurt her skin and also have her fur shaved off which will make treating her easier.

I don't want to upset her tonight with another bath. It really isn't working cleaning her up, she does need veterinary attention. I would like to know how other people deal with buns with incontinence problems and bunnys that are so deformed it makes it difficult for them to clean up themselves?

Is there anything further i can do apart from what I'm doing? It is easy to handle when there is no fur and i can just put sudocream on, but when the fur grows back- the bathing is almost totally ineffective.

Thanks x
 
Why is she incontinent ?

Treating the cause rather than the effect would be where I'd want to start so has she had diagnostics ? In what way is she deformed ?

Regular clipping of the fur may be needed if the problem is chronic and unresponsive to treatment.
 
Sorry hun I cant really think of any other suggestions other than washing her and shaving the fur, which you are already doing.
What are you washing her with? When Mimi had head tilt and was sitting in her own urine and couldnt clean herself I used one bowl of warm water with a drop of baby shampoo in it, one bowl of plain warm water and a clean flannel for each. Id wash her gently with the soapy water first, getting off as much wee as I could and gently easing away any stuck on pooz, then rinsed her with the plainnwarm water and a new flannel. Then Id dry as much as possible with a towel (didnt want to terrify her with hairdryer) and applied sudocrem to vulnerable areas.
It was abit of a long process, twice a day but was quite effective:wave:
 
:( Sorry this seems so upsetting for you. I have been this way before and nearly lost my little girl to flystrike. Every day I used to have to wrap her firmly, flip her over and i used a small sponge with diluted baby shampoo or hibiscrub to get her clean. Sometimes I used a little vaseline so that the next wash would be easier. I did this for months. Eventually, she caught flystrike. I was so ashamed even though i was doing my best. She came home and i had to treat all her horrendous sores with creams and give her antibiotics and pain relief. I wondered what the cause for your bunny being in this state is, just like a previous comment as it seems sensible to address this if you can. I never found out the exact cause for my bun. I don't think she was overweight, and i thought her diet was ok. Anyway, i digress... When she came home i gave her nothing but hay, then i introduced pellets, and counted every one!! starting with 3!! She eventually got clean but it took a long time. She gets flipped over every day to reveal just a fluffy bum and she can now eat much more with no problems. There is light at the end of this tunnel, please dont despair. You mention 'deformed', has your little bun got a congenital problem so she can't clean herself? You seem to be doing all the right things, i wish i had some more advice for you. What does your vet think the problem is? x
 
Thank you for all the long and lovely helpful responses. This is really bothering me.

As she has her legs in odd splayed positions, and her back end drags along the floor, she has a space where poo can accumulate in a groove of her leg- when she has fur , this is almost impossible to clean. The poo rather than falling out of her like droppings squashes on her coat if loose and doesn't clean very easily at all.

She is also quite raw because the urine comes down her legs constantly because of the way she is deformed. She did used to be able to hold her back end up, but has lost some functionality of it recently. I never used to have any problems with her at all.

She is now in a constant state of needing attention. I took her to the vets today and we have decided to shave her every couple of weeks as it is near impossible to keep ontop of cleaning her when she has fur due to her deformity.

What am i best keeping her on- towels- I've used ecobed, but that still sticks to her.

She has been deformed since birth and has had xrays to show there are no breaks. It looks like she has broken legs by the way she is.
 
Just to say I am thinking of you and little Ava. I have never had any experience of a bun that needed this much attention so I am in admiration of your caring dedication and Ava is very lucky to have you as her mum. I am presuming that she is happy the rest of the time so that would make it all worthwhile. I wish I could suggest something to help even further but i think you are doing it all. I am sending you strength and of course, kisses for Ava. x

Reading your post again it sounds like she could have had some spinal nerve damage at some time if there are no breaks. I probably would be using soft towels also.
 
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Just to say I am thinking of you and little Ava. I have never had any experience of a bun that needed this much attention so I am in admiration of your caring dedication and Ava is very lucky to have you as her mum. I am presuming that she is happy the rest of the time so that would make it all worthwhile. I wish I could suggest something to help even further but i think you are doing it all. I am sending you strength and of course, kisses for Ava. x
 
Just to say I am thinking of you and little Ava. I have never had any experience of a bun that needed this much attention so I am in admiration of your caring dedication and Ava is very lucky to have you as her mum. I am presuming that she is happy the rest of the time so that would make it all worthwhile. I wish I could suggest something to help even further but i think you are doing it all. I am sending you strength and of course, kisses for Ava. x

Thankyou so much. I did go against vets advice to put her down. I don't think they realized how beautiful and alive her soul is and how much her spirit wants to live. I would have put her down if she had wanted to go- i.e been depressed and down and showing symptoms of distress, but she is so chirpy. The vets commented on what a charactor she is today.

I am so incredibly impressed at how they cleaned her up without anesthetic and on her back where apparantely she rested with ease. It shocks me because she has spasms if you try and turn her over as she has definately got some kind of spinal or nerve damage. It will only get worse and when the time comes i'll have her put to sleep unless she decides to go herself.

Everytime i go to the vets i have to prepare myself to leave and use another vet if they try to suggest going against my decision to keep her alive. However, i they are fantastic- they give her painkillers and antibiotics and really care for her. She had a little bit of poo on her coat which is crusted on when she came back, but other than that- she is immaculate- i would love to know how they do it so i can replicate it myself, but i wouldn't attempt clipping such a sensitive area myself.

She definately benefits from the vets doing this. Of course at nearly £70 every couple of week or two for treatment I'm sure people who don't have rabbits will think I'm absolutely mad. She is happy though and has two bonded girls with her who she loves. I think they keep her happy too.

Thankyou for the strength ( i really need it) and kisses for Ava, she is such a little angel. She is the kind of bunny that just loves and loves. She is not afraid of anything- such a brave little soul. I cry when she gets in a mess and it's just not something i can solve myself. I'm so grateful for my vets. She is indoors this summer and hereafter as there is obviously too much risk of flystrike being outside.

Anyways Thankyou for all your help xxxxxx
 
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