# Questions about extra-virgin olive oil for digestive slowdown...



## Jenk (Oct 30, 2011)

There was a recent discussion on another forum regarding the use of extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) for digestive slowdown in rabbits. I believe someone said that since the oil is digested, it doesn't actually coat a potential mass--i.e., it won't worsen a blockage issue the way Laxatone might.

I'm wondering what success others may have had using EVOO for stasis-prone rabbits? Could you explain your rabbit's typical issues/symptoms and how EVOO seemed to help? Feel free to include any other info. you think might be helpful.

The reason I ask is that my stasis-prone Mini Rex, Emma, is showing signs of gut slowdown. She's barely started shedding, and I've recently begun grooming her and giving her Bromelain. Still, I'm not sure that I caught things in time. But I'd prefer to not pay for yet another vet visit and put her on motility drugs, if there's another way to help her gut more naturally.

Emma's fecals have been varying in size but have recently started to decrease in size. She's not eating as much hay; I'm unsure if that's due to gut upset, or if she's passing smaller/decreased fecals due to boycotting her new flake of hay. (Her diet remains unchanged, so that's not the issue. She gets 1 Tbsp. of Oxbow BBT pellets, a small amount of greens, unlimited timothy hay, and a small amount of oat hay.)

Thank you,

Jenk


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## Maureen Las (Oct 30, 2011)

I have also read some of the posts on Etherbun re. Extra extra virgin olive oil for stasis. I believe that it is considered better than a petroleum product because it is a food product. 


I would probably consider something like this for actual stasis but I probably wouldn't go there for smaller fecal production
I actually do not know how the rabbit body processes and metabolizes fat and untilI find out I probably wouldn't use it ...but I am also interested in learning more about this product for stasis. 

Iactually had planned on starting a thread for this on here asI am wondering if others have heard of it.
I do believe that it was a veterinarian who suggested this to an EB poster and that the rabbit recovered from stasis quickly . I also remeber that the rabbit was given fluids along with the oil.


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## Jenk (Oct 30, 2011)

*angieluv wrote: *


> I have also read some of the posts on Etherbun re. Extra extra virgin olive oil for stasis. I believe that it is considered better than a petroleum product because it is a food product.


I believe the person who recently posted about EVOO on EB also said that, per his/her vet, EVOO stimulates gut motility. 



> I would probably consider something like this for actual stasis but I probably wouldn't go there for smaller fecal production I actually do not know how the rabbit body processes and metabolizes fat and until I find out I probably wouldn't use it ...but I am also interested in learning more about this product for stasis.


I haven't resorted to giving EVOO to Emma yet, but I am nervous about her fecal production. It's definitely decreased, and her digestive tract--especially from the cecum downward--is overly firm/bloaty. Whenever she's gotten to this point in the past, it's always resulted in vet/medical intervention. I was hoping to avoid that route, especially since Emma wound up on injectable Metoclopramide for quite a while this past spring. 



> I actually had planned on starting a thread for this on here as I am wondering if others have heard of it. I do believe that it was a veterinarian who suggested this to an EB poster and that the rabbit recovered from stasis quickly. I also remember that the rabbit was given fluids along with the oil.


Please, do start a thread on the use of EVOO; I'd love to learn of others' experiences with it if only to be more informed. I'd also like to know what their rabbit-savvy vets are saying about it.  

I would definitely give oral fluids about 45 minutes prior to giving EVOO just to ensure that the ingesta contents are moistened.

Jenk


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## Maureen Las (Oct 31, 2011)

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/olive-oil-for-constipation.html

I guess that it is OK for humans


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## Jenk (Oct 31, 2011)

*angieluv wrote: *


> http://www.buzzle.com/articles/olive-oil-for-constipation.html
> 
> I guess that it is OK for humans


It's not that I disagree with the article on Buzzle. (I am a believer in the use of more natural methods to help the body--be it human or otherwise.) My only hang-up is that Buzzle's content is generated by anyone. 

I've been hoping to find something written by someone with credentials regarding human/animal health care, though my own search hasn't turned up anything as of yet. Of course, I have no reason to disbelieve rabbit owners who've had great success with using EVOO for their rabbits' digestive slowdown issues.  And I can't imagine someone's rabbit-savvy vet lying about having learned of EVOO use in rabbits at an exotics conference. Heh.

I haven't given Emma EVOO. Throughout the day, I syringed her 65 mL's of watery Critical Care and what I call "Critical Care flavored water." (She took all of it willingly.) I also gave her two doses of Simethicone. Her cecum and lower digestive tract still feel overly firm, but she began passing normal-sized fecals--and a decent quantity of them--between 10 pm and 11:30 pm. I have my fingers crossed that she will pass many more fecals during the overnight period and start drinking more water on her own. My best guess is that the Bromelain is "softening" things, helping them to break down and pass through her system. 

Jenk


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