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Bathing bunnies...

SisterMoonbeam

Mama Doe
Do any of you bath your buns? If so, how?

Fidget is so unbelievably useless at cleaning her bum area and with the time of year and all that i really would prefer her to be clean down there. I have tried cleaning it with some wet kitchen roll but that involved holding her on her back and being the wriggler she is, was too dangerous to restrain like that...

any tips....
 
Do you want to say full bath them?
Blue loves baths and had to have them quite regulally a few weeks ago.

I basically put him in our sink much to nans disgust.
We have a like a thing that you put on the bath taps like a shower ehad, used them very very slowly. Gave him some apple in one hand and gentle sprinkled him whilst he was eating then rubbed his special shampoo in and did the same.
But the vet suggested useing a measuring glass and slowly pouring it over him or a spray bottle and gently spraying him :)
 
Ideally you shouldn't bath bunnies full stop, they don't need it and it can be an unnecessary stress that they don't need and as prey animals are very susceptible to.
There are occasions though when it is necessary - special needs buns, buns with mucky bums etc ....the best thing is to do a bottom bath only, if possible, and try to keep the rest of bunny dry.
Never bath a bunny who is sick or compromised with fly strike - it can send them into shock. Instead seek urgent veterinary attention and get your vets advice for the most appropriate way to clean bunny up.
 
Ideally you shouldn't bath bunnies full stop, they don't need it and it can be an unnecessary stress that they don't need and as prey animals are very susceptible to.
There are occasions though when it is necessary - special needs buns, buns with mucky bums etc ....the best thing is to do a bottom bath only, if possible, and try to keep the rest of bunny dry.
Never bath a bunny who is sick or compromised with fly strike - it can send them into shock. Instead seek urgent veterinary attention and get your vets advice for the most appropriate way to clean bunny up.


ditto..! :)
 
Rabbits should keep themselves clean unless there is a physical problem preventing them doing so. Rather than resorting to bathing you need to look at the underlying cause - why is she getting dirty in the first place - and resolve that.

Is she getting sticky poop stuck to her? If so the cause is probably diet related. What food are you feeding and in what quantities?
 
Yes I agree with Tam, she shouldn't be getting dirty in the first place. Getting stuff stuck to her bum is likely to be either diet related, or possibly health related (e.g. dental problems, arthritis, obesity). I would also look at diet as first port of call and a vet check if tweaking the diet doesn't help.
 
When i took Floppy to the vets on monday, he was a bit whiffy apparently ( i have a cold and cant smell it) the vet advised a bath, but i didnt want to stress him any more so i left it.
Now he is in a clean hutch, he can actually clean himself where as before he must of been fighting a loosing battle.
I dont think he really needs a bath now, i see him regulaly grooming himself.
So i think i will leave it and see
Claire
 
I agree with Tamsin too. I was skeptical too about 1 of my buns that had a bit of a mucky bum and how well she was managing to clean herself. I washed her a few times with just her back end in an inch of water (no soap) holding her front paws on my fore arm. This wasn't ideal so took out pellets from her diet completely and hey presto 2 days later she was completely spotless. I would definitely go for a change of diet before regular bathing if I were you. :wave:
 
I had to bath Daisy daily after her eventful spay [she ended up wearing a collar for 12 weeks].I had to clean her bottom and keep her spay wound clean.I tended to just put her hind quarters in the sink,I never wet her head,or poured water over her.
 
I took in a rescue bun (Hank) for Fat Fluffs because he had been taken into my vets to be PTS because he kept getting a mucky bottom :( :censored: I gave him one bum bath (he was in a real state!) and had all the matted hair etc clipped out. Changed him onto hay and grass only and hey presto ... not another mucky bum or bum bath in sight! 5 weeks on he's in great condition and about to meet his lady bun this weekend :)

Try the diet suggestions - you might be surprised. Good luck. x
 
It's not so much poo but she gets blocked inguinal glands so all the goop sticks to her and needs cleaning.

Her diet is fine, she has an eggcup full of pellets, lots of fresh hay everyday and a handful of fresh vegetables everyday so nothing wrong there.

I wasn't suggesting actually putting her in a bath, just how to bathe the area.
 
It's not so much poo but she gets blocked inguinal glands so all the goop sticks to her and needs cleaning.

Her diet is fine, she has an eggcup full of pellets, lots of fresh hay everyday and a handful of fresh vegetables everyday so nothing wrong there.

I wasn't suggesting actually putting her in a bath, just how to bathe the area.

Ah ha! Completely different. A piece of cotton wool dipped some warm water normally does the trick :wave:
 
If it really is her inguinal glands blocking and not poop getting stuck to it regularly then it sounds as if there's something rather wrong there, that really shouldn't be happening so I would suggest that needs investigating :? It's difficult to tell from your original post how often this is needing doing so forgive me if I've got the wrong end of the stick :)

I also wouldn't assume that her diet is fine - rabbits don't read the rule book so although it may be 'technically' perfect, some bunnies just can't tolerate certain pellets or veg even at very low levels and this can have an impact, and this can also change throughout a buns life. I wouldn't rule it out as a cause or contributory factor.

Either way, if it is happening really regularly, I do still think it needs further investigation as a regular sticky bum, whether with poop or blocked inguinal glands, is not normal and needs further investigation in one way or another.

Good luck :)
 
If it really is her inguinal glands blocking and not poop getting stuck to it regularly then it sounds as if there's something rather wrong there, that really shouldn't be happening so I would suggest that needs investigating :? It's difficult to tell from your original post how often this is needing doing so forgive me if I've got the wrong end of the stick :)

I also wouldn't assume that her diet is fine - rabbits don't read the rule book so although it may be 'technically' perfect, some bunnies just can't tolerate certain pellets or veg even at very low levels and this can have an impact, and this can also change throughout a buns life. I wouldn't rule it out as a cause or contributory factor.

Either way, if it is happening really regularly, I do still think it needs further investigation as a regular sticky bum, whether with poop or blocked inguinal glands, is not normal and needs further investigation in one way or another.

Good luck :)

Hi,

I only found out about this last week when i took her to the vets about it (didn't know what it was then - incidentally, neither did the vet - found out from here :lol:). That's the first time i had noticed it and he gave it a quick clean but i want to give it a thorough going over.

I have been looking this problem up but can't find the cause of it anywhere. I know its the scent from the glands getting concentrated and blocking it but i don't know why this happens. If anyone could enlighten me that would be fab :)
 
Hi,

I only found out about this last week when i took her to the vets about it (didn't know what it was then - incidentally, neither did the vet - found out from here :lol:). That's the first time i had noticed it and he gave it a quick clean but i want to give it a thorough going over.

I have been looking this problem up but can't find the cause of it anywhere. I know its the scent from the glands getting concentrated and blocking it but i don't know why this happens. If anyone could enlighten me that would be fab :)

Some buns just do get blocked inguinal glands. One of mine does and I know Jane has a few and a couple of other people - normally there is a reason such as being a dental bun, arthritic and unable to bend fully to clean, or just downright lazy like mine! (well he's a semi dental bun too). I personally find the easiest way to clean the inguinal gland is using a cotton bud dipped in vegetable oil - it breaks down the waxy substance a lot easier than water as wax is oil and oil dissolves oil! However, I only have to do this once every couple of months, to be honest I don't check that often anyway and just do it once it has built up, it's not a major problem. I think that if it is blocking up much faster than this then you may need to investigate further - also consider the conditions mentioned above? e.g. teeth issues, old-age, spinal difficulties etc?

I agree with Santa, some buns just can't tolerate any pellets at all if they consistently get a mucky bum even with dietary changes. Both my rescue buns arrived with me with mucky bums and excess caecotrophs and so we cut pellets out completely for both and have done ever since. They are both immaculate now - but it took between 6wks-3 months for the problem to clear up completely once pellets had been removed. That was 2 yrs ago and no probs since :D
 
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