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Advice on Moving to Scotland- including Ferry Travel with a bunny!

Binky Bunny

Young Bun
Hi,

Me and the OH are contemplating a move over to Scotland and would love some advice from the lovely peeps on here :D

We live on the little Island of Jersey and following several phone calls it looks like the only way off the island with a bunny is by ferry- it's a 3 1/2 hours on a fast ferry- so question number 1, does anyone have experience of ferry travel with a rabbit? Do you think she will cope with such a long ferry ride- any advice on how to prepare her for it?

Secondly- can anyone recommend any rabbit savvy vets and bunny sitters in the Stirling or Kinross areas? (the 2 places we're looking at the moment) Lucky has seizures and we're not entirely sure of the cause so a rabbit savvy vet is a big priority on our list!

Any other advice and travelling a long distance with a bunny will also be kindly accepted :)

Thanks
 
You have one of the rabbit specialists in Falkirk, which is near stirling & kinross. Alistair Lawrie. He would be 30mins drive from Stirling, 45mins drive from Kinross.

I have seen him before with my bunny Kermit.

If you move to Kinross you will be right beside T in the Park festival :)
 
Hi,

Me and the OH are contemplating a move over to Scotland and would love some advice from the lovely peeps on here :D

We live on the little Island of Jersey and following several phone calls it looks like the only way off the island with a bunny is by ferry- it's a 3 1/2 hours on a fast ferry- so question number 1, does anyone have experience of ferry travel with a rabbit? Do you think she will cope with such a long ferry ride- any advice on how to prepare her for it?

Secondly- can anyone recommend any rabbit savvy vets and bunny sitters in the Stirling or Kinross areas? (the 2 places we're looking at the moment) Lucky has seizures and we're not entirely sure of the cause so a rabbit savvy vet is a big priority on our list!

Any other advice and travelling a long distance with a bunny will also be kindly accepted :)

Thanks

Awww it's not ideal but, as a one off I'm sure if you get a good size carrier or a cage (one of those that they sell for rabbits that are way too small to live in really) for travel might be OK, have a blanket or towel over one side and sit with bunny in the car to keep her company, lots of hay, yummy treats like dandelion and plantain and some wet veggies/herbs to hand feed I'm sure she'll survive, really your vet would be a good one to ask with regards her health condition.:)
 
I took a rabbit from Yorkshire to Ireland for a week. He needed constant care but didn't know exactly what was wrong after a few weeks of treatment so had to take him with us or PTS as there was no-one else to care for him. He was also OK with local car trips. I probably wouldn't choose to do it with a stressy bun.

He was in a standard Pet Voyager 200 cat carrier (tiny bun) which was packed with a couple of inches of hay on the floor and banked up the sides to stop him rolling around; clip on plastic food bowl and water bottle. It was a 5 hour drive with a couple of stops to syringe feed, clean up, stretch legs, etc. Water bottles tend to drip when driving so we only used it when we stopped.

On the ferry he had to stay in the van. We covered the carrier with a light fleece and left the water bottle on. Can't remember if we left the window open, but it was a fairly open van so less chance of getting too warm in the hold. I was only really worried about him getting too warm.

He was fine all the way there and back.
 
We've taken Peanut on a 3 1/2 hour car journey before (a one off) and she coped really well, although depends on the bun really, Peanut is also deaf so without sound it probably wasn't as scary for her.

I'd make sure they have enough room to be able to lie down and stretch out, use vet bed or similar for absorbing wee. Most buns will not eat or drink in a moving car so we made sure that we stopped every hour to make sure that she did. I didn't attach the water bottle to the carrier, I had it with me as this would've leaked or spilt everywhere, so when we stopped I held the water bottle up to her so she could drink and I made sure that she nibbled on hay, it's really important that they eat and drink during the journey so we didn't set off again until I was happy that she had. We also used a blanket to cover her carrier as we were travelling at night and the flashes of street lights going past on the motorway would have been scary for her.

Even though the car won't be moving while it's on the ferry I would still suggest doing this anyway, keep them company, talk to them and make sure they eat and drink. Hope this advice is helpful. :D

FYI How are you planning on getting to Scotland after that, would you be driving?
 
You have one of the rabbit specialists in Falkirk, which is near stirling & kinross. Alistair Lawrie. He would be 30mins drive from Stirling, 45mins drive from Kinross.

I have seen him before with my bunny Kermit.

If you move to Kinross you will be right beside T in the Park festival :)

I use alister myself for all my rabbits and would recommend him and a few other in the practice.. They are a few vets around stirling area I wouldn't go near also so please be carefull. I stay in stirlingshire by the way
 
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Thanks!

Thank you everyone- that's great about the vet- one of my main concerns can be ticked off the ever expanding list! It's amazing how many more bunny concerns there are than human ones!!!

I have spoken to her current vet and they said she should be fine to travel, we'll be taking her in for a check up once we have a definite date and discussing details now we know it's going to be ferry not air travel.

colyflower- we'll be driving up from Weymouth/ Poole, so a long journey but I have family in Oxfordshire and Yorkshire so will be breaking the journey up and letting her overnight not on the move and hopefully get her to eat. She does have eating issues normally related to her seizures so I'm having to cross fingers that she'll be ok.

Unfortunately we have to leave her in the car on the ferry which I'm v nervous about, but unless it's a really bad crossing we'll be allowed to go down and check on her.

Kermit- I'd never thought about T in the Park- that's fab, yet another 'Pro' to add to the list for the move :D

Collielover- Hi :wave: Is Stirlingshire a good place to live in your opinion? Obviously visiting is never the same as living somewhere!
 
I would be tempted to go for a smaller carrier so that she feels more secure. Just enough room to lie down. Also buy a door mat with a rubber bottom and put it on the bottom of the carrier. In mine the mat folds up at the sides a little too, giving a bit more security. But most importantly it will provide a secure grip for her and stop her sliding about. And if she pees it will soak most of it up. I use one all the time for my buns.
 
Thank you everyone- that's great about the vet- one of my main concerns can be ticked off the ever expanding list! It's amazing how many more bunny concerns there are than human ones!!!

I have spoken to her current vet and they said she should be fine to travel, we'll be taking her in for a check up once we have a definite date and discussing details now we know it's going to be ferry not air travel.

colyflower- we'll be driving up from Weymouth/ Poole, so a long journey but I have family in Oxfordshire and Yorkshire so will be breaking the journey up and letting her overnight not on the move and hopefully get her to eat. She does have eating issues normally related to her seizures so I'm having to cross fingers that she'll be ok.

Unfortunately we have to leave her in the car on the ferry which I'm v nervous about, but unless it's a really bad crossing we'll be allowed to go down and check on her.

Kermit- I'd never thought about T in the Park- that's fab, yet another 'Pro' to add to the list for the move :D

Collielover- Hi :wave: Is Stirlingshire a good place to live in your opinion? Obviously visiting is never the same as living somewhere!


I wouldn't move from this area. It has its good points and bad points to tell the truth the scenery around here is brill but the weather could be better. Where about you thinking of as there are some places I would advice you against. If you need any help over this end with the move give me a shout.
 
Honestly, I doubt she would even notice. I lived on an island before living here, and every pet (a lot!) travelled over on the ferry to get to me. And then they all came back to the mainland when we moved. The bunny I had at the time stayed in her hutch in the moving van (driven by ourself, not actual movers), and that was it. No special treatment. The hutch was full of hay and her own smells, so she felt happy. When she got to our new house (8 hours later), there was no difference in her. She was 6 at the time, so I was worried it would stress her, but not a difference.
 
I took Basil (okay he was a guinea) to the isle of man on 'holiday' and it was a 3 hour ferry crossing and 5 hour drive to the port, he was fine, I agree with having a smaller carrier than is normally recommended, so they can feel safe and not 'loose' and un supported! I used the seat belt and belted him to the seat so the carrier didn't roll about! x

I will be taking Matilda the rabbit, with us this time, as sadly basil is on the rainbow bridge!
 
Hope the move goes well when the time comes. I am sure she will cope ok as long as she feels secure.
Another vet you could consider is Simon Girling. His practice is in Perth, about 20 mins from Kinross. He is supposed to be very bunny savvy, I have his book on rabbit medicine and surgery for vet nurses and it is pretty good :) He has also been recommended to me by another exotics vet.
 
I wouldn't move from this area. It has its good points and bad points to tell the truth the scenery around here is brill but the weather could be better. Where about you thinking of as there are some places I would advice you against. If you need any help over this end with the move give me a shout.

Nearer the move I will def be in touch- thinking about just outside Stirling- seen some lovely places to rent at the foot of the Ochil Hills. All depends on jobs of course, we're happy to commute so will be looking in quite a wide area including Glasgow and Edinburgh.

If we get work in Edinburgh then we'll probably look at Kinross as well. Really up in the air at the moment, just trying to get everything else in place first!!!


Thank you everyone else for your comments. Lucky has a travel box that we take her to the vets in. Think we might use that as she can lay down in it but it's not too big she'll roll around too much. We'll be doing a stop in Henley on Thames then one in Leeds as well as comfort breaks- Bunny & human ;) along the way.

I have made noted of the vets names- I've seen Alister Lawrie is connected to the Small Animal Hospital in Glasgow too, we might even be able to get Lucky's seizures diagnosed with their facilities...if we can raise the funds :shock:


Does anyone know if C.A.R.R.O.T or the Fife Rabbit rescue are still taking in boarders? I saw on an old post that they do for a donation- the thread was a few years old and it doesn't say anything on the website about boarding?
 
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Nearer the move I will def be in touch- thinking about just outside Stirling- seen some lovely places to rent at the foot of the Ochil Hills. All depends on jobs of course, we're happy to commute so will be looking in quite a wide area including Glasgow and Edinburgh.

If we get work in Edinburgh then we'll probably look at Kinross as well. Really up in the air at the moment, just trying to get everything else in place first!!!


Thank you everyone else for your comments. Lucky has a travel box that we take her to the vets in. Think we might use that as she can lay down in it but it's not too big she'll roll around too much. We'll be doing a stop in Henley on Thames then one in Leeds as well as comfort breaks- Bunny & human ;) along the way.

I have made noted of the vets names- I've seen Alister Lawrie is connected to the Small Animal Hospital in Glasgow too, we might even be able to get Lucky's seizures diagnosed with their facilities...if we can raise the funds :shock:


Does anyone know if C.A.R.R.O.T or the Fife Rabbit rescue are still taking in boarders? I saw on an old post that they do for a donation- the thread was a few years old and it doesn't say anything on the website about boarding?

Not sure on that one but they are a few other including myself who does do boarding for folk on here
 
Not sure on that one but they are a few other including myself who does do boarding for folk on here

That sounds good... I hate leaving her when we go away so it would be great to find some who's rabbit savvy to leave her with :D

As soon as we get settled (& our lease allows!) I'd also be happy to take in holiday boarders!
 
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