Gingebread very soft squidgy mess of poo everytime he has grass,greenery etc

[Sammy&Patch]

We got Gingerbread a few years ago from a rescue centre. He is about 6 years old. Ever since getting him he has a poo problem. He is fine on his nuggets and hay but anytime he has more than a tiny amount of anything like grass,dandelion leaves, cabbage, brocolli etc it seem like his body can't cope with it. I find squidgy messes of soft poos. It looks a bit like the ones he is meant to eat but they aren't formed properly they just come out as a mess. And then it can get stuck to him if he's sitting on it before I can clear it up. I have had that with my other bunny before on the odd occasion but they are formed properly, she just hasn't eaten them. Yesterday he had an absolutely massive amount in one huge mess, about 10cm x 5cm!!! The day before he had eaten a fair bit of grass and dandelion leaves (he is indoors but I bring the grass in). I have been giving small amounts for a while and the same with a little bit of cabbage etc. He will often have a few small messes but anytime I give more than a little he just does the big mess. I would have thought that after all this time and having small amounts regularly, he would have got used to it and be able to eat it normally like my other bunny can. I mentioned it to the vet once but they didn't seem concerned and said it could just be he can't tolerate it. It's just such a shame when he loves stuff like that but I have to only let him have a bit. When he does the big mess he seems a bit unhappy and a couple of times went off his nuggets,he was hungry but wouldn't eat them so I am worried to upset his diet. Does anyone have any similar experience and what you did about it. Thankyou :-)

[tonibun]

I just posted on Griffiski's thread that I have a rabbit who can only tolerate a small amount of nuggets, last year's hay, no carrot, broccoli, he can eat spring greens, so that is what he has. He came from a family where he had been looked after badly.

[Sammy&Patch]

I just posted on Griffiski's thread that I have a rabbit who can only tolerate a small amount of nuggets, last year's hay, no carrot, broccoli, he can eat spring greens, so that is what he has. He came from a family where he had been looked after badly.

hi, thanks, I just read that thread, it sounds like your bunny is the same as Gingerbread. My partner always says I'm being mean when I say no he can't have that or only a little when my other bunny doesn't have that issue. I always feel so guilty but it seems like when he is stable on his nuggets and hay he is fine,normal poos etc. He can usually tolerate a little bit of some greenery or carrot but not much (although he always looks for more which is sad), there is normally a bit of mess in his room but I figured that isn't too much of a problem. But definitely increasing to more than a very small amount,he can't cope with. I don't know anything about his past, he has been very friendly since we got him so I think he was a loved bunny but maybe they didn't feed him correctly and that's why he has a problem or maybe it's just in his genes. I also wondered if maaybe that's why someone got rid of him as he is so messy. Luckily he keeps the mess in his room which has lino flooring so it's easy enough to clean up! I wouldn't mind if it was just the mess of it but I think keeping his guts stable is so important even though he's missing out on all the nice stuff :-(

[Scrappy's Little Helper]

I had a bunny with a very sensitive tummy too. I ended up having her on a hay and dried forage only diet, otherwise she would leave a lot of squidgy poos. Similarly to tonibun’s experience, she didn’t have the best diet with her previous owners. Apparently when they ran out of nuggets they just gave her an apple to eat! No wonder her poor digestive system went haywire!

I don’t think you’re being mean at all in restricting his diet, as you say the most important thing in to keep his gut stable. Unfortunately some bunnies seem to have concrete stomachs while others just have to smell grass and their bottoms explode!

In Gingerbread’s case I would probably keep him on a hay and pellet diet only for a few days to allow his gut to “reset”. The first things I would then try and introduce are fresh bramble leaves. These are supposed to be very good for a rabbit’s digestive system (I wish I’d known this when I had my sensitive tummied bun!). I believe plantain is also very good. I would then gradually introduce other greens, one at a time and in very small amounts. If his poos go soft again you can probably assume they’re too rich for him and strike them off in the future. Fresh herbs are also worth trying as they are supposed to be more gentle on rabbits’ tummies than veg.

Good luck, I hope you manage to find a diet that suits Gingerbread. I know from my own experience that it’s very tricky in finding the right balance of giving them a good variety of nice things to eat while keeping their tummies stable at the same time.


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[tonibun]

It's good he has you caring for him and he will enjoy his nuggets and hay, better than some bunnies that get a crust thrown in and a green water bottle with no hay, or owners who haven't bothered to go on line and find out what their rabbit should be eating.

[Sammy&Patch]

I had a bunny with a very sensitive tummy too. I ended up having her on a hay and dried forage only diet, otherwise she would leave a lot of squidgy poos. Similarly to tonibun’s experience, she didn’t have the best diet with her previous owners. Apparently when they ran out of nuggets they just gave her an apple to eat! No wonder her poor digestive system went haywire!

I don’t think you’re being mean at all in restricting his diet, as you say the most important thing in to keep his gut stable. Unfortunately some bunnies seem to have concrete stomachs while others just have to smell grass and their bottoms explode!

In Gingerbread’s case I would probably keep him on a hay and pellet diet only for a few days to allow his gut to “reset”. The first things I would then try and introduce are fresh bramble leaves. These are supposed to be very good for a rabbit’s digestive system (I wish I’d known this when I had my sensitive tummied bun!). I believe plantain is also very good. I would then gradually introduce other greens, one at a time and in very small amounts. If his poos go soft again you can probably assume they’re too rich for him and strike them off in the future. Fresh herbs are also worth trying as they are supposed to be more gentle on rabbits’ tummies than veg.

Good luck, I hope you manage to find a diet that suits Gingerbread. I know from my own experience that it’s very tricky in finding the right balance of giving them a good variety of nice things to eat while keeping their tummies stable at the same time.


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Thankyou, I will try your suggestions, it's good to know he's not the only bunny with this problem! Hopefully I can find something yummy that he can stomach!!!

[Sammy&Patch]

It's good he has you caring for him and he will enjoy his nuggets and hay, better than some bunnies that get a crust thrown in and a green water bottle with no hay, or owners who haven't bothered to go on line and find out what their rabbit should be eating.

Thankyou :-)

[Leannean27]

I understand your frustration my bunny Luna has had this since I've had her and I still cannot pinpoint what causes it. Her hay only diet for 2 weeks did reduce it somewhat but everything I've tried since just sends her back to square one I too have a thread on it

I hope you manage to get to the bottom of it

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[Griffski]

We got Gingerbread a few years ago from a rescue centre. He is about 6 years old. Ever since getting him he has a poo problem. He is fine on his nuggets and hay but anytime he has more than a tiny amount of anything like grass,dandelion leaves, cabbage, brocolli etc it seem like his body can't cope with it. I find squidgy messes of soft poos. It looks a bit like the ones he is meant to eat but they aren't formed properly they just come out as a mess. And then it can get stuck to him if he's sitting on it before I can clear it up. I have had that with my other bunny before on the odd occasion but they are formed properly, she just hasn't eaten them. Yesterday he had an absolutely massive amount in one huge mess, .... Does anyone have any similar experience and what you did about it. Thankyou :-)

Hi Sammy&Patch - I feel your frustration.. my bunny Spartacus has the same issues. On the plus side Spartacus has been way better (over a year stasis free until a blip last week) since I put him on the diet recommended by the experts here... hay (multiple types), dried forage, small amounts of herbs, pellets and grass (in summer) - so there are measures that can be taken. Spartacus was ultrasensitive to spring greens, apple rabbit treats and readigrass.

It's a restrictive diet (for both my bunnies) but they are happy and well on it.. so it was definitely worth the switch ! A few times before the dietary change Spartacus was uncomfortable, stopped eating and required vet intervention so it can escalate and that's always a bit scary. Sparty clearly has a predisposition to dysbiosis and has had a few 'soft episodes' like yours over the summer (even on the restrictive diet, possibly due to changes in hay batches).. so I think these bunnies will always need extra vigilance.

Like Leannean27's bunny it can be difficult to identify the causative agents but sounds like you have a few likely candidates you can eliminate.

[Sammy&Patch]

I understand your frustration my bunny Luna has had this since I've had her and I still cannot pinpoint what causes it. Her hay only diet for 2 weeks did reduce it somewhat but everything I've tried since just sends her back to square one I too have a thread on it

I hope you manage to get to the bottom of it

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Hi, thanks for your reply, I hope you manage to get your bunny sorted. I have made a little tick chart, I am going to do nuggets and hay for a week or so until he gets back to normal. Then I will try small amounts of different things and record what his poo is like the next day or so after. Hopefully it will help work out a few nice things he can have. I have bramble leaves in the garden so will try them as someone else suggested they can be good. Fingers crossed for all our bunnies :-)