Quite a Bit of Bunny Goings On

There’s been quite a bit going on in our very bunny household!

 

Monday evening, right before heading to bed, I got into Nibbles’ pen to pet him for a few minutes.  He was very non-responsive, which was odd.  He refused anything I offered:  hay, water, veggies, even treats.  He didn’t look so good and his ears were very cold.  For the next two hours, we tried to make him comfy and offered him as many different food options as we could think of.  He wouldn’t take any of it.  I finally gave him some anti-gas meds and hoped for the best.  The next morning, he ate some pellets, but had obviously not eaten any hay overnight.  Matt watched him throughout the day and he just seemed very lethargic, although he was picking at some hay and was pooping some.  Since he wasn’t getting any worse, we decided to forgo the vet and keep monitoring him.  By Wednesday he seemed to be almost back to normal.  That afternoon I noticed a BUNCH of strung together poops in his litter box.  I think he was a bit constipated from excess hair in his system.  I brushed him for awhile in the tub and got a lot of hair off him.  I knew he was shedding, but I didn’t think it was quite as bad as it was.  I feel bad that we let it go and it nearly made him ill!  I’m glad he pulled through okay and we didn’t have to drive him up to the vet’s office.

 

Today I cleaned out the bunny pens.  They don’t like this at all because the vacuum is awfully loud and it’s on for awhile.  Usually when I clean out Junie and Crispin’s area I shut them out of the main pen (which they hate) and leave them in their run around area.  This morning they both looked like they were going to either try jumping up on top of the pen or where going to try to break back into the pen.  I finally locked them both in the carrier (which they hated even more) while I finished cleaning.  I peaked in at one point and saw this:

 

 

Poor widdle bunnies!!

After I was finished I let them out and back into the main pen.  And gave them treats to make up for all the horribleness I had placed in their lives.  Then it was Nibbles’ turn.

I lured him out of his pen and into the living room with a raisin, then locked him out.  He was very confused and upset with this.

“Let me back in!!”

After I was finished with his pen, I opened the gate back up.  Nibbles was nowhere to be found.  Finally, I spotted him hiding under the table:

Scaredy-bun.

Treats were given and all was okay again.  Their eventful morning made Junie very sleepy.  Junie was flopped over several times and even let me take pictures!  Usually if she hears you, she’ll pop up again, but she stayed still while I snapped these:

AND THEN.  Later.  I got this on video:

You never know when they’re going to do it, so I was excited she flopped while I was filming!  I think flopping is my favorite thing bunnies do 🙂

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

I was really hoping to bring Crispin home today.  Junie was definitely not quite herself last night and we all missed Crispin.  I got an email from our wonderful vet (who stopped by today on his day off to check in on Crispin) early this afternoon:

“I checked on Crispin and he remains really bright and alert but his fecal output still remains small in size and number. I would have no problem sending him home tonight with you both if you feel comfortable giving him oral medications and assist feeding him. That way, if he’s at home, hopefully his GI tract will start moving a little faster…

But if you think medicating him twice daily will be next to impossible for right now, we have no problem keeping him too…. sometimes it takes a few days for them to really get back on their feet.”

I called them and told them I would head over after school let out to pick up our sweet bun!  They had a whole write up done for me on everything that had happened for Crispin since Tuesday night plus a description of his meds and how to administer them.  He has four liquid meds to take plus critical care food.  It’s basically crushed up pellets that you add water to to make a paste.  Delicious!!

Mm’mm!!

So far he hasn’t touched the stuff, but he is eating hay which is good.  If he doesn’t eat this stuff, I guess I’ll go ahead and give him some regular pellets.  He has to be hungry, poor bunny!  He seemed like he really wanted Junie’s salad, but I’d think pellets are gentler on the tummy than greens.

More updates to come!

******UPDATE:  Video here.********

More Vet Visits for Crispin…and a Hospital Stay

After our adventure two Saturdays ago with Crispin’s runny nose, I had hoped we wouldn’t need to go to the vet for quite some time.  Unfortunately, we were right back at the bunnies’ favorite place last night.

 

When I got home around 5:15, all seemed fine with the buns.  I did notice that either Crispin or Junie had left three “presents” in their play area.  Two of them were smaller than their usual droppings.  Small poops are a concern for rabbits, but since it was just two I didn’t think much of it.  It was unusual for them to leave anything like that in their play area, though.  Crispin let me pet him a bit, then he hopped back into their cage.  It was still a little early for them to be fully awake and active yet.

 

I relaxed for a bit, Matt took off for a meeting on campus, and I fixed dinner for myself.  I saw Crispin sitting in his litter bin with this sort of glossy-eyed/glazed over look.  Usually if he’s in the litter bin, he’s eating from their hay box that’s above it.  But he was just sitting there, sort of hunched over.  After I finished eating, I made up the bunny salads for their dinners.  Once I start rustling lettuce bags and start washing things, the bunnies start to go crazy.  They know dinner is on the way!  Junie was her usual hyper self, running around, jumping, standing up on her back feet to see if I was coming out from the kitchen yet.  Crispin looked completely unaware of all of this and was still in the litter bin.

 

When I brought their food bowls, Junie immediately began chowing down.  Crispin still hadn’t budged.  I reached the bowl into the cage and put it right in front of him.  He lurched forward like I had startled him, sniffed the salad briefly, then continued to sit.  I have NEVER seen that bunny refuse food before.  Now I was a little more concerned.  I fixed up his medicine (mixed with the baby food he loves) and held that in front of him.  No response at all.  Then I noticed many more tiny poops around their cage.  I knew something was wrong.  After thinking for a minute, I called the vet’s office.  At this point, it was 6:45 p.m. and they were closing at 8:00.  After describing Crispin’s behavior over the phone, they asked us to come in as soon as possible.

 

I grabbed the carrier and tried to get Crispin out of his litter box (he was sitting just out of my reach).  After about 10 minutes of coaxing and prodding he reluctantly hopped out and I got both him and Junie into the carrier.  Bonded bunnies can get more stressed if they are without their companion, so I thought she should come, too.  It took about 40 minutes to get to the vet’s office (Matt was able to meet me there).  They took both bunnies to the back and told us Crispin would get an examination as soon as one of the vets was free.  It took a little while, but around 8:20 p.m., the vet had looked at Crispin and told us he probably had GI stasis (basically his digestive system had started to shut down).  This can be serious if left untreated and can easily kill a bunny.  [You can read more about it here.]

 

Their suggestion was to hospitalize him overnight with a treatment plan including a variety of oral medicines, feeding assistance, and subcutaneous fluids.  We agreed, signed the paperwork, and said goodbye to our pathetic-looking little bunny.  Junie had to come home with us since the cage they had (while adequately sized for a sick bunny) would be too small for Junie to run around like she usually does.

 

A few minutes after 9:00, we loaded Junie back in the car and drove home.  When I let her out into the play area, she flicked her feet at me (a sign of displeasure in bunnies) and also sprayed urine all over my arms.  I looked in the carrier and she had peed everywhere.  Her ENTIRE back end was soaked.  Poor little bunny!  I took her to the tub and cleaned her up before putting her back at home.

 

Late the next morning I got this email from the vet:

“Good morning!

Just left you a voicemail….  Crispin is eating some hay this morning and abdomen feels much less tense.  We remain bright, alert, and responsive and appears happy so far!  We will continue supportive care and keep each other updated!

Have a great day!!!”

Good news!  He also sent us this picture:

This evening, he sent us this:

“Crispin has continued to remain bright throughout the day.  His fecal production is still subpar so I think it’s best to keep him overnight and re-evaluate in the AM.  I am off tomorrow but Dr. Crum has been briefed about Crispin’s recent happenings…  I will stop in early afternoon (~3pm)  to check on him and we can make a judgement call then unless Dr. Crum feels like he can go home earlier.

If he does go home tomorrow, I’d like to keep him on the assist feeds and an assortment of oral medications which we will go over with you at discharge….

If you have any questions feel free to email me back!  Hope all is well!  He’s a great little bunny…”

 

So happy to hear that!!  We are really hoping he can come home tomorrow and be cozy at home.

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In an unrelated note, here is an example of the hazards of bunny ownership (my new forearm tattoo, courtesy of an over-excited Nibbles):

A Smorgasbord of Pictures and Videos

Since Crispin has to take his medicine for the next little while and since he won’t take it without it being mixed with baby food, I decided that all the bunnies should get a little baby food treat after dinner.  Pureed fruit–what’s not to like?

 
Here’s Crispin with his apple/banana/medicine blend.  He likes it (and I had focusing issues…sorry):

Next, Junie wasn’t going to let Crispin have all the treats.  She gladly licked up some apple/banana baby food (without the medicine, but all over her face, thank you):

And, of course, not wanting to be left out of the party, Nibbles helped himself to some deliciousness, too:

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Earlier today and yesterday I took some pictures of Junie and Crispin.  First, we have Junie sitting on Crispin’s head.  Lovely!

Later on, though, she was feeling more compassionate and offered her snuggling services:

D’awwww!!

Crispin Update

Crispin seems to be doing much better today.  There’s no more weird congested sounds or sneezing.  We’re still giving him his medicine twice per day (morning and evening).  Yesterday and this morning it was horrible.  He would not let us put the syringe in his mouth and seemed to hate the taste of the medicine.  We were struggling with him for 20 minutes just to get some of it down his throat.

 

So this morning when I went to the grocery store, I bought a small jar of apple/banana puree and a carrot puree baby food.  Earlier tonight, I mixed the medicine with a small dollop of the apple/banana puree on a plate.  Crispin LOVED it!  He licked it all right up and went sniffing for more!  We’re so glad that worked because otherwise we’d have a miserable two weeks of medicine administration to get through.