Gassy Doe? UPDATE: Diarrhea! :(

[Easy Ears]

Sorry, wasn't sure where to put this thread.

My Netherland Dwarf doe, Tinkerbell, had a successful litter last June. She is a bit over a year and a half. The sire was a chinchilla buck owned by a lady I know in town. Since then I've tried breeding her I think 3 times (at least 2) to a BEW stud, the same lady has. No success. I witnessed them breeding and made sure there were at least 3 fall offs each time and even spent over a period of days breeding back to back, but still nothing. The lady assures me it isn't the buck since a doe (I guess recently?) got pregnant by him and is due (I suppose soon?). Anyway, I'm trying to figure out what may be wrong since Tink seems a bit off. She has seemed a little fat lately, her stomach a bit bloated. She doesn't have bloat but when I feel her stomach and squeeze a bit it just feels full of air and gurgles some. I haven't been feeding her anything other than what she has had for almost a year now: grass hay, the same pellets and water. I have very recently been feeding her pumpkin seeds because I noticed one pinworm in her droppings last week. She has seemed a bit bloated for a month or two but her behavior hasn't changed until a few weeks ago. A few weeks ago she stopped going in her litter box as much and going mostly on the floor. She hasn't seemed lethargic and I haven't noticed anything else. She seems fine other than the different potty behavior and gassy tummy. When I first noticed the gas I was giving her garlic in her water because I heard that helps with gas. Is that true? Should I start back up again? Anything else that helps with gas? I know it isn't all fat because it feels like gas and she hasn't been eating any more than she normally does which is less than half a cup of food. She has a double decker hutch too and she's quite active so I don't think it's from lack of exercise either. Would being gassy cause her to not get pregnant? :| I'm so confused.

 

[macksmom98]

Sorry things aren't happening as easy as you would like. I have been there and been frustrated. Its tough to say exactly what the cause is, but if you suspect that its a little bloating and extra fat it very well could be the case. I would just continue to do everything that you can to promote healthy weight. Get her some exercise, and maybe start rationing her pellets and continue plenty of hay. I definitely wouldn't add anything. There may be an underlying problem somewhere, but hopefully she will do well. You could also add some benebac or other probiotic to her feed and ACV in her water to promote overall health. No idea if being gassy would cause her to be sterile, but extra fat will. You can also try baby gas drops if you want to do something else to deal with the gas.

 

[Lowstorm]

Is she peeing outside the litterbox also? I wonder if a UTI has put her off, or stones. Peeing hurting, teaching her to not use the box, putting her off breeding, etc.?

 

[SarniaTricia]

I'd take the pellets away.... just stick with grassy hay....
Give her electrolytes in the water
Probio horse jell... every morning...
Check her undercarriage.... flip her and gently probe around to see if she is red swollen, warm.. anything to indicate an infection (the UTI comment is valid!)

The baby gas drops.....I think they are called Simethicone drops?? might help...

Lots of exercise.... force her to run around, hop and move....

Also, if it has been that long since her last breeding, she is likely got fat... so a hay diet for a few days and a seriously decreased pellet might help.

 

[Easy Ears]

I got a second persons opinion on her...turns out I was in denial :lol: She is a bit over weight.
That explains why she isn't fertile, but the gas was still there, I don't think I imagined it. The past week she was eating pellets like normal and has been going in her litter box like normal for the past month and I haven't noticed gas lately. But this afternoon I picked her up to clip her nails and was met with a lovely surprise. Diarrhea. All. Over. Her. Bottom. :x I cleaned her up and checked inside the hutch and found a little puddle of diarrhea in the corner. It is normal poo color and about the consistency of a watery paste. I immediately took away her food and gave her TONS of hay, oatmeal, lots of water with electrolytes and the few strawberry and raspberry leaves I could find growing at this time which isn't much. I should have taken your advice sooner SariniaTricia and taken the pellets away I was just concerned that she wasn't eating much and wanted her to eat more, then she went back to normal so I thought whatever it was must have passed. Oh well, whats done is done, I just hope I caught it soon enough. Any further suggestions?

What is Probio horse jell? I've never heard of it. Would gas drops still be beneficial at this point? Is there anything else I should get for her or do?

Prayers would be appreciated!

 

[SarniaTricia]

What is Probio horse jell? I've never heard of it. Would gas drops still be beneficial at this point? Is there anything else I should get for her or do?

Prayers would be appreciated!

Pro-Bio is a probiotic horse jell... I use it for my weaning kits and they actually like it! Had two that were a little sketchy this weekend and dosed the whole litter.... one was particularly bad, so I left him on the table while I checked the rest of the litter (11) and he kept sneaking snacks of the jell...lol :lol: He is doing much better this morning, so he got a bit of pellets and I will check on him again tonight after work.

At this point you need to get that doe eating hay... (I find the jell starts the mouth working ... that seems to get them interested in chewing) .... open water dish (not bottle) with electrolytes and exercise.... get that doe moving around and hopping!

And don't be afraid to leave her on just hay and water for a few days!... she will be fine... introduce pellets back slowly... 1tbsp... make sure she is still pooping properly ... 1/4 cup next day.... check the poop... then no more than 1/2cup per day (8-10lb animal).... I also make sure all my rabbits have a salt/mineral wheel... I don't think they need it with the Purina I have them on, but just in case!

 

[Easy Ears]

Thank you SarniaTricia! She is doing good, eating oatmeal and some leaves. I can't notice if she is eating the hay or not, but she probably is. Her poos look good. She lives in a double decker hutch and I put water crocks on each level with electrolytes. I'll keep the Pro-Bio in mind and try to get her to run in the yard when I have time. I'll keep you posted.

 

[SarniaTricia]

Thank you SarniaTricia! She is doing good, eating oatmeal and some leaves. I can't notice if she is eating the hay or not, but she probably is. Her poos look good. She lives in a double decker hutch and I put water crocks on each level with electrolytes. I'll keep the Pro-Bio in mind and try to get her to run in the yard when I have time. I'll keep you posted.

Glad to hear she is doing better! Yes, please keep us posted!!

This change in weather (from 70 to freezing rain (about 31) over the week here) is doing a number on my 8-10 week old grow outs!! I have a different one that is showing signs of bloat this morning ..... :x :angry:

So, I am following my own advice right now and the poor little kit got force fed pro-bios this morning and will again after clean-up this afternoon. She will also get an overnight in a bigger cage for her exercise program. (Friday's are my rabbit clean-up day) She is, of course, the doe I picked to keep from the litter.

 

[Easy Ears]

She is doing very well! I gave her about a tablespoon of pellets today and she ate every bite! So I put her feeder back in. She has been going potty well and everything seems normal. Yay! Hope your kits are doing well! <br /><br /> -- Wed Apr 19, 2017 8:13 pm -- <br /><br /> Will this back and forth never end? :shock: She had diarrhea again the day before yesterday. I took away her food, gave her more hay and oatmeal and electrolytes in water again. Yesterday I found that she pulled fur and built a nest. :shock: :shock: :x Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? :lol: No idea what is going on with her. Felt her belly and everything seems fine, no gas that I can feel or any kits that may have been mummified or something from her last breeding which was many months ago. :roll:
Anyone have any idea as to what is going on? Or what to do for her? I'm stumped. :|

 

[AmberRae]

She might just genetically not have a great digestive system. I would keep her on a hay diet and no more pellets ever. The pellets are processed and there might be something in there she has a bit of an allergy to. If she is over weight and doesn't have the best digestive system then that is a bad combo. Keep here weight down, lots of hay. You can give her black oil sunflowers to add a little fat in her diet. I would also suggest chives and a little apple cider vinegar in her water. Both are great for digestion and if she said does have a parasite it would kill it. I have a buck that gets diarrhea very easy and he never has pellets. It has seemed to help him.

 

[grumpy]

Locate a decent feed that has probiotics in the mix... THAT HELPS.
Changes in weather trigger this malady and oftentimes it's too late
once it manifests itself. A good grass hay seems to help avoid this issue.

Grumpy

 

[Easy Ears]

Well the feed I use does have probiotics and she has as much grass hay as she can eat. I've just been keeping her on hay and oatmeal for nearly a week now and everything is normal, normal urine and droppings. Everything looks good. My concern is, will this be long term and if so, how will she get enough protein or other needed minerals if she isn't eating pellets. AmberRae, do you give your buck any additional supplements to compensate for loss of protein and minerals? What do you feed him...just hay?

I want to sell her, (I wanted to before this incident) but I don't want to sell a sick rabbit so I would like to get this figured out as soon as I can. She is or seems to be perfectly healthy besides the runs when she eats pellets.

 

[AmberRae]

Yes, he gets kale and sunflower seeds on a regular basis. I also give treats like banana peels, watermelon rhine, alfalfa sprouts, strawberry tops and pretty much any kind of fruit or veggie that I have at the house. All in small amounts though. The kale and sunflower seeds he get a pretty good helping of. He never had an issue with any of that. He just doesn't door good on pellets. I also do a tiny bit of apple cider vinegar in the water. You can also try ivermectin. If she has a parasite it would kill it and bunnies tolerate it very well.