Need help diagnosing sick doe

[JimS]

She stopped eating a while back for maybe 3 days, but near as I could tell was still drinking fine. Doe started eating again but a week or so later still seems to be losing weight. Stools are firm but smaller than normal. She doesn't meet you at the trough like most do and appearantly waits until later to eat. I set a trap last night to see if mice or something figured out she wasn't eating too and might explain why it appears she eating but not gaining. I also gave her a dose of probiotic last night and she has grass hay available. Now i'm wondering fi maybe it's something else.
Any suggestions? She's really starting to look pretty rough.
Also is there any thing i can feed to help gain condition back or where do I start?
Thanks.

[SquashNut]

The breeder I bought my first rabbits from gave his does a mix of 1/3 each sunflower seeds, oats and barley i think it was. They got 2/3 cup of pellets and a tomato paste can of the grain mix every day. Not sure if the barley is all that easy to find, and that seems like alot of sunflower seeds to me. but you could make up a mix or what ever grain you can find with a little sunflower seeds mixed in and it might help.
have you wormed her lately?
I have one like that her last litter is 2 1/2 monthes old so she should have put her weight back on by now. i am getting ready to worm her today.

[JimS]

I have not wormed.
Can i feed pumpkin seeds as a natural dewormer (I can get them free) I fed a few last night to try that.
If i need to use semething else, what do you use?

[scpankow]

Sound like maybe GI Stasis...you need to get her eating some fiber, no pellets or grain. Hay, Rolled Oats, or Fresh greens like plantain, etc. Give her a crock of water instead of a bottle and keep going with the Probiotics...

[JimS]

She emptied a crock of water last night (just talked to my son who does the watering for a morning chore.) Few ever do that. We had added a few drops of 100% fruit juice to encie her to drink.

[SquashNut]

Are you feeding just pellets, because I know alot of people have lost alot of rabbits becsue they grind the feed so fine before pelletizing it and their is no real fiber left in it. Even a small hand full of clean straw once or twice a week is good. If that is all you have.
Rabbit guts are meant to run on fiber.
how are the rest of your rabbits doing?

i wouldn't put any more juice in there if she has stacis your just giving the gut more sugar and I don't think that will be good, do you use salt blocks?
have you changed feed lately?

[akane]

3 days without food is way too long for a rabbit digestive tract. If they reach one day you really should start trying to get everything possible in to them. Now you need to get the digestive tract moving again normally. Small stool may be a sign there are gas pockets keeping the stool from filling the whole intestine. I agree with everyone who says add more fiber. Put her on just hay if you can. No fruit and especially juice which has added sugars on top of the fruit. Sunflower seeds are enticing and the hulls have fiber. Oats and other grains aren't as useful especially without the hull but are better than processed pellets.

[JimS]

Thanks everyone for the fast responses and advice.
The other rabbits are healthy. We have not changed feed lately and we do feed grass or alfalfa hay occasionally. They seem to waste a lot so i haven't offered it free choice.

[mygoat]

I'm having a coccidia problem in my herd right now and that's pretty muchwhat I'm seeing - weight loss and lack of appetite. Not all kinds of coccidia result in diarrhea. I'm planningo n doing a herd-wide treatment - if my feed mill ever gets the sulmet in that I ordered...

[Danaus29]

You can use pumpkin seed as a natural wormer. I do it usually every fall but this year I didn't get as many pumpkins as I used to and I haven't been to the one not-so-local store that sells the seeds for critter feed.

If you could tempt her with some oats or maple leaves or some thin branches from a maple, mulberry or apple tree it would help her get her appetite back. Thornless blackberry vines would be a good treat too.

I hope for the best for your doe.

[Pat Lamar]

Originally Posted by mygoat

I'm having a coccidia problem in my herd right now and that's pretty muchwhat I'm seeing - weight loss and lack of appetite. Not all kinds of coccidia result in diarrhea. I'm planningo n doing a herd-wide treatment - if my feed mill ever gets the sulmet in that I ordered...

I'm in agreement with mygoat... you need to treat for coccidiosis. They do start looking pretty "rough" and disheaveled with coccidia... like a bad hair day.

Pat Lamar

[SquashNut]

I have found that the best treatment for coccidiosis is to cull the worst ones, and those nearest butcher size, treat what ever is left with sulmet. Then use the empty cages I have to move the remaining animals into after you have given each of them a good bleaching.
Let them stay in the newly sanitized cages for a few days then move them back to the other ones after they have been bleached.
I am not sure , since i don't have abottle, but I think you repeat the sulmet in 10 days.
I keep cleaning and moving the rabbits back and forth from clean cage to clean cage. and use a wire brush to remove any droppings from the bottom of the cages daily.
The idea is to not let the rabbits consume any more of the parasite eggs than they have to. If you even clean and bleach their feeders on a every other day basis it can help.
after the cages are cleaned really good the first time, i take them down and spray them with bleach water using one of those end of the hose insectiside sprayers for the garden. It has never been used for anything else. Or you could also torch the wire. But too many times of that and you'll wreck it.

[JimS]

Originally Posted by Pat Lamar

I'm in agreement with mygoat... you need to treat for coccidiosis. They do start looking pretty "rough" and disheaveled with coccidia... like a bad hair day.

Pat Lamar

The coat looks fine she just is starting to look like skin and bones.
Is fur condition a symtom of coccidiosis? What should i look for to deistinguish from GI stasis?
Learning curves of real life experience are great teachers but they sure aren't pleasant!

[scpankow]

Originally Posted by JimS

The coat looks fine she just is starting to look like skin and bones.
Is fur condition a symtom of coccidiosis? What should i look for to deistinguish from GI stasis?
Learning curves of real life experience are great teachers but they sure aren't pleasant!

Is she pooping at all? How big are the poops if she has any?

[Pat Lamar]

Originally Posted by JimS

The coat looks fine she just is starting to look like skin and bones.
Is fur condition a symtom of coccidiosis? What should i look for to deistinguish from GI stasis?
Learning curves of real life experience are great teachers but they sure aren't pleasant!

The "bad hair day" appearance does not always show up, so it is diffcult to diagnose coccidia without performing a necropsy. The loss of weight and appetite is a common symptom for many different ailments. You did mention that she is pooping, but they are smaller than usual, so if it's GI stasis or blockage, then it's in the early stages. This is why I'm suspecting coccidia.

Pat Lamar

[SquashNut]

keep a chart of what you do for her. what do you mean by feeding alphalfa hay ocasionally? Is it possible she is getting sick right after you feed it?

I would choose only grass hay if i didn't feed hay regular.

[arachyd]

Have you had a look inside her mouth to be sure there isn't something stuck preventing her from chewing?

[MaggieJ]

Arachyd's post made me think of teeth. Sometimes rabbits with crooked teeth (malocclusion) cannot eat properly. So do check her teeth to make sure they align properly. If you don't know what to look for, do a Google search for rabbits teeth. You will see some extreme cases, so pay attention more to what healthy teeth should look like. You can also compare this doe's teeth to your other two, since they are eating well.