GI Stasis? Will only eat pellets

Question
QUESTION: Hi Dana,

I have been researching the internet for everything I can to help my bunny through this and have read your articles.  I have been to the vet twice since Wednesday.  Chloe: m/n, lop, almost 7yrs, 5.9lbs (0.9lbs overweight according to vet) Sysmtoms: will eat little to no veg or hay for 5 days, not drinking on his own for 5 days, will eat pellets no problem at all, wasn't pooing but received one motility drug injection (not sure which one) started pooing again and up until yesterday afternoon/early evening was pooing, he has since stopped pooing again.  Vets:(I have been to 2, my reg vet and a diff one since my vet was not available) Both rabbit vets.  The second clinic was recommended on the site you always list. What they said: his stomach felt normal (to a little doughy) both gave sub-q fluids (wed, sat) checked teeth and both say sharp point on back left molar but won't do anything until he is doing better, one said feel pinapple juice (10cc per day), my vet put him on baytril as a precaution, the other gave me metacam to see if that would help.  Was told to syringe some critical care and 100cc fluids a day.  What I've been doing: syringe pedylite and/or water but he will only drink if there is a flavour of apple juice in it.  I have been able to get the proper amount of water into him but since this morning he is not wanting to drink so much. Syringing 30-40cc critical care but he does not like this at all.  Offering timothy hay as per normal, a variety of veg and herbs and 1/4 cup of timothy pellets as per normal, tummy massages.  I have been using shavings as a litter but noticed that he was eating them so I took them away yesterday.  I also noticed yesterday that he was eating some of pellet poos.  He has had night feces at least 2 times since yesterday after that he ate.  

I will be making a vet appt again this morning but would like your opinion on what to do or what they should be doing.  What do I feed, I have heard a baby food mixture is better for GI stasis than critical care?  I am very concerned and have had little to no sleep since Tuesday night.  Will try anything for him.

Thanks so much. I value your opinion and am thankful for all the info you have made available on the net.

ANSWER: Dear Rachel,

I am betting that if there is a spur sharp enough for them to notice, this is the source of the GI slowdown and problems you're seeing.  The vets are wise to want to get him a bit stronger with fluids, food and other supportive care.  But I fear this problem will not resolve until that molar is filed down.

As long as you get him well hydrated and fed enough to be strong for a brief bout of anesthesia, the risk should be minimal, if the vet feels it's safe.  I would not be surprised if once the molars are filed smooth the problems resolve. This happens very, very often.

I hope this helps.

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Dana,

Thanks for your answer.  You suspected correctly.  He was at the vet having his teeth taken care of when I got your response.  They removed a large chunk from his molar that was digging into his cheek.  My question now is how long should it take for him to be back to normal?  I brought him home last night and he drank on his own but hasn't since then.  He is eating some hay now but mostly when I feed it to him.  And one other question is how often should his teeth be checked now?  Thanks again!

ANSWER: Dear Rachel,

Sorry for the delay; I have just finished an excruciatingly busy middle school ecology outreach program that pretty much prevented me from doing anything but that!  But now I'm back.

I'm guessing he's already feeling better.  The mucosa of the mouth heal pretty quickly, so a few days should see him pretty much back to normal.  

I would have his molars checked again in a couple of months, or at the very first sign of picky eating--whichever comes first.

Hope all will be well now!

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hello once again Dana,

So sorry to bother you yet again.  He's still not back to eating normally and still not drinking much.  One week after the dental procedure was done I had him checked again.  The vet said his mouth was more red on that side then the other but his teeth looked ok.  They had done blood work previously and his liver enzymes were a little high so we rechecked it again a week later and she said all the blood work came back looking good.  He is still eating his pellets fine, is eating more hay but not as much as before and is not drinking as much as before either.  I am making sure to give him really wet veg which he is eating as well but not with the same excitement as before.  The vet put him on some Zantac and some more metacam.  He's been on the Zantac for 4 days now.  Any thoughts?  Or am I just being to cautious?  Thank you so much!

Answer
Dear Rachel,

Still trying to catch up here...

If he's still not eating normally, I'd ask the vet to have another look in the mouth to be sure there are no other spurs or problems causing him discomfort.  It's usually only a week or so to heal up the oral mucosa, so by now he should be starting to feel normal if all is fine in his mouth.

If you're not sure the vet who did the job is experienced enough to find spurs, then you might try to find another vet here for a second opinion:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Hope this helps.

Dana