pets at home - another of their stock has died!

Hi all,

I'm trying to find out how common the death of a newly beloved pet from pets at home dies
at a young age. My rabbit, 16 wks old and bought at pets at home died last night suddenly with suspected respiratory problems. My other rabbit bought from pets at home has signs of it and is on antibiotics. The rabbit that died was quite ill from the start with one little thing or another has anyone else had a pet died that they bought at pets at home? And what do u think of them selling animals?

There's a possibility tha she was a sick rabbit from tha start.

Also the two rabbits I bought were meant to be both girls but they turned out to be a boy and a girl!

I look forward to hearing ur comments and experiences. X :?

P@H buy from bulk breeders and as such their stock will be weak, with any pet shop its a lottery buying an animal with them because they have little or no knowledge of their history, and the care they need.

This is precisely the reason that when I was looking to get another rabbit recently that I went to a rescue. The lady there (Alice at Windwhistle Warren rescue) knew every single one of the rabbits' history, past health and temperment.

Sorry you had to go through this a lot of us unfortunately have been though the same on here which is why so many of us go to rescues now. It's a horrible thing to go through, and I feel for you.

Also, you may want to do a search through old threads, or put up a new one if you need help with your ill bunny. Respiritory infections (particularly snuffles) can be hard to treat, you'll find a lot of support on here. Many of us (including myself) have a snuffles bun. Best wishes to you both.

I have a snuffles bun, but he was got from percy throwers. If anybody has any useful advice or useful information regarding to snuffles I would very appreciate it, he is going through a tough patch at the moment

lilgems91 said:

I have a snuffles bun, but he was got from percy throwers. If anybody has any useful advice or useful information regarding to snuffles I would very appreciate it, he is going through a tough patch at the moment

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If you make another thread you'll get a lot more help/replies let me know when you do so I dont miss it (PM me or something) x

Regarding the P@H bunnies - I went to P@H and got a companion for my bunny Sherlock - she's called Adelle. Unfortunately, when I got her she had a very very bad stomach parasite infection - which because she'd had it so long caused odd days of diaherrea and other days looking fine. After three weeks of odd days of being ill, and four vets visits (where I was considered to be a bit overly protective), Sherlock became seriously ill, after 3 days in the vets under intensive care and needing to have his gut restarted 5 times, he passed away in a seizure.

With all the guilt I've felt about losing Sherlock, and me being the cause as I brought Adelle into our family - I cannot hold it against her as it's not her fault. And Sherlock absolutely adored her, and I think he'd have chosen a happy lively life but short (9 months) with Adelle than a longer period without. Even when he was really ill he was absolutely delighted to be able to sit in intensive care at the vets with me and Adelle with him for a few hours. If he never blamed her or me, then I just have to remember to do the same.

As I was told she was fine (potentially allergic to straw, just nervous from being in a new home) I had no idea that something so serious could be the cause. I did everything I could, but it wasn't enough to keep Sherlock safe. All because of Pets At Home and who they purchase stock from.

On a more positive note, in memory of Sherlock I wanted to give a rescue rabbit a home and be Adelle's companion - we have now adopted the very lovely Byron from The Rabbit Crossing and they are very happy together. I've also adopted a gorgeous trio - who kept pulling at my heart strings as they'd been in rescue for 2 years. All in memory of the lovely Sherlock - who is missed every single day.

On another note, going to a rescue is sometimes no better. Rescues rabbits can be originally pet shop bunnies, or bred by a backyard breeder, so they can also have medical conditions.

I got my rabbits from a rescue, and Molly has had no end of trouble with sore hocks, which is probably partly genetic, due to her breeding. We have no idea where she was bred, but most likely it was a backyard breeder with no idea about rexes.

If you want a healthy rabbit, best bet is a responsible breeder. They know the full medical history of the parentage of the rabbit, and the temperament too.

LionheadLuver said:

On another note, going to a rescue is sometimes no better. Rescues rabbits can be originally pet shop bunnies, or bred by a backyard breeder, so they can also have medical conditions.

I got my rabbits from a rescue, and Molly has had no end of trouble with sore hocks, which is probably partly genetic, due to her breeding. We have no idea where she was bred, but most likely it was a backyard breeder with no idea about rexes.

If you want a healthy rabbit, best bet is a responsible breeder. They know the full medical history of the parentage of the rabbit, and the temperament too.

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If you get a baby from a rescue that was not born there, yes, but rescues thoroughly health check their bunnies, and also neuter, when many conditions can be picked up.

For instance I got my Annabelle from a rescue because I needed a healthy rabbit with a well aligned jaw and good teeth, she was 4 months old and the rescue could tell me all this and all about her character, and also I could see her healthy mother and was told how her father died (complications from bad snuffles).

It also allowed me to get Barney a partner without infecting another bunny with snuffles, and without taking on another snuffles bunny, which I dont have the money to do. Because I spoke to the rescue about it and she had a few who had been exposed to it (like Annabelle) without becoming ill.

Its a lot more complex with breeders as you can never be sure they really are good ones, and you also will not know what conditions you may find once you neuter them or they grow older. Its a lot more risky with their personality, too. The rexes that I rescued were originally from a supposedly 'good' breeder, although I have my doubts, and one had balding patches on her feet, despite being kept only on deep sawdust with no rough surfaces.

LionheadLuver said:

On another note, going to a rescue is sometimes no better. Rescues rabbits can be originally pet shop bunnies, or bred by a backyard breeder, so they can also have medical conditions.

I got my rabbits from a rescue, and Molly has had no end of trouble with sore hocks, which is probably partly genetic, due to her breeding. We have no idea where she was bred, but most likely it was a backyard breeder with no idea about rexes.

If you want a healthy rabbit, best bet is a responsible breeder. They know the full medical history of the parentage of the rabbit, and the temperament too.

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So sorry but I have to totally disagree with this. Responsible breeding isn't THAT responsible in a time when 35,000 bunnies are in rescue. Also, there are plenty of bunnies in rescues with zero health problems. Sore hocks can develop for a variety of reasons.

I completely agree with nessar and Zahirre. I think it's best to find a really good rescue that investigates the health of their animals really seriously.

Zahirre said:

So sorry but I have to totally disagree with this. Responsible breeding isn't THAT responsible in a time when 35,000 bunnies are in rescue. Also, there are plenty of bunnies in rescues with zero health problems. Sore hocks can develop for a variety of reasons.

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that's why I said SOMETIMES rescues are no better. there's no getting away from the fact that rescue rabbits can be originally pet shop rabbits or from backyard breeders.

I completely disagree that there are not responsible breeders. of course there are, there are responsible breeders, as well as irresponsible breeders.

Sorry to here about your loss Unfortunately bulk breeding means P@H have no idea on the bloodlines and health conditions of their 'stock'. I got a bun from there a few years ago, and after a few months it became apparent that his teeth didn't line up (due to genetics) They gradually got so bad they had to be removed! Luckily, all is well now and he's doing great, but of course many rabbits from P@H aren't so lucky and can't be made better

If you're going to look for another rabbit in the future, as other have suggested, why not go to a rescue? I got my female bun from a rescue where the woman who ran it explained her history and any health issues. At least you know what you're getting from a rescue and it's less of a lottery.

Hopefully if everyone did that there'd be no need for pet shops...


ETA: Also, rescues can give advice on health issues. Some of the people in pet shops I've been in don't really seem to know what they're doing at all!

Sherlock said:

On a more positive note, in memory of Sherlock I wanted to give a rescue rabbit a home and be Adelle's companion - we have now adopted the very lovely Byron from The Rabbit Crossing and they are very happy together. I've also adopted a gorgeous trio - who kept pulling at my heart strings as they'd been in rescue for 2 years. All in memory of the lovely Sherlock - who is missed every single day.

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You have Byron? He is so beautiful

Please post lots of pics

Back to topic, I've only ever bought rats from P@H, and they're a mixed bunch healthwise. One has has respiratory issues (which are common in rats) since I got him, but he's still going now, at 2 and a half, which is a good age for any rat, nevermind one with respiratory issues.

I don't think I've ever had a premature death or dreadful illness from a pet shop animal, and I know that I'm pretty lucky to be able to say that. Now that I know what I know about pet shops though, I won't even shop in them for supplies.

I am so sorry for your loss.

I have never bought a rabbit from a pet shop all mine have always come from a rescue or i have rescued them myself!
However Penny, one of my rabbits, I am 98% sure that she was origionally from pets at home before she came into the rescue. I think this becasue she is the exact double of alot of bunnies in my local pets at home. She is the same breed, size and colouring as the pets at home bunnies near me.
She is 5 years old now and has no health problems ! She has never had to go to the vet execpt for vaccinations (touch wood)

My baby guinea Gladys is currently suffering from what they thought was a middle ear infection. She's only 10weeks old. Tests have shown that she has slight spurs on the back of her teeth as well.

She's now being referred to a specialist to get to the bottom of the problem.

She only came home with us just over two weeks ago and has already had three vets trips

Was this P@H in Cardiff??

All my bunnies (8 of them!) are rescue buns, and yes, sometimes you can get one with problems. However, if theyve had such a bad start in life, I dont mind putting up with fur mites, ear infections, eye infections and indeed the snuffles, as I know that I will deal with whatever comes along.
I was at my local P@H store a couple of weeks ago, and there were 4 baby bunnies up for sale. I noticed right away that one had "snuffles" and reported it to staff who said it was nothing. I pointed out that it was not "nothing" and in fact was highly contagious and chances were the other buns may have already picked it up, so none of them would be able to be sold.
I left it at that, but if they are going to sell animals, they should employ someone with the knowledge to pass on to prospective buyers!

my deep down honest opinion is that breeding for commerical purposes should not be allowed when there are so many many lovely bunnies looking for homes

in terms of experience though, my Barney came from PAH just coming up to a year ago now (not my choice to buy from there i will add!) and he has awfu dental problems and needs front teeth trimming at least monthly, and other possibly associated vets bills are at around £1000 now. Luckily he is a spoilt bunny but i feel for his siblings and other bunnies who might not have owners to are willing to spend this much money.

having said this, my Flopsy was also bought at the same time and is in perfect health

P@H

I bought Bill from P@H, or should I say I adopted him from their adoption corner. He had a respitory problem which at last seems to be settling down. There was a vet on site at the shop but when I asked if he had been checked over they told me they don`t bother with the ones that come in to be rehomed. He had also been put in with another entire male and as a result had a small piece of ear missing. As he had been turned down by 3 other people that had viewed him I couldn`t resist. I took him to my vets to be checked over as soon as I could. I used to get my buns from a breeder but thought I would try and rescue instead. There were no single males looking for homes in my local rescues at the time I was looking for a companion for Ruby. That said I am so pleased I have him and they love eachother so much