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Gassy/ gurgly stomach

Zigzag

Zigzag

Alpha Buck
Hi all,

I adopted two senior rabbits 5 months ago- they will be 7 soon. Recently one of them has had more of a gurgly stomach, more so when eating. And sometimes when he's running about.

He's behaving normally, but I'm a little worried especially as the other rabbit has had difficulties since we've adopted him which resulted in 8 vet visits in 4 months (not gut related though)

I've switched their diet to hay only, and plan to do this for one week. I've also given him some infacol.

Can you provide any advice?

Thank you
 
Zigzag said:
Hi all,

I adopted two senior rabbits 5 months ago- they will be 7 soon. Recently one of them has had more of a gurgly stomach, more so when eating. And sometimes when he's running about.

He's behaving normally, but I'm a little worried especially as the other rabbit has had difficulties since we've adopted him which resulted in 8 vet visits in 4 months (not gut related though)

I've switched their diet to hay only, and plan to do this for one week. I've also given him some infacol.

Can you provide any advice?

Thank you
Click to expand...

What is the poo output like ?

Are you monitoring their weight ? Unexplained weightloss can be an early indicator of a health problem.

Are you literally just feeding hay ? No forage/veg/herbs at all ?.

With regards to the Rabbit who has had to be seen by a Vet on numerous occasions, what was/is his/her problem ? I know you say that it was not gut related, but with Rabbits even problems not directly originating from the gut can cause gut symptoms as a secondary issue.
 
Zigzag said:
Hi all,

I adopted two senior rabbits 5 months ago- they will be 7 soon. Recently one of them has had more of a gurgly stomach, more so when eating. And sometimes when he's running about.

He's behaving normally, but I'm a little worried especially as the other rabbit has had difficulties since we've adopted him which resulted in 8 vet visits in 4 months (not gut related though)

I've switched their diet to hay only, and plan to do this for one week. I've also given him some infacol.

Can you provide any advice?

Thank you
Click to expand...


Hi Zigzag :wave:

Have you suddenly changed their diet to hay only? I would only contemplate that with vet's advice - it's a bit drastic for senior buns, who can lose weight quite quickly.

I'm sure you've seen this stasis article:

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

Infacol is good, though you may get some stick on here (not from me) for using 'home remedies' and not taking your rabbit to the vet. I fully approve of Infacol and use it myself to treat my rabbits, but as I say, just be careful :)

Could the one who has the gurgly stomach be hungry?
 
Hello all

Thank you for your advice and apologies for the delay. The hay diet lasted one day- in response to what you both said!

Zigzag is the one with a gurgly belly, and it seems to have got a bit better- touch wood! The difficulty is that I'm constantly worrying that something will happen, which is driving my partner insane!

Harrison the other rabbit was sneezing constantly. We went to 2 vets before going to a rabbit specialist who found a piece of hay trapped in his throat near his soft palate. He was also put on antibiotics, and unfortunately still sneezes. The vet advised that it's likely to be a chronic inflammation issue.

Due to the fact that this happened I'm constantly worried the bunnies are about to get ill.. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks this!

And Mad Max - I've found that infacol is very helpful for both bunnies if used cautiously.

Thanks again
 
Zigzag said:
Hello all

Thank you for your advice and apologies for the delay. The hay diet lasted one day- in response to what you both said!

Zigzag is the one with a gurgly belly, and it seems to have got a bit better- touch wood! The difficulty is that I'm constantly worrying that something will happen, which is driving my partner insane!

Harrison the other rabbit was sneezing constantly. We went to 2 vets before going to a rabbit specialist who found a piece of hay trapped in his throat near his soft palate. He was also put on antibiotics, and unfortunately still sneezes. The vet advised that it's likely to be a chronic inflammation issue.

Due to the fact that this happened I'm constantly worried the bunnies are about to get ill.. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks this!

And Mad Max - I've found that infacol is very helpful for both bunnies if used cautiously.

Thanks again
Click to expand...


:thumb: So do I and many others! I use 1 ml immediately and then for three doses, one hour apart.
From then on I use it three times daily.

Sometimes I find that Infacol and tummy rubs are all that's needed to settle a rabbit's gurgly tummy. It's a perfectly safe and harmless medication, which isn't absorbed by the body, so you can't overdose on it. :)
 
Zigzag said:
Hello all

Thank you for your advice and apologies for the delay. The hay diet lasted one day- in response to what you both said!

Zigzag is the one with a gurgly belly, and it seems to have got a bit better- touch wood! The difficulty is that I'm constantly worrying that something will happen, which is driving my partner insane!

Harrison the other rabbit was sneezing constantly. We went to 2 vets before going to a rabbit specialist who found a piece of hay trapped in his throat near his soft palate. He was also put on antibiotics, and unfortunately still sneezes. The vet advised that it's likely to be a chronic inflammation issue.

Due to the fact that this happened I'm constantly worried the bunnies are about to get ill.. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks this!

And Mad Max - I've found that infacol is very helpful for both bunnies if used cautiously.

Thanks again
Click to expand...

Glad to hear that Zigzag is less gurgly now. I do know what you mean about getting anxious about Rabbit health issues. I try to keep a lid on it (most of the time:oops:) as otherwise we can miss out on actually enjoying having our Rabbits with us.

Infacol is on special offer from Sainsburys atm, £2.50 instead of £3.00 a bottle :)
 
Zigzag said:
Hello all

Thank you for your advice and apologies for the delay. The hay diet lasted one day- in response to what you both said!

Zigzag is the one with a gurgly belly, and it seems to have got a bit better- touch wood! The difficulty is that I'm constantly worrying that something will happen, which is driving my partner insane!

Harrison the other rabbit was sneezing constantly. We went to 2 vets before going to a rabbit specialist who found a piece of hay trapped in his throat near his soft palate. He was also put on antibiotics, and unfortunately still sneezes. The vet advised that it's likely to be a chronic inflammation issue.

Due to the fact that this happened I'm constantly worried the bunnies are about to get ill.. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks this!

And Mad Max - I've found that infacol is very helpful for both bunnies if used cautiously.

Thanks again
Click to expand...


Firstly, do you know what stopped the gurgling? Might be worth noting down if there's any pattern here and seeing what you did and what made a difference.

You must've been delighted when your vet found that hay trapped in Harrison's throat - what a thing to happen! And secondly you are not the only one who worries about your bunnies. I've looked after hundreds of bunnies over many years - my own and fosters - so I tend not to worry too much, but if you read a few threads on here you'll see that it's very very common.

But! It does get better/easier :D
 
Thanks for your tips- Jack's Jane I'll probably go down to Sainsbury's and stock up on infacol :)

Pleased to hear that I'm not the only one to worry about my rabbits. Unfortunately I worry about other things too!

Mad Max - I give my rabbits the same dose of infacol, as I find it's very helpful alongside a tummy massage. I couldn't identify what caused the gassy tummy, but the other week, my partner fed them a couple of raspberries, so I wondered if it had something to do with that... I prefer not to give them any fruit.

I just wondered if you could give me one other bit of advice. Harrison, my other rabbit is pooing and eating normally, but I've recently noticed a bit of cecal liquid/ juice which is staining the rug and floor. I definitely know it's coming from his butt! Have you ever come across this? I plan to call the vet tomorrow, just to get a bit of advice.

Thanks again
 
Zigzag said:
Thanks for your tips- Jack's Jane I'll probably go down to Sainsbury's and stock up on infacol :)

Pleased to hear that I'm not the only one to worry about my rabbits. Unfortunately I worry about other things too!

Mad Max - I give my rabbits the same dose of infacol, as I find it's very helpful alongside a tummy massage. I couldn't identify what caused the gassy tummy, but the other week, my partner fed them a couple of raspberries, so I wondered if it had something to do with that... I prefer not to give them any fruit.

I just wondered if you could give me one other bit of advice. Harrison, my other rabbit is pooing and eating normally, but I've recently noticed a bit of cecal liquid/ juice which is staining the rug and floor. I definitely know it's coming from his butt! Have you ever come across this? I plan to call the vet tomorrow, just to get a bit of advice.

Thanks again
Click to expand...


Have a look at these pics and let me know what it looks like.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/drop/Drp_en.htm

http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/rabbit-droppings.asp

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/poop.html


It could be a sign of a temporary gut disturbance, which will clear itself up.

You could think about adding in a probiotic to the diet if it happens regularly:

https://www.viovet.co.uk/Vetark_Avipro_Plus/c1441/

This could help stabilise the gut bacteria and solve the issue :)
 
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly (again), his poos look nice and golden, like the pictures, which is good. But the stains look like small brown stains on the rug. He was on a massive course of various antibiotics, but that was a month ago.

The only thing I found on the internet that seemed to describe what he has is something called intermittent soft cecotropes.

I am hoping it's a gut disturbance. Would you be able to let me know the best way to administer that probiotic? Can you mix it with water?

Thanks again!
 
Zigzag said:
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly (again), his poos look nice and golden, like the pictures, which is good. But the stains look like small brown stains on the rug. He was on a massive course of various antibiotics, but that was a month ago.

The only thing I found on the internet that seemed to describe what he has is something called intermittent soft cecotropes.

I am hoping it's a gut disturbance. Would you be able to let me know the best way to administer that probiotic? Can you mix it with water?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

If you are going to give a probiotic then I'd recommend Fibreplex

https://www.animeddirect.co.uk/prot...SeNglqv4NFGabeZVK2usjcC14hxP-tIUaAnKfEALw_wcB

There is also Bio Lapis

https://www.animeddirect.co.uk/protexin-biolapis-for-rabbits-2g-sachets-pack-of-6.html


Avipro Plus is not a probiotic, it is only a prebiotic

'' Avipro for quite a time contained a licensed Lactobacillus acidophilus organism, we dropped Enterococcus faecium.
Due to licensing changes within the EU we have had to chanage the active organism again.

The EU is requiring the licensing of active organisms for specific species groups. Unfortunately they first require licensing for farm species before licencing for companion animals and the whole process is lengthy. We now use only licensed organisms - ie they have demonstrated efficacy and safety like medicines.

AVIPRO PLUS has now become a purely prebiotic based product used in all species''

http://www.vetark.co.uk/pages/AVIPRO.aspx?pageid=232

http://www.vetark.co.uk/pages/Avipro-Plus_4.aspx
 
Zigzag said:
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly (again), his poos look nice and golden, like the pictures, which is good. But the stains look like small brown stains on the rug. He was on a massive course of various antibiotics, but that was a month ago.

The only thing I found on the internet that seemed to describe what he has is something called intermittent soft cecotropes.

I am hoping it's a gut disturbance. Would you be able to let me know the best way to administer that probiotic? Can you mix it with water?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...


You're welcome :)

Yes you can mix it with water, and you can also mix it with water or babyfood and syringe straight into his mouth. Most rabbits like the taste of it and you can put it straight into the drinking water.

I will say though, that the only qualified rabbit specialist vet (now retired) in the UK has her doubts about whether it does any good or not. I thought I had better let you know before you go and spend money on it!

I attended a conference and at it she said:

Pre-biotics and probiotics were mentioned. It has been shown that they may increase the rate at which commercial rabbits can be grown, there is no evidence to support any medical benefit to rabbits or if they can help rebalance gut flora in poorly rabbits.



So I personally wouldn't pin my hopes on it, but it certainly won't do any harm :)
 
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