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blockage

22 10:19:34

Question
QUESTION: My rabbit was very bloated yesterday he is prone to bloat/stasis he was treated for that but by the evening no better so he was xrayed which reveled a blockage he was given more meds but overnight he had only passed a tiny amount of poo and the same today,he has been back to the vets this am and was treated with meds again and some moult formula with no real improvement where do we go from here?

ANSWER: Dear Marie,

If this is a true bloat/blockage, then the prognosis is not good.  But if he's passing any stool and if the abdomen is bloated but not very turgid and rock-hard, then what you are seeing may not be a true bloat, but just gassiness due to slow GI motility.

Please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

for instructions on how to increase GI motility.  Pediatric simethicone drops will help with the gas, allowing it to pass more readily.

If your bunny really is bloating, rolling him on his left side and giving gentle massage at the onset of bloat can help prevent a full-on bloat, which is usually fatal.    There is a very sharp turn of the intestine just caudal to the pyloric sphincter of the stomach, and if there is excess gas or fluid in the stomach, the extra volume can actually pinch off the turn and cause an acute blockage followed by bloat.  If this is not treated very quickly (i.e., within an hour), GI tract tissue necrosis usually follows, and the bunny may die even if the bloat is reduced with a gastric  (or naso-gastric) tube.

Be sure the vet you are seeing is very experienced with rabbits.  If you're not sure, check the list linked here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

I hope this helps.

Dana

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

QUESTION: Dana,

Thank you for your reply. Sadly, Claude passed away yesterday.

Answer
Dear Marie,

I am so sorry about your terrible loss.  He may have had a true bloat, after all.  And if that was the case, there is very little anyone could have done for him.

I hope you can at least take some comfort in knowing he lived a life of love and being pampered, even if it was too short a life.  He was a lucky bunny to have you.

Take care,

Dana