sick bun

Question
Have a sick rabbit.  Albert is about 12 yrs old.  He has stopped eating his hay and pellets.  He will still eat yogourt treats and I have been feeding him Oxbow Critical Care for a few days.  Took him to the vet and they said keep up with the Critical Care formula and if not better in a few days bring him in for bloodwork.  They do not know much about rabbits and I am on an island so will have to transport him to the mainland if he doesnt get better.

I have noticed once in awhile there seems to be drool under his chin.  I thought he maybe has teeth problems but the vet said...teeth look fine.  Also, he has no fever, no mass in his tummy, lungs and heart sound fine.  I tried enticing him with alfalfa which he usually loves but he ignores it.

In April he didnt eat his hay...did get bloodwork done and it looked ok except for a little elevated calcium.  At that time about a week went by and suddenly he started to eat again.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Answer
Dear Terri,

Twelve years of age (congratulations!) + drooling = molar spurs.  I would bet 99% that this is the problem, and since your vets are not very experienced with rabbits, then it is not at all surprising that they might not know what to look for when searching for molar problems.

Molar spurs can be very subtle, and in some very sensitive rabbits even very small spurs can elicit exactly the signs you have described.  Buccal spurs, in particular (these are the ones that grow on the top molars, into the cheek) are very hard to see without anesthesia, and nearly impossible to file unless the rabbit is put under for the procedure.

Sorry to say that you may have to get your bunny to a mainland vet for proper dental care, but that's what it really sounds like to me.  For more information on dental problems, please read:

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

and find a good vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

I hope you can find someone to file your bunny's spurs, and that he'll be on the road to recovery soon!

Take care,
Dana