Sudden death of 12 weeks old bunny

Hi! I am new to this forum but could do with help. We got a little bunny rabbit who was 8 weeks old at the time. 4 weeks later, actually this morning, we found him dead in his coop. He has always been a messy kind (Food, straw everywhere, and poo on his paws and bum) of rabbit which we kind of put down to personality or bad potty training. He did have bout of soft poo, which I thought could be because of the variety of grass we gave him, apparently nothing to worry about. This morning, the cage was very badly covered in very runny diarrhea and he was no more. The kids are very distraught and I would like to know what happened and how to prevent such occurence. I completely clean the coop every 2 days, gave him rabbit food in morning and a selection of fresh grass in the evening. He was very alert and lively up to yesterday,
Thank for your input,
Natalie

Hi, really sorry you have lost your bunny

It doesn't sounds like he was doing that well if he always had poo on his paws and bum, as that's not normal. It sounds like his death might have been caused by his diet. Did you ever feed him any hay?

Hello

I am sorry for you loss too.

I agree that it sounds like there has been a problem with his tummy and his diet. Bunnies shouldn't have poo anywhere on them. If there is then something is wrong. It might be as simple as the wrong diet but it could also be an infection. Can you take the bunny to a vet to get a post mortem?

So sorry you have lost your bunny.

Are you sure he was eight weeks old when you got him (if you got him from a pet shop some sell them alot younger than eight weeks unfortunately but pass them off as eight weeks). It definately sounds like he had tummy trouble, it could also be a few other things like coccidisis you won't now the true cause of death unless you have a post mortem done.

Hello Natalie,

I’m so sorry that your first post is here is on such a sad subject I’m very sorry for your loss

As others have said it sounds like something was wrong with his tummy or digestive system in general. Digestive problems are not uncommon in rabbits of all ages but sadly they are often fatal in the younger ones. Did the vet tell you that it was nothing to worry about ? :? If so, then I think you should look for a different and more ‘rabbit-savvy’ vet in future. Rabbits can go downhill very quickly with digestive problems so it’s important that you find a vet who understands rabbits, many still only know about cats and dogs.

Normally I don’t start talking about getting another rabbit so soon after one has so tragically been lost, but as your post mentioned you wanted to prevent a reoccurrence then it sounds like, at some point, you would like to get another one? I don’t want to go into such advice on ‘what to do next time’ unless you specifically ask for that advice, as I know you are still grieving for your bunny and I don’t want to tread on your toes and upset you more by giving you advice for your next bunny so soon. When you feel ready, there are many lovely people here who can advise you on everything from the best diet to what symptoms to look out for that indicate something is wrong

I do think though that you should scrub the hutch out (preferably when the kids aren't around to avoid them further upset) with a rabbit-safe disinfectant and allow it to dry out fully, as flies will soon be attracted to it.

Thank you guys, much appreciated your responses! Bunny had hay at all time so yes, I can only assume he maybe was not well when we got him. We'll give time to time, the kids are in bad shape so they have to get through handling grief... Oh dear, never thought the whole family would get daft over wabbit...he was so cute it should forbidden! :roll:

Aww so sorry for your little bun but like everyone says it sounds like gut problems.

When anyone adopts any of our young buns I don't let them go before 10 weeks and also new owners are under strict instructions to give very limited grass and veg as their stomachs are so sensitive for the first few months. All my volunteers know that they do not under any circumstances give young buns any veg even when they are weaning - just dried food and hay. If they have a dirty bottom then I bring them indoors and keep an eye on them. I only put them out onto grass on odd days and not every day.

Poor you. Little buns are never easy to look after and I know how upsetting it can be.