# Rabbit still not eating right after neuter..3days on.



## michellexgix (Feb 28, 2011)

I had three rabbits got neutered last friday. Thankfully two of them are doing fine and one of them isnt. He stopped eating and didnt pass any droppings so I had to bring him back to the vet on Saturday. 

Hes passing droppings now though there very small and not as much as normal and hes eating only small amounts. He was eating more yesterday so I stopped handfeeding but this morning he only ate one bite of an apple and a bit of romaine lettuce. 

So I think Ill have to handfeed him now again. 

He got neutered friday morning and its now monday and after 2pm here so I thought he would be back to normal now but he isnt. Hes going back to the vets with the other two for a checkup at 5pm but just wondering why its taking him so long.


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## Nela (Feb 28, 2011)

Some are more sensitive and it's really during these times that you get to know which ones are. Does he have any pain meds? If he doesn't, maybe that would help.

Personally, I would hold off on anything sweet like the apple and all and really push the hay more than anything. It sounds like he's having some stasis so it's probably really best to stick to basics such as hay and fluids. 

I'm glad he is seeing the vet again. Wishing him and the others a speedy recovery! ray:


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## michellexgix (Feb 28, 2011)

Thanks Nela. He doesnt have any pain meds now to take. But he dosnty seem to be in pain. Hes in an excellant mood. 

I was just trying to get anything into him tokeep things moving tbh. Hense the apple piece. But the stuff Im handfeeding is quite high in fibre etc.


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## naturestee (Feb 28, 2011)

Keep handfeeding him for now, but also make sure you are giving him some fluids also. A dehydrated bunny can't poop either.

I would definitely call your vet and get some pain meds.


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## Nancy McClelland (Feb 28, 2011)

might try a little alfalfa. We had one out of 16 react the same way and he loved his food so we kept a serious eye on him and after two days he started up eating everything in sight. Also, make sure he's taking in fluids.


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## AtomicGummieBear (Mar 1, 2011)

How about some fresh greens? This is something I saved when I was looking into post-surgery care for my little guy. 

#

Post-surgical Nutrition
# Offer your rabbit a heavy ceramic bowl of water, even if you usually provide a sipper bottle. A rabbit needs to drink after surgery, but often won't do so if s/he has to "work" for water. A well-hydrated bunny recovers more quickly and feels better in the process.

# If your bunny is reluctant to eat after surgery, offer a favorite treat. Fragrant herbs such as basil, parsley, dill and mint seem to appeal to a bunny recovering from surgery.
# Rabbits seem to prefer healthy foods such as fresh greens and hay while they are recovering, rather than starchy treats, which is all for the better.
# If your bunny does suffer complications from surgery that cause him to stop eating, you may need to hand-feed for a few days afterwards to help get the GI tract back to normal. Ask your veterinarian for advice about whether this is necessary. Products made specifically for recovery feeding include Critical Care (Oxbow Hay Company) and Critter be Better (American Pet Diner). Or you can make your own recovery food:

* Pour warm water or chamomile tea over a 1/4 cup of pellets in a bowl
* Allow to sit for about five minutes, letting the pellets "fluff"
* Add additional water or chamomile tea and mix well to make a pudding-like slurry 

Always use any type of recovery food "slurry" with caution:

* Never force too much. Allow bunny time to chew and swallow.
* Use a wide-bore syringe or plastic dropper with the narrow tip cut off to safely administer
* If the tip is too narrow, larger bits can get stuck. Forcing a stuck chunk through the tip can cause a huge blob of food to enter the mouth too quickly, and could cause aspiration.
* Squirt the food into the mouth sideways, behind the incisors, not straight back.
* NEVER try to force feed an animal who is not swallowing normally. Consult your veterinarian immediately if this is the case.

Good luck!


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## Anaira (Mar 1, 2011)

Also, I dunno if you know this or not, but you can check if he's dehydrated by pinching the skin along his back. If he's not, it'll 'snap' back into place, but if he's dehydrated, the skin will sort of 'tent'.

Good luck, hope he recovers well.


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## CiaraPatricia (Mar 1, 2011)

Hi Michelle, I was just thinking, do any pet shops near you sell really nice fancy hay, if you could find some kind that's really yummy looking then he might be more inclined to eat it. I hope he's feeling better soon


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

heres my take on it..feed him whatever he wants right now..within reason..
i personally dont think its a good idea to try and force him to eat all the proper stuff now..he needs to keep things moving in his system...not eating anything is dangerous...feed him what he wants to eat...shoot id feed mine a fillet mignon if i knew it would get him eating again...i know certain foods can cause problems but if ur feeding him things that hes had before he should be fine with a little more of it now.


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

I'm feeding him hay/veg/pellets. I'm given him the veg and pellets like normal which is twice a day, morning and evening. Then hay full time. 

The first day he drank alot more than normal but now hes just drinking normal, he never was a big drinker and the stuff Im handfeeding is mixed with water so hes getting some water and I checked and he doesnt seem dehydrated. 

He had his check up yesterday and its healing fine, she said that there wasnt much gut movement going on so she sent me home to handfeed him and to give him some medicine (dont have the name) just to get the gut moving. 

She said if he doesnt perk up tomorrow they may want to see him again and may keep him to make sure he eats.

Hes extremly hard to handfeed! With me and my brother trying to do it its very hard, he jumps, hops, kicks etc and were scared he'll hurt himself but trying our best. 

He ate some veggies during the night, some pellets - about half of what I give him and when I put in his fresh veggies and fresh hay he looked at it and just hopped away.

Ciara -I did try that, I got the burgess excel hay with dandelion etc in it to see will he eat it but all hes doing with that hay and the normal hay is biting it and not swallowing. 

Hes in a great mood though, hopping round his cage and asking to come out of it like he normally does. 

But he just wont eat normally...


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

so hes eating a little?? awesome!..some of my buns didnt eat the amount that they norm would for a week ..as long as hes getting some food in and ur helping too he will prob be ok..i think ur doin an awesome job..i know how stressful this can be..


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

Yes he ate a little last night. 

Thanks Lisa, it is stressful! Hopefully he'll continue to eat today as so far today hes eatting nothing. Though it is only 12:30.


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

is all of his food within reach ?.do u freshen it up regularly?..cuz that helps too..i make sure they have choices of foods right in front of them..and i break apart parsley and cilantro so it smells really good....have u tried all his fav foods?...cuz my Ms Perty was a pellet maniac before her spay last week..but now she wants nothing to do with her pellets and she eats all her veggies and tons of hay now.really strange that her fav food is still not wanted...


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

All food is within reach, I change it twice a day. Is that enough? As I feed morning and evening so Ill empty the bowl before putting in fresh stuff. 

His fav is parsely, he ate some sunday but now wont touch it. 
I keep giving awide selection of foods, of course ones he has ate before. 

He was also mad on his pellets LOL..


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

i dont know why i asked u all that....i know uve done everything u possibly can already..i just want him better too.


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

*Flash Gordon wrote: *


> i dont know why i asked u all that....i know uve done everything u possibly can already..i just want him better too.



Oh I know, I didnt seem rude with what I posted did I? Didnt mean to come across like that 

He ate just two stalks of parsely today. But thats it. 



Ahh hope he gets better soon, hes my baby


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

hehe no not at all..sorry my post seemed alittle harsh too..didnt mean for it to be that way..i mean that as a compliment to you ,,cuz i know ur going above and beyond already...i was irritated with myself for asking u dumb questions...its funny how some posts get taken wrong..heres a fine example..


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

It is, its hard to tell what people mean through a computer 
Thanks though 

he hasnt eaten anything since.


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## elrohwen (Mar 1, 2011)

I would get Critical Care from you vet and force feed him an appropriate amount. One of my rabbits is very pain sensitive and doesn't eat for 3 days after any procedure - the only thing to do in that case is to force feed and keep the stomach going until they feel like eating again.


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

have u let him out of his cage yet to stretch his hoppers?..thats how i got Ms, Perty to eat.


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## tonyshuman (Mar 1, 2011)

I would not force feed unless the rabbit is not eating at all. It is really stressful to force feed. What I would recommend is 1) calling the vet and asking for pain meds, because the pain may be causing this, and also asking what they think about it, 2) administering a probiotic to balance his GI flora, which may have been out of whack due to the surgery and gut slowdown--you can give ProBios (available at farm stores), Bene-Bac (available at pet stores), or even human probiotics (of the lactobacillus family), and 3) offering a very tasty drink that is also good at rehydrating the bunny via correct electrolyte balance, called pedialyte or dioralyte. It is manufactured for infants that have diarrhea and doesn't have the high sugar content of other electrolyte drinks like Gatorade. It comes in a number of flavors that bunnies find tasty, or you can get unflavored and add something like a drop of cranberry juice, apple juice, or even grenadine.


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## michellexgix (Mar 1, 2011)

Just gave him his nightfeed and hes eating it.  he ate some carrot and when I was going he went back for lettuce. Hopefully I'll wake up tomorrow and he'll have most gone!

They gave me something called 'recovery' which i think is the same as critical care. 
Lisa, I actually haven't. He did get out yesterday for a bit as I didn't close it right. Only time hes been out is on my lap but not running about. Will let him out for a stretch tomorrow!

I stopped handfeeding him the food today actually. As he was just hating it. All I did was handfeed the medicine the vet gave me (.5ml of something i dont have the name) The vet said its to get the gut moving. One of the other buns was on this in the start and he started eating soon after. Coopers been on this since yesterday.

They were at the vets yesterday. They were even going to see him today and maybe keep him tonight if he didn't improve.
I asked about pain meds then and she said he doesnt sound like hes in pain, hes in great mood and doing everything else normal. Thinking back I should have insisted on it as i supose it would do no harm anyhow.

Will let you know how he gets on in the morning. 
Thanks everyone


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 1, 2011)

Come on Coop be a good boy and eat all ur veggies!!..


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## michellexgix (Mar 2, 2011)

Woke up this morning to see my beautiful boy had an empty bowl.. I'm trilled! He ate all his pellets and veggies - even a new type of lettuce he never had before!

..And hes waiting for his morning veggies it seems! 

I couldn't be happier.

Thanks everyone


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## CiaraPatricia (Mar 2, 2011)

That's so great that he's eating loads now  Thanks to all your hard work looking after him


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## michellexgix (Mar 2, 2011)

Thanks Ciara


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## Flash Gordon (Mar 2, 2011)




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