pu/pd rabbit... help!

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 15:50:46 GMT

[quote user="Rob Davis"]

[quote user="Evelyn Barbour-Hill"][/quote]

I'm assuming this is a Gold Star, not a single star!

[/quote]

Indeed. It's a

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Rob Davis — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 15:19:11 GMT

[quote user="Evelyn Barbour-Hill"][/quote]

I'm assuming this is a Gold Star, not a single star!

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Thu, 13 Oct 2016 22:46:55 GMT

[quote user="Marie Kubiak"] if teeth are ok then leave well alone as alterations in normal anatomy can create problems and rasping can be pretty brutal to small teeth and damage the normal structures holding the teeth in place.[/quote]

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Marie Kubiak — Thu, 13 Oct 2016 20:54:01 GMT

[quote user="Lara Brunori"]

Checked teeth and seemed in good condition, just needed little rasping.

[/quote]

I don't understand this - if teeth are ok then leave well alone as alterations in normal anatomy can create problems and rasping can be pretty brutal to small teeth and damage the normal structures holding the teeth in place.

[quote user="Lara Brunori"]Owner was concerned about pain, but again I don't think he is, although I do admit I'm quite bad in pain assessment and rabbit. Is there such a thing as the Glasgow/Colorado pain scale for rabbit?

[/quote]

No reliable pain scoring system though facial expressions have been described to alter (see https://www.nc3rs.org.uk/news/rabbit-grimace-scale-%E2%80%93-new-method-pain-assessment-rabbits for one example). Hunching, reduced appetite/weight, altered behaviour/social bonds, reduced activity or altered faecal output are all common changes in a painful rabbit. More frequent reassessment may be necessary to either appease an overworried owner, or to try and keep close tabs on an animal that it's attentive owner knows is not quite right.

Marie

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Lara Brunori — Thu, 13 Oct 2016 18:46:16 GMT

Thanks a lot for your advice! Checked teeth and seemed in good condition, just needed little rasping. Asked the owner if he could be playing with the water, but she says that there's no mess around the bottle.

I'm gonna do as Marie suggested, monitor for 3 months and repeat exams. Owner was concerned about pain, but again I don't think he is, although I do admit I'm quite bad in pain assessment and rabbit. Is there such a thing as the Glasgow/Colorado pain scale for rabbit?

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Robin Grimmer — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 18:48:02 GMT

What Marie says. Can you get a decent look at the molars? Might be worth doing a dental if any spurs present.

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Marie Kubiak — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 14:44:58 GMT

Nothing striking on the results but indication of minor suppression of bone marrow which is pretty non-specific with causes including psychological stress, chronic low grade illness and physiological stress (moult most commonly). SG is perfectly normal for a bunny and liver changes are pretty minor.

Could this rabbit be playing with the water (usually they mess with sipper bottles but occasionally bowls) and giving a false drop in water in the container? The other consideration is dental changes, could fit with the minor changes on bloods plus they will drink more - presumed to be due to the cool water easing the oral soft tissue discomfort a little, but usually SG comes down really low when intake shoots up (~1.003).

If nothing else comes to light then perhaps do longer observation over a 2-3 month period with the owner checking water intake every few days and recording it. Repeat bloods after this and if you have progression of changes in any parameters then you have some justification for pushing on with further diagnostics and a direction in which to go (liver scan/survey rads etc) but I wouldn't be doing much at present unless the bunny shows clinical signs.

Marie

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

David Mills — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 09:12:59 GMT

E. Cuniliculi.

RE: pu/pd rabbit... help!

Clive Ansell — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 09:00:18 GMT

I'm not that hot on rabbit medicine, but nothing really jumps out as striking from the lab work; glucose low at 2.0, but thought to be an artefact; marginally raised ALT and GGT, but not ALKP. urine SG 1.012.

options I guess:

1) imaging

2) As the rabbit seems ok, just monitor and look for weight loss or other signs

3) pts