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  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

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    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

Rabbit savvy vet needed for telephone advice re: consultation/abdominal surgery

B

bunniesgalore

Alpha Buck
Please help.

For two weeks Rupert has suffered a variety of symptoms. These include:
Protruding eyes
3rd eyelid very prominent
Pain
Fast breathing
A mass in his stomach-thought to be a hairball but not certain
Bloods affected including liver

He's had xrays galore over a period of days, barian which showed the mass isn't causing a blockage and is on panacur and 2ml of metacam a day. We're awaiting the EC blood results.

My vet advises removal. He says it's better to do on a fit rabbit. Rupert is otherwise still strong, completely 'with it' and at times seems perfectly well until he then lies down and breathes quickly and shakes a bit.

My vet is a small vet, although both vets would be involved and when I asked the main vet he said he did have the necessary equipment and could do it despite never having done it before. I am sure they'd try their very best and yet, it's awful surgery, would I be sending Rupert to his death?

We're at least 2 hours to a referral centre, 3 to Frances Harcourt Brown and I don't have transport anyway. Ultimately I don't feel Rupert is up to travelling so far especially in this heat and to then travel back after abdominal surgery sounds horrible.

I'm trying as always to be calm. I'm a big 'knowledge is power' person. So.

I need a knowledgeable vet who can be sent the xrays, bloods etc and give some idea re: diagnosis and if further tests are required. We've a vet with an MRI about half an hour away.
If there is a diagnosis, then we need advice re treatment.
If surgery is the only option we need info re: what's needed etc and essentially if it can feasibility be done by inexperienced vets at a small practice.

I'd also be hugely grateful for anyone with experience of abdominal surgery to share their experiences. If you Google this it's all doom and gloom, I need a more positive view if there is one.

Currently I feel we're waiting for Rupert to go downhill. As he is strong still I do see the value of surgery now rather than when he is weak, but ultimately how do I make that decision when I don't know what's wrong with him?

PLEASE HELP. I really just don't know what to do and I'm really frightened. Rupert's such a lovely chap, he is really happy with Milly and he has years more of life to live.
 
 
bunniesgalore said:
Thank you. We've tried FHB but the practice said unless we want a referral they can't help. We really need more information. I can't agree to surgery if I don't even know if that's what's needed.
Click to expand...

Thats strange, we have sent test results there before and got help. Maybe they have changed the rules as have been inundated with requests :? I hope you get the info you need very soon xx
 
bunniesgalore said:
Thank you. We've tried FHB but the practice said unless we want a referral they can't help. We really need more information. I can't agree to surgery if I don't even know if that's what's needed.
Click to expand...

It is certainly worth ringing round the others for advice but I have a feeling that if a pet is already registered with a vet, they will only speak vet to vet as it would be 'impolite' to do otherwise. Good luck - hope you get the help you need.
 
Hugo's There said:
Thats strange, we have sent test results there before and got help. Maybe they have changed the rules as have been inundated with requests :? I hope you get the info you need very soon xx
Click to expand...

I suspect there's been a misunderstanding - if as in the first post you'd be talking about sending blood test results x-rays etc then it would be classed as a referral as that info would be sent by the vets. I've seen posts very recently where opinion was sought from FHB that way. Thinking about it she also gave advice on Tracy's Cookie (wildie) only a few weeks ago so I'm pretty sure she does the referral-for-advice thing still.
 
Bunny Buddy said:
I suspect there's been a misunderstanding - if as in the first post you'd be talking about sending blood test results x-rays etc then it would be classed as a referral as that info would be sent by the vets. I've seen posts very recently where opinion was sought from FHB that way. Thinking about it she also gave advice on Tracy's Cookie (wildie) only a few weeks ago so I'm pretty sure she does the referral-for-advice thing still.
Click to expand...

Sorry when I say I or we I obviously always mean the vet we use. I wouldn't contact a specialist myself, it would always be my vet asking for the appropriate advice :)
 
I second Jason Burgess at Wood Vet Gloucester, very nice guy, loves bunnies and really knows his stuff :)
 
Hugo's There said:
Sorry when I say I or we I obviously always mean the vet we use. I wouldn't contact a specialist myself, it would always be my vet asking for the appropriate advice :)
Click to expand...

Sorry, I realised that. I was agreeing with your surprise that they had said she wouldn't be able to offer advice. It does state on their website that they will only give advice re referrals from vets and I assume they get inundated with people bypassing their vets. I was just (badly) trying to say that I believe they would accept the case as long as it was a proper referral (which doesn't mean she'd need to see the patient just advice the current vet).
 
Thank you everyone.

I don't know the precise details re the conversion with my vet and the FHB practice but I asked my vet to contact her for advice and last night my vet said the practice said that FHB isn't there everyday and gets inundated with requests for info so if we want to see her we can but she can't/won't do telephone advice.
I do entirely understand this, it's something I often wondered about actually.

All I want is information so we can treat Rupert properly. I know it's not looking good, but my vets genuinely haven't got a clue what's going on-they freely admit this. But Rupert's had two weeks of this and I can't bear to think he isn't getting 'proper' (not necessarily the right word) treatment just because we live miles from a vet who knows anything about our precious buns.

We're going for more x-rays on Monday and I will take a list of all the names you have all so kindly provided. Someone must be able to shed some light on this as I and my vets are completely out of our depth. Rupert's being a star though. He's an ex Honeybunny and he's being incredibly strong and coping much better than I'd ever have imagined. Milly (his wife) is very depressed and off her food too and I'm certain it's anxiety as opposed to her being poorly. We will battle on. Xx
 
Another here recommending Jason Burgess. He's brilliant, not to mention he's a lovely person who really understands how much we love our bunnies!
 
To be perfectly honest, as far as I am concerned there is only one person for this information and who will gladly help and that is Simon Maddock at the Cat and Rabbit Clinic on 01604 478888. He is incredibly highly specialised, and very, very dedicated to his bunny patients. Over the past few months, there have been a number of people on the forum, that I have pm, when they were at their wits end, and in total despair, with bunnies having endured months of inappropriate treatment, and most long term prognosis have been pts.

Simon is my vet, and has been for some years now, and so far all the people I have pointed in his direction now have fully recovered buns, and most had been wrongly diagnosed, or treatment was not being targeted how it needed to be. I know I am going to upset people here, but a number of forum members that have now seen Simon, had seen FHB, Richard Saunders and other vets at some supposed specialist referral practice in Bristol, who were so specialist, they couldn't read their own scans and so they were sent to America, (at a horrendous cost:shock:) took over a week to come back, and then somehow STILL managed to get it all wrong:shock:

Simon runs his clinic with his wife Kim, who is another bunny specialist vet. How they work is, one does the morning clinic until 11.15am, and then I believe he allows a bit of time for catching up with cases, speaking to other vets etc. Then they both operate until approx. 1500hrs, and then whoever didn't do the morning surgery, does the afternoon and then the following morning, and they rotate round like this.

I have to be honest and say, I would be concerned at vets planning to do this highly complex surgery, when they have not previously. If it were my bunny, I would be looking at travelling him by train to Simon, who has no doubt done what you need doing on numerous occasions, possibly hospitalising him for a couple of days or whatever is deemed necessary, and then taking him home. I would have every confidence in Simon doing Rupert's surgery, and yes he has done emergency abdominal work on a previous bunny of mine, who made a full recovery. I really do hope that this is all goes well for Rupert and yourself.
 
RogerRabbit999 said:
To be perfectly honest, as far as I am concerned there is only one person for this information and who will gladly help and that is Simon Maddock at the Cat and Rabbit Clinic on 01604 478888. He is incredibly highly specialised, and very, very dedicated to his bunny patients. Over the past few months, there have been a number of people on the forum, that I have pm, when they were at their wits end, and in total despair, with bunnies having endured months of inappropriate treatment, and most long term prognosis have been pts.

Simon is my vet, and has been for some years now, and so far all the people I have pointed in his direction now have fully recovered buns, and most had been wrongly diagnosed, or treatment was not being targeted how it needed to be. I know I am going to upset people here, but a number of forum members that have now seen Simon, had seen FHB, Richard Saunders and other vets at some supposed specialist referral practice in Bristol, who were so specialist, they couldn't read their own scans and so they were sent to America, (at a horrendous cost:shock:) took over a week to come back, and then somehow STILL managed to get it all wrong:shock:

Simon runs his clinic with his wife Kim, who is another bunny specialist vet. How they work is, one does the morning clinic until 11.15am, and then I believe he allows a bit of time for catching up with cases, speaking to other vets etc. Then they both operate until approx. 1500hrs, and then whoever didn't do the morning surgery, does the afternoon and then the following morning, and they rotate round like this.

I have to be honest and say, I would be concerned at vets planning to do this highly complex surgery, when they have not previously. If it were my bunny, I would be looking at travelling him by train to Simon, who has no doubt done what you need doing on numerous occasions, possibly hospitalising him for a couple of days or whatever is deemed necessary, and then taking him home. I would have every confidence in Simon doing Rupert's surgery, and yes he has done emergency abdominal work on a previous bunny of mine, who made a full recovery. I really do hope that this is all goes well for Rupert and yourself.
Click to expand...

Whilst travelling by train may have been appropriate for your Rabbits it most certainly would not be so for all. I am certain bunniesgalore will do everything possible to obtain appropriate help for her Rabbit within the constraints of what her individual Rabbit can cope with For her Rabbit it may be that a train journey would be far too much to cope with. I know for a fact that if I tried to take Morse on a train he'd never survive.

It is great that you are so happy with the expertise of your Vet, but we must be mindful of the fact that there will be times when it is not possible to transport a Rabbit over a vast distance, especially a Rabbit who's health is already compromised.

bunniesgalore, I really hope that your Vet can obtain more information from some of the Specialists and that together you can all come up with a plan of action to help your Rabbit. Sending lots of vibes for him xx
 
RogerRabbit999 said:
To be perfectly honest, as far as I am concerned there is only one person for this information and who will gladly help and that is Simon Maddock at the Cat and Rabbit Clinic on 01604 478888. He is incredibly highly specialised, and very, very dedicated to his bunny patients. Over the past few months, there have been a number of people on the forum, that I have pm, when they were at their wits end, and in total despair, with bunnies having endured months of inappropriate treatment, and most long term prognosis have been pts.

Simon is my vet, and has been for some years now, and so far all the people I have pointed in his direction now have fully recovered buns, and most had been wrongly diagnosed, or treatment was not being targeted how it needed to be. I know I am going to upset people here, but a number of forum members that have now seen Simon, had seen FHB, Richard Saunders and other vets at some supposed specialist referral practice in Bristol, who were so specialist, they couldn't read their own scans and so they were sent to America, (at a horrendous cost:shock:) took over a week to come back, and then somehow STILL managed to get it all wrong:shock:

Simon runs his clinic with his wife Kim, who is another bunny specialist vet. How they work is, one does the morning clinic until 11.15am, and then I believe he allows a bit of time for catching up with cases, speaking to other vets etc. Then they both operate until approx. 1500hrs, and then whoever didn't do the morning surgery, does the afternoon and then the following morning, and they rotate round like this.

I have to be honest and say, I would be concerned at vets planning to do this highly complex surgery, when they have not previously. If it were my bunny, I would be looking at travelling him by train to Simon, who has no doubt done what you need doing on numerous occasions, possibly hospitalising him for a couple of days or whatever is deemed necessary, and then taking him home. I would have every confidence in Simon doing Rupert's surgery, and yes he has done emergency abdominal work on a previous bunny of mine, who made a full recovery. I really do hope that this is all goes well for Rupert and yourself.
Click to expand...

I do agree that Simon is an amazing bunny AND piggy vet and I'm so very lucky that he takes care of my small furries for me. However, I also agree with Jane that in this particular situation, a long journey is not in the best interests of this bunny so a specialist much closer to home is best.
 
Jack's-Jane said:
Whilst travelling by train may have been appropriate for your Rabbits it most certainly would not be so for all. I am certain bunniesgalore will do everything possible to obtain appropriate help for her Rabbit within the constraints of what her individual Rabbit can cope with For her Rabbit it may be that a train journey would be far too much to cope with. I know for a fact that if I tried to take Morse on a train he'd never survive.

It is great that you are so happy with the expertise of your Vet, but we must be mindful of the fact that there will be times when it is not possible to transport a Rabbit over a vast distance, especially a Rabbit who's health is already compromised.

bunniesgalore, I really hope that your Vet can obtain more information from some of the Specialists and that together you can all come up with a plan of action to help your Rabbit. Sending lots of vibes for him xx
Click to expand...

Of course, and I understand that completely. Some years ago though when I was in the same situation with a bunny, and not local to Simon, and with this bunny literally collapsed on his side, it was a massive gamble, but fortunately it paid off. I knew that if I could just get him to Simon, it would be his best possible chance, and yes it was a massive gamble, bearing in mind that this bunny was so terribly sick, collapsed, and needing literally round the clock care every 2 hours, but if I hadn't tried, I would have lost him anyway, and then had to live with the 'what ifs'. Guess it's one of those 'dammed if you do, dammed if you don't' situations. We just made the bunny as comfortable as possible, laid on blankets on the back seat of the car, and I just cried all the way, and at times he looked like he had already left, and god only knows how, but somehow he survived and then amazingly 48hrs later, had turned the corner so to speak. He stayed in for 6 days before travelling home, and then went on to make a full recovery :D
 
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