New Buck + plastic = oh no!

[ladysown]

Got a new buck on Saturday. Nice meat buck.

Put him in a nice dog kennel in my isolation tent.

Gave him a litter box.

Now.. note this. I have TRIED like a son-of-gun to get the plastic that it has on it off (and failed- I simply couldn't get an edge up to lift it off), other rabbits have used it without an issue.

THIS RABBIT... somehow manages to get a grip on it (I don't know how) and tears pieces off it.

he is now acting like he has a blockage.

what can I do to help him?

I know the chances are high that I'll lose him, but is there anything I can do to help it move it's way through????

 

[akane]

Bread soaked in some type of vegetable oil if you can get him to eat it. Fiber in the bread helps move things and carries with it the oil to lubricate the intestines. Mine won't eat bread but I know plenty of other people do have rabbits that love bread.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I would recommend oil for a blockage as well, however, according to Carla Emery's Encyclopedia of Country Living, rabbits don't like oily foods. She doesn't say it is harmful, though it might be, but the risk is probably worth it. According to her, soybeans and vines are safe for rabbits, so I would use soybean oil administered by syringe (most veg. oil is soybean oil), and give bread (whole wheat preferably) like akane said, but offer that dry after dosing with oil.

BTW, what symptoms is he showing that cause you to suspect a blockage? Is it similar to colic in horses?

 

[ladysown]

he's sitting all hunchy like he has a tummy ache. Not bloated or gassy, just sitting all hunchy and pieces of plastic sitting in his cage are like ACK!!!!!

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Ladysown, I am an obsessive label remover myself, so allow me to offer some tips:

Blast the label with hot air from a hair dryer to soften the adhesive.
Soak in hot water and scrape off.
Apply some type of oil.
Use Acetone. (Some nail polish removers contain acetone, or find it in the paint dept.)
Razor blades work well on glass surfaces.

I hope you fare better with your buck than I did with my does.

Ah- just saw your description of symptoms. Thanks.

 

[MaggieJ]

Try a touch of molasses in with the oil... might be easier to get him to take it that way. Good luck with him, Ladysown! :clover: :clover: :clover:

 

[ladysown]

he was looking some better this afternoon, but tonight again he's looking rather rough.

I suspect he won't make it, but I remain hopeful.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

How is your buck this morning? Were you able to dose him with oil or anything?

 

[fuzzy9]

Hoping all is well with the buck.

 

[currituckbun]

Hope he makes it. How is he today?

 

[Devon's Mom Lauren]

An actual physical blockage requires the services of a vet.. Adding bread and oil etc. will just make it worse. About the only thing you can do at home is make sure he gets plenty of fluids. The vet will either operate to remove the plastic or give meds to stimulate the bowel contractions.

 

[ladysown]

I am probably going to cull him tonight.

Nothing is moving, he appears to be in pain, and he's not worth a 40 minute trip to the vet, the office visit, and surgery - with no guarantee of success. He's getting fluids, was willing to eat yesterday, but is not moving at all today and is just all hunched over.

hard lesson learned...even if "I" can't get a label off...if there's a label attached it simply won't be used until the label is able to be gotten off or I simply say fitz to this thing (as litter boxes I get free with rabbit returns). Apparently a determined bunny can get off whatever he wants to even if others haven't managed the same task - even if I can't even get a tweezer to lift an edge, bunny determination and teeth are amazing creations of God.

Still totally bites. But at least I learned something new..... (very sadly learned something new).

 

[MamaSheepdog]

That's too bad, ladysown. I was wondering about giving empty gatorade type bottles as chew toys, but was concerned about them ingesting the plastic, not knowing if it would cause problems. Now I know. So sorry for you (and him), but at least by sharing your experience you will save other buns from the same fate.

 

[Secuono]

Wait, he ate the label? Was it the clear film coating or what? I've never had issues of any animals eating labels or clear tape...never on purpose, but it's happened.

 

[ladysown]

yes, he peeled the label off a well used litter box. Been used by lots of bunnies. It was given to me. I tried HARD to get the label off and it wouldn't budge for me. But he got determined one night to pull it off and he managed to. I found lots of little and big pieces in the kennel. Since he was fine before hand, my assumption based on his lack of acting like it's entropathic, is that he ate a piece and it simply stopped him up.<br /><br />__________ Thu Nov 24, 2011 11:26 pm __________<br /><br />so it ended up being a 2 inch (approximately) piece of plastic label that he managed to get down his gullet. It had holes in it, but it certainly wasn't going to go anywhere.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Good job finding out for sure what the problem was. Probably made you feel even worse... in the same situation, I'd be opening up the rabbit with the mantra "please don't be plastic, please don't be plastic" going through my head.

So sorry for you. There really is no way you could have foreseen this. We will all be more careful with our animals (rabbits or other) knowing of your experience.

Hope you have had a nice Thanksgiving despite your loss. We all have much to be thankful for!