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Pumpkin and his enormous poops

Compass

Warren Scout
Hi All,
We recently adopted a new bunny from the RSPCA to bond with our recently widowed female rabbit. The new bunny is about 3 months old and appears in good health, my only concern is his enormous and rather inconsistent poops.

The RSPCA said prior to his neutering his poops were a little runny with some mucous and so they gave him a course of antibiotics (I believe) and it seemed to clear up although they did comment that he pooped a lot and they were very big. We thought that all rabbits pooped a lot and didn't see this as a problem.

Anyway we have had him almost two weeks and have noticed that his poops are massive and rather misshapen, he is also more recently doing more softer poops (much like large caecotrophes but unlike a bunch of grapes they are a normal poop shape) . Other than his poops being unusual he appears very healthy and happy - eating very well (tonnes of hay, <20g excel nuggets each day and a medium/large leaf of kale) and is happily binkying around the garden showing no signs of pain or discomfort.

I've uploaded a picture of his poops and a 5p coin to show you the size comparison.
22289995_10159333721015328_4578563551738299033_o.jpg

22256844_10159333720895328_3200535898747626385_o.jpg



Any ideas or experience of this? I've always taken in older rescue rabbits so wasn't sure if this is more common in younger rabbits? His history for info is that he was voluntarily given up to the RSPCA from a rescuer who wasn't coping. He had mites when he presented to them but that was the only problem he presented with.

Many thanks
 
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p.s. he also poops more than any rabbit we have ever had, I'm not sure whether this has an effect..?
 
They also appear much lighter than all the other rabbits poops (like undigested day) as per picture..
 
He is gorgeous. I'm useless at health stuff but the one thing that always crops up in my mind with English spot bunnies & big mis-shaped poo is megacolon. I don't understand much about the condition though x
 
As he is young and has been through a few 'homes' in his short life, I suspect that he keeps having a change of diet and this is the effect. As he is a good hay eater, I would cut back on the pellets and see if things improve. Ideally, the poos you see should be big, round, same size and look like bits of compressed hay. Grass (or fresh greens) will make poo darker.
 
Thanks for replies. Agree his poops look exactly like those on megacolon info, they also smell quite bad, like cow poo or even dog poop. He seems fine , very good appetite and binkying around the garden. We have stopped all his pellets and are just giving him hay and herbs ( no veg either), we are not sure but think his poops may be a little more formed.
He is quite young and I thought this was usually a problem for older rabbits?
Does anyone know what diet is recommended? I'm wondering whether he may have problems with gut flora?
We don't know whether to take him to the vet as it doesn't seem to be causing him any problems at the moment.
Any info would be much appreciated :)
 
Thanks for replies. Agree his poops look exactly like those on megacolon info, they also smell quite bad, like cow poo or even dog poop. He seems fine , very good appetite and binkying around the garden. We have stopped all his pellets and are just giving him hay and herbs ( no veg either), we are not sure but think his poops may be a little more formed.
He is quite young and I thought this was usually a problem for older rabbits?
Does anyone know what diet is recommended? I'm wondering whether he may have problems with gut flora?
We don't know whether to take him to the vet as it doesn't seem to be causing him any problems at the moment.
Any info would be much appreciated :)

I have a Rabbit with a chronic GI tract problem which includes him producing very large abnormal shaped poo. His symptoms started when he was just over 6 months of age. He started to pass copious amounts of very soft poo which eventually became 'true' diarrhoea. My Rabbit actually has a complex condition which effects the innervation of the GI tract amongst several other things. I doubt that your Rabbit has the same problem, but one thing that may your Rabbit help is to get him onto a totally pellet free diet. It was only doing this with my Rabbit that brought about a significant improvement in his GI tract symptoms. His diet is a variety of hays, dried grasses, fresh and dried forage/herbs and a small amount of Veg. On the advice of an Exotics Specialist Vet I also give him a Prebiotic Powder Avipro Pus. Prebiotics can aid the absorption of dietary nutrients and unlike Probiotics, Prebiotics are not destroyed by gastric enzymes

http://www.vetark.co.uk/pages/Avipro-Plus_3.aspx

More recently research is being done in Human Medicine regarding hoe Prebiotics can help inflammatory bowel conditions such as Crohns Disease

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17922967

Do discuss any dietary changes you are thinking of making with your Vet first though. A pellet free diet is no appropriate for every Rabbit.


One other thing that springs to mind is you mentioning the smell of your Rabbit's poo being like 'cow poo'. Sweet 'farmyard like' smelling faeces can occur as a result of a coccidia overload. Has a Vet tested your Rabbit for Coccidiosis ?

https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/coccidia-in-rabbits

http://www.criver.com/files/pdfs/infectious-agents/rm_ld_r_rabbit_coccidiosis.aspx

Finally, a few links about Diet that may serve as useful sources of information

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/articles/free-food-for-rabbits/plants-from-the-vegetable-garden-1

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/articles/free-food-for-rabbits/foraging

https://shop.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/product/foraging-for-rabbits-by-twigs-way/
 
Thanks for replies. Agree his poops look exactly like those on megacolon info, they also smell quite bad, like cow poo or even dog poop. He seems fine , very good appetite and binkying around the garden. We have stopped all his pellets and are just giving him hay and herbs ( no veg either), we are not sure but think his poops may be a little more formed.
He is quite young and I thought this was usually a problem for older rabbits?
Does anyone know what diet is recommended? I'm wondering whether he may have problems with gut flora?
We don't know whether to take him to the vet as it doesn't seem to be causing him any problems at the moment.
Any info would be much appreciated :)


Hi Compass :)

I have had a megacolon bunny .. It was diagnosed at quite a young age for him also

You mention gut flora - you could try probiotics:

http://www.vetark.co.uk/pages/Avipro-Plus_3.aspx

I know some people have used this, and Mark at Trinity Vets recommends it.
The jury is out though as to whether it actually does any good :)


Frances Harcourt-Brown's opinion:

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.



I have found dietary management to be the safest option. How is his weight maintaining on the diet you've put him on? It's always a worry cutting out pellets and veg and finding they can't maintain. Hopefully as a young 'un he will be OK though :)

Some vets may refer to a rabbit as pre-megacolon. They will have the 'correct' fur/coat phenotype (genetic characteristics you can see, i.e. limited/light color markings), oval poops, along with having minor GI issues. You may find one or more of these fits your rabbit.

I particularly like this diet sheet for rabbits:

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view



You will also have to be careful to maintain Vit D levels if you are cutting out pellets altogether, as hay doesn't contain all that much!
 
Looks like it's a double trip to the vets this week (one of our older rabbits has a suspected UTI).

Re: his weight - he seems to be maintaining although when I picked him up today to put him in the garden his shoulder blades seemed quite prominent. I am giving him lots of meadow hay and readigrass (the readigrass he adores!). Obviously at the moment it's not causing him any problems but I'm a little concerned about bonding him with our existing rabbit if there is any possible infection. His discharge from the RSPCA was discharged because his poos were soft and mucosy but then they said they gave him something ? antibiotics which helped although his poos were still big. From our perspective he has had this problem since he came to us so I'm not convinced his poops were normal prior to discharge. I have emailed them for a little more history on him and what they tried or tested.

It's just little daunting knowing that if it is Megacolon it seems quite serious and by the looks of it life limiting :(
Re: pre-biotics - i'll ask the vet about this, I know there is lots of research on gut flora although ai'm not too sure of the evidence. I'm a dietitian by profession so keen to try any dietary approaches :) I know there is evidence for something called VSL3 in humans and I wonder if this Avipro Plus 3 is similar?
 
Hi Compass :)

I have had a megacolon bunny .. It was diagnosed at quite a young age for him also

You mention gut flora - you could try probiotics:

http://www.vetark.co.uk/pages/Avipro-Plus_3.aspx

I know some people have used this, and Mark at Trinity Vets recommends it.
The jury is out though as to whether it actually does any good :)


Frances Harcourt-Brown's opinion:

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.



I have found dietary management to be the safest option. How is his weight maintaining on the diet you've put him on? It's always a worry cutting out pellets and veg and finding they can't maintain. Hopefully as a young 'un he will be OK though :)

Some vets may refer to a rabbit as pre-megacolon. They will have the 'correct' fur/coat phenotype (genetic characteristics you can see, i.e. limited/light color markings), oval poops, along with having minor GI issues. You may find one or more of these fits your rabbit.

I particularly like this diet sheet for rabbits:

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...heets/recommended-diet-for-adult-rabbits/view



You will also have to be careful to maintain Vit D levels if you are cutting out pellets altogether, as hay doesn't contain all that much!

Mighty Max - Thanks for the info, How did you get on with managing it? How old did your megacolon bunny live for?
 
Mighty Max - Thanks for the info, How did you get on with managing it? How old did your megacolon bunny live for?


You're welcome :)

I managed it with diet. It was trial and error as there wasn't so much info around as now for megacolon.

He lived a good long happy life and died from something completely unrelated. I really never saw it as a death sentence and neither did the vet. But it's good to get all the help and info you can for your bunny at this stage.

He is incredibly gorgeous :love:
 
I have no experience of megacolon so can't add anything apart from your bunny is too cute not to comment on this thread! I hope it turns out to be nothing serious. I have a bunny who has a slow gut and also acid reflux who is on daily medicine for life and often has funny poops. I think I feel more protective over her since she's unwell. Good luck
 
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