Abnormal Feces

Question
She seems to be doing well now, thanks for the help!  One other thing, she seems to be licking her salt wheel a whole lot.  Her diet has not changed (she eats basic pellets, timothy hay and carrots etc as treats)  Is this okay?  Our other rabbit does not have a salt wheel (same age and also a ND), as she has never seemed interested in it.  Should we have one in her cage anyway, just in case?  Should we even have one in Lily's cage?  Is a salt wheel good for them?

Thank you,

Joel and Anna

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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
I am writing in regards to my Netherland Dwarf, Lily.  She is approximately 5 years old.  She has no history of any health problems.  A hair-ball was probably her worst health problem to date.

We are concerned because for the past few days, she has lost some of her voracity when feeding.  She is still eating, but  she not been tearing into as usual.  Her feces is paler than normal, it is usually a dark brown, almost black.  It has been a gray color.  As of the past few hours, her appetite seems to be better, but her feces is still not a normal color.

We checked her gums and they are a normal pink.  She has no other symptoms to speak of.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Joel and Anna
-----Answer-----
Dear Joel,

The first thing I suspect with a 5 year old ND (a short-faced breed) is dental problems.  This may or may not have anything to do with the change in her fecal color (that's more likely related to her diet and/or water intake, with feces being paler if the bunny is eating lots of hay and not taking in so much water).  But I would certainly have her molars checked by a good rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets

You can read more about the nature of dental problems and their treatment here:

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

Also see:

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

for tips on how to tell if your bunny is sick.

At her age, she should probably have some bloodwork done to just get some baseline values, if not to discover there's anything wrong.  But you are a good and vigilant bunny "dad" to notice that she's a bit off her feed.  This can be significant in a rabbit, and you have to catch things early before they become serious with these guys.  It seems as if you have.

I hope this helps.

Dana

P.S. - If the vet you're now seeing is the one who diagnosed "hairball," I'd suggest you find a vet who is more current on rabbit disorders. Please read:

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

for complete information about the "hairball" myth in rabbits.  Too many rabbits have died from vets misdiagnosing a "hairball" for me to not pass this along.

Answer
Dear Joel,

Salt licks are not necessary, and it's arguable whether they're healthy for a rabbit.  If your rabbit has heart disease, the salt will raise blood pressure, just as it does in a human, and that's not good for the heart.

On the other hand, ingesting salt will probably make the bunny drink more, and that's not a bad thing.

Most of the bunnies I know who actually use a salt lick do so out of boredom.  So if you provide some toys, he might stop the salt licking.

Hope that helps.

Dana