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Original poster

***ADVICE NEEDED QUICKLY** ONLY RABBIT ONLY BOUGHTON SATURDAY ...

29 replies

KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:14

Quick rundown:

Rabbit bought from petshop on Saturday, notice saturday night its not eaten, put it down to 'settling in'

Sunday : fresh food in the morning, am at sons christening all day, figure rabbit can settle in quietly ... come home sunday 8pmish, food untouched,

Monday, still no food eaten, I check cage & NO dropping at all.

I take him to my vet , he says ...

very underweight ...and gives him a jab to make him hungry (costs me £30)

Last night rabbit eats half a carrot and some hay, NO dry rabbit food.

Poops 2 poos this morning that are runny (no dry balls like rabbit poo normally is)

Vet says bring him in again today.

Thing is Im in a real dilema

I only got this rabbit saturday from a pet shop, its obviously not well.

I phoned the pet shop and they say to take him to their vets.

Part of me wants a refund because i cant afford to take on a poorly animal, I mean hes not even insured ive only had him 3 days.

But if i give him back to them i think they will just put him down, after all they cant re-sell an ill animal can they??

Hes so lovely

Serious moral dilema

Help!

BTW the pet shop wont pay continous vet bills IYKWIM,

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:15

Title shouldve been ILL rabbit only bought on saturday

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:25

The pet shop have agreed for him to see a seperate vet paid for by them, but Im still stuck because if he is ill then the treatment cost will fall on me wont it?

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:31

???

OP posts:
Nbg · 20/11/2007 12:35

Well if they are offering to pay for a vet then take him to them.

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:38

Yes but itsjust to see whatswrong with him, if he is ill, long term, needs treatment then its down to me.

They wont pay for continual treatment.

OP posts:
southeastastra · 20/11/2007 12:39

it's quite dodgy buying rabbits from pet shops. they should ideally be brought from breeders.

give it a few days, it may get better. lots of fresh hay, dry food nothing green.

Blu · 20/11/2007 12:41

Are you feeding the same pellets that the rabbit ate in the petshop or at the breeders?

It sounds as if the pet shop have sold you an unhealthy rabbit - although I wonder if he could be pining? Rabbits are social and like to live with another one.

Gorgeous as he is, you don't want to be paying bills for a rabbit that will constantly be ill. I would take up thier offer of thier vet, ask what the vet thiks is wrong, and if it is clearly an unhealthy rabbit, and would have been when you buoght him, be tough and insist they give you a refund...not sure i would trust them to supply a new rabbit, tbh.

If your vet said he was underweight he must have been ill for a while before you boiught him.

There must be guidelines about pet shops selling healthy animals...

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:41

Im thinking maybe I should be heartless and take it back

and get one from a breeder

The kids wont noytice (only toddlers) its my concious thats stopping me

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:48

Im going to go to the vets at 5pm and see what they think, Im going to be tough and ask

'am i going to have to return to a vet repeatedly with this animal?'

His answer will decide whether I keep him or not

OP posts:
BroccoliSpears · 20/11/2007 12:52

I noticed my rabbits were very sensitive to smell. Try chucking away the food he has and really washing the bowls in warm (hot) water.

Also, a rabbit's main diet should be hay, not just pellets, or you'll get overgrown teeth. Has he got lots of hay?

Has he got a dark little hideyhole? Does he feel exposed?

He could be stressed about the move.

NAB3littlemonkeys · 20/11/2007 12:53

Could you ask the vet or RSPCA for advice? If the poor love is ill then maybe being put to sleep is the best thing. So sorry for you.

MamaMaiasaura · 20/11/2007 12:56

dont give the rabbit carrot or anything humans can consume. We are feeding ours on the special bunny food which looks very boring but is fab for their digestion.

My bunny sometimes had runny tum but this is because in the russell rabbit food he was just picking out the naughty bits and leaving the good roughage.

Rabbits have such a different digestive system to us, basically they would get grass and roots etc in the wild. Feeding them other stuff can make their poo runny.

Whilst the special buny food is more pricey is definatley worth it.

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:56

Lots of hay, hidey hole, toys, fresh food/water daily.

Hes not a withdrawn bunny, hes hopping about, sniffing, loves toi be cuddled. He just wont eat.

Hes a house rabbit so its not anything to do with 'moving outside'

His house is quite small but i ordered his new one last night, big 2 storey hutch to be kept inside.

But the thing hes in now is still a rabbit hutch, space enough to hop about.

Hes a happy chappy i think.

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 12:57

Awen i got the most expensive bunny food in the shop
'reccomended by vets' it says, its just brown pellets.

not that multicoloured stuff

OP posts:
MamaMaiasaura · 20/11/2007 12:58

thats the stuff That is what our bunny eats. Reason i said about other stuff was because you said you had given him carrot.

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 13:00

I gave him a fresh carrot too.

he ate some of that after his injection but not any pellets.

Id given him cabbage earlier on sunday but he didnt touch that,

seemed he only ate the carrot after the injection

hasnt touched any food today

OP posts:
beautifulgirls · 20/11/2007 17:11

There is nothing wrong with feeding carrot to rabbits - so long as you do not overdo the fresh stuff and they have plenty of good quality roughage carrot will do no harm.

You are probably at the vets now so this post may be a bit late.... If you want to continue with treatment you need the vet to ensure that he has metoclopramide to keep the intestines stimulated to move, that you get some powder you can mix up and syringe feed until the rabbit is well, and if the rabbit is having any pain from abdominal discomfort some pain relief too. The rabbit should be fed every hour or so throughout the day until he is eating suffificent on his own. Initially he will probably only take a bit of fresh until he feels better then move onto the hay and pellets as things improve. Once you get proper sized rabbit poos in the hutch things are probably going well. Rabbits really need a constant motion of food through the gut to keep that healthy - hence syringe feeding is very necessary to do when they stop.

Reasons they go off eating - commonly teeth problems, tummy upsets and occasionally stress can do it, and any other illness that supresses the appetite.

Honestly - I would take it back to the pet shop and leave it to them to do the right thing with it. If it warrants putting to sleep then perhaps that is the right decision anyway. Not all rabbits in this situation will make a recovery despite the best of nursing care from the vets/owners. I full understand the whole attachment thing though and the guilt you will already have about the thought of handing it back. I agree that the pet shop should be responsible for the vet fees, but I can also see their point of view too sadly. There should be more of a responsibility on them to accept veterinary advice and not be allowed to just choose euthanasia in these circumstances, and have to pay the fees for the vet and try to do the very best for the animal rather than just the cheapest.

Let us know how it goes

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 18:45

Hiya beautifulgirls

I coudn't feed it every hour, i havent the time, i have a 3 yr old and an 18 month old and neither leave my side all week.

This is what the vet said needed doing too so Francis has been taken in and they are going to feed him hourly over night,

but Im guessing I wll be expected to do the same - which I want to, but I know its not possible.

Pets at home said I can have a full refund and Francis will be returned to the breeder,

they promised me he WILL NOT be put down unless he is at the point where its best for him and he WILL continue to recieve any treatment he needs.

Im 90% sure I am going to return him and get a rabbit from a breeder.

Feel awful about it though

OP posts:
Blu · 20/11/2007 18:50

Are Pets At Home paying for his treatment overnight?

PetsAtHome are a sort of pet megastore, aren't they? Like Halfords?

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 20/11/2007 18:53

yes they are currently paying for his treatment

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beautifulgirls · 20/11/2007 19:07

That sounds ideal at present. If the vets can get him a bit better overnight, then he has a much better chance. If he is nibbling at a bit of food of some sort himself you will be able to leave it a bit longer in between feeds so at that point you may then be able to have him back home with you. The vets should not send him home to be cared for until they are satisfied that you are in a position to be able to do that, otherwise all their work will not have been worthwhile either.

Not being awkward, but PetsatHome should not state to you that he would not be put down unless it was best for him. Once they return him to the breeder then it is up to the breeder what to do. Anyone supplying a pet store like that if they do so on a commercial basis (most of them will be) is not going to want to pay out for more treatment, they are going to choose the cheapest option. If the rabbit comes back to you and the vet is satisfied that he is not going to have any lasting effects from this (eg they discover the cause was tooth related and therefore likely to recur) then you may be just as well off to keep the wee man after all.

Sorry you are having a such a lot of stress over what should be a nice happy new pet in the house.

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 21/11/2007 11:09

Hes being kept in again today and tonight as he is still refusing to eat.

I talked to the vet nurse and she actully advsed me to return him to the shop as I didn't want (obviously) an ill bunny and thats what they sold me.

That seems to be the general consensus from my family and DPs so I think thats what we are going to do

OP posts:
beautifulgirls · 21/11/2007 17:17

That is fair enough. I hope he does ok and you are all ok with all of the emotions too - insert big hug

AnAngelWithin · 21/11/2007 17:21

in otherwords they want you to chose another one then will just put the rabbit down because it will cost more to treat him. used to work at a vets and they were always bringing in ill animals to destroy cos they couldn't sell them.

Original poster
KittyletteItBe · 21/11/2007 17:42

No,

Im not having another one from them.

And they are going to treat the rabbit for as long as they believe he may pull through. They assured me (the vets not the shop) that he would recieve treatment until

A- he was better, then be rehomed
B- they have tried everything they can but he still wont eat and in that case he will have to be put down rather than letting him starve himself to death.

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