SPA Veterinary Services
L
Gloucestershire
Gloucester and Quedgeley
T
(01452) 529 480
24-hr Emergency Line
Anorexia is a loss of appetite and can often become a very serious/life threatening condition in rabbits in only a couple of days.
If your rabbit has not eaten or pooed for 24 hours you should seek veterinary assistance immediately. Diagnosis is rarely made at initial consultand some rabbits if left end up needing costly investigations- (hospitalisation, Xrays, surgery, intravenous fluids, bloods can often add up quickly to £150 or more).
Symptoms of anorexia include:
- Quieter/less active. Sitting hunched up in their litter box
- Fewer or no poo pellets
- Refusal to eat (not grazing, food bowl full)
Other less obvious signs include:
- Difficulty eating
- Struggling to swallow (drooling)
- Gurgling sounds from the gastrointestinal tract
- Grinding teeth may indicate pain
- Weight loss
- Not drinking
- Smaller stools, or with lots of obvious hair present
- Heavy shed of fur
- Chronic bad breath (halitosis).
Please ask any of our staff if you have any questions or wish for a copy of our rabbit anorexia information sheet with further information on what to expect if your rabbit shows any of the above symptoms.