Looking for a really rabbit savvy vet Staffordshire/East Midlands

Hi all! I may not visit the site or post often but I always know where to come for the best advice!

A bit of background: Biscuit will be 12 at the end of this month. He has always been a lovely, sweet, healthy bunny but has had some health issues this year, tear duct issues related to the roots of his teeth. Flies were having a field day with him this year so we opted to bring him inside from now on for his safety and to better monitor his slowly deteriorating health. He has been deaf since he was about 8 or 9 and had just recently developed cataracts. He has stopped eating hay (and I have tried everything from different hays to hiding his favourite foods amongst it). He went for his RHD2 vaccine with Smokey the other day and had a mini checkup. The vet said that his teeth overall are in poor condition, he has a small spur at the back pointing toward his tongue and that his front top/bottom teeth are misaligned and the bottom teeth slightly too long. We both feel that some of his issues is likely to be directly related to his teeth. Naturally the vet is reluctant to put him under GA due to his lack of good health right now and his age.

Hubby & I have gone round and round in circles while discussing what we should do. Do we just see how he goes and when we think the time is right PTS? Do we let the vet attempt to do a dental under GA knowing that there is a very slim chance we will see him come around or live through the post operative period? Do we see if there is a vet that is experienced in conscious dentals (Biscuit is the most laid back bunny you could hope to meet - has been the same since he was a kit!). I understand that conscious dentals is a minefield similar to politics and religion! We just feel this may be the best option to help Biscuit.

With all this in mind, can anyone recommend an exotics specialist or rabbit savvy vet within 20 miles of WS15? Happy to look further afield if we have to. Rabbits are currently with Pool House Veterinary Hospital. We've had him since he was just a 12 week old ball of fluff and love him so much, we just want to say we've tried everything.

Thank-you!

Cookie&Twix said:

Hi all! I may not visit the site or post often but I always know where to come for the best advice!

A bit of background: Biscuit will be 12 at the end of this month. He has always been a lovely, sweet, healthy bunny but has had some health issues this year, tear duct issues related to the roots of his teeth. Flies were having a field day with him this year so we opted to bring him inside from now on for his safety and to better monitor his slowly deteriorating health. He has been deaf since he was about 8 or 9 and had just recently developed cataracts. He has stopped eating hay (and I have tried everything from different hays to hiding his favourite foods amongst it). He went for his RHD2 vaccine with Smokey the other day and had a mini checkup. The vet said that his teeth overall are in poor condition, he has a small spur at the back pointing toward his tongue and that his front top/bottom teeth are misaligned and the bottom teeth slightly too long. We both feel that some of his issues is likely to be directly related to his teeth. Naturally the vet is reluctant to put him under GA due to his lack of good health right now and his age.

Hubby & I have gone round and round in circles while discussing what we should do. Do we just see how he goes and when we think the time is right PTS? Do we let the vet attempt to do a dental under GA knowing that there is a very slim chance we will see him come around or live through the post operative period? Do we see if there is a vet that is experienced in conscious dentals (Biscuit is the most laid back bunny you could hope to meet - has been the same since he was a kit!). I understand that conscious dentals is a minefield similar to politics and religion! We just feel this may be the best option to help Biscuit.

With all this in mind, can anyone recommend an exotics specialist or rabbit savvy vet within 20 miles of WS15? Happy to look further afield if we have to. Rabbits are currently with Pool House Veterinary Hospital. We've had him since he was just a 12 week old ball of fluff and love him so much, we just want to say we've tried everything.

Thank-you!

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https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ve...s-that-have-been-recommended-by-rabbit-owners

Bumping up in case anyone has any personal recommendations. Sending lots of vibes for Biscuit xx

I’m afraid it isn’t a personal recommendation, but we are in the process of moving to WS15 and so I’ve been researching vets. Hednesford Animal Hospital seem to know what they are doing with bunnies, by all accounts. I *think* their local (rabbit savy) Rspca also use them, but can’t say for certain. I think I would ring and ask for the most rabbit savvy vet they have. That’s what I’ll be doing Good luck x

TheBee said:

I’m afraid it isn’t a personal recommendation, but we are in the process of moving to WS15 and so I’ve been researching vets. Hednesford Animal Hospital seem to know what they are doing with bunnies, by all accounts. I *think* their local (rabbit savy) Rspca also use them, but can’t say for certain. I think I would ring and ask for the most rabbit savvy vet they have. That’s what I’ll be doing Good luck x

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Thank-you! I've weighed Biscuit tonight and it is clear that something HAS to be done. He's been eating greens but not touching his pellets for 2 days. Tonight I opted to mush his food and mixed in a little bit of grated carrot. Thankfully he has eaten a fair bit of that, so will do him some more before I got to bed and ring our vet in the morning to see if they will maybe do a light sedation for a dental rather than GA. If not, I will be ringing around the vets found on the websites Jane linked too (Hednesford Animal Hospital was on one of the sites). Good luck with your move! x

I'm in Stoke so I've researched this quite extensively. Shires Vets have an exotic vet but she isn't in practice much anymore due to doing Zoo work.
Personally I travel to see Molly Varga in St Helens but that's a lot further for you than me! Another option is Sergio at Manor Vets in Edgbaston, further than the 20 miles you wanted but also a great vet with rabbits!
If you find any others, please let me know It's a struggle that's for sure!
Xxx

Nottingham's Castle Vets have a rabbit specialist, it's about 35-40mi though. Long Eaton rings a bell for a decent rabbit vet but that's still 25-30mi.

Chatted at length with our own vet on the phone the other day. While there were some bits I didn't agree with (like the rate at which an 11 year olds teeth grow), we agreed that putting him under a GA is a massive risk and that his chances of surviving the GA is marginally higher than him surviving the post op period - he estimated maybe a 10% chance. He's a little snuffly in the chest apparently, but wasn't helped by is last lot of antibiotics. Basically we have come to the conclusion that to drive a potentially long distance would be pretty stressful to him on top of everything else, so are playing the waiting game. Waiting until we think his quality of life is low enough to warrant helping him over the rainbow bridge. He's had an amazing life considering he was being advertised as snake food as a kit. Thankfully his loose stools have cleared up and his appetite is up again. We're currently trying to help him regain the weight he lost, so he's getting a few rolled oats as a treat and we are offering both normal pellets and mushed pellets with his favourite foods grated or mashed in and I go foraging for a wild salad buffet for him everyday (mix of dandelion, bramble, small hedgerow oil rape seed and nettle). Can't say he isn't spoiled!