Ongoing Tummy Problems

Question
Thanks for that Dana.

I don't think it's his teeth / molars - there's no drooling, and no sign of discomfort at all when he's eating anything - in fact he still loves his food.

Could this 'cowpoop' syndrome also cause urine issues as the main problem that we're having with him at the moment is the urine around the tail area.  I've read about urine scald, and he does have loss of hair around the tail area, but although there's no hair, the skin does not look red or sore.  

We haven't had too much bloating recently since we moved to the mainly hay and veggies / no pellets diet, but we are still getting this urine.  It seems to be that it occurs weekly - he just seems to have nice white fur back again, and then we get another spell of it.  However, he remains bright and it doesn't seem to have much effect on his behaviour / mood.  However, it doesn't look very nice to be so stained underneath, and I do worry about flies etc when he goes outside.  He is a house bunny most of the time, but goes out to a playhouse / run set up when we are working during the day.

I have read that arthritis etc can cause urine problems, and this is why I worried about the protruding spine, but he is very active, and never shows any movement problems etc - he still bounds up our stairs several at a time.

Thank you for thinking about our boy.

Thanks again

Lynn



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Followup To
Question -
Hi Dana

I've been following this site, and your answers to stasis / gut / bloat / tummy issues with great interest. I'm hoping you might be able to give me some advice regarding our bunny boy Robbie.

Robbie is coming up for five years old.  He has a history of stasis /gut issues - worst period was about two years ago when he was hospitalised for over a week due to vocalisation whilst straining to urinate, which had lead to severe GI statis.  Lots of tests - ultrasounds, xrays, blood, culture and barium enema showed that he had an inflammation of the colonic wall.  Several weeks of painkiller, antiinflammatory, antibiotics (for coccidios) and motility drugs helped him.  He then had two good years, however since the start of this year we have had similar but different issues with him.

He gets a very bloated tummy - he actually looks more rounded, and faecal output at times reduces. Simethicone helps him as does tummy rubs, and painkiller if he seems really uncomfortable.  We did cut out several 'gassy' type vegetables and also cut out pellets.  His diet is now Oxbow Timothy and Oat hay, with fresh herbs and a little bit spring greens.  We find that a lot of greens seems to make the bloat worse.  Grass also seems to make it worse.  He is stable at the moment on this diet, and is currently on no medication, but does still get a bloated tummy at times.

He is a white lop bunny with black spots, and I was particularly interested in the 'cowpoop' buns that you mentioned.  Robbie's faeces are usually darker and misshapen.  He also at times 'leaks' darker coloured urine around the tail area, which seems to occur every week or so, but he is very tolerant about being cleaned and dried.  

We have taken him to the Royal Dick Vet School in Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the best in our area, and they are very good with him - they think he is prone to these gut /stasis issues.  Recent blood tests came back normal, and antibiotics were given in case of bladder type infection, but make no difference.

He very rarely seems disinterested in food, although we can only get him to drink water with  a little bit of organic baby juice added for sweetness - he will not drink pure water. His teeth have been checked several times and are fine.

Only other thing I have noticed about him that I'm worried about is that he has developed a 'pronounced' spine - you can literally feel the bumps running down his spine, although he has not lost weight, and is not thin.  The vet was not overly concerned about this, and said that some buns get this muscle wastage as they get older.

We no longer believe his problems are diet related like we did a couple of years ago, although we try to keep his diet simple as not to infuriate the situation.  We have another bunny - his lady friend, and she has no gut or other problems at all.

We love this little bunny boy so much and would do anything to help him.  He is such a good boy, and even at times with bloated tums he appears bright, alert and loving.  Is there anything you can advise we can do to help him.

Thanks in advance.

Lynn




Answer -
Dear Lynn,

If Robbie is white with pigmented spots, has a belly that is often very round and bloated in appearance, and also has always produced large, rather soft, misshapen poops that don't look like normal rabbit poops, then I would suspect he may be the victim of the congenital disorder we sometimes call "cowpoop syndrome."  It does not appear to be of the same origin as "megacolon" seen in dogs and cats, though some vets refer to it in this way.  Those of us who have dealt with this syndrome are starting to suspect that it may involve a hereditary problem with innervation in the cecum and/or cecal/lower GI junction, causing fecal and cecal matter to combine abnormally.

No one knows really how to treat this condition.  However, we have found that occasional dosing with lactulose (0.5cc/kg once or twice a day) can help hydrate the intestinal contents and may prevent the scarring of the GI tract that large, hard poops can produce.  In one of our own "cowpoop" bunnies who eventually died from the condition, necropsy revealed numerous scars and stenoses (narrowings) of the intestine that may have resulted from the constant insult of those hard poops trying to pass through.  Keeping them moist can help prevent damage to the GI itself, we suspect.  

No scientific evidence to demonstrate this. It's just a hunch at this point.  But our cowpoop bunnies who get lactulose and simethicone regularly do seem to do better.

If the condition isn't due to the congenital syndrome, then have his molars checked.  Chronic pain from molar spurs can produce chronic GI slowdown/ileus:

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

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

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

I hope these help get you started.  Please write back if you have any other questions.  I will think good thoughts about Robbie!

Dana

Answer
Dear Lynn,

Urine scald can be caused by a number of things:

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

but the 'cowpoop syndrome' is not one of them, as far as I know.  Have a look at that article and see if your vet can do some diagnostics to check for bladder stones or sludge.

Even though a bunny shows no outward signs of molar spurs, they can be causing problems.  It never hurts to check. Sometimes the ONLY sign of molar problems is cecal dysbiosis.

Hope this helps!

Dana