Bunny in stasis for 7 days, still no appetite

Hi everyone,

I'm just looking for some advice or reassurance. My 2 and a half year old bunny Luna went into stasis on Sunday night abd still isn't showing any improvement or willingness to eat. She will nibble the odd leaf when I'm not there but nothing compared to her usual, greedy self.
She's had 6 metclopromide injections alongside ranitidine and baytril and I'm feeding her Recovery Plus that I was given from the vet every few hours.

Is there anything else a home would recommend I do? Any foods that appear to stimulate rabbits appetite? Has anyone else had such a long bout of stasis that turned out okay (my other bunny was eating again after 1 day and I think we've caught it much earlier this time)?

Just looking for some advice, so worried about her .

lalalalalola said:

Hi everyone,

I'm just looking for some advice or reassurance. My 2 and a half year old bunny Luna went into stasis on Sunday night abd still isn't showing any improvement or willingness to eat. She will nibble the odd leaf when I'm not there but nothing compared to her usual, greedy self.
She's had 6 metclopromide injections alongside ranitidine and baytril and I'm feeding her Recovery Plus that I was given from the vet every few hours.

Is there anything else a home would recommend I do? Any foods that appear to stimulate rabbits appetite? Has anyone else had such a long bout of stasis that turned out okay (my other bunny was eating again after 1 day and I think we've caught it much earlier this time)?

Just looking for some advice, so worried about her ��.

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Sorry this will be a rushed reply-

Has she also had pain relief ? A Rabbit in pain, for whatever reason, will not eat.

http://rabbit.org/the-importance-of-analgesia-pain-control-for-pet-rabbits/

Did the Vet thoroughly examine your Rabbit to try to determine the primary cause of gut stasis ? Stasis is often a secondary symptom of another problem- eg Dental problems.

I assume that your Rabbit is pooing, albeit it probably a significantly reduced amount to normal

Fluids are very important when treating gut stasis, fluids given both orally and subcutaneously/IV

I would take your Rabbit back to the Vet today for re-assessment. In the meantime take a look at this link

http://anyflip.com/dvpt/hzvv

Good luck x

Hello there. I am sorry your rabbit has lost her appetite. I have had a couple of does who have gone off their pellets at this time of the year (Spring) due to hormonal reasons but will eat grass or green vegetables. It is very worrying. It may not be this in your rabbit's case but just thought I would mention it. The rabbits I had started eating normally after a few weeks. I had one rabbit admitted for further tests but nothing showed up. Hopefully your rabbit will start eating again but as Jack's-Jane advised, I would take her back to the Vets.

lalalalalola said:

Hi everyone,

I'm just looking for some advice or reassurance. My 2 and a half year old bunny Luna went into stasis on Sunday night abd still isn't showing any improvement or willingness to eat. She will nibble the odd leaf when I'm not there but nothing compared to her usual, greedy self.
She's had 6 metclopromide injections alongside ranitidine and baytril and I'm feeding her Recovery Plus that I was given from the vet every few hours.

Is there anything else a home would recommend I do? Any foods that appear to stimulate rabbits appetite? Has anyone else had such a long bout of stasis that turned out okay (my other bunny was eating again after 1 day and I think we've caught it much earlier this time)?

Just looking for some advice, so worried about her .

Click to expand...

Hi there and welcome to the Forum :wave:

I would say you need to get her back to the vet for some fluids. Sub-cut fluids or else for her to stay in for IV fluids. She is likely to be dehydrated by this time, and the contents of her gut will be dry and not easy to pass.

Your vet should have given you gut motility meds to bring home with you, and also some pain relief - she may not be eating because she is in pain from some cause or another.

Infacol is another good thing - alongside tummy rubs. Its an infant gas medication, and you can buy it at a pharmacy. You can give 1 ml every hour for three doses, then three doses per day.

Here is some reading in case it helps at all:

http://anyflip.com/dvpt/hzvv/basic

http://rabbit.org/gastrointestinal-stasis-the-silent-killer-2/

Good luck!

Thanks is for those tips, the vet was reluctant to give her pain medication as she said it could slow her bowels which is contradictory to what we want to happen. She's been getting water mixed in with her food and ive been soaking the small amount of veggies she has eaten are very wet. There's no issues with her teeth or anything and there's been no changes at home, only thing I can think it might be is that they're moulting a lot right now. I'll go buy some infacol today. Thanks for the tips! We are back at the vet today so will ask her about all these things.

lalalalalola said:

Thanks is for those tips, the vet was reluctant to give her pain medication as she said it could slow her bowels which is contradictory to what we want to happen. She's been getting water mixed in with her food and ive been soaking the small amount of veggies she has eaten are very wet. There's no issues with her teeth or anything and there's been no changes at home, only thing I can think it might be is that they're moulting a lot right now. I'll go buy some infacol today. Thanks for the tips! We are back at the vet today so will ask her about all these things.

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It's really well established knowledge now amongst vets treating rabbits that pain relief is essential for rabbits in stasis. The vet's thinking is at least a decade out of date. I can see that a morphine-based painkiller such as Vetergesic could slow things down but an NSAID such as Metacam should be given routinely in such cases. I'd agree with the above posts about fluids. I'd be worried about how much the vet in question knows about treating rabbits if they are unwilling to give painkillers in the first instance for stasis. Would you consider a second opinion with another vet with more knowledge on rabbits?

Another vote for pain relief - it can make a huge difference really quickly (half an hour, sometimes), even if the cause is unknown.
Have the back teeth been checked properly? - with an otoscope?
Gut motility drugs are available as a liquid to be given orally - much easier to do at home than the stress of going for injections (and cheaper).
If she is sedated for an x-ray to check for any internal obstructions, etc, they could have a better look at her teeth at the same time. Any minor teeth issues can escalate within a couple of weeks of not eating properly as the teeth continue to grow but are not being ground down.

If there is no obstruction, keep up with the syringe feeding to maintain weight any gut mobility and increase poo output. Keep tempting her with eg herbs, celery leaves, dandelion leaves. Often they go for the stronger tasting leaves.

lalalalalola said:

Thanks is for those tips, the vet was reluctant to give her pain medication as she said it could slow her bowels which is contradictory to what we want to happen. She's been getting water mixed in with her food and ive been soaking the small amount of veggies she has eaten are very wet. There's no issues with her teeth or anything and there's been no changes at home, only thing I can think it might be is that they're moulting a lot right now. I'll go buy some infacol today. Thanks for the tips! We are back at the vet today so will ask her about all these things.

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You're welcome

I hope she feels a lot better soon!

If you feel your vet could be helping a bit more, and would like perhaps a second opinion, you can post a thread on this Forum. Go to Rabbit Chat and start a thread with the title "Rabbit savvy vet needed in (your location) and members will try and help you find a good vet. I'm not saying yours isn't, but pain relief is one of the essentials when a rabbit won't eat (unless contraindicated by kidney issues).

Or you can have a look here:

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/vetfinder/vets-owners-recommendations

Wishing you much luck xx