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Help with cleaning scent glands?

B

bayliss95

New Kit
Hi there, so my new girl rabbit is a lot bigger than my boy Sergio and when she got dropped off the first time I met her straight away I noticed a BO kind of smell. I thought it might just be the smell of her old owners or different cage or something.
Now I've noticed it is on her every now and then, it's like a BO, oniony type smell except not as harsh, I googled it and I saw her scent glands may need cleaning, I got my boyfriend to hold her while I looked for the ones by her genitals and I couldn't see them at all, I really need to clean them, how do I do this?
 
they are either side of their genital, gently move the fur and you should then see if they are filled with gunk and need cleaning or not ,if they do, I use little bit of warm water (tepid) and cotton bud and clean out with that you could also use cotton wool ball as they are sensitive down there
 
bayliss95 said:
Hi there, so my new girl rabbit is a lot bigger than my boy Sergio and when she got dropped off the first time I met her straight away I noticed a BO kind of smell. I thought it might just be the smell of her old owners or different cage or something.
Now I've noticed it is on her every now and then, it's like a BO, oniony type smell except not as harsh, I googled it and I saw her scent glands may need cleaning, I got my boyfriend to hold her while I looked for the ones by her genitals and I couldn't see them at all, I really need to clean them, how do I do this?
Click to expand...

Hold rabbit firmly, and dip a cotton bud in warm water ...... clean out scent gland and *hold nose* :lol:
 
Is she spayed ? Entire Does can pass urine that smells more than that of a spayed Doe, so it may not be her scent glands at all.

The scent glands are located on either side of the genitals (the arrows marked 'A' )





You can clean them using cotton buds. If you dip the tip of the bud into a bit of olive oil this will soften the waxy secretion making it easier to remove. You do need to be very careful not to tear the delicate skin. Usually a Rabbit will keep their scent glands clean themselves. It is generally only necessary to clean them yourself if the Rabbit is unable to do so eg due to some sort of mobility problem. Rabbits with Dental problems may also find self grooming to be more of a challenge.
 
Hi there, just tried this, my boyfriend held her, and managed to move her fur to see it, she didnt like it at all and wouldnt let me do it! any advice, this was before I even starting with the cotton bud! Thanks for all your replies
 
Hi take 2, I managed to get her still and found the glands, they looked perfectly clean no black gunk at all! and also the smell wasn't there as much, is it possible she just cleaned them?
 
bayliss95 said:
Hi take 2, I managed to get her still and found the glands, they looked perfectly clean no black gunk at all! and also the smell wasn't there as much, is it possible she just cleaned them?
Click to expand...

Gosh, all that trouble and they are clean :D Certainly it's not always necessary. Worth checking every now and again, but not often!
 
bayliss95 said:
Hi take 2, I managed to get her still and found the glands, they looked perfectly clean no black gunk at all! and also the smell wasn't there as much, is it possible she just cleaned them?
Click to expand...

Sometimes the bunnies cecal pellets have an onion smell.
I have rarely had to clean the scent glands of my bunnies and that was with disabled bunnies and an overweight bunny.

When I did have to clean the glands, I would soak their entire butt in slightly warm water for several minutes before trying to remove any gunk.
 
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