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Lillabelle not eating

I apologise to you all for not updating you sooner...

We took Lillabelle to her CT scan on Friday. We booked a taxi for 6.45am and it arrived on time. We had Mischief on my OH's knee and Lillabelle on mine. The taxi driver asked what time we had to be there which was 9.20am and then the taxi driver said that would be a push to get there on time due to the Dartford Tunnel. I had totally forgotten about that! I used to live next to Dartford so I know how that can be terrible for traffic jams! We ended up waiting 40 minutes in queues at Dartford and so when we finally got to the other side the driver drove so quick to catch up time. It got a bit scary and I clung on to Lillabelle tight. We asked him to slow down as we thought it was better we got there at all plus the bunnies were stressed enough. I could not see in to L's carrier but I could see Mischief breathing really fast all the way there. My heart was racing with the worry and stress all the journey. I rang them to say we would be late at 8.45am and they said not to worry and not to race to get there. I felt a bit less stressed but not much.

We got there dead on 9.20am and paid the taxi driver the £145 we had agreed plus a tip as he did get us there without incident. We walked into the reception and could not believe what we saw! The room was huge! There were 10 or so receptionists in a line facing the door. There were also lots of areas. Some for anyone. 2 each end for cats. And furthest from the reception area there were 2 other quiet areas for bunnies and other pets. We had only sat down when the consultant came to greet us and took us to a large room and we sat down and described what had happened so far. We then showed her Lillabelle's last blood test and signed an agreement for the CT scan and that we would want Lillabelle resuscitated if she stopped breathing. This was after hearing from the consultant how she would resuscitate L unless she felt it would not be in Lillabelle's interests to do so. We would not want L to suffer. I asked whether it would be risky in any way to anaesthetise her after only just travelled 2 hours in the car. She said no and the anaesthetic they were using would indeed help her relax.

She weighed Lillabelle and we were surprised to hear she was now 4.89 kg so 0.19 kg over ideal weight. We had not weighed her recently trying to keep her free of stress for the last week or so. We knew this week could potentially be a long one as we would be going to Camden after and then we asked her about results and she explained how she had sent these over to me already. I then remembered I was supposed to have read some documents about the CT scan on email. The results would not be here until early next week and she will ring us then to discuss what happens next! That means we would be going home again that day! I just thought 'Mischief!' I had been worrying on the way down here about our drive to Camden later. Now we had to do the near on 3 hour journey back again!! I felt terrible as we could have left him at home. He was still fast breathing as they took them away. Lillabelle on the other hand was not really breathing fast and she was good for the examination by the consultant. We said bye to them...😔

...Later we got a phone call that Lillabelle was fine and they just wanted her a little longer to observe her input and output which we would prefer anyway as she would have a long drive home. Mischief was also fine. We said we would be there at 3pm.

They brought them out at 3pm. Lillabelle had done perfectly. She has had a syringe feed from the nurse who said Lillabelle is just the sweetest thing. She just lay on her chest having her nose rubbed. I thought that was so cute. Lillabelle has since her stasis episode only got stronger and more feisty as she has got better. However we do also get these sweet little moments where she is relaxed. Like when they are both lying together and rub both their noses. And other times where she lets you stroke her. She is definitely more trusting of us than she was. Lillabelle looked a little sleepy but alert as well. We were so proud of her ❤️ Mischief on the other hand was already fast breathing 😥 I rang for the taxi we had booked for the journey home...

Ten minutes he said! 20 mins later I rang him and he said sorry another 10 minutes! Eventually I gave up and rang other taxis. None of them were free. Then finally I found one from a firm in Potters Bar. He talked £200 fare and I was not likely! But then after talking he said he would ring the driver. Then I am told he is registered taxi driver so goes by the meter. I then know it could be lots more than £200! We had no choice. By then we had been waiting 90 minutes. We needed to get them home...The journey back was a nightmare. He never stopped talking! The same on and on about how he is such a good driver and seemed to be picking arguments with other drivers. He also kept driving the wrong way! We finally got home at 7.30pm and the bunnies had been in their carriers without a break for 4 and a half hours!!

We hurriedly went in to settle them. They hopped out of the carriers thankfully but then I saw Chief was wet. I thought Lillabelle looked wet as well but on closer inspection she was dry. We then had to shower Chief and after towel drying we gradually dried him with a hairdryer on cool setting. We also kept the heater near their puppy pen for the night. They were both eating well when we finally went to sleep
 
I will give you the full results of the CT scan tomorrow (as I am shattered) but basically she has an abscess NEAR her liver which is not related to her liver. She also has some changes to her gut related to the infection. The abscess is looking to be an infection rather than a tumour. She will be having 3 weeks of antibiotics first to help kill off the infection as much as possible. Then the consultant wishes to do a liver operation to remove the tumour. She feels this is Lillabelle's best chance of recovery. The infection is chronic and will need operating on. She said this is a serious infection and does not feel sure that she could remove it by operating alone.

So we have 3 weeks antibiotics and pain relief for Lillabelle. I will fill you in on the details tomorrow. I apologise that it took so long but I have a chest infection as well plus Friday was exhausting and I have been trying to catch up on sleep since. Lillabelle is doing well though and has been getting stronger by the day. My OH said today she is so strong to hold on to now as I give her medicine. It seems remarkable she has been fighting such a big infection in this time. She is such a warrior. We are so proud of her. Such a huge journey from the teeny little bunny that would not even let us touch her when she first arrived with us. We feel blessed that she has made it this far ❤️

Both of them have been acting as if nothing happened last week. They are eating well and pooping well. But we will not be taking Chief on any long car journeys again. We would prefer it if Lillabelle does not need to either. I will tell you the rest of it soon
 
While it is good Lillabelle handled the CT scan well, I am sorry she has an abscess and she may need a big operation. Mischief deserves some extra treats for being so brave and supportive.

From what I recall bunnies wall off infections, so they are sometimes removed surgically. However, the location of this infection sounds challenging.

You and your OH must be gutted by the results, though she is doing well now so that is a positive that may help you decide if surgery is in her and your best interest.

Sending you all lots of hugs and nose rubs to bunnies.
 
XXWhile it is good Lillabelle handled the CT scan well, I am sorry she has an abscess and she may need a big operation. Mischief deserves some extra treats for being so brave and supportive.

From what I recall bunnies wall off infections, so they are sometimes removed surgically. However, the location of this infection sounds challenging.

You and your OH must be gutted by the results, though she is doing well now so that is a positive that may help you decide if surgery is in her and your best interest.

Sending you all lots of hugs and nose rubs to bunnies.
Thank you Bunny Momma. Well we were expecting it to be liver orientated rather than this. I do not really know much about this. I plan to read about it but my brain is unfortunately getting me all confused and forgetful. I am sorry for the late reply however I kept thinking I need to post on RU but I have no concept of time either and I did not realise a whole week has gone by.

Lillabelle is doing really well.,She is happy and constantly looking for food everywhere or a tasty bit of cardboard. Both unfortunately for Lillabelle are nowhere to be found as they are back on a strict diet to lose weight. Lillabelle needs to be at her ideal weight if she has an operation in January. Also we want them to be on their ideal weight again due to health risks. Both of their weights had started to creep up and up as I give them a little extra here and a titbit there. Their diets have been pretty healthy but just too much of it.
 
It must have been difficult to learn you would not be able to have the issue resolved last week as you had hoped, especially after such a long trip with both bunnies.
Sending vibes her antibiotics help to reduce the infection.
It can be hard to put a bunny through a big surgery when she is eating and acting as if nothing is wrong.
Prior to her scan you were concerned a liver LT could untwist and cause her to bleed internally or release toxins and cause shock.
Did the scan show if she has any internal bleeding?
Sending vibes.
 
Hi Bunny Momma. No there is no internal bleeding or liver lobe torsion. It is unconnected to stomach or liver. However it is a chronic substantial abscess. Idk how it could have happened though. Also it must be why she stopped eating originally so it must have been very painful.

Along with the abscess the CT scan also showed other areas of real concern. I will write it as said on the scan so everyone can know what it says.


She has fluid in her external ear canals so she probably has had an ear infection we were not aware of. No significant dental disease which is good news.

The main pulmonary artery and right ventricle are subjectively distended. The cranial lobar pulmonary arteries and veins are normal. The caudal pulmonary arteries are subjectively slightly larger than the veins but taper normally to the periphery and are NOT tortuous.

Normal lungs.Thymus present. The rest of the included structures are considered normal.

Abdomen shows a solitary, well defined, rounded, smoothly marginated mass legion located along the midline of cranial ventral abdomen immediately caudal to the liver. This mass has thick, soft tissue attenuating, contrast enhancing rim and an heterogeneous core characterized by soft tissue attenuating non-enhancing material with a centrally located mineralized
region. There is a small amount of peritoneal effusion and fat stranding adjacent to this legion.

The sacculus rotundus has moderately and asymmetric thick wall ( up to 7.5 mm). No significant peritoneal changes surrounding it.

* Sorry will finish tomorrow 🥱 *
 
I know this is hard on you. All the medical jargon can be confusing, yet she is currently happy, active and eating well and that shows me she has a great quality of life, the most important thing.

It is good she does not have any internal bleeding or a LT.

You may never know how she got the infection, or how long it has been present.
Bunnies can carry infections from their mother, or from their life prior to coming into our lives. It was out of your control.

Sending you all lots of gentle hugs and positive vibes.
 
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Thank you Bunny Momma. And to Inspector Morse rescuing me from trying to write out the CT scan results. I forget the words to copy in my head usually but these long words are heavy going. I wanted to talk about this as I have been going over and over in my head how this all happened. It just feels like it is spiralling quickly. You think you are starting to know bunnies and then BAM! You realise that you don't know them at all 😥

We did have a real positive today. So we are thinking if maybe when we syringe feed her she is hurting her ribs where she twists to get away and then escape over my OH's shoulder. I always worry about her spine. So we thought to try wrapping her in a blanket.

As Inspector Morse sent me a video of wrapping a bunny up safely we watched that first. Then my OH started wrapping her up and I said that's too tight and start to unwrap her again and she just runs off. So we had to do it all again.
So we have her wrapped up and she does not look happy and I think I will never forget her face with her spikey hair with my OH gently holding her just like a newborn baby.

My OH had been out today and got her baby food. One is apple and strawberry I think but I wanted to try the carrot first as if she eats carrot that would be less sugar. And she gave me that look with her hair all spikey that said 'you can try!' and went to attack Phil and then attacked the syringe and then eats the carrot and crushed up tablet in one go. We were happily surprised as she then took her pain meds and looked at us for her parsley. I think she has us sussed. But yes was a good moment bless her ❤
 
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Bunnies have been in my life for decades, yet I still lose them sooner than expected. Some were only with me for a very short time when they left me forever. I am still learning.

Many disorders cause the same or similar symptoms and even the experts will treat for the treatable and hope the problem resolves. Though even if the problem resolves it does not always mean it resolved because of the treatment.
In addition, the treatment protocols have changed over the years. Exotic vet medicine requires vets to continuously update their knowledge base. In addition,studies often contradict other studies so it can be confusing what action to take, if any.

You and Phil do an excellent job caring for Mischief and Lillabelle. You put your own physical, mental, emotional and financial pain aside to give them the best care possible. You even enlisted the help of Inspector Morse to help.
 
I've just caught up with your latest posts, and despite the vets findings, it's good to hear that Lillabelle is in good spirits. Your description of her wrapped up, with her spiky hair made me smile, but glad it worked and that she took her meds. I agree with Bunny Momma, in her above post, both Lillabelle and Mischief couldn't be in safer hands. I'm sending both bunnies, and you and Phil, many many vibes that you all stay well xx
 
Bunnies have been in my life for decades, yet I still lose them sooner than expected. Some were only with me for a very short time when they left me forever. I am still learning.

Many disorders cause the same or similar symptoms and even the experts will treat for the treatable and hope the problem resolves. Though even if the problem resolves it does not always mean it resolved because of the treatment.
In addition, the treatment protocols have changed over the years. Exotic vet medicine requires vets to continuously update their knowledge base. In addition,studies often contradict other studies so it can be confusing what action to take, if any.

You and Phil do an excellent job caring for Mischief and Lillabelle. You put your own physical, mental, emotional and financial pain aside to give them the best care possible. You even enlisted the help of Inspector Morse to help.
Yes I realise I have hardly any experience compared to some of you. We actually have to learn as we go. And we can only do as much as we can to make sure they have good lives.

The CT scan results were upsetting. Her back, elbows and heart issues are all due to being obese for years. She has lost loads of weight to be much healthier but still has suffered because of being overweight.

And then she is sick and loses all that weight so we try to feed her up again and we got back to her ideal weight but could not reduce food too quickly as could cause her liver lobe torte. Tbh I did not realise that she was classed at obese now. Her ideal weight is 4.7 kg but she was 4.89 at time of the CT scan. She is losing weight again as looks and feels much sleaker. We need to weigh them both again but I keep forgetting and feeding them brekkie.

We also had decided to make a change and now have put plastic storing boxes each side of our bed with a blanket over them. Just so it does not hurt their ankles. I thought the bed was low enough but I see now it must have caused them (Chief probably as well) pain and bone changes 😥

Lillabelle's fractured ribs are a mystery tbh. They are a few ribs together on one side so it points to an injury. We are very upset about this as we realise she must have been so in pain when this happened. She could have twisted around may be. But I think most likely she damaged them running through the bed end.

Our bed end is made up of wrought iron decoration and there is a gap that she runs through when scared. We think it was done when we were syringe feeding her as she used to twist around and barge to get out my OH's hands. He lets her go if she does this but I think she ran through the bedstead to quickly and whacked her ribs on them.

I remember her fast breathing and acting differently after one feed but I can't remember what happened.I sent the video to Inspector Morse and I think she was in pain after fracturing all those ribs. She has had a couple of falls escaping out of our arms as well but not from a dangerous height. I am going round and round trying to remember something 😭

Thank you Bunny Momma. We do love them and try to give them the best life but we now have reduced their food and they eat the best food we can find but smaller portions. But there can only be spoiling them with healthier treats now although they sometimes have a piece of fruit or the odd loop once a week.

We are very worried about Lillabelle as it gets nearer to her possible operation date. We need to talk with the consultant about risks and whether she can remove it all plus other questions before we can agree to an operation. We know very little about this. We don't even know for sure what she has wrong with her. I can't read all the scientific wording 😥

Lillabelle is doing really well. She is quite lazy in the day sleeping but in the evenings she runs about and tries to get in our lounge. I don't even though what she does in there! But yes they both run down to the kitchen for their treat of a herb or a bit of brocolli stall, pepper, celery etc

You would not realise there is something wrong. She looks so well. She is so strong. A little fighter. We will decide what to do after her ultrasound on the 6th Jan. Yes Inspector Morse has been so lovely and helps me when I struggle to understand something. We owe her a great deal for she is an ambassador for animals and helps me to see it from their eyes plus she has great knowledge of bunnies 💖

Happy Christmas Bunny Momma and all your crew ☃️🎄💗
 
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I've just caught up with your latest posts, and despite the vets findings, it's good to hear that Lillabelle is in good spirits. Your description of her wrapped up, with her spiky hair made me smile, but glad it worked and that she took her meds. I agree with Bunny Momma, in her above post, both Lillabelle and Mischief couldn't be in safer hands. I'm sending both bunnies, and you and Phil, many many vibes that you all stay well xx
Happy Christmas Pets Mum and your family and bunnies 🎄🎅🏽💚

Thank you yes Lillabelle and Mischief have been eating loads of hay we notice. She was just scrabbling at the lounge door and now she is sitting looking at me asking for something so I think they want a hay top up. They are both looking good being active. I hope your bunnies are healthy too. We wish you all a relaxing Xmas x
 
I wanted to add a few comments. I was very sad to read Lillabelle's scan report.

It's also a fact that people can have cared for several bunnies over many years and yet not have any experience of many of the health issues that can affect them. I have never encountered LLT nor this type of abscess in the bunnies that I have cared for. I think what is a given though, is that weight issues, in most if not all species, can cause some problems and also make other problems worse. And what is classed as an 'ideal weight' for some bunnies might not be that easy to determine. What you know as fact is that at the time of her scan, at 4.89kg, she is classed as obese. I would certainly ask the specialist about her weight. In particular I would ask, in view of the scan findings, what the specialist would deem to be an 'ideal weight' to aim for going forward for Lillabelle. Then you have something concrete, which you know how to manage with slow changes in food if necessary. And don't forget that the treat of a piece of fruit or a loop provides empty calories. They are not contributing positively to the overall health of a rabbit, but will be using calories that could be obtained from something healthier.

Regarding the fractures, yes I would be very upset too. But I would not now dwell too much on what could have caused them. Far better to be mindful of the fact that a bunnies' skeleton is fragile and injuries can occur.

So fingers crossed for her scan in January.
 
Merry Xmas everyone. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas x

I read the recent texts on Xmas day thank you. I apologise for not replying but I have gone up with my meds so all is very wavey atm.
I have trouble with my memory due to the meds most probably. I am struggling as am so worried about Lillabelle and keep going around in my head how all this happened but due to brain fog I go around in circles 😢

I did want everybun to know about this report but I did worry what others on the forum may think of us for letting her obesity and injuries happen. However if I don't put this up on RU then Lillabelle goes through all of this pain and stress and fear (of being picked up and handled) including her operation and treatment and nobody learns from it. Whereas this thread is all on Rabbits United so that other owners including myself can read and even reread about Lillabelle's whole journey and how fragile these bunnies are. Even the giants!

We always sit down before trying to check over our bunnies and feed them etc but obviously an accident has happened to Lillabelle. We can't think of any moment that she could have fallen and hurt all her ribs 😭 But somehow it has happened. Could it have happened as she tried to escape her syringe feeds? Maybe a fall off the bed? I don't know. Can this cause a bacterial infection and abscess? I don't know. I am hoping the consultant will find answers🤞🏻

Our rabbits have mostly been overweight but mostly obese. They did go on a strict diet for months and lost weight. But their weight has crept up again. Omi rightly says that loops and fruit are empty calories and also extra daily calories. Her words reminded me that the diet has to be ever so strict. No treats. No fruit. No empty calories.

That reminded me to trim down their diet. Pack away treats so it stops me reaching for them to give to our bunnies. We love our bunnies and want to show them we love them by a treat. Reduce the forage which has crept up as well since their Norfolk nettles arrived for Xmas.. Hopefully it will help get Lillabelle's weight down in time for her operation.

Lillabelle's ultrasound and repeat blood test is on 6th January. I will of course post her results up on rabbits United.

Happy New Year everybun and nose bumps from Mischief and Lillabelle ❤️
Thank you Bunny Momma, I also think of my angel bunnies including Misty and Bonnie ❤️
 
I hope you can accept that you may never know why and how things happened and somehow find peace in knowing you love your bunnies and give them excellent care. Hugs.
 
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