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First post and question

M

munrojock

Young Bun
Hi all,

First post here and a question.....my kids have, or had, two white rabbits who live exclusively in the garden(After I've used MILES of chicken wire to stop them escaping). One of them suddenly became very lethargic and extremely easy to pick up on Monday and by yesterday was very lethargic. He's now died but I was wondering on the cause now....are ferns toxic to bunnies? I've noticed they've both been having a chew on the one in the corner of the garden which is something I've not noted before. Could this be the cause as their diet hasn't changed and they haven't escaped to another garden for weeks. No visible signs of trauma or discharge on the rabbit, Max, and had not been losing weight and I move them around every days so I'd notice.

Any ideas greatly appreciated before I am coerced into buying a new 'friend' for the other rabbit.

Thanks

Harris
 
Hi welcome to the forum but so sorry to hear about your bunny :cry:. The link below is a good site it has a couple of lists of toxic plants…of which there are many! Bracken appears on the second one. But it still might not have been that, the minute a bunny shows any signs of not being well they should go to the vet immediately, even if it’s the middle of the night! Unfortunately, they can go down hill very very quickly, if they get instant medical care it really can save their life! I hope your other little bunny is OK

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Food/Food_main.htm
 
Warren,

Yeh, am still placating the kids over the rabbit but they'll get over it.

Thanks for the links, does tend to look like ferns are a no no and perhaps they'd starting nibbling them since they've eaten the rest of the garden! Looks like my other half will need to re-model the garden if the rabbit/s are to remain free and wild!

Thanks again for your input, much appreciated.

Harris
 
it might be the fern but bunnys can get a number of problems that cause similar symptoms & unfortunately they do go down hill very quickly as you found out. If you notice a sudden change in behaviour it really is a good idea to take them to the VETS within a couple of hours if possible as they can go downhill very quickly as you found out.
 
Warren (Is this a common name amongst Rabbit people?)

Yeh, the fact he allowed me to pick him up easily on the Monday night should have had the bells ringing. To be honest, I thought he was just 'dozy' as there were no trauma marks, discharge or paws in the air scenario. Should I let the kids have any more rabbits, I'll act a little more proactively.

Thanks,

Harris
 
the warren part is not there name its a kind of signature thing for how long they have been on the forum for...:D
 
yes the warren vetren means I've been posting far too much when I should go and do some work :) Wise old thumpers are the people who have posted the most.

In an idea world as long as your bun is neutered it would be better for her/him to have a neutered friend from a rescue to play with. They'd need to be introduced on neutral space (your bathroom is usually a good place to start). It can sometimes be harder to get a bun to accept a new friend than one that they've grown up with and it is almost impossible if they are not neutered. There are lots of threads about bonding in rabbit care that should give you an idea on how to go about it or a rescue might do it for you for a donation.

I would wait a least a couple of weeks until you are absolutely sure that there was nothing infectious that caused his death & possibly consider a post mortum. If one of my buns dies suddenly I think I'd want to know why just so I could make sure it didn't happen again or if I needed to treat my remaining buns for anything.

when you're ready to get a new partner, have a look here.

http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/search_form.asp
 
remember if you do get another partner for your rabbit it is a more complicated process thean many people realise introducing them as it needs to be done somewhere neutral and both need to be neuterd adn watched for a minimum of 48 hours. regarding death of bunny sorry for your loss adn for the childrens loss the best thing i can suggest is a pm t o be done keep an eye on remainnig bun as they can pine and go off their food thus causing gi stasis a very nasty gut issue which needs immediate vetinary treatment, were the rabbits both vaccinated? it could be vhd related? its unlikely to have been myxi as you would see symptoms such as weepy eyes and lumps, it may have been a heart attack tho i doubt with the problems earlier faced... had they been pannacurred? if it was a female it could have been cancer if unneutered or could also have been various other issues... worms kidney or liver faliure stroke ec unfortunatly rabbits are prey animals and hide symptoms very well as soon as any sign shows that means they are critically sick and need an emergancy vets asap! dont worry we are all bunny lovers and learning as we go good luck on re partnering the remeaining bunny... oh and be wary of chicken wire ideally you need weld mesh on any runs or hutches as chicken wire cna be gotten through by foxes :)
 
:wave:Hi! welcome to RU - sorry that you joined because of the loss of one of you bunnies :cry: There is a rabbit rescue in East Lothian called Bunnyhaven - you will find it's web page on rabbit rehome. They are full to bursting right now and have a few singles looking for a partner :D They would also help you with bonding.
 
Ahh, right, now I understand. Thought it was a bit strange finding an uncommon christian name like 'Warren'. Yep, says idiot across my forehead!

Cheers Louise,

Harris


louise.hughes1 said:
the warren part is not there name its a kind of signature thing for how long they have been on the forum for...:D
Click to expand...
 
Ecudc,

Thanks, I'll try not to be quite as stupid in future.

When we had these two de-nutted, they were done separately and getting them back together involved a lot of fur flying and the likes. Not that great to watch but the pecking order was set then and lasted. You think it'd be okay to introduce a female to this young laddie (He's 1.5 years). He's a quiet one unlike his brother who is the ex-rabbit?

And yes, I fully intended having a quarantine period to see what happens.

Harris




ecudc said:
yes the warren vetren means I've been posting far too much when I should go and do some work :) Wise old thumpers are the people who have posted the most.

In an idea world as long as your bun is neutered it would be better for her/him to have a neutered friend from a rescue to play with. They'd need to be introduced on neutral space (your bathroom is usually a good place to start). It can sometimes be harder to get a bun to accept a new friend than one that they've grown up with and it is almost impossible if they are not neutered. There are lots of threads about bonding in rabbit care that should give you an idea on how to go about it or a rescue might do it for you for a donation.

I would wait a least a couple of weeks until you are absolutely sure that there was nothing infectious that caused his death & possibly consider a post mortum. If one of my buns dies suddenly I think I'd want to know why just so I could make sure it didn't happen again or if I needed to treat my remaining buns for anything.

when you're ready to get a new partner, have a look here.

http://www.rabbitrehome.org.uk/search_form.asp
Click to expand...
 
Thanks bunlover....they were both vaccinated against VHD a few months back so I doubt it's that. And I've seen the results of myximatosis and know what it looks like. I'm still thinking a gut thing and the fern is still bothering me as the cause. As for his brother, I can see him being a 'piner' so that may raise issues soon. What is 'pannacurred'?

And it's mesh/chicken wire and no fox, unless carrying bolt cutter, is going to get through.

Harris


bunlover said:
remember if you do get another partner for your rabbit it is a more complicated process thean many people realise introducing them as it needs to be done somewhere neutral and both need to be neuterd adn watched for a minimum of 48 hours. regarding death of bunny sorry for your loss adn for the childrens loss the best thing i can suggest is a pm t o be done keep an eye on remainnig bun as they can pine and go off their food thus causing gi stasis a very nasty gut issue which needs immediate vetinary treatment, were the rabbits both vaccinated? it could be vhd related? its unlikely to have been myxi as you would see symptoms such as weepy eyes and lumps, it may have been a heart attack tho i doubt with the problems earlier faced... had they been pannacurred? if it was a female it could have been cancer if unneutered or could also have been various other issues... worms kidney or liver faliure stroke ec unfortunatly rabbits are prey animals and hide symptoms very well as soon as any sign shows that means they are critically sick and need an emergancy vets asap! dont worry we are all bunny lovers and learning as we go good luck on re partnering the remeaining bunny... oh and be wary of chicken wire ideally you need weld mesh on any runs or hutches as chicken wire cna be gotten through by foxes :)
Click to expand...
 
Just had a thought :idea: I'm sure when we did biology at school ferns produce spores on the undersides of their leaves at certain times of the year. I wonder if that makes them more toxic at certain times?! We need a botanist to answer that one as I may have made the whole thing up...school was rather a long time ago now :oops:
 
Cheers Fiona,

Never heard of the place - I've heard of Dunbar but not Bunnyhaven - I'll wait and see how this fella gets on and if it's all okay then there could potentially be a new one for Christmas! Their website appears to be down just now but I've got the address from Yell.com so I can give them a call. How much do they charge for rabbits, do you know?

Harris



fionabisset said:
:wave:Hi! welcome to RU - sorry that you joined because of the loss of one of you bunnies :cry: There is a rabbit rescue in East Lothian called Bunnyhaven - you will find it's web page on rabbit rehome. They are full to bursting right now and have a few singles looking for a partner :D They would also help you with bonding.
Click to expand...
 
think bunnyhaven will do a homecheck etc then you would need to deal with bonding etc so not sure if u would be able to get a new bun before xmas now???
 
Boudicca,

They do but am in the middle of some science just now and can't check. Whether it'd be at this time of year is another question as well.

And looking at my profile, you are in the same field as my other half is currently trying to study for. Constantly going on about rocks and things! :D

Harris



Boudicca said:
Just had a thought :idea: I'm sure when we did biology at school ferns produce spores on the undersides of their leaves at certain times of the year. I wonder if that makes them more toxic at certain times?! We need a botanist to answer that one as I may have made the whole thing up...school was rather a long time ago now :oops:
Click to expand...
 
Louise,

No problem, things like that make it sound like a much better option, especially if they are that thorough. As I said, when they both got the snip at different times, I had to split their run and hutch and then slowly introduce them but even then the fur flew and gloves were required.

Harris



louise.hughes1 said:
think bunnyhaven will do a homecheck etc then you would need to deal with bonding etc so not sure if u would be able to get a new bun before xmas now???
Click to expand...
 
munrojock said:
And looking at my profile, you are in the same field as my other half is currently trying to study for. Constantly going on about rocks and things! :D
Click to expand...

We're a strange lot us crazy rock people :lol: Is she studying geology or hydrogeology? My background is geology, just sort of stumbled into the hydro bit but the groundwater hydraulic equations are evil :evil: Wish her good luck from me!
 
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