A Rabbit’s Digestive System: What are Cecotropes? GI Stasis?
By: Bunnies
Tags: Rabbits, Animals, Bunnies, Bunny Care, Rabbit Care

This article is all about a rabbit’s digestive system. We are going to discuss the steps of the digestive system, what cecotropes are, and what happens when it isn’t working properly aka GI Stasis. Oh, and we’ll be answering the great question of why is my rabbit eating its own poop?

Steps in the Digestive Tract

Mouth and Teeth: food enters the mouth where the teeth chop and grind the food. The food is then mixed with saliva and travels down the esophagus into the stomach. Stomach: as the food enters the stomach, it is mixed with acid to sterilize it. This is also where the first round of digestive enzymes is introduced, beginning the digestive process.

Fun fact: anything that enters the stomach must be digested because rabbits’ digestive systems only move one way, they cannot throw up!

3. Small Intestine: food travels down the small intestine where your rabbit will absorb nutrients from proteins, sugars, and starches. There is a second round of digestive enzymes introduced in the small intestine which helps to further aid in digestion. These enzymes further breakdown your rabbit's food into nutrients that can pass through the intestinal lining into the bloodstream.

4: Large intestine: water resorption occurs

5. Colon: what is left is fiber. The colon sorts the fiber into digestible fiber and indigestible fiber. The digestible fiber goes to the caecum and the indigestible fiber leaves the colon as fecal droppings (this is the poop that you see your rabbit leave)

6. Caecum: where stuff gets interesting (if you’re a science nerd),

The caecum is home to colonies of bacteria that ferment (breakdown) the digestible fiber into nutrients. Without this bacteria, there would be no way to break down this fiber.

Only a small amount of the nutrients created by the bacteria can be absorbed by the caecum itself. Then how do rabbits get those important nutrients? Cecotropes!

Cecotropes or Caecal Pellets: This is a special type of dropping that a rabbit leaves made of fermented fiber (from that bacteria we discussed) covered with a mucus membrane. The reason why they’re special is rabbits eat them right when they come out from their bottom (I know, kind of gross, but it’s healthy and full of nutrients!). The previous nutrients that the bacteria produced from the digestible fiber that couldn’t be absorbed in the caecum is now ingested again so they can be absorbed by the bunny’s small intestine!

What does this mean for a rabbit’s digestive system?

The act of reabsorbing nutrients via cecotropes makes a bunny’s digestive system GREAT for processing fiber, and as you probably recall hay has a ton of fiber!

Hint: that is why your rabbit’s diet should consist of 80% hay and they should have unlimited access to grass hay at all times!

This special process makes the rabbit’s digestive system very sensitive, however, and not having enough fiber slows this sensitive system down. This causes the rabbit to enter GI stasis or Gut Stasis (Keep reading for more info!). On the contrary, having too many proteins or carbohydrates also isn’t a good idea because it puts the rabbits digestive system into overdrive. Therefore, rabbits NEED a balance of the CORRECT nutrients (including lots of fiber) to thrive. The specific nutrients and their amounts they require however depend on the stage of life your rabbit is in.

What happens if the digestive system isn’t working properly? Well, as mentioned before, if the digestive system slows too much or stoops the rabbit enters GI stasis (aka gut stasis).

GI Stasis

Can potentially be deadly, requires emergency veterinary treatment by your rabbit-savvy veterinarian!

What happens? Bad bacteria builds up in the intestines when the digestive system slows (or stops) causing painful bloating. This painful bloating can cause your bunny to lose motivation to eat or drink, making the problem even worse! Now they are dehydrated, lacking essential nutrients, and bad bacteria is building up!

***If your rabbit has not pooped in 12 hours this is an emergency! Go to your rabbit savvy vet immediately. If you don’t remember anything else from this article, please don’t forget this! It could save your rabbit’s life.

Causes of GI Stasis

A high starch, low fiber diet. (Remember we want lots of fiber to keep that digestive system chugging along)

Stress (e.g losing a bonded mate)

Pain from underlying issues

Lack of exercise

Fur balls causing a blockage (This has happened to my bun Milo before but a papaya tablet did the trick and got him pooping again!)

Once you take your rabbit to the veterinarian for what you suspect is GI stasis, what can you expect?

Assessment by your vet: what to expect

Determination if there is an underlying condition causing the stasis and treat that respectively.

X-rays to assess blockage and/or presence of gas.

Treatment by your vet: what to expect

Different options can include:

Motility drugs to get the digestive system moving again (ex. simethicone which is found in infant gas relief drops, keep these in your rabbit emergency kit!)

IV fluids to soften the blockage if applicable

Pain medicine to help with the painful bloating and gas

Syringe feeding critical care so they get their essential nutrients

Antibiotics to combat overgrowth of bacteria.

***Rabbits in GI stasis can make a full recovery if they get immediate treatment

Disclaimers

I am not an expert, the information in this article comes from external sources that I trust (linked below)

https://www.purinamills.com/rabbit-food/education/detail/the-rabbit-digestive-tract

http://www.therabbithouse.com/diet/rabbit-digestive-system.asp

https://myhouserabbit.com/rabbit-health/gi-stasis-in-rabbits-a-deadly-condition/#:~:text=GI%20(or%20gut)%20stasis%20is,motivation%20to%20eat%20or%20drink.

https://www.elwoodvet.net/news/2018/1/29/bunny-bellies-managing-gut-stasis