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Clinical Signs
- Decreased appetite or anorexia
- Abnormal faecal production
- No stool or greatly reduced stool
- Liquid faeces
- Mucoid stool
- Pain
- Hunched posture
- Tooth grinding
- Shallow rapid respirations
- Abdomen tender on gentle palpation
- Abnormal intestinal sounds
- Negative or increased borborygmi – normally these are barely perceptible but can be detected with patience.
- Increased caecal resonance
- Hypothermia
- Radiography: Remember that if you are using barium there is a difference in the time taken for different types of radiopaque material to reach the caecum, solid material being transported to the caecum in 4 hours in a healthy rabbit whereas liquids may take about 12 hours (Girling 2006)
Clinical Procedure
- Normalise body temperature
- Analgesia
- Rehydration
- Restore GI motility
- Stimulate appetite
Address underlying causes (the rabbit is an extremely holistic animal)
- Dental disorders
- Identify and remove environmental stressors
- Blood profiles
- CBC
- Biochemical profiles
- Diagnostic imaging
- Urinary tract disease
- Skeletal disorders
- Soft tissue abnormalities
- Tumours
- Abscesses
References
- Girling, S. J. (2006) Diagnostic Imaging in BSAVA Manual of Rabbit Medicine and Surgery, eds Meredith A and Flecknell P, 2nd Edition 2006, published by BSAVA Quedgley Glocs