bunny mess

Question
hi there hoping you can help with my bunnys new trick. We have had her for about 4 months we arent sure how old she is. Up till last week everything was fine she was litter trained and bouncing around the house. She is still using the litter tray but is now leaving me pressies around the house of thick pale yellow goo. She has also become quite stained around her bottam which we are washing. The vet checked her over and said she seemed ok but gave some antibotics in cause had infection as she was a bit quite at the time. She is fine within her self , eating , drinking weeing and pooing as normal. But we dont know what the goo is and im still a bit concerned. I dont know if it has anything to do with it but she has also start rubbing her chin on things scenting. I was wondering if the excreation could be hormonal related as looks like a gland secreation. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated as she is our first bunny
many thanks
cx

Answer
Dear Claire,

First off, I think you need to find a better vet.  Anyone who would prescribe antibiotics without even being sure there's an infection should NOT be practicing on rabbits!  To find a good, experienced rabbit vet, please use the list linked here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

The yellow "goo" could be urine from a urinary tract infection:

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

or it could be messy cecotropes:

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

but without seeing it, I can't tell which.  Please read the above articles for help on determining what the "goo" is.

It's possible, too, that the bunny has reached sexual maturity, and is simply marking around the house with urine.  Rabbits excrete excess calcium in their urine, which can make it thick and "milky" looking.  If she's marking, she needs to be spayed for her health and longevity:

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

Still, it's not normal for her bottom to become stained and messy.  Whether this is due to messy poops or urine leakage, it needs diagnosis and treatment by an experienced rabbit vet.

For more information on proper care of your bunny, please visit:

www.rabbit.org/

and

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

I hope this helps.  Please write back if you have any other questions.

Dana