For veterinary professionals
October 2026
Gastrointestinal stasis is a syndrome, not a diagnosis. A rabbit that has stopped eating, or is producing few or no fecal pellets, needs a reason. Pain, dental disease, dehydration, a diet change, obstruction, and other primary illness can all look like this at the start. Obstruction and uncomplicated stasis can look similar in the first hours, and they are not managed the same way.
The causes that change the plan are pain, dental disease, dehydration, a diet change, obstruction, and other primary illness. Two rabbits can both be anorectic, with an empty litter box, and need opposite treatment. One needs fluids, analgesia, and assisted feeding. The other needs surgery because a blockage will not resolve with medical care. Imaging earns its place when it separates those two, not as a step that has to finish before the rabbit leaves your hospital.
If the rabbit is painful, bloated, or shocky, call and send. A note with the timeline, the last meal, fecal output, weight, a temperature taken without a struggle, and the drugs already given is enough to start. Opioids, prokinetics, and fluids matter most in that list, with doses and times.
Please send:
Please do not delay transfer to complete a full workup if the rabbit is painful, bloated, or shocky. Call before you send the patient so the team knows what is coming.
At Priest Lake Veterinary Hospital the evaluation usually includes a hands-on exam, a hydration assessment, and imaging when it will change the plan. Care may include fluids, analgesia, assisted feeding, and treatment of the underlying problem. Surgery, including removal of an obstruction, is considered when the findings support a blockage that will not resolve with medical care.
The mechanism I keep in front of me is simple. Something hurts, or something is blocked, or the rabbit is too dehydrated to keep the gut moving. Supportive care matters, and it does not replace finding that reason.
After-hours exotic companion mammal consults go through Veterinary Emergency Group in Franklin, Murfreesboro, or West Nashville.
If you want to talk through a rabbit who has stopped eating, reach out to Nashville's exotic companion mammal specialist. I see these referrals at Priest Lake Veterinary Hospital, (615) 361-4646. How to refer any exotic companion mammal case is on the referring veterinarians page.
This content is for educational purposes for veterinary professionals. It doesn't establish a VCPR or replace clinical judgment for an individual patient. Drug use and doses should be checked against current references and adjusted for each case.