my rabbit is not eating anything at all what should i do or give him?
2006-07-31 04:47:48 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Anytime a rabbit stops eating that is not a good sign. If you keep your rabbit outside you should watch the heat very closely and try to keep it cool. Make sure it has plenty of fresh water so it doesn't get dehydrated. You may also want to check that it doesn't have diahrrea. I'd recommend taking it to a vet. Many times the summer heat will cause them to go off their feed if you have them outside. Don't change their feed in the summer, it causes too much stress in addition to the heat. Normally best to stick to just rabbit pellets and water. If your rabbit has diahrrea you want to pull it off feed for 24 hours and give it plenty of water. If it doesn't you want to use grass, bread, or comfort (an herb) or dry oak leaves to get it eating. If a rabbit has diahrrea you only promote the growth of the bacteria that causes it if you keep food in the rabbit's stomach. If it doesn't have diahrrea, then you want to get it eating ASAP normally.
2006-08-02 08:37:13 · answer #1 · answered by devilishblueyes 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
He may be stressed, in which case it's normal for them to go off feed. As long as he's still drinking, I would just watch him for a day or two...force feeding is stressful to them and most come around and decide to eat. Give him some hay, small pieces of banana, apple, carrot, bread crusts, oatmeal, etc. to tempt his appetite. Don't give him leafy greens, rabbits really shouldn't have these anyway and if it's all he's eating it can give him diarrhea and dehydrate him.
You might also try giving him some Ensure or PediaLyte and see if he'll drink that. They seem to like the orange PediaLyte best, I dilute it half & half with water. It will stain his mouth if it's a light color, though!
If he persists in not eating, go to a vet supply store and pick up some stuff called Nutri-Cal and a big horse syringe. It's a goopy brown paste and you can put some in the syringe and squirt it in his mouth, use about a teaspoon at a time.
Unless he's showing other signs of illness, I'd hold off on taking him to the vet, UNLESS you have a vet who truly knows rabbits or specializes in exotics. Most vets don't have a good knowledge of rabbits at all, and you don't want to subject him to a lot of unnecessary tests if the problem is just that he's in a mood. Rabbits just quit eating sometimes, like I said most of the time they'll start back up in a couple days, or after figuring out that being force-fed isn't any fun. I've never lost one to self-starvation in 20 years.
2006-07-31 14:24:19 · answer #2 · answered by BB 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would definately take him to the vet. Anytime a rabbit doesn't eat for an extended time it's an emergency. Make sure that your rabbit is hydrated. Chances are his not right now. If you can't get a vet appt till later and don't have a pet ER around you should make a pellet slurry and force feed him. You take hot water and mix his food pellets with it and let it sit till it is cool. Then take a non-needle syring and start feeding him. http://www.rabbit.org
2006-07-31 11:55:54 · answer #3 · answered by sugarcarat 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Did you just get him? If you just got him this is normal..my bunny midnight was not eating at all for like three days after he got used to where he was and he was some what comfortable he started eating like crazy and i cant get him to stop eating. If you have had him for awhile then you should prob. see a vet? but are you sure your feeding him the rite thing? maybe he just does not like what you are feeding him. but definitely see a vet if you have had him for awhile and hes not eating. good luck!
2006-07-31 13:14:01 · answer #4 · answered by Samatha P 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The best way to judge your bunn's health is by his droppings - are his droppings numerous, large, round, moist? If his droppings are small and dry, or worse, totally absent, he could be suffering from constipation - this can occur in heat too - I've written an article on symptoms and how to treat constipation/furballs too -
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnystomachhealth.html
Your bunny could be suffering heat stroke, if it's very hot where you are, and if he has his mouth open and is panting ... heat stroke is very dangerous for bunns - I've written an article on symptoms and how to treat -
http://au.geocities.com/leaswebsite/bunnyheatstroke.html
Also have a browse of all these sites for more general info on bunnies -
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/diet.html
http://www.muridae.com/rabbits/rabbittalk.html
http://www.tagyerit.com/hopline/cold.htm
http://www.rabbit.org/
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/rabbits/a/rabbitcare.htm/
http://www.houserabbit.co.uk/
Very, very best of luck to you and your bunn.
2006-08-02 10:05:38 · answer #5 · answered by Lea 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋