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Liver Problems for Bunny?

22 10:32:33

Question
Hi,
About 2 weeks ago my husband and I noticed that our rabbit Bubby was
drinking and urinating excessively. We took her to the vet fearing kidney
trouble, but after a geriatric blood panel was done (she's 6.5 years) it was
revealed that her kidney function was good. However, her ALT was 3 times
the normal range. Her other liver enzymes were within normal limits. She was
also underweight when we brought her to the vet, but since she's returned
home she's put on weight. We've been feeding her lots including unrestricted
pellets as per the vet. We were told not to give her any pellets by the previous
vet and had not been giving her pellets over the past year.

She seems happy, she's eating and drinking normally now. We use care fresh
in her cage...do you have any ideas what could have caused her elevated ALT
and if this blood result is a definite indicator of liver damage? Also, my new
vet is worried that she may have liver cancer, but couldn't feel any tumors. An
x-ray came back clean. Any idea how to monitor for cancer?

Thanks so much,
Michelle

Answer
Dear Michelle,

What type of pellets are you feeding her?  If they have corn, dried treats, etc., they could be one contributing factor to her liver problems, as such high-carb pellets can cause fatty liver disease (hepatic lipidosis).  

The good news:  The liver is pretty good at healing itself, and returning her to a healthy diet could get her well again, if it's not something like cancer.  Please see:

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

Milk thistle extract (suspended in glycerine, not alcohol) from the health food store and B vitamins are good for liver support, so ask your vet about those.

I hope this helps.

Dana