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My fault - a warning.

I am pleased that you are able to find some degree of solstice from the forum. It is many things to different people and I am sure we have all found support from each other when we have needed that support.
Tim will live forever with you and your family - it is his way of living on within you as all our pets do. And you will find yourself asking many questions as time goes on. This forum is here should you wish to share those questions.
As for Tommy - my own view is that you allow yourself and also Tommy, a little bit of time to grieve and to allow yourself the time to feel ready to move on. But, it's important to keep a closer eye on Tommy not just through his current unwell state, but he too, will grieve and so he will feel unsettled and sad. So it's important to monitor his behaviour.
But in time, and because rabbits are sociable animals, then it would benefit Tommy to have a companion. A female (spayed) would be better and probably one from around a similar age and if possible from a rescue centre.
Moving forward is always difficult for all of us, and it needs to be at your pace, not others. So please feel free to use the forum and share if you feel you wish to.
We are all here to help each other as much as we can. x
Hello Craig, many thanks for this and its very kind of you. It means a lot to me, so thank you.
 
Sorry to hear about little Tim. I know how hard it is to lose them, I've lost one of mine this week and it's terrible. I have also planted a rosebush in memory of mine, it is a lovely way to remember them. I hope Tommy gets better soon x
Much love to you and my condolences. The rosebushes will be a lovely idea. xx
 
Hi there and thanks again for your supportive and informative message. I have had a good read of the links that you sent me and I think that Tommy is on the mend. His apetite is still not quite what it was but his poos are looking much healthier and he is eating regularly now.

I still have him indoors but he is out in the run during the day and tucking into the grass quite well. I'm not letting him back into the garden until I can totally rule out and poisonous vegetation. The family were away last week so I sat him in the living room with me in the evenings to keep him company.

I have looked up the vaccinations and there is nothing for RHD2, just the myxomatosis/RHD one, so I must have been mistaken with the two vaccines I mentioned.

I think now that the problem with Tommy is that he misses Tim, he just doesn't seem himself he goes for long period just sitting on the grass in the run, its like he's daydreaming about poor Tim, or maybe I'm just silly! I suppose the next steps are to get him vaccinated for RHD2 and find him a companion. I will definitely be getting a rescue rabbit this time and I wish I had done that in the first place, but you live and learn.

So do the lovely people of the forum have any advice for me here other than to get a female of the same sort of age? Is it the right time, or should I give him some more time to grieve?

Thanks. xxx

You are doing so much to be of support and comfort to Tom and I am glad that he is doing better health wise now. If your Vet considers him well enough to be RHD2 vaccinated I would get that done ASAP. A full immune response to the vaccine is established after 7 days if FILIVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/filavac.doc

The same applies if ERAVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/eravac-uk-datasheet-0.pdf

I would not bring in another Rabbit until Tommy has had his RHD2 vaccination and at least a week has past. I would also want to insure that any Rabbit bought in had already been FULLY vaccinated ( Myxomatosis/RHD1+2). Most reputable Rescues will only rehome neutered and fully vaccinated Rabbits. So whilst some people may think it is 'more expensive' to Adopt from a Rescue ( average Adoption Fee is a minimum of £40.00) they dont take into account that buying a Rabbit for £20.00 from a Pet Shop and to then care for him/her responsibly (neutering and vaccinating) they would need to go on to pay for the neutering themselves (C £100.00) and the two vaccinations (C £30.00 PER Vaccine). So no way is it cheaper to obtain a Rabbit from a Pet shop.

Good luck with your search for a Doe friend for Tommy :)
 
You are doing so much to be of support and comfort to Tom and I am glad that he is doing better health wise now. If your Vet considers him well enough to be RHD2 vaccinated I would get that done ASAP. A full immune response to the vaccine is established after 7 days if FILIVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/filavac.doc

The same applies if ERAVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/eravac-uk-datasheet-0.pdf

I would not bring in another Rabbit until Tommy has had his RHD2 vaccination and at least a week has past. I would also want to insure that any Rabbit bought in had already been FULLY vaccinated ( Myxomatosis/RHD1+2). Most reputable Rescues will only rehome neutered and fully vaccinated Rabbits. So whilst some people may think it is 'more expensive' to Adopt from a Rescue ( average Adoption Fee is a minimum of £40.00) they dont take into account that buying a Rabbit for £20.00 from a Pet Shop and to then care for him/her responsibly (neutering and vaccinating) they would need to go on to pay for the neutering themselves (C £100.00) and the two vaccinations (C £30.00 PER Vaccine). So no way is it cheaper to obtain a Rabbit from a Pet shop.

Good luck with your search for a Doe friend for Tommy :)

I agree with this:thumb: also some rescues will help with bonding if you need it :thumb:
 
Others have given good advice but I just want to add my support and hope that Tommy continues to recover well.
 
You are doing so much to be of support and comfort to Tom and I am glad that he is doing better health wise now. If your Vet considers him well enough to be RHD2 vaccinated I would get that done ASAP. A full immune response to the vaccine is established after 7 days if FILIVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/filavac.doc

The same applies if ERAVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/eravac-uk-datasheet-0.pdf

I would not bring in another Rabbit until Tommy has had his RHD2 vaccination and at least a week has past. I would also want to insure that any Rabbit bought in had already been FULLY vaccinated ( Myxomatosis/RHD1+2). Most reputable Rescues will only rehome neutered and fully vaccinated Rabbits. So whilst some people may think it is 'more expensive' to Adopt from a Rescue ( average Adoption Fee is a minimum of £40.00) they dont take into account that buying a Rabbit for £20.00 from a Pet Shop and to then care for him/her responsibly (neutering and vaccinating) they would need to go on to pay for the neutering themselves (C £100.00) and the two vaccinations (C £30.00 PER Vaccine). So no way is it cheaper to obtain a Rabbit from a Pet shop.

Good luck with your search for a Doe friend for Tommy :)
Hello again and thanks for your advice which I greatly appreciate.

Tommy seems now to be back to full health but I am sure that he feels lonely, I just know it by watching him. He spends too much time in the corner of the run and he has recently taking to hiding away in a nesting ball that we bought. He has never taken any notice of this ball before.

So, he is booked in for his RHD2 vaccination tomorrow. I will have the vet assess and weigh him first, to see that he is up to it but outward signs suggest he is good! He is still spending time inside with us as I think the hustle and bustle of family life is good for keeping him company. I have already started looking for a new companion for him that we can adopt. I will need to spend a week or so dividing up the hutch, and then I would like to introduce the two rabbits to each other.

I have read this page and I will no doubt refer back to it, but I plan to divide up the existing hutch to a small and large area, then swap the buns around regularly so that they both get a taste of the bigger space and the superiority that comes with it!

Thanks to everyone that has contributed and any tips moving forwards are really gratefully received!

Thanks,
Nick. x
 
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I hope all goes well with the Vaccination tomorrow. I'd question the Vet that he/she is definitely administering either FILAVAC or ERAVAC -ie make doubly sure Nobivac Myxo-RHD Vaccine is NOT given again.
 
OK, many thanks.

We ended up cancelling the appointment yesterday due to work stuff. Tommy went in today and it was definitely FILAVAC, so I am absolutely sure that the Myxo-RHD wasn't repeated.

He was really good, didn't even flinch and the vet was great. He gave Tommy a really thorough checking over: eyes, ears, checked him with the stethoscope and had a good feel around his stomach and bowel area. He did note a bit of obstruction still there, all this time later but said that it should naturally clear.

Tommy went off his food this evening but he has had a bit here and there.

Now starts the search for a companion, I have bought the timber to divide up the hutch, so I will do this soon. Can anybody tell me if I need to select a companion of the same size, or is it okay to mix a smaller breed with Tommy?

Thanks so much!
Nick.
 
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OK, many thanks.

We ended up cancelling the appointment yesterday due to work stuff. Tommy went in today and it was definitely FILAVAC, so I am absolutely sure that the Myxo-RHD wasn't repeated.

He was really good, didn't even flinch and the vet was great. He gave Tommy a really thorough checking over: eyes, ears, checked him with the stethoscope and had a good feel around his stomach and bowel area. He did note a bit of obstruction still there, all this time later but said that it should naturally clear.

Tommy went off his food this evening but he has had a bit here and there.

Now starts the search for a companion, I have bought the timber to divide up the hutch, so I will do this soon. Can anybody tell me if I need to select a companion of the same size, or is it okay to mix a smaller breed with Tommy?

Thanks so much!
Nick.

Hi, I’m glad the vaccination and check up went smoothly, size isn’t as important as temperament and wether you think they will get on personality wise. I’ve found my local rescue is great for suggesting a good match :love:
Good luck in the search for a friend for Tommy :love:
 
Hello all,

Well, thank you for all of your support, but I have more tragic news.

A matter of days after my last post, poor Tommy went off his food one evening. I decided to get him to the vets in the morning and the next day, I knew that poor Tommy wasn't well - hardly moving and not at all himself. My daughter was at home that day and I rang a local rescue centre who said that I should put Tommy in the garden and see if he hopped about. If he just moved a bit and then stopped, I was to get him straight to the vet.

Since I was at work, my daughter took Tommy into the garden and he just lay down on his side, so my daughter got him straight to the vet. Too late again, I am afraid, poor Tommy needed to be put to sleep - it was almost a carbon copy of Tim's last days.

Needless to say, I was devastated, and I am only just beginning to come to terms with things, partly thanks top all of your support here with Tim, which I have also applied to dealing with Tommy's passing away.

The vet has suggested that the two rabbits perhaps picked something up in the garden, since we live in a very rural location, with lots of wildlife passing through our garden, such as squirrels, foxes, birds, wild rabbits and who knows what else during the night. I use to let our two boys have the run of the garden and maybe that was my mistake. I so wanted them to have full and happy lives.

So, I now have a large converted playhouse with nobody in it, and it seems such a waste. I could bleach it out for new rabbits but what happens if I put them in the garden? I could make a large run for them but I suppose there is still the chance they might pick something up and I don't want to chance that.

If anybody else here keeps rabbits in a rural location, maybe they could offer me some advice? We all miss our two buns, so any advice would be appreciated but I am quite happy to never keep rabbits again if I would be putting them at risk.

Thank you all, lovely people!
Nick. x
 
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Oh, Nick, devastating news. I am so sorry.
I have had free range rabbits in a rural location (for approx 15yrs). I think the main dangers are Mixy, RHD1 & RHD2. were they vaccinated against all 3?
 
Nick,
I am so so very sorry to read this. Losing two bunnies so close together is especially heartbreaking and I understand the heartbreak and pain you feel.
Without some element of a post mortem, it would be challenging to make assumptions on what the cause of the sudden deterioration of your bunnies was.
One one hand, it could, as you suggest, be something external in the garden. On the other hand, it could be a shared condition that the two rabbits had? Or it could be some ailment that bot hrabbits had that was transferred. I am sure that my fellow RU's will add some of their own thoughts on that.
One thing that does puzzle me is that the rescue centre suggested you put Tommy outside. My first inclination would be, without hesitation, to have gotten Tommy to a vet if you felt that he was not behaving normally. So the rescue centres advice seems a bit unusual.
Although you now have to go through the grieving process again, and so quickly after loosing Tim, you hopefully will feel a day or a point where you can move on and when that happens, please don't feel as though you can't give a home to, or love other pets or rabbits. You could disinfect the playhouse but again, without knowing the specific cause of why you lost Tim and Tommy, it would be hard to know what to disinfect for. You can't really clean the garden - it is a natural environment and nature will clense it for you with the elements - cold and ice, rain and wind and sunshine.
I send you my thoughts and hugs - it is a difficult time, and I hope that you can move forward once you have had time to heal.
Binkey free little Tommy - I hope that you are reunited with Tim. xx
 
Oh, Nick, devastating news. I am so sorry.
I have had free range rabbits in a rural location (for approx 15yrs). I think the main dangers are Mixy, RHD1 & RHD2. were they vaccinated against all 3?
Hello mikek, thanks for your message - this is encouraging to learn that you have kept your rabbits safely in Rural Devon!

Sadly, our rabbits were only vaccinated for Mixy and RHD1, I realised this when Tim passed away and so I then had Tommy vaccinated but he then passed away shortly afterwards. I am not sure if he died of a broken heart or if he died of the same thing that took poor Timmy. To be honest, he did seem to sort of give up over the weeks, which was a shame as we were planning to get a companion for him at the end of that week. I had the hutch sectioned of ready and I had tried to time things to give Tommy enough time to grieve for the loss of his companion.

Thanks, Nick.

Nick,
I am so so very sorry to read this. Losing two bunnies so close together is especially heartbreaking and I understand the heartbreak and pain you feel.
Without some element of a post mortem, it would be challenging to make assumptions on what the cause of the sudden deterioration of your bunnies was.
One one hand, it could, as you suggest, be something external in the garden. On the other hand, it could be a shared condition that the two rabbits had? Or it could be some ailment that bot hrabbits had that was transferred. I am sure that my fellow RU's will add some of their own thoughts on that.
One thing that does puzzle me is that the rescue centre suggested you put Tommy outside. My first inclination would be, without hesitation, to have gotten Tommy to a vet if you felt that he was not behaving normally. So the rescue centres advice seems a bit unusual.
Although you now have to go through the grieving process again, and so quickly after loosing Tim, you hopefully will feel a day or a point where you can move on and when that happens, please don't feel as though you can't give a home to, or love other pets or rabbits. You could disinfect the playhouse but again, without knowing the specific cause of why you lost Tim and Tommy, it would be hard to know what to disinfect for. You can't really clean the garden - it is a natural environment and nature will clense it for you with the elements - cold and ice, rain and wind and sunshine.
I send you my thoughts and hugs - it is a difficult time, and I hope that you can move forward once you have had time to heal.
Binkey free little Tommy - I hope that you are reunited with Tim. xx
Craig, thanks for your kind words and the interesting points that you have raised. The vet more or less said the same thing; difficult to make assumptions with regards to the sudden passing of both buns, but he did suggest that the rural habitat might have been to blame, but that it could have been many things.

When I phoned the rescue centre, I told them that my main concern was that Tommy was missing Tim, and I suppose this is what they wanted to investigate, i.e. whether a bit of freedom in the garden would liven Tommy up. They did say to take him straight to the vets if he didn't have a hop round and perk up a little.

Of course, you're right about the garden, I cannot bleach it but maybe I can section off a large grassy area for any new rabbits - just to be sure that they don't eat any plants that they shouldn't. I am just looking at risk mitigation here.

In a way, I have found grieving for Tommy easier as I was still not over Tim and this allowed me to sort of bundle the grief together, still very sad though and I think of the poor boys every day.

One more concern I have about new buns that i would like to ask all members of the forum is that we get a lot of mosquitoes at the end of our garden (where the playhouse is). Should I be concerned about this? I would like everyone's opinion here.

Thanks,
Nick.
 
Hello mikek, thanks for your message - this is encouraging to learn that you have kept your rabbits safely in Rural Devon!

Sadly, our rabbits were only vaccinated for Mixy and RHD1, I realised this when Tim passed away and so I then had Tommy vaccinated but he then passed away shortly afterwards. I am not sure if he died of a broken heart or if he died of the same thing that took poor Timmy. To be honest, he did seem to sort of give up over the weeks, which was a shame as we were planning to get a companion for him at the end of that week. I had the hutch sectioned of ready and I had tried to time things to give Tommy enough time to grieve for the loss of his companion.

Thanks, Nick.

Craig, thanks for your kind words and the interesting points that you have raised. The vet more or less said the same thing; difficult to make assumptions with regards to the sudden passing of both buns, but he did suggest that the rural habitat might have been to blame, but that it could have been many things.

When I phoned the rescue centre, I told them that my main concern was that Tommy was missing Tim, and I suppose this is what they wanted to investigate, i.e. whether a bit of freedom in the garden would liven Tommy up. They did say to take him straight to the vets if he didn't have a hop round and perk up a little.

Of course, you're right about the garden, I cannot bleach it but maybe I can section off a large grassy area for any new rabbits - just to be sure that they don't eat any plants that they shouldn't. I am just looking at risk mitigation here.

In a way, I have found grieving for Tommy easier as I was still not over Tim and this allowed me to sort of bundle the grief together, still very sad though and I think of the poor boys every day.

One more concern I have about new buns that i would like to ask all members of the forum is that we get a lot of mosquitoes at the end of our garden (where the playhouse is). Should I be concerned about this? I would like everyone's opinion here.

Thanks,
Nick.

I am so very sorry to hear that you have lost Tommy too :cry:

In the absence of definitive evidence (from full Post Mortem examinations) personally I'd assume both losses were related to RHD2. I would not bring any new Rabbits unless they have been fully vaccinated ( ie the Nobivac Myxo-RHD Vaccine AND the RHD2 Vaccine (either Filavac or Eravac) Please refer to a previous post I made :

You are doing so much to be of support and comfort to Tom and I am glad that he is doing better health wise now. If your Vet considers him well enough to be RHD2 vaccinated I would get that done ASAP. A full immune response to the vaccine is established after 7 days if FILIVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/filavac.doc

The same applies if ERAVAC is given

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/media/documents/eravac-uk-datasheet-0.pdf

I would not bring in another Rabbit until Tommy has had his RHD2 vaccination and at least a week has past. I would also want to insure that any Rabbit bought in had already been FULLY vaccinated ( Myxomatosis/RHD1+2). Most reputable Rescues will only rehome neutered and fully vaccinated Rabbits. So whilst some people may think it is 'more expensive' to Adopt from a Rescue ( average Adoption Fee is a minimum of £40.00) they dont take into account that buying a Rabbit for £20.00 from a Pet Shop and to then care for him/her responsibly (neutering and vaccinating) they would need to go on to pay for the neutering themselves (C £100.00) and the two vaccinations (C £30.00 PER Vaccine). So no way is it cheaper to obtain a Rabbit from a Pet shop.

Good luck with your search for a Doe friend for Tommy :)

I realise that your circumstances are now that you will be looking for 2 new Rabbits, the importance of them being vaccinated FULLY Vaccinated BEFORE you bring them home still applies

I would have a thorough read of this information re RHD2 :

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/rabbit-vhd/

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/further-reading/rvhd-further-reading/

RIP Tommy :cry:
 
I'm so sorry you have now lost both your rabbits. I hope that when the time is right you will have bunnies again. Best to get rescue rabbits who are already vaccinated as others have advised. Thinking of you and your family at this sad time. xx
 
I am so very sorry to hear that you have lost Tommy too :cry:

In the absence of definitive evidence (from full Post Mortem examinations) personally I'd assume both losses were related to RHD2. I would not bring any new Rabbits unless they have been fully vaccinated ( ie the Nobivac Myxo-RHD Vaccine AND the RHD2 Vaccine (either Filavac or Eravac) Please refer to a previous post I made :



I realise that your circumstances are now that you will be looking for 2 new Rabbits, the importance of them being vaccinated FULLY Vaccinated BEFORE you bring them home still applies

I would have a thorough read of this information re RHD2 :

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/rabbit-vhd/

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/further-reading/rvhd-further-reading/

RIP Tommy :cry:
Many thanks for your support and information, it was so upsetting to lose poor Tommy as well as Tim.

Of course, any new rabbits will be fully vaccinated and will come from a rescue centre, I know that I have made mistakes in the past but I have learned from them and I really would like to make use of our empty playhouse and large garden in helping out some rescue rabbits and giving them a very happy life in a loving environment.

That said, I must be absolutely sure that I have taken all steps to make sure that they are safe from harm and I really am concerned about mosquitoes, since all illnesses we experienced with the rabbits came along after they moved into the playhouse and this is where we get mosquitoes most in the garden.

Once again, thanks for all of your advice, support and kind words.

Nick.

I'm so sorry you have now lost both your rabbits. I hope that when the time is right you will have bunnies again. Best to get rescue rabbits who are already vaccinated as others have advised. Thinking of you and your family at this sad time. xx
That's very kind of you, thanks very much and, as you can see above, I would love to give some more bunnies a loving home.
 
Many thanks for your support and information, it was so upsetting to lose poor Tommy as well as Tim.

Of course, any new rabbits will be fully vaccinated and will come from a rescue centre, I know that I have made mistakes in the past but I have learned from them and I really would like to make use of our empty playhouse and large garden in helping out some rescue rabbits and giving them a very happy life in a loving environment.

That said, I must be absolutely sure that I have taken all steps to make sure that they are safe from harm and I really am concerned about mosquitoes, since all illnesses we experienced with the rabbits came along after they moved into the playhouse and this is where we get mosquitoes most in the garden.

Once again, thanks for all of your advice, support and kind words.

Nick.

That's very kind of you, thanks very much and, as you can see above, I would love to give some more bunnies a loving home.

Do you have any standing water in your garden- a pond, a water tank to collect rain water ?? All standing water will attract Mozzies so getting rid of standing water sources should reduce the Mozzie population. Additional things you could do (as well as fully vaccinating) is to use Mosquito netting/ Citronella/ Electronic fly zappers/ fly papers etc. But it is impossible to completely remove every single Mozzie from an outdoor environment.
 
I'm so sorry for your loss. It sounds like you have a loving home to give to two new rabbits, it's a shame you don't know why your other rabbits died but like Jane said it may be VHD2.

My only concern with the mosquitoes would be that they bite a wild rabbit with myxi then bite yours and pass it on. My indoor rabbit has just recovered from myxi, she was vaccinated and I was very lucky she survived it. Can you get some mosquito netting and repellent for in the playhouse and also bring your bunnies in before the mosquitoes come out early evening?
 
Do you have any standing water in your garden- a pond, a water tank to collect rain water ?? All standing water will attract Mozzies so getting rid of standing water sources should reduce the Mozzie population. Additional things you could do (as well as fully vaccinating) is to use Mosquito netting/ Citronella/ Electronic fly zappers/ fly papers etc. But it is impossible to completely remove every single Mozzie from an outdoor environment.
No standing water in the garden, I even cleared out the gutters to make sure that we were as mosquito-free as possible. Maybe a neighbour though, and there is not much that can be done about that but its defo not me!

I was thinking the same with the netting and I will also seal up any gaps in the playhouse with decorators caulk, or something. I am thinking of having power run into the playhouse too, this will mean that I can hang a zapper up in there.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It sounds like you have a loving home to give to two new rabbits, it's a shame you don't know why your other rabbits died but like Jane said it may be VHD2.

My only concern with the mosquitoes would be that they bite a wild rabbit with myxi then bite yours and pass it on. My indoor rabbit has just recovered from myxi, she was vaccinated and I was very lucky she survived it. Can you get some mosquito netting and repellent for in the playhouse and also bring your bunnies in before the mosquitoes come out early evening?
Yes, mixi was my concern, but I think with the precautions we've mentioned, that it might be worth a shot at giving some needy buns a happy home. Very pleased to hear that your rabbit came out unscathed after the sickness - very happy for you both!
 
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