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Heavy breathing?

I

igorm

New Kit
Hello again, today I filmed my 13 weeks old rabbit Frosty lying (I guess she was sleeping) and breathing.
Video
She always used to breath like she does in the video (by slightly rocking her head back and forth), but I thought it would stop as she would grow up. I am not sure if that is something to be worried about or not, since she is eating, drinking and pooping absolutelly normally and stays active all the time. The only odd thing I have noticed is that when she is trying to reach for the hay inside the small box (made on purpose for her to play with) she is bulging her eyes a bit and third eyelid (but I assume this is deffence mechanism in order to protect their eyes from hay scratching it).

Thank you in advance for your replies.
 
igorm said:
Hello again, today I filmed my 13 weeks old rabbit Frosty lying (I guess she was sleeping) and breathing.
Video
She always used to breath like she does in the video (by slightly rocking her head back and forth), but I thought it would stop as she would grow up. I am not sure if that is something to be worried about or not, since she is eating, drinking and pooping absolutelly normally and stays active all the time. The only odd thing I have noticed is that when she is trying to reach for the hay inside the small box (made on purpose for her to play with) she is bulging her eyes a bit and third eyelid (but I assume this is deffence mechanism in order to protect their eyes from hay scratching it).

Thank you in advance for your replies.
Click to expand...

Hi :wave:

What a sweet bun!!

Have looked at the vid. It's v. hard to say.... they often look as though they're breathing a bit oddly as they're dropping off to sleep I find.... they can do little knawing and vibrating movements that look like strange breathing patterns. Having said that, if it is increased respitory effort it's essential to get it looking into asap (I left it 4 days and to this day wish I hadnt with mine as he had an infection which turned to pneumonia :( )

My advice would be to whip your little one along to the vet pronto and get them to listen with a stethescope... this can help identify whether your bun has a crackely chest or any irregular heart beats...

It's a good starting place. Good luck xxxx
 
I would definately recommend taking her to the vet for a check up.

Not only does her breathing look strained, she appears to be working hard to pull in air - you can see her whole body working with the effort.

It may just be her, but it could be an early infection, or at worst it could be a heart issue, as my heart bun works equally hard to breathe.

Best to get peace of mind
 
Definitely abnormal and she needs prompt Veterinary attention.

Given that she has always had the issue and also the fact that she is so young it may be that she has a congenital heart problem.

If it was infection I think she would be a lot more unwell within herself by now if she has had the symptoms for several weeks.
 
Thank you very much for the promt replyes, will head to my vet right now and show him the video (in order not to stress Frosty extra time) and see what he's got to say.
 
Didn’t manage to get to the vet on time, but made some observations instead. She doesn't breathe like that when she is active/awake/eating/ just sitting next to me. She seems to breathe like that only when she is falling asleep/sleeping, why is that? And you can see in the video that she is actually sleeping when I am filming her. Or is it only because I can notice that when she is sitting still?
 
Last edited:
igorm said:
Didn’t manage to get to the vet on time, but made some observations instead. She doesn't breathe like that when she is active/awake/eating/ just sitting next to me. She seems to breathe like that only when she is falling asleep/sleeping, why is that? And you can see in the video that she is actually sleeping when I am filming her. Or is it only because I can notice that when she is sitting still?
Click to expand...

Tricky... they do tend to crunch and grind and shudder and do all manners of weird stuff when they're FALLING asleep. But once they're asleep, they should be really still, not panting. I think it's likely there is increased respiratory effort there but you only notice it when your buns is still.

Mine has pneumonia at the moment and he struggles to breath, but I don't notice it when he's hopping around really, just when he's still. Definately a trip to the vet is needed!
 
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