taking it easy
January 2, 2009 l 1 Comment
Did I say dive into the new year? Perhaps a less energetic maneuver should have been advised.
Scully, who never does anything at less than 100%, managed to pull a muscle while scrambling onto a shelf the other day. She’s okay – still eating, drinking, cleaning herself, and being adorable – but she’s sore and trying to lay low for awhile. In fact it’s her go get ‘em personality that has me shying away from pain killers; I think the discomfort is the only thing keeping her still while she recovers. Sometimes consequences are the better treatment option.
the zookeeper recommends…
October 14, 2008 l 1 Comment
You know how it is with cats and cat beds. You spend the money to buy one, and they’d rather sleep in an empty cardboard box or, even better, the middle of your favorite chair (I’m looking at you, Miko…) But this new kitty bed from Apartment C hasn’t been empty since the UPS man delivered it last week. You’d think the thing was made out of catnip or something.
These one-of-a-kind handmade beds come in all kinds of cool colors and designs, including the option to *customize* a new bed with the fabric of your choice. This new bed perfectly matches my orange walls and purple ceiling, and now I’m thinking we need coordinated beds for every room in the house. When they’re this cute and this popular, every cat needs their own Apartment C bed.
:: Apartment C :: Custom and Boutique Pet Beds ::
(you may note that this is the same chair from the previous entry.
Scully, as you can see, is quite grateful to the humans for making
her wicker chair a much more enjoyable spot for sleeping.)
Rex is very sick
September 15, 2008 l 1 Comment
I found him this morning when I came home from work (I work third shift). He’s laying next to his food dish, still mostly full of last night’s pellets. His breathing is somewhat labored, though he doesn’t appear to be stressed. His whole body is chilled. In less than twelve hours, he’s gone from an eating, drinking, pooping, happy rabbit, to this – he looks as though he’s sunk in on himself. Occasionally, he’ll dip his head into his water dish to drink, but that’s it.
I’m not sure what to do. My gut tells me that this could really, truly be the end. He hasn’t been a 100% healthy rabbit for over nine months. I’m debating whether or not a trip to the vet would be a good idea, or would make things worse (he does NOT handle car rides well).
It’s been almost exactly one year since Peanut died.
The Formerly Bald Bunny known as Rex
July 29, 2008 l Comments Off
This was Rex before he started balding in January, this was his fur loss at its worst, and this was generally what he looked like for several months afterward. You’ll need to see those photos to fully appreciate that this is what Rex looks like now:
Rex has been slowly but steadily improving over this past month. I credit the nutritional changes that were suggested by the helpful member of the Rabbits Online Forum, namely Pam Nock, who recommended a regular dose of Nutri-Cal. I also began feeding him a high-quality show feed alongside his regular pellets at a 50/50 ratio.
Without the Nutri-Cal and show feed, Rex loses weight and begins to lose coat condition, eventually leading to baldness. But even on such a high-calorie, high-fat regimin, Rex is *maintaining* a healthy weight and of course he has a much fuller, healthier coat. We still don’t know what, if any, underlying conditions are leading to his requiring such a change in nutrition. My gut is telling me that it’s probably just old age taking its toll. At any rate, I figured it would be good to give an update on the old man.
the bunny king
May 26, 2008 l 2 Comments
For being such a gregarious rabbit, Rex is incredibly camera-shy. I think he used to tolerate it more when Peanut was around because, let’s face it, Peanut LOVED the camera. But now he’s quite the snit when I whip out the camera and I’ve had to learn a few tricks, like using a zoom lens. I prowl for shots of Rex as I would for a photo of a wild animal or song bird. He keeps me on my toes.
Rex has been doing fairly well since the last update. The skin biopsy is still on hold, even though he does continue to lose some fur. His toes are bald, as is the base of his tail (don’t tell him I told you, but he looks like a poodle) Other than being a bit dry, the underlying skin isn’t itchy or looking irritated. So given that his attitude is still so upbeat, I think things are better left alone at this point.
He just happens to look a bit…scruffy.
khmichelle said…
Hmm. I don’t know what I would do in that situation. What have any of the other rabbits online people said? I can understand what you are talking about, you don’t want him isolated. Does he withdraw because he does not like the extra handing from medicine administering? Poor bun! Poor you!
The other rabbit people online have been incredibly supportive, but to be honest, they’re as stumped as we are.
Yes, Rex withdraws when he is frequently handled and medicated. He’s always been my aloof little bunny, content to co-exist but preferring to be on his own. Since his visit on Tuesday, Rex has finished with his antibiotics and I’ve let him be as much as possible. In just a few days he’s back to binkying around the room and visiting with us out in the living room.
If that’s not a clear sign that he hates intensive treatment, I don’t know what is.
So, given that he’s not getting noticeably worse, right now I am comfortable with holding off on what interventions aren’t absolutely necessary for his quality of life.
So, Rex had a vet appt yesterday…
April 30, 2008 l 2 Comments
x-posted from Rabbits Online Forum:
To start things off, at our last visit I was given an appointment reminder card, but the appointment itself was never put into the computer. We were just lucky that when we showed up yesterday (for what I thought was a scheduled appointment) they were able to squeeze us in.
We waited for almost 40 minutes.
Dr. G came in, examined Rex, and said – quite simply – there was no improvement. Not that this came as a surprise, of course.
He also said that we have exhausted all of the ‘easy’ answers, and without further testing, he won’t know what it is that we’re dealing with.
Which is where I begin to have reservations…
Rex is normally a very gregarious and happy rabbit. But in this past week, just with twice-daily medicating, I have watched him withdraw considerably. “Further testing” would entail general anesthesia and a day at the hospital. Can I do that to him?
My gut is absolutely telling me that this is a systemic issue. Is it worth it? Treating a condition only to have him become further isolated?
And for what? He’s an old bunny. I don’t mean that as a cop-out for treating him, but in the sense that it’s not a lifetime ahead of him that we’re talking about. It’s a few years, at best. He doesn’t even have a companion anymore.
I do think that Rex has a great quality of life right now, but part of me really feels that pursuing a diagnosis may in fact diminish that quality of life. Does that make sense to anyone else?
apologies for the dormant posting
April 19, 2008 l 3 Comments
I’m in the last couple weeks of my undergraduate career and am being stretched just a weeeeee bit thin.
Rex had a visit with Dr. G on Friday. He had a little build-up in his ear that I was concerned about – turned out to be just wax. But he had a slightly sniffly nose, too, so Dr. G prescribed antibiotics.
My poor little old man.
Rex’s skin really isn’t getting any better, even with multiple treatments with Revolution. It’s still scaly and flaking, and his fur continues to grow in and fall right out. He had his third or fourth skin scrape that yet again came back clean. That, in addition to the clean fungal culture and normal blood panel, adds up to a great big Who The Heck Knows?
If Rex isn’t improved by his next visit on the 29th, then I think it will be another blood test (specifically, checking thyroid function) and perhaps a biopsy.
The good news? Rex has gained weight, so at least I know that something we’re doing is working.
Rex’s lab results
March 29, 2008 l 2 Comments
Dr. Fulton was off Friday and Saturday, so she left a note for Dr. G (the very busy head exotics vet) and he called today with Rex’s lab results:
> A slightly elevated white blood cell count. May be lymphomatic, and Dr. G thinks it could be due to a stress response at the time of the visit. He’s not too concerned.
> Rex was a little dehydrated (also due to the visit? We’d been out for almost an hour at that point)
> A slight increase in liver function, though still within range of normal.
Dr. G thinks we probably won’t need to change anything, but he’s going to be discussing the results with Dr. Fulton and she’ll call back sometime early this week.
Operation: Rex update
March 28, 2008 l 3 Comments
It’s been just 24 hours and the difference in his coat is amazing. His fur is already starting to grow back. I guess those mites just needed a harder kick in the patootie.
In order to help Rex put on some healthy weight, I’ve started giving him a tiny bit of Nutrical each day (for the extra calories), 2-3 black oil sunflower seeds (for the good fats), and a show-quality rabbit food (‘extruded’ to maximize nutrient absorption). It turns out that Scully LOVES the show food and has tried moseying up to Rex in order to share his dinner. I’ll be keeping a close eye on her…
Haven’t heard from the vet with the blood panel results, so we’re just waiting and hoping that no news is good news.
