Bunny Drama

One of the hallmarks of our life before beginning psychiatric treatment was that we were regulars at Urgent Care.  Lily rarely made it through a week without so strenuously complaining about physical discomfort (headache, stomach upset, pain in knee, leg, arm, foot . . . ) that we needed to go to the doctor.  Sometimes she had something treatable, often she didn't, and her symptoms inexplicably disappeared.  These days it's rare for Lily to need a doctor's care unless it's for her psychiatric symptoms.

This is not so for her bunny.  Lily has transferred her health worries to her bunny, Moe.  And the fun is increased by Lily's access to the internet, where she reads posts about improbable issues like bunnies getting ulcers from having their nails too long. 

A few weeks ago, Lily was beside herself about Moe's poops, and whether he was drinking enough water.  Round and round we went, as I explained that he seemed normal and healthy, and Lily insisted that Moe needed to be seen by a vet.  She emphatically and tearfully stated that Moe wasn't drinking his water, and that he surely would die.  I finally took Moe's water bottle and used a sharpie to mark the water level, explaining to Lily that we could check the level later in the day to know how much water he was drinking.

That sharpie became my new best friend.  Lily was able to watch the water level decrease, alleviating her distress over that issue.  We carefully tracked his poop output and determined that he was indeed pooping.  Yay!!  Problem solved, right?  Wrong.

Lily's fixation this week has been over Moe's poop again, which is softer and clumpier than usual.  More tears, and adamant demands to phone the emergency vet on the weekend.  Mind you, Moe was running, frolicking and hopping about the house, depositing poops and being his delightful self.  I phoned the vet and she agreed that if his behavior and eating habits seemed normal, he needn't be seen, but we should monitor his poops over the next few days.  Lily still isn't overly happy with the decision, but I'm not willing to expend the time or money on a visit to the vet if it's not necessary.

Just call me a mean old mom.