# Rabbit problems with anus need some advice!



## Louladoll (Dec 24, 2012)

Hey everyone.

One of my bunnies hasnt been having the best of luck lately. She was having problems with her tummy and poo, but we managed to get that sorted out so she was back to eating and pooing normally which was fantastic!

But today I was cleaning her bottom, because within the last few days she has been getting wet fur around her anus and vagina which is abnormal. But today i noticed something completely different, and after googling it for an hour and viewing pictures it looks like she has anal polyps. 

The area is very damp with urine and I have bathed it and got as much out as I could, but it still doesnt look too healthy. And I am concerned about the polyps (if that is what it is) protruding from her anus. I cant get her to a vet until friday due to lack of money. Does anyone have any advice on anything that can help until then? I will of course be calling the vet to speak to him first thing tomoz morning, but until then I dont know what the best thing to do is.

I applied some vaseline because Ive read that is helpful towards the polyps. She doesnt appear to be in any pain, is eating normally and been running around as usual. Poo normal and wee normal as far as I can tell, still wanting her strokes and treats. So any ideas as to what I can do?

Sorry for this being so long!!! 

Kind regards
Louise


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## LakeCondo (Dec 24, 2012)

It sounds like what we human get, hemorrhoids. You cold also try putting cold, like an ice cube, on them & they might shrink a little. But the vet will be able to tell you more, I hope.


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## Imbrium (Dec 24, 2012)

when you call the vet, you could ask if they're willing to set up a payment plan with you (assuming they have appointments available sooner than friday) - a lot of vets are willing to work with you so your pet can be seen asap even if you can't pay until later


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## Louladoll (Dec 24, 2012)

ty for the responses,¨

i can try asking the vet but its not a common thing for vets to do here. i know whilst i was living in the uk theyd set up payment schemes for you, but ive never come across it yet here in denmark.

i am also reluctant to change vet because my vet is a super bunny expert and knows his stuff so i have a lot of confidence in his opinions and decisions.

i put some vaseline on earlier, if that has no effect will try the cold thing cos it cant harm can it! 

fingers crossed my little girl will be alright 
Louise xxo


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## Imbrium (Dec 24, 2012)

I don't really have any experience with polyps, but since she's eating/drinking/pooping/peeing/playing normally, she shouldn't have a problem waiting until friday to see the vet


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## Revverress (Dec 24, 2012)

One of my girls had anal polyps. She was able to poop, eat, and move normally, so the vet did not want to risk putting her under anesthesia to remove them unless they grew and/or started giving her trouble. If she's still eating and pooping ok, I would watch to make sure they're not growing, and just keep an eye on her appetite. Unfortunately, there's not much to be done except surgically removing them, and there is a high chance of them reoccurring. We had planned to surgically remove when my girl was spayed; unfortunately, she passed away before then (unrelated causes), so no word on how that turned out.

My bunny was also sometimes damp with urine, but that was due to her being a large breed and having trouble reaching down there to clean herself up. You need to keep the area clean and dry; I found baby powder helped with this. Keeping her at a healthy weight will help, too.


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## Louladoll (Jan 2, 2013)

Hey everyone. Thanks for your replies, sorry its taken me so long to get back to this topic!

Im sorry about your bun passing away 

Right whats happened since this post!

I called my vet the next day after this post, and he said it wasnt an emergency so we should clean her bum with tea and saline. We had already been cleaning her bum, but only with water so we gave this a shot.

Since then we have been cleaning her bum once a day with tea and saline. The whole area seems to have transformed! Lots of the damp fur caused by the urine has naturally fell out revealing nice pink skin underneath. The thing protruding which I thought was anal polyps (which still could be) has popped back in on its own and theres no swelling or redness in the area anymore.

She does have one or two tiny scabs which are healing nicely. She herself is normal and happy. Poo has never been so good actually and she hasnt been getting damp down there anymore from urine. The vet said the most important thing was drying her down there thoroughly so we have been drying her pretty bum thoroughly and this seems to have helped alot - though hadnt thought about the baby powder good idea! Think i will give this a shot.

Not really sure what caused this all, but so far it looks as though its well on its way to healing!

Will give you an update in the near future.

Thanks again for all your help with this matter  I have been known to over worry about my bunnies, i think that comes naturally with being a bunny owner!

Happy new year everyone
Louladoll xxo


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## missyscove (Jan 2, 2013)

Thank you for updating us. I'm glad to hear she's doing well.


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## Pipp (Jan 2, 2013)

Revverress said:


> I found baby powder helped with this. Keeping her at a healthy weight will help, too.



Cornstarch is a safer bet than baby powder. Completely agree about the weight. 

The concern is why the bunny was 'leaking' in the first place, it still can be a low-lying urinary tract infection or something being kept in check by good holistic care (low stress -- good food, rest, pets, etc). Keep an eye on it if you have to stress her out for any reason, eg: moving her, mate issues, different food, separation from you, another health issue or whatever else may cause stress. 

The polyp may also have been part of the anal wall that was compromised (prolapsed) by the not-so-great-poops episode. 

Good luck!

sas :goodluck


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## Nancy McClelland (Jan 3, 2013)

ray: Hope all is well. We were there 4 years ago.


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## sugarbunnies (Jan 3, 2013)

Pipp said:


> The polyp may also have been part of the anal wall that was compromised (prolapsed) by the not-so-great-poops episode.



Yeah I'd have to say that could also be a result. Humans get hemorrhoids when there is stress (like picking up heavy boxes, working out with weights, constipation, etc) so I don't imagine a rabbit is any different.


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## Louladoll (May 4, 2013)

Hello!

Sorry for the long delay in updates!

We have since changed her food to the nuggets. She was eating the bad muesli before, so we thought it was best that we got her on some healthy food! She now has light nuggets mixed with cranberry and ginseng nuggets which says is suitable for older bunnies and helps with their wee (as she will be 6 in a couple of months!).

We have also worked out that it isn't actually wee that is getting in her fur. It's the stuff from her scent glands. We cleaned them out gently, and this is when it all began to go wrong! Both our bunnies get a lot of 'gunk' down there which gets stuck in their fur so this means frequent cleaning. I can't get to her bum really easily because she has always been a very scared rabbit. It has taken this long for her to actually enjoy being stroked! So we have worked out a bath routine that is minimal stress for her which is great! 

So everything seems to be much better now  I pop on vaseline down there also to stop the gunk sitting against her skin. And this seems to work well! No soreness down there whatsoever.

So thank you everyone for all your help with this matter! I guess bunny baths are just going to be a very regular thing for us  But that's not a problem of course!!!

Louladoll xxo


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## valaria243 (May 9, 2013)

I am curious what was the ratio of tea/saline you used to clean your bun with? Did it make a difference what type of tea?

Our old lady bunny has issues because of her hind legs being partially paralyzed and she is unable to sit up on them or use her litter box.Our vet said we should use coco butter for her skin in that area because it wouldn't "trap" anything against her skin.


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## Louladoll (May 5, 2014)

valaria243 said:


> I am curious what was the ratio of tea/saline you used to clean your bun with? Did it make a difference what type of tea?
> 
> Our old lady bunny has issues because of her hind legs being partially paralyzed and she is unable to sit up on them or use her litter box.Our vet said we should use coco butter for her skin in that area because it wouldn't "trap" anything against her skin.



It has been like a year or something since you posted this and I have only just now seen it! Doh! I think using chamomile tea is effective as it is gentle and antibacterial. I think the most important thing we were probably doing wrong at the time was not drying bunny thoroughly enough. We use a hairdryer on very low and far away from her bum now and it works wonders!

Since she was spayed her bum has been a million times better so I think that was a lot of the problems she used to have.

Hope you will get to see that I finally did respond!


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