The vet put Fred under a general anaesthetic. He extracted three of the mandibular molars. I was told that one of the molars had just fragmented, in other words, it just crumbled away, so in effect, he had permanently lost four of his molars. His back teeth were severely overgrown, and had caused ulcers and abrasions to his cheeks and tongue. Whilst Fred was under, the vet took a good look at his jaw lumps and said that the infection in the bone had gone, but he would always be left with residual swelling. Fred was sent home with more Baytril to ward off further infection.

After the operation, Fred did seem happier and his chewing seemed normal. He even began eating carrots again. He ate and drank normally for several months after his back teeth had been done.

In spite of his eating and drinking normally, I noticed that over time he began to lose weight. I also noticed that Fred’s droppings were much very strange. Some were normal in shape and size, but others were very large, and contained particles of undigested food. His normal diet consisted of hay, alfalfa, a small handful of commercial rabbit mix, greens and hard vegetables and fresh water. Changing his rabbit mix to Supa Rabbit Excel, which is an all-in-one mix made no difference and he continued to pass irregular droppings. He did, however seem to be eating his caecotrophs. These are the soft, shiny and pungent first-pass droppings which rabbits consume almost immediately after passing. Like guinea pigs, rabbits are also coprophagic. The word coprophagic means literally to eat own faeces. Though, like guinea pigs, it is only the first pass faeces that are eaten and which go through the digestive system again, to be passed as hard pellets. Other than weight loss, Fred seemed his frisky self. When I’d trim his incisors, he would let me slip a finger into his mouth and I would have a feel around to check his back teeth. They did not seem overgrown, though they did feel very maligned, which I guessed had something to do with the large droppings he was passing, hence his digestive system was not making the best of what he was consuming.

Several people told me Fred’s life expectancy would be about a year/18 months, and to enjoy him whilst I still had him. From what I have been told by rabbit experts and books I have read, it is true to say that once there is a severe problem with the back teeth in rabbits, they are on borrowed time. I have been told of many people who decide to "call it a day" once a back tooth problem is discovered. I myself am not one to adopt this attitude. I think that pets are a larger responsibility that many people realise, and if you take them on, you have to take into account expensive vet bills and giving them the best possible care when they fall victim to illness and disease. Many pet insurance companies insure rabbits and other small animals, so if you keep several of them, it may be worth considering taking out insurance to cover your vet bills. Only healthy animals are insurable and they will have to undergo an examination by a veterinary surgeon to be deemed worthy. Any animal with a pre-existing condition cannot be insured.

In time, Fred continued to lose weight until it you could visibly see his backbone protruding. He also began to have episodes of passing a clear odourless jelly-like substance from his anus. This was sometimes accompanied by gastric bloat and he would sit hunched in a corner of his hutch grinding his teeth. Teeth grinding are a sign that a rabbit is in pain. I gave him buscopan to relieve the pain, a charcoal tablet and some gripe water. I found that giving him a pro-biotic called Avipro at the dose of ½ a scoop in a little water given every 2 hours helped stabilise him. A small amount of Imodium liquid at helped slow things down when he continued to spew the jelly-like substance from his anus. Care and judgement is needed when giving anti-dihorreah agents to rabbits, as you want to avoid stasis at all costs. Stasis is where the digestive system completely shuts down. The rabbit digestive tract is rather like a production line. Once something shuts down, everything else seems to as well. It is a ‘hindgut fermenter’ with a large caecum. Within the caecum lies a complex ecosystem of microorganisms which convert fibre to nutrients. The balance of microorganisms in the caecum is of paramount importance to the health of the rabbit. A healthy microflora digests food efficiently. One should note that when there is a gut problem such as Fred’s, where the intestinal tract could be inflamed as a result, and it is best to avoid Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as Metacam and Rimadyl as this can exacerbate the problem. Buscopan is much gentler for pain relief.

Next: Final Goodbyes