GI stasis

[ipoGSD]

So my baby boy (about 3 months old) holland lop is in stasis. For several days i have been syringe feeding him mashed pellets, electrolyte water, belly rubs and gas meds. I am now currently out of metacam. (I only had a little left when my Chihuahua had teeth removed) he would nibble on a soaked alfalfa hay block, a little bit of pellets and lettuce. Yay..hes getting better..

So fast forward to Sunday. He was doing great! he even binkied a couple times! And he did lots of *almost* normal poops (about normal size but some were odd shaped) at this point im thinking he is basically over the worst.. and im happy.. he continued to munch on his pellets, some hay, tender willow twigs, lettuce.

Woke up monday.. he seemed to have crashed again. Wouldn't even eat the very wet lettuce he would normally munch on.

So im back to baby gas drops, electro water, ground mushy pellets via syringe and belly rubs. No pain meds left.

Soooooo... My question is, is it normal for stasis to have its ups and downs? He is very skinny now, im so worried. He is such a love bug, always giving us kisses.

When i first bought him, he was a little thinner than his sister. I dewormed and pre treated for cocci. Figured better safe than sorry. And all was fine, until last week.

He and his sister are not big on hay at all.. so i dont know if thats what helped trigger this? Ive been mixing tim, orchard and a little alfalfa in the hay to encourage them to eat more of it.

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Any major diet change will trigger these issues. Especially if its new hay and fresh veggies he's not used to. Go back to what worked for him before, skip the new stuff until he's healthy again. I will be dreadfully honest this sounds like a critical case and many of us have had those before. Prepare yourself for the worst, if you can afford a vet I would go to one ASP.
If he makes it wait until he's back in shape and the very slowly start mixing in the new stuff. And by slowly I mean over the course of minimum 2 weeks. When it's greens I always tell people the first 3 days only give 1 small leaf. Then maybe a big leaf a couple days and then 2 leaves for another couple days and so on.
I've lost my ETBunny before cause I forgot the cage I put him in had hay he wasnt used to. He stayed 1 night in that cage and then I tried all I could but couldnt save him T.T

 

[ipoGSD]

Ive been rubbing his belly all night. So far no poops. So strange because last night while he was sitting next to me on the couch (on an old blanket) he musta did like 30+ poops..

Right now, i have him on the living room floor trying to encourage movement. He is hopping around. Sometimes stopping so i kinda tickle his back side to get him to hop away.

We ordered critical care, its scheduled to be here today sometime before 8pm..

And trust me, if we had the money we would have already brought him to the vets, I work construction which is seasonal. so not much coming in from unemployment. On top of that, It's right after xmas and my cars water pump went the day after xmas. Its still in the shop, the bill is ridiculous for a friggen water pump (close to 800) and on top of that, our pellet stove broke so we had to charge a new one so my cc is maxed. When it rains it pours.

I am doing everything in my power. If i lose him.... if this was spring, summer or fall. id be at the ER vets right now

-- Tue Jan 09, 2018 10:50 am --

Back from the vets. They did an xray and subq. Sent me home with lactulose and said fresh pineapple juice and pieces. No pain meds or gut motility meds. I asked about both but the vet refused. Said if hes not eating it will cause liver failure.

Not sure how i feel about his advice. Hes not eating because his guts have stalled.. causing gas and pain. So its really a double edged sword..

Tho i can say he definitely has more pep im his step with the subq. He came home and started eating some lettuce that was in his cage.
All we can do now is hope he pulls thru... <br /><br /> -- Tue Jan 09, 2018 12:18 pm -- <br /><br /> He did a few teeny poops about 20 minutes ago.. but thats it so far..

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

I'm glad you decided to take him to the vet. I agree with his decision to avoid those meds. You'd been giving him gas drops for a while now and while those can help, too much/too long of em can make things worse.

I hope he makes it.

 

[macksmom98]

I would pull everything and only give hay and old fashioned oats. And keep doing what you can for him, sounds like you are very aware of what is happening. The only thing I would pull back on is the lettuce. I have heard pineapple juice helps, but I wouldn't feed anything too fiberous to an animal with tummy trouble, especially a bunny. JMHO. Keep up the good work-pulling for him to do better!

 

[alforddm]

The pineapple is a very good suggestion. It contains enzymes that help to break down blockages but besides that I would do what macksmom98 suggested and give good fresh hay and old fashioned oats.

I've never actually tried this but some pineapple juice mixed with old fashioned oats as a slurry might be a good thing to try syringing. The pineapple juice will contain liquid and the enzymes and the oats will contain the fiber to hopefully get him moving again.

 

[a7736100]

I've had rabbits die after eating lettuce. I myself get terrible acid reflex if I eat iceberg lettuce. I even have trouble with romaine lettuce. While my GI is different than a rabbit's, there's probably something bad in lettuce.

 

[ipoGSD]

So far only a few more poops. Typical stasis looking ones.. he still wont eat on his own. Been giving critical care ad per vet instructions and his fresh pineapple juice and his 2nd dose of lactulose.

As for eating hay. He has always barely ate his hay. He does not like the pineapple juice but he doesnt have a choice cuz i make him drink the 2cc's of it.

As im typing this he is nudging my hand like hey, keep petting me!

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

If he's not used to it, it's better to not insist on hay. Sounds like he's still livelly in his own way, but a few poops is better then none

 

[ipoGSD]

Yeah he has definitely perked up a little, i have him on my lap with a blanket, he isnt interested in hopping away but he has been digging the blanket in an out. Which is more then he had been doing. And when i kiss him he is kissing me back more. This morning.. he wouldnt even do that. So these little things are giving me hope.

Still doing belly rubs and setting him on the floor walking behind him to keep him moving.

I plan on bringing him in tomorrow for more subq fluids, the fluids seemed to REALLY help perk him up. I wish i had the stuff to do it at home. (Note to self..order supplies)

Also I plan on asking the vet about pro biotics. I have some for my dog that i got from the vet. Its called proviable forte, 10 billion CFU. I dont know if this would be good for a bunny or not tho. But if so, i do have this on hand. <br /><br /> -- Wed Jan 10, 2018 12:13 am -- <br /><br /> -----Update-----

Buster has been pooping!!! There's about 20 poops now!!! They are a decent size, round for the most part but pretty wet/sticky.

The bottle of lactulose says use until normal poops. But what if it skips the normal and goes to diarhrea? I plan on asking my vet that question tomorrow. Maybe he will have me lower the dose? No clue. But i do know diarhea is just as bad as stasis.. so i will be watching closely

So happy for poops!!!!!!!!

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Good knews, I'm glad things are looking up. Go with what your vet tells you for sure.

 

[alforddm]

Probiotics can be good. Get the ones for horses if you can find them, their digestive track is the most similar to a rabbits, if not go for goat. So glad to hear he is doing better.

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

Probiotics can be good. Get the ones for horses if you can find them, their digestive track is the most similar to a rabbits, if not go for goat. So glad to hear he is doing better.

If what the vet told em is working, it's better to just continue with that. No reason to add other things that could throw the current progress out of balance.

 

[alforddm]

I disagree. Some cases of GI Stasis can be the result of an imbalance in the gut bacteria. Since rabbits depend on their gut bacteria to do a large part of their digestion, adding the right type of bacteria can help get things working again. Don't go hog wild of course but a proper dose isn't going to hurt anything.

 

[MaggieJ]

I agree with you about the probiotics, Affordm. Used properly, they have turned a lot of rabbits around when their gut flora is out of balance.

 

[ipoGSD]

Watch "My Buster coming back from the vets lots and lots of bunny kisses" on YouTube
https://youtu.be/mvR7fylZqQo

Just got back from the vets.. i asked for more subq fluids to be on the safe side

 

[KimitsuKouseki]

That is so cute XD glad he's doing better.

Also, Alforddm, I'm not sayign the probiotics wouldnt help. For sure I think it'd be good to give him some later. I was just saying that right now might not be the best time since his condition is already improving so much.

 

[ipoGSD]

I dont understand.. he gets active but once he eats he huddles up seemingly in pain. He still isnt constantly pooping, the poops seem to come out in bunches every few hours. They are small and really dark. He will eat a piece of hay every once in a while but nothing that really mounts up to any amount of fiber.

I truly wish they would have gave a motility drug and metacam.

Im still doing belly rubs.. critical care, his lactulose, pineapple juice and gas drops. And here i was worried about the laxative, he def still needs it.

I know he isnt dehydrated because i brought him in for a 2nd round of subq yesterday afternoon. The vet that saw him on Tuesday wasnt there yesterday. The receptionist wasnt going to let me bring him in. Said the rabbit vet wont be back on until friday and none of the vets are willing to see rabbits.

I said well, cant a tech do it? She said she legally needed permission from the vet. I said cant you call him? She flat out said no he has family in town (im thinking yeah..sure!) So i said well cant u get permission from one of the vets there and have a tech do it? All he needs is fluids. She let out a huge sigh of annoyance and said hold on, I'll ask. She had me on hold for 15 minutes. Then came back and said bring him down now, they will do it.

I wish i would have went to a different vet! I chose this one because they had an appointment at 9:30 vs the other office at 10:15. The receptionist at this place is rude AF! Dude, im offering to put more money in your pockets.. be polite!

Need opinions... If he still seems like he is in pain by tomorrow afternoon, should i call the vets office and try to demand pain meds and motility meds? Its like his gut wants to work but stalls after he eats.. or something? And if it would be a good idea to get the meds, and they refuse i might consider a second opinion. Not that i can afford it. But if he needs something this vet isnt giving..i have to do something..

He is only the 2nd rabbit Ive ever had go thru stasis, so maybe this is normal? I dont know.. i just know i see him get energy and he seems happy then boom.. he will hunch in a corner.

I was told by his breeder to offer oats but im afraid to offer anything besides his CC and hay at this point. And its not like i can talk to the vet..

While at agway today i looked for horse/goat pro biotics but the only stuff they had was for chickens. So I'll have to go to tractor supply and see if they have it.

Just dont understand the ups and downs with how he is feeling..

 

[alforddm]

I would get probiotics and syringe them with water. If you can find a nursing supply store or a vet supply store and get some saline injection and shot needles 18 guage 1/2"-1" needles. You can inject the saline under the skin for dehydration. It takes a bit longer to take effect but it's a pretty safe procedure. Here are good detailed instructions. If you have questions just ask someone will help. http://www.vetfolio.com/article/subcuta ... y-patients

If he is dehydrated, that can stop decrease his gut mobility right there just from lack of fluids. Either increase the number of times your syringing fluids or learn to do the SQ fluids. You need to get him hydrated right away. After that you can work on the gut issue.

 

[Harelady]

I have gotten several rabbits thru stasis. I really not sure why they didn't give you a guy mobility drug. Everytime I have taken a rabbit with stasis that what they give me. I have found vets to be very fickle about rabbits. I was told by one vet that they wouldn't give me shots of antibiotics because they didn't trust owners to do it. I have given many shots over the years and prefer it over oral medication. I have had vets give me shots before so that was news to me.

Perhaps take him to a different vet. Feed hay and critical care and keep him hydrated. Hopefully things will get better.