Electrolytes--

[Frosted Rabbits]

Jesse's kindling problem brings to mind the frustration of keeping on hand, in a usable form, different emergency type supplies.
My expensive vet said NOT to use Gatorade--I guess she never read the ingredient label!!! Gatorade, pedialyte, and livestock electrolytes are pretty much all the same thing.

SOOOO.....

I went out and bought a container of powdered horse electrolytes-[apple flavored]- which can be fed as a top dressing on the feed or mixed into drinking water. It's nice tight container keeps it fresh, and if i decide someone needs something real fast-- I don't have to run out to get some, nor do I wind up throwing away money by throwing out unused product.

I also have on hand sterile dextrose solution. With Jesse's problem showing us that rabbits DO have delivery issues at times, I am now considering keeping a bottle of injectable calcium on the shelf, as well. Now, when using that, keep a ready made chart of dosages taped to the bottle-- nothing like having to figure out dosage when one is stressed-- it is worse than taking a test, cuz sometimes, it is the ONLY chance you get...

And know how much the rabbit weighs-- overdosing can kill just as easily as letting things be.

 

[trinityoaks]

Hmmmm. . . Where do you get injectable calcium? Feed store?

I gave one of our rabbits some Pedialyte once. He was needing electrolytes ASAP, it was 11pm (everything but Wal-Mart closed), and I didn't have any Gatorade on hand (or else I wasn't sure I could use it--this was several months ago). It worked great until I could get to the feed store the next day to get a salt/mineral block for him. I still have most of the bottle of Pedialyte, so I could use it again if necessary.

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

Hmmmm. . . Where do you get injectable calcium? Feed store?

Yep--You'll find it with supplies for cattle. I also keep a bottle of injectable Dextrose on hand. I get my saline solution (for flushing wounds, cleaning eyes, ears, etc) from WalMart-- the bottles of stuff that contact wearers use. The saline solution is also good to help heal sore spots on horses.

I gave one of our rabbits some Pedialyte once. He was needing electrolytes ASAP, it was 11pm (everything but Wal-Mart closed), and I didn't have any Gatorade on hand (or else I wasn't sure I could use it--this was several months ago). It worked great until I could get to the feed store the next day to get a salt/mineral block for him. I still have most of the bottle of Pedialyte, so I could use it again if necessary.

I think the biggest issue some vets have with us doing what we do is the fact that so much of what we use is "off label" as far as dosages and instructions. THEY want the big bucks, and to provide us with 'acceptable', high cost 'drugs' that are the same 'chemical' makeup as what we are getting in the grocery and feed stores.
Few vets really want to work with our herds-- even the large animal, 'country vets' think treating rabbits is a waste of time.
I did have a vet in Florida that would take out the 'off label' use book-- (yes, one is published for the veterinary community) in order to confirm dosages for specific drugs. Now there was a vet that, if she was confident in your ability to handle the stuff, would help you keep expenses down to a bare minimum. So far, ALL of my vets have learned that I do not PANIC when an animal has 'something' wrong-- and I usually do not have to wait long to get an animal that is 'off' in to see them. i always take in a written history of what has been happening, as well- so they KNOW I am actually paying attention to some pretty small details...

boy, this has gotten off the topic, hasn't it? I've hijacked my own thread!! !

 

[Honorine]

I use the electrolytes made by Durvet, they come in a 5-8 ounce package and also have vitamins in them. There's the poultry pack which is a high dose and then there's the general animal one which is lower dose. TSC sells it for under $4. I also keep Calsorb here for my dogs, its a tube of oral calcium, could be used on rabbits, its 6 bucks a tube at Revival. I do not keep the injectable calcium, it can be dangerous, stings like heck going in. I might try in on a rabbit, never on a dog. I keep lactated ringers, sterile saline, epinephrine, injectable penicillin, all kinds of oral antibiotics, vaccines etc, but I also breed dogs. Nutrical I always have on hand, mix it with cat food and you can syringe it into a chicken and keep them alive, mix it with peanut butter and it works for rabbits as a jump start. I've been giving my rabbits a low dose of the electrolytes in their water daily, really seems to be helping this winter.

 

[AdamsFamilyFarm]

Just FYI, read the label on the Pedialyte. I hated that stuff when my kids were little because it was expensive, and you have to use it in so many hours. Unless they have changed it, I think it says to use in 24 or 48 hours. So, if the bottle has been open for a while, it may not be useful. Just something to check.

 

[DevonW]

Just FYI, read the label on the Pedialyte. I hated that stuff when my kids were little because it was expensive, and you have to use it in so many hours. Unless they have changed it, I think it says to use in 24 or 48 hours. So, if the bottle has been open for a while, it may not be useful. Just something to check.

Yes, if you don't funny things grow in it :x

 

[trinityoaks]

One thing I thought of several hours after my previous post to this thread: Might the dyes in the Gatorade be bad for bunnies, or at least cause some inadvertent alarm?<br /><br />__________ Thu Feb 11, 2010 9:15 pm __________<br /><br />

Yes, if you don't funny things grow in it :x

EEEEEWWWWWW!!!!!!

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

I don't know about Gatorade... I let Devon have some when she was little and she about peed out 5 times what she had drunk in the first place so I haven't allowed it here at all. I don't know why that happened but it was kind of scary that she could end up dehydrated just by drinking it..

 

[DevonW]

I don't know about Gatorade... I let Devon have some when she was little and she about peed out 5 times what she had drunk in the first place so I haven't allowed it here at all. I don't know why that happened but it was kind of scary that she could end up dehydrated just by drinking it..

Gee thanks Mom.

 

[Brody]

HAHAHAHAHA

yah she didn't really need to use your NAME did she?
we would have all known anyhow ... LOL

 

[Honorine]

So whats next, bath tub baby pictures? **snicker**

 

[DevonW]

So whats next, bath tub baby pictures? **snicker**

Is there no emote with a paper bag?!?!

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

Well I thought the story would be a little more "credible" if I used specifics....hehehehe

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

I don't know about Gatorade... I let Devon have some when she was little and she about peed out 5 times what she had drunk in the first place so I haven't allowed it here at all. I don't know why that happened but it was kind of scary that she could end up dehydrated just by drinking it..

Gee thanks Mom.

Devon, us mothers are like that-- I could tell you all a story about my son, and his midnight trip to the refrigerator-- to pee!!! We lived in a VERY small house...he was half asleep... Freezer on the bottom,-- I guess opening the freezer door was equivalent to lifting the toilet seat lid---

It is through this kind of story, though, that helps us teach each other the little ins and outs of being a parent without going totally berserk. After all, insanity IS hereditary- you get it from your kids.....