Adopted new bunny - found a whole heap of problems

Me and my husband foster small animals for a charity but we recently decided to get a rabbit of our own. I didn't want to buy from a shop or breeder so I kept my eye out for the perfect little bun in the classifieds. I found what I was looking for a few days ago, a pretty netherland dwarf, already used to living indoors.
We just got 'Honey' home and I've noticed some worrying things about her general health and wellbeing. It being a Sunday I decided to turn to the forum for someone to talk to before I go crazy.
I was petting her when I noticed she was drooling, next I notice her eyes seem bulgy, her claws are too long and to top it all off, I find bugs all over her back.
Her owner never implied there were any health problems, but she did say that the bunny hadn't been vaccinated or spayed because she's always lived indoors (great excuse!)
We've put her into her hutch and given her something to eat. She seems OK, if placid.
How worried should I be?
I've never heard of a bunny drooling before and it seems serious to me. Are the bugs and the drooling related?

Either way, she's getting a total MOT at the vets ASAP.

As always, any help or advice is welcomed!

Absolutely everything points strongly to Dental Disease. The drooling, the poor coat/mites, the bulging eyes. Also, Nethies are a breed known to be more prone to Dental Disease
You need to get her to a Vet ASAP and if my suspicions are correct be prepared for the possibility of this being a lifelong problem needing ongoing Veterinary treatment.

Maybe this is why she was rehomed ??

Hi, thanks for your reply.
OK, that sounds likely. I'm prepared to do whatever it takes. Part of me wanted to hand her straight back but there's no way she'd get the care she needs in her old home. Poor thing.
I'd like to read up on dental disease, do you know of any threads or websites?

The drooling could be related to teeth problems. I really haven't heard of bugs on an indoor rabbit before. Are they flees?

bunnytoes said:

The drooling could be related to teeth problems. I really haven't heard of bugs on an indoor rabbit before. Are they flees?

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I'm not sure to be honest! I see lots of black specks and pretty big bugs crawling around.

I agree with Jane totally.

The bugs might be fleas or lice or mites. You will need to get the vet to check (which obviously you said you are doing anyway) to ensure that she gets the right treatment for her, to solve the problem.

Poor bunny. Thank goodness she landed on her feet with you, but sadly another instance where it can go 'pear shaped' when taking on an unknown from an unknown. This little girl got lucky though

Do you have a bunny savvy vet, if not I would recommend posting on here to see if there is one in your area. If you do I would take Honey for a full check up tomorrow.

As others have said the drooling could very possibly be dental related. I have a dental bunny and it is controlled by having regular dentals and I tend to see the signs before anything serious.

Signs of a bunny needing a dental can range from drooling, not eating, dropping food, not eating "harder" food e.g. pellets/hay, eating slower and looking in pain e.g. hunched up, grinding teeth.

Well done on rescuing her, she sounds like she is going to be well looked after.

Thanks everyone
Luckily we just moved 5 minutes away from a really good vet.
I'll let you know what they say.

I do agree with the others, it does sound as if it could be dental related - sadly it's very common for 'freead' bunnies to have lots of problems, as they are such a neglected pet...and mainly through sheer ignorance than deliberate neglect. Is she eating/drinking/pooping ok? It is vital that bunnies constantly munch, as their whole system works through grazing rather than specific meals, so if she isn't eating/pooing, this can get very serious very quickly.

I too would suggest getting her booked in to see a vet tomorrow. They should be able to give her a good look over and work out what needs doing, and will give you the right product for the bugs. Please don't be tempted to use any dog/cat type flea sprays on her, as some of them are toxic to rabbits and could kill her, make sure you only use whatever safe product the vet gives you.

Good luck with this little one

DeevDee said:

Hi, thanks for your reply.
OK, that sounds likely. I'm prepared to do whatever it takes. Part of me wanted to hand her straight back but there's no way she'd get the care she needs in her old home. Poor thing.
I'd like to read up on dental disease, do you know of any threads or websites?

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http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Differential/Rabbit_dentistry.pdf

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&...Cz4FGn&sig=AHIEtbQsYWAT3pny88xuy9xmh_1tVO1AHw

http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Miscellaneous/AcquiredMolarAbnRabbits.htm

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Dental_diseases_main.htm

http://www.bunnyhugga.com/dental-disease.html

Dribbling usually is dental related.
You want the vets to check her teeth for spurs or spikes. If they can't find any it's sometimes a good idea for the rabbit to go under general anaesthetic so they can have a proper look.

How is her eating. What food does she have at the moment and does it look like she's able to eat hay?

not going to repeat what has already been said just hope your buns ok:thumb:

Update

New bun has been to the vet and I've been given flea treatment. Vet said it was the worst case of fleas he's ever seen on a rabbit.
Bun has been given her medicine. Now I wonder how long it will take to kick in? I've no idea when to start cleaning her cage so that the eggs are removed from her surroundings. Tricky one.
When the fleas are gone, she'll be dirty and still full of flea poo. Is it worth giving her a wash?

She's booked in tomorrow for anaesthetic and a proper look at her teeth. Let's hope that the problem can be fixed and that she doesn't have long term dental problems. I was reading yesterday that muesli can cause dental disease in rabbits, and that is what she was fed previously.
Article here - http://www.pdsa.org.uk/pet-health-advice/rabbits/diet

Always learning!
So happy bun is going to be better soon.

P.S I am 100% happy with my decision to adopt her after seeing her in an ad. I knew what rabbit I wanted and looked until I found her. Of course, you don't expect problems but now I know she's in the right environment, I don't mind the expense and vets visits at all
Saying that, I am an experienced pet carer! I would recommend buying a rabbit from a animal charity, where the animal has been fully checked and hopefully vaccinated for first timers.

Getting Better

Bunny is on the mend and starting to eat like crazy!
The vet found spurs on her left molars which were removed. We left her to recover for a couple of days but we've found she's still not very good at cleaning herself and is still covered in flea poo and has encrusted poo on her backside (which I trimmed off last night.)
I'm not sure if this is a problem with the breed as she's got the tiniest head and it doesn't look like she could reach around very far.
I'm going to give her a bath soon and hopefully get rid of the flea poo and encourage some self cleaning.

I emailed bunny's old owner and she was distraught and offered to help pay for treatment but I couldn't possibly take money from her. The bunny had been checked by the vet but hadn't noticed the drooling or crusty bum. However, the bunny was treated for fleas but was obviously re-infected by the cat.

Just goes to show that owners should keep an eye out at all times for changes in bunny behaviour and general wellbeing.

Glad she is doing better, she is very lucky to have you looking after her.
Hay eating is one of the most important things for helping with tooth wear and also maintaining healthy gut function. About 80-90% of their diet should be fresh hay. You may also want to gradually change her over from muesli mix to a good pellet, this needs to be done very gradually when she is well though so as not to upset her tummy.
You may want to think about rabbit insurance but these do not cover dentals, as far as I am aware.
With keeping herself clean, once she is spayed and vaccinated you may want to think about adopting a friend from a rescue for her. Many rescues also offer a bonding service if you adopt from them because this can be tricky. A friend can help groom her, although wouldnt do around her bum area (sorry no nice way of saying that ). I hope the crustiness on her bum soon heals. I dont know if a fine tooth comb would help get rid of the remains of the fleas? Really glad she is doing better - does she have a name at all?

Sounds as if she was very lucky you found her.

Hope she's doing better now :wave:

Poor poor bunny, glad to hear she is on the road to a Happy ever After!

helgalush said:

Glad she is doing better, she is very lucky to have you looking after her.
Hay eating is one of the most important things for helping with tooth wear and also maintaining healthy gut function. About 80-90% of their diet should be fresh hay. You may also want to gradually change her over from muesli mix to a good pellet, this needs to be done very gradually when she is well though so as not to upset her tummy.
You may want to think about rabbit insurance but these do not cover dentals, as far as I am aware.
With keeping herself clean, once she is spayed and vaccinated you may want to think about adopting a friend from a rescue for her. Many rescues also offer a bonding service if you adopt from them because this can be tricky. A friend can help groom her, although wouldnt do around her bum area (sorry no nice way of saying that ). I hope the crustiness on her bum soon heals. I dont know if a fine tooth comb would help get rid of the remains of the fleas? Really glad she is doing better - does she have a name at all?

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I'm guessing she didn't get a lot of hay in her old house. She doesn't seem to know what to do with it but we are persisting! (She has a very cute habit of throwing her fresh hay over her head!)
She's taken to the new nuggets very well so no problems there.
I got insurance last week with Petplan and yes, it doesn't cover dental but who knows what else could come up.

I would like to get her a husbun once she's been spayed. Her sister died shortly before we got her so I'm sure she misses company.

The flea bits are stuck fast even after a few goes with the comb. It's pretty grim.

Bunny's name is Minnie! Little video of when she met our foster rabbit - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dad_vmyYTAU&feature=share

Aww bless her, she really is Minnie!

I agree with the comments on tweaking her diet to solve the mucky bum problem. Hopefully she will learnt to love hay as time goes on

Instead of fully bathing her, which is very stressful for rabbits and can cause problems in itself due to the nature of how the fur dries, you could try washing her with a flannel and some warm water (with a drop of animal safe shampoo or baby shampoo in if you like) Sit her on a warm towel and slowly wash her with the damp (not soaking wet) flannel, working out the flea poo with your fingers if needed. Either way you will need to dry her very well afterwards :wave:

Poor bun Sounds like she is very lucky to have come to you. Who knows how long she was in pain with her teeth before she came to you It is unfortunate that she has teeth problems but hopefully it is simply diet related and won't be a problem. Although like people have said, Nethies do tend to have teeth problems due to their "squishy" face and it's sometimes just something they have to live with.
Have to tried different types of hay to get her interested? You can get hay with lovely bits of marigold or herbage in which can encourage a bunny who isn't used to eating hay to start foraging and realise it's tasty!

Best of luck that her mucky bum clears up but I'm sure it will now she has the proper care, diet and of course lots of love! :thumb: