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How to deal with rabbit losing mother

Hi all my first post here. This has all happened so out of the blue I have no idea where to ask or what to do.

Backstory - me and my partner had 2 rabbits mother and daughter (Stormy & Bonnie - was told aged 2 &1) which I adopted from a farm that was closing at the start of the first lockdown March 2020. They were split up during adoption but 1.5 months later I managed to get the daughter and had to rebond them and then they lived in their own room of the house together which we spend every single day in.

Yesterday morning the mother Stormy looked really weird and hardly moved, wouldn't even struggle when I went to pick her up, but still was eating and drinking so I thought she might be having an 'off day'. That night she was so bad - like she deteriorated from fluffy and jumping to skinny and frail within a day/day and half. So we took her to the emergency vets at 10pm and they said she's better off being put to sleep.

Now this is where my guilt kicks in over and over. After we left the vet we went to bury her where we buried one of my partner's pets as we thought we can't keep her all day in the house while I am at work today. As soon as I get home that's when it kicks in and I'm now googling all over what to do and it says I should have brought the rabbit home to show Bonnie for her to grieve. Now I have just one rabbit on her own and she's so confused that her mum didn't come back with us. (spent like an hour looking around the room for her). and I just feel so terrible and have no idea what to do next.
 
I am very sorry for your loss. Firstly did you have both Rabbits vaccinated ?

With regards to helping Bonnie, it will help to provide her with new things to investigate, cardboard boxes, a football, plastic flower pots ( a lot of Rabbits like to throw them around). Don’t leave these with her if you can’t keep an eye on her in case she is a big chewer. Apple tree twigs and branches are great for entertaining chewers. Some bereaved Rabbits benefit from having a soft toy. But again this depends on if the individual Rabbit is likely to chew and ingest it.

If you are able to consider adopting a Rabbit from a Rescue to be a companion for Bonnie that would be the best thing for her.However, if your Rabbits had not been vaccinated sadly RHD cannot be excluded as a possible cause of death. I can post a link with information about how to manage a possible RHD outbreak if your Rabbits were not vaccinated

RIP Stormy x :cry:
 
I am very sorry for your loss. Firstly did you have both Rabbits vaccinated ?

With regards to helping Bonnie, it will help to provide her with new things to investigate, cardboard boxes, a football, plastic flower pots ( a lot of Rabbits like to throw them around). Don’t leave these with her if you can’t keep an eye on her in case she is a big chewer. Apple tree twigs and branches are great for entertaining chewers. Some bereaved Rabbits benefit from having a soft toy. But again this depends on if the individual Rabbit is likely to chew and ingest it.

If you are able to consider adopting a Rabbit from a Rescue to be a companion for Bonnie that would be the best thing for her.However, if your Rabbits had not been vaccinated sadly RHD cannot be excluded as a possible cause of death. I can post a link with information about how to manage a possible RHD outbreak if your Rabbits were not vaccinated

RIP Stormy x :cry:

Thank you, I'm 99.99999% sure they had their vaccinations before we got them. I will have the paperwork somewhere but the farm we got them from was definitely a "do things properly" kind of place. Is a RHD outbreak possible if only the 2 rabbits had been with each other and kept indoors & none of us have been in contact with any other rabbits?

I will be spoiling Bonnie for sure, I'll make sure to get plenty of what you suggested - she is very curious and was definitely 'the chewer' out of the two. I think I will be adopting another rabbit for her at some point, everywhere near me seems to not have any rabbits in at all.

Just so strange that within a night and a day she went from racing around to practically given up, I knew they hid illness but I didn't realise it was to that extent!
 
I am really sorry you have lost one of your Bunnies. Bonnie will eventually get used to being on her own for now. Is she spayed? Her best companion would be a neutered boy.
 
Thank you, I'm 99.99999% sure they had their vaccinations before we got them. I will have the paperwork somewhere but the farm we got them from was definitely a "do things properly" kind of place. Is a RHD outbreak possible if only the 2 rabbits had been with each other and kept indoors & none of us have been in contact with any other rabbits?

I will be spoiling Bonnie for sure, I'll make sure to get plenty of what you suggested - she is very curious and was definitely 'the chewer' out of the two. I think I will be adopting another rabbit for her at some point, everywhere near me seems to not have any rabbits in at all.

Just so strange that within a night and a day she went from racing around to practically given up, I knew they hid illness but I didn't realise it was to that extent!

Sadly RHD is transmissible via hay, on clothing etc. House Rabbits who have no contact with other Rabbits are still at risk.

If in any doubt about the cause of death possibly being due to RHD this is essential reading

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ar...c-disease/how-to-deal-with-an-outbreak-of-rhd
 
Sorry for your loss. You would need to find out for sure that vaccinations are current before bringing someone new into your family, but Honeybunnies is in Leicester and Burrowed Hearts in Notts, as well as Brinsley Animal Rescue. Neutered males are easy to come by. Good luck :)
 
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