'Nother update on bunny found in the road.

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

So my grandpa and I had decided to drive out into the country and look at a piece of property that he's been eye-balling for a few months.

On the way up there, I happened to glance along the side of the road and saw something furry in the grass, thought nothing of it, probably something dead, keep in mind this was a one-way, quiet country road.


Ended up never being able to find the place, but on the way back, the furry thing on the side of the road had made it's way into the middle of the road and was just sitting there!

It was a little brown and white rabbit :bunnyhop: I made my grandpa stop, even though he was persistent that it was just a wild rabbit :?

I walked up to it and it just sat there, didn't even freak out when I picked it up.

So we stopped at the few houses we found and asked if anyone was missing a rabbit. Everyone said no. So we brought it home.

For the first few hours she just sat there in the plastic tote I have her in temporarily(I'm pretty sure it's a doe, even though she had some pretty runny poo, probably from the stress and heat? It was over 100 today) but about an hour ago (when I took her out to take these pics) she seemed pretty calm and alert. Though she hasn't eaten or drank anything yet.

she's not very big, so I don't think she's very old.

Ironically, I had told myself that if I was not able to find another Holland, which so far I haven't, that I wanted a dutch marked rabbit opcorn:

 

[akane]

Well that's a domestic, chestnut with dutch markings. Wonder how it got there.... They can run far but I've actually had them return to their cage area even after getting loose hundreds of feet across a field and in a wooded area. There isn't much for size comparison in the pic. Not sure how big it will get when it grows into those ears. You can put dutch markings on something that isn't dutch sized.

It may have diarrhea from snacking on green food since it's escape. I would offer some plain oatmeal (not instant or flavored) and hay until it's digestive tract improves. If it doesn't drink water you might want to syringe just a little in to its mouth to make sure it will be stable for the night until it recovers and drinks water on it's own.

 

[FourRingCircus]

My first rabbit was found on the side of the road in Phoenix, AZ

It's a cutie! I am curious the size. Looks small, but it's hard to tell. I hope she settles in nicely for you and has no health issues

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Definitely a domestic bunny as Akane said. She looks healthy despite the runny poop.

You might get some probiotic paste for her. I use Bene-Bac by Manna-Pro because it mentions goats on the label and they would have a similar gut flora as rabbits since they are also browsers so their dietary habits are pretty close.

Make sure that you are offering water in a crock, since she probably doesn't know how to drink from a bottle. You might also gather weeds for her since she is used to eating them, and offer them to her after rinsing them so they still have droplets of water clinging to them.

 

[jeannie]

omgosh she is cute!! I would have scooped her up too

 

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

Ok, so the little bunny, whom I have temporarily dubbed "Gywn" for now, finally got hungry enough to eat a blade, *a blade* of grass. I'm actually worried about how little she's wanted to eat I got the oats like was suggested and nothing doing and I can't find any Blackstrap molasses anywhere . I'm also a bit concerned by her lack of activity, I know rabbits don't do a lot anyway, but she just sits there, for hours. She was a lot more active yesterday than she is today.

I'm also worried about this. What the heck is it? Her bum is not as dirty as it was yesterday but she still stinks to high-heck today and her feet are soaked in what I guess is urine because she literally does not move unless I pester her and I'm not sure how to clean her up, I know you're not supposed to get rabbits wet or feed them after midnight

I moved her a few minutes ago and found this weird looking glob of mucus under her.

Also, she hasn't pooped. At all. Not pellets nor any runny stuff either :x

AND she seems to be grinding her teeth a lot.

Here's also a size comparison of her to my furry little hand xD.

 

[BlueHaven]

I would be tempted first to get her good and warm, then give her pedeaalyte with a dropper.
She has to be warm to absorb liquids, and she has to be hydrated to eat and move food.
I would offer her pellets and grass hay, and let nature take its course, or I would get her to a vet asap.

 

[akane]

I was hoping her energy was enough of a good sign but it sounds like it was just excitement of her new situation. When poops start becoming small with little and sometimes odd things coming out of the digestive tract it means you need to get things moving at all costs. You can find some safe plants in the natural feeding section stickies and posts. Dandelion, broadleaf plantain, mints, and leaves and canes (even with thorns) from plants with edible berries are some commonly available fresh foods that rabbits are more tempted to eat and still have enough fiber to them. If you have pellets soak them and try to syringe some to her. If you really can't get anything down her puree a banana or 2nd best some berries and mix it with softened pellets or oatmeal. Blueberries and bananas are my secret weapon for small mammals that are not eating but you have to take into account how well each species tolerates fruit. Fruit risks more stress on the digestive tract of rabbits but you need to put things in so it can keep pushing things out. Otherwise when stuff stops moving it breaks down where it's at, produces gas, then you get bloat, and then the intestines are too stressed to move, and then the intestines die. Because of that gas, simethicone which is the ingredient in things like gas x and comes in an easy to administer liquid form for infants can be helpful. It's really hard to overdose simethicone. For guinea pigs about 1/2 the dose recommended for infants is used 2-3 times a day until the droppings are coming out normal and/or the abdomen is no longer distended. It should be a safe dose for a rabbit of similar small size unless someone has a more exact rabbit dose.

 

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

Well, we are slowly but surely on the mend. I'm not sure what's even wrong with her, short of her having a cold or if rabbits can even get colds :x

Weird thing is, she has been pretty active the entire time, never lethargic short of doing basically nothing in her cage, but when I have her out she's pretty active and eager to explore.

and she drinks like a beast, I mean regularly, but not constantly, so dehydration was never a issue.


She's *finally* starting to eat! opcorn: I managed to get her to eat a little bit of vanilla flavored yogurt with oats in it the other day and after that she kind started to bounce back after literally not eating a thing. However, the only thing I can get her to take an interest in is grass, but she's slowly starting to nibble her pellets. Better than nothing, she finally had her first simi solid poos yesterday that weren't this weird mucus stuff :shock:

Andddd she's finally starting to groom herself.

 

[katiebear]

Sounds like you have started to turn the corner with your new little treasure. she must have been out for a while if only grass is appealing to her. But nibbling at the pellets and the yogurt coated oats is great. keep it up and keep us posted!

 

[funnies50]

What a cutie! I wish I would find more rabbits sitting in the middle of the road Hope she's doing okie! She's so adorable

 

[MaggieJ]

Try giving her some of the weed plantain (not the banana thing). It will regulate her poops and is the number one weed for bunnies of all ages who are having GI issues. It is also a very safe and nutritious green. The link is to Common Plantain but other plantain species are also good.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_major

 

[FourRingCircus]

When you say a cold, what you do mean? Sneezing would not be a good sign for the little bun... hopefully it's just needing to get things going and will perk up as it starts eating and drinking more regularly.

 

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

When you say a cold, what you do mean? Sneezing would not be a good sign for the little bun... hopefully it's just needing to get things going and will perk up as it starts eating and drinking more regularly.

No, no sneezing or heavy breathing. I just meant her lack of appetite and her eyes, which got a little goopy for a while *BUT* I also think she may have been allergic to the hay I have or something. I have her in a clear plastic storage tote for right now (a big one) and had her on hay for bedding, I switched her to towels (since *I'm* allergic to Aspen, cedar and pine, so no wood bedding lol) and her eyes have cleared up.

I'm so used to cats, that not wanting to eat, to me, usually means something has a cold. I'll see if I can find some of that plaintain stuff, grass like that doesn't really grow around here for very long, it's all over the place in spring and early summer, then seems to stop growing in areas where the grass is regularly mowed.

 

[funnies50]

Keep everybody updated I really hope she gets better. I wish I could do something to help

 

[Fireclaws bunnbutts]

She ended up dying a few days ago =( She was doing pretty good about eating, then suddenly stopped eating again, seemed to lose a *ton* of condition over night, like literally became skin and bones, then shortly after, fell into spastic, siezure-like fits and died

 

[alforddm]

Ahhh, I'm sorry. She was a pretty little bun. You did good for her.

 

[Miss M]

I am so sorry. Don't blame yourself -- the deck was stacked against this little bunny, and you worked hard to bring her around.

 

[funnies50]

verreaction:
I am so, so sorry.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Aww, poor little bun.

I think that although she looked outwardly healthy, she must have been feeling very poorly when you found her. It just isn't natural that she was so calm when you picked her up from the road.

Thank you for doing what you could for her while she was in your care.