Why does rabbits have bloating?

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Bloating in rabbits indicates that the animals suffer from intestinal disease, namely, the amount of gas in the stomach increases. It is worth saying that the symptoms come on suddenly. Only an hour ago, the rabbit behaved as usual, was active and ate with great appetite, but now its belly has become hard, the animal has become lethargic and prefers not to move. It often happens that the owner does not pay attention to such seemingly not dangerous symptoms and in vain, because the rodent can die without timely treatment.

Bloating in rabbits

Moreover, it also happens that swelling is observed not in one individual, but in the entire livestock at once, which can cause you to incur significant material losses. We will figure out what constitutes bloating in rabbits, what may be the cause and treatment, what to do if the rabbit has a swollen belly.

What Causes Bloating

If we use the terminology of veterinarians, then it is correct to say that this disease is not just bloating in a rabbit, but tympania or gastrointestinal spasm. This condition is acute, since the disease comes abruptly and unexpectedly. If the owner does not know how to remove the swelling in rabbits and how to treat it, the animals often simply die in agony. The immediate cause is the fact that the digestive tract of the animal is unusual, which causes him a lot of discomfort. The fact is that in the structure of the rabbit stomach there is no such function as peristalsis, that is, the process of moving food is much more difficult. Food moves along the esophagus only due to the light of mechanical pressure with a new portion of food. If there is a disturbance in the diet, the likelihood increases that the food will not pass and the food will simply get stuck in the intestines. It is for this reason that you can observe how the bunny's belly swells and becomes painful. If you do not know what to do, you can lose a whole brood.

Why does the belly swell in rabbits:

Stress and stressful situations.

Rabbits belong to the category of shy and susceptible to stress, moreover, frequent stress in itself can cause illness and the fact that they die. If a rabbit has experienced an abrupt change in habitat, food, or has become a victim of abuse, its digestive system may malfunction, which will cause bloating after it. If you cannot find out why the rabbit has a swollen belly, if there are no problems with care and maintenance, it is worth checking other reasons.

Young age

Another common reason why rabbits have bloated belly is their age. Bloating is often diagnosed in young animals, that is, in young rabbits that have only recently been born.The cause of gastrointestinal disorder at this age is an untimely or abrupt transition from breastfeeding to a regular diet. Take a closer look at what the young animal eats, you may have to change its diet.

Poor quality feed

Most veterinarians, when asked why farm rabbits swell and die, answer: it's about their nutrition. The rabbit, like any living creature, needs a high-quality balanced diet. If the diet contains low-quality food, possibly not fresh, then this will have an extremely negative effect on the already shaky digestive system of the rabbit. Also, with regard to nutrition, it must be said that seasonal changes in feeding should not be carried out abruptly, but gradually. If you are feeding your rabbit with fresh grass, you need to make sure that there are no tough parts of the plant in the greenery. If you are developing a fluffy diet on your own, then make sure that it does not contain those ingredients that increase the formation of gases - white cabbage, peas, beans, beetroot, legumes.

The rabbit moves too little

A sedentary rabbit can get sick not only with bloating, but also with other more insidious diseases, since, most likely, he will have a certain stage of obesity and immunity will be far from normal. As for the work of the digestive tract, the digestive function will be reduced due to the fact that the metabolism in general slows down due to low mobility and excess weight. To get rid of this reason, it is worth giving the rabbit the opportunity to move, that is, move it to a more spacious cage or from time to time walk in free space. Traditional methods offer drastic measures, if bloating is noticed in rabbits and the reason is in their lazy lifestyle, it is worthwhile to drive them around the enclosure from time to time.

The presence of a bezoar or an accumulation of fur in the rabbit's stomach

Rabbits like to lick their fur for a long time, as they are fairly clean animals. However, few people know that some of the wool remains on the tongue of the animal, after which it enters the digestive tract and, of course, is not digested there. From the fact that the amount of wool gradually accumulates, bloating and all the resulting symptoms will appear. In this case, in some cases, even surgery may be required to save the rabbit. For prevention, you need to devote sufficient time to caring for the fur of rabbits and carefully clean it in cages and aviaries.

How to suspect bloating

To help your rabbit in time, you need to know what symptoms indicate that the animal suffers from bloating:

1. The rabbit refuses both food and water.
2. The animal stops moving, sits or lies motionless for more time.
3. The eyeballs protrude from the orbits.
4. The abdomen is clearly enlarged, hard and painful to the touch.
5. Constipation lasts at least 12 hours.
6. The body temperature drops, you can note the characteristic chills and general body trembling.
7. Breathing becomes rapid and intermittent.
8. If you listen closely, you can hear how the rodent rubs its upper teeth against the lower ones, that is, in other words, it grinds its teeth.

If you have noted one or more of the signs in your animal, do not postpone a visit to the veterinarian. Only a doctor will be able to find out the true cause of this condition and take the necessary therapeutic measures, tell you how and how to treat rabbits for bloating. If bloating is confirmed, then the veterinarian will try by all possible means to cleanse the intestines in the place where the blockage was and resume the normal functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.

How to treat a bloated rabbit

If the bloating is confirmed, and its cause has been established, then first of all it must be eliminated. Then you need to understand how to properly treat the rodent. As mentioned earlier, the doctor should be engaged in this, because self-medication in this case can be fatal for the rabbit. Treatment of bloating in rabbits can be roughly divided into the following stages:

• Reducing the process of gassing
• Reduced pain
• Resumption of normal peristalsis
• Treat with massage

Reducing the process of gassing

In order to reduce the formation of gases, you need to use drugs such as Espumisan or Simethicone. Usually they are prescribed to young children who suffer from childhood colic, but judging by the reviews of veterinarians, they are also effective in the treatment of rabbits and little rabbits. If the doctor prescribed Espumisan, then in order to give the drug to the rodent, you will also have to buy a pipette. In order to relieve an acute condition, you need to start with frequent use, namely, give the rabbit 2 ml every 3-4 hours. In this case, it is important not to exceed the permissible daily intake of the drug, which is indicated in the instructions.

If the doctor's choice fell on Simethicone, then here you can purchase the medicine either in the form of drops or tablets, depending on how convenient it is for you. By analogy with Espumisan, the first day you need to give an increased dosage, that is, to treat every hour. In this case, at a time, you need to give from 1 to 2 ml of Simethicone. When the animal's condition has improved, the dose can be reduced to 1 ml, but every three hours.

It also happens that your veterinarian prescribes stronger anti-bloating medications, such as Tympanol. But it is worth noting that the two previous drugs can be used to treat both adults and small daily rabbits. In the case of Tympanol, the medicine can only be suitable for adult rabbits, in particular for representatives of such a breed as a giant. The medication must be dissolved in water, while observing the proportion of 4 ml of medication per 16 ml of water, the frequency of treatment per day should not exceed five times a day. Also, do not forget about the well-known activated carbon, it also shows sufficient effectiveness in the fight against bloating.

Reducing pain

Since bloating is accompanied by pain, it is worth taking care that the animal does not experience pain. In veterinary medicine, No-shpu or any other drugs with an analgesic effect that are identical in action are used for this. Usually, the drug is injected intramuscularly so that the effect is felt as soon as possible. Usually, the calculation is taken from the norm of 0.2 milliliters per kg of animal weight. At the same time, it is strictly forbidden to independently increase this maximum permissible dose, otherwise it may lead to the death of the pet. The fact is that no-shpa, for example, has an antispasmodic effect, which can negatively affect the already absent peristalsis if the dosage is exceeded.

If the veterinarian determines that the reason that the rabbit's belly is swollen is the presence of pathogenic microflora, that is, infection, then an antibiotic is prescribed. Most often, rabbits are prescribed Farmazin or Levomycetin. It can be bought both in the form of an injection solution and in the form of a powder, which is diluted in drinking water. As for the dosage and duration of treatment, these issues are decided by the veterinarian.

Resumption of normal peristalsis

To help the rabbit's body cope with the problem faster, you need to use an old proven folk remedy - give the rodent a vegetable spoon of any vegetable oil, for example, vegetable oil or castor oil. In addition to the fact that it will help the mechanical movement of food through the esophagus, taking it will help eliminate constipation. To help your rabbit with drugs, use Metoclopramide in tandem with a second drug, Ciasprid. When taken simultaneously, they will make all parts of the intestine work at the same time, and the rabbit will return to normal in the shortest possible time.

Do not forget that the rabbit, during bloating, may suffer from dehydration, this is what most often becomes the direct reason that the rodents die.In such cases, veterinarians begin a comprehensive course of treatment with drugs such as saline, glucose.

Therapeutic massage for the rabbit

In addition to the fact that you need to follow all the recommendations that the doctor gave, you can try to help the rabbit on your own at home. Tummy massage is an excellent remedy. At the very beginning, you need to do massage stroking movements once an hour or at least two hours. In this case, all movements should be soft and calm. At the same time, the rabbit lies on its back, and its hind legs need to be straightened. The pressure you apply with your hand should be kept to a minimum so that it doesn't hurt the rabbit even more.

For the massage to work as quickly as possible, in addition to everything else, you can give the sick rabbits cleansing enemas. However, you should not take those syringe enemas that are sold in pharmacies; an ordinary 10 ml non-sterile syringe without a needle will be enough as an enema. For introduction into the anus, water is suitable at a temperature that is as close as possible to the body temperature of the animal, that is, 37 degrees. Try to adhere to the norm - 100-120 ml per 1 kg of rodent weight.

What should be the feeding of a sick animal

It is necessary to talk about feeding if the appetite persists and the rabbit eats, that is, at the very beginning of the disease. In this case, an urgent need to transfer the rodent to dietary food. Immediately after you suspect bloating, it is best to let the rabbit starve for the first 10 hours, at this time there should only be a drinker with fresh drinking water next to it and nothing else. Then offer him selected hay and chamomile broth with the addition of lactic acid. Moreover, the last component should be started with small doses, about 50 ml, then gradually increase the dosage.

If the rabbit remains active, then you need to force him to move, that is, offer a walk in the fresh air. As mentioned earlier, the movement will help to ensure that the work of the intestines will improve as soon as possible, and the bloating will be left behind. However, during a walk it should not be too hot or, conversely, cold, this will negatively affect the overall health of the rabbit or rabbit. As for heat, it should be said that the thermal effect during bloating is categorically contraindicated, since it will only intensify the fermentation process of food and aggravate the situation.

As for nutrition, already at the stage of recovery it makes sense to enrich the fluffy menu with vegetables. Start with chopped carrots, then, if the condition does not worsen, add the vegetables and fruits that he used to eat before the illness. As has been said many times earlier, the return to normal nutrition should not be done abruptly, otherwise it will become another stress for the rabbit and cause a response from the body. It is strictly forbidden to give the rabbit vodka to drink, if the abdomen is bloated, this will not only not help the treatment, but will also lead to the fact that the condition deteriorates sharply due to the presence of alcohol intoxication.

Many livestock breeders advise adding probiotics to the rabbit's diet in their copyright videos, as they help the normal intestinal microflora to recover and the gastrointestinal tract system will work as usual. One of the most effective and optimal drugs today is Vetom.

Preventive measures

In order to prevent the development of flatulence in rabbits, you need to carefully monitor the pet's nutrition, and also devote enough time to caring for it. If the animal is under constant control, then it will be easy to notice any deviations from the normal state and take timely measures to treat the rodent.

Based on the information above, the most common causes of bloating are dietary and dietary errors.As the owner, it is your responsibility to ensure that your rabbit only gets fresh feed and that it is fed on schedule. If you need to change your usual diet, do not do it abruptly, make the change gradually. It is also important that every rabbit has free access to drinking water, which, in turn, is clean and fresh.

The rabbit is a fairly agile animal that needs constant movement. If you put a fluffy in a cramped cage, then with a high probability, in the shortest possible time, his body can malfunction, for example, it can be manifested by bloating. It is also worth reiterating the need to remove garbage from the cages in a timely manner, as well as to replace the litter with a clean one in time.

Thus, a set of fairly simple and understandable measures will help you minimize the onset of such a dangerous condition as bloating in rabbits.