# Was it a heart attack?



## littleo (Feb 9, 2017)

Unfortunately, today marks the day that my little energetic boy, Oscar, passed away. I'm absolutely crushed because I loved him so much. He was a stubborn little sucker who fussed about everything and refused to eat his vegetables. He made noises all night and demanded cuddles before bed. I love him so much and I just want to know if his death could have been prevented. I want to know if it was my fault. He was an older rabbit, but was still as energetic as he was when he was younger. He spent hours a day humping his stuffed toy that he prized more than anything. He was eating and drinking properly, and wasn't acting strange before his death at all. He ate a diet of rabbit pellets mixed with little dried vegetables, and timothy hay with the occasional full bowl of vegetables (as I stated earlier, he refused to eat them). He was given a treat every night but not a sweet one, as he was old and I didn't want him eating too much sugar. His treats were healthy, other than the random raisin he was given if I felt he hadn't had one in quite some time. He pooped normally and everything, yet while I was out today, he passed away. My mother and brother say they heard him make a strange noise before they heard him having some sort of a short seizure. When they went to check on him, he was already dead. My room was covered in his bedding from when he had this seizure but apparently it was very short lived, signifying he passed quickly. They say it was probably a heart attack but I want to be sure. Could it be because of his age? Because he doesn't get scared easily. I have many other pets that he sees on a regular basis, and if they're too loud or make any sudden noises he stomps his back feet in annoyance but he never gets scared. Any responses are appreciated &#128522;





Rest in peace Oscar &#10084; I love you, and will forever miss you and your stubborn little attitude &#128537;&#128048;


----------



## RavenousDragon (Feb 9, 2017)

I am so so sorry for your loss. 


It could be a lot of things. It could have been a heart attack, a seizure (it takes a long time to die from a seizure, so it would have had to be a rather large seizure), sepsis (from something either perforating his gut or from an undiagnosed form of pneumonia), kidney failure, liver failure etc. Unfortunately the only way to tell would be a necropsy from a veterinarian (and even those sometimes don't come up with anything definitive). If he was behaving normally up until today and eating and pooping well, it would have been difficult to tell he was ill before the incident. Sepsis or seizure (e.g. from a brain tumor) could not have been diagnosed or prevented. Kidney failure and liver failure MIGHT have been detected on an annual blood work- but often present with symptoms months before the animal actually dies. And it could have been many many other things- I'm so sorry.


----------



## stevesmum (Feb 10, 2017)

My condolences, it sounds like it was very sudden and that he didn't suffer. How old was he?


----------



## Ivythelionhead (Feb 10, 2017)

I am sorry for your loss, RIP Oscar sadly you probably never know how he died but you shouldn't feel responsible you gave him an excellent life and I'm sure he appreciated it.


----------



## Aki (Feb 10, 2017)

Sorry for your loss. Considering you don't mention his age, it's hard to tell - 'old' doesn't mean much. As RavenousDragon said, it could have been a number of things. It's possible he had been sick for a while. Rabbits are really good at hiding problems and it's not easy to see symptoms of a possible illness without scrutinizing them. Still, it sounds like he passed quickly which is a small comfort.


----------



## blwinteler (Feb 22, 2017)

That sounds a lot like what happened to my bugsy, but there wasn't even a seizure or anything. One moment he was alive and seemingly well. Soon after, he was gone. My heart goes out to you. I know the pain.


----------

