My partner and I are both pet lovers, we have 4 cats a dog and some tropical fish and up until today a beautiful white lionhead rabbit called Dylan. We bought Dylan from Pets at Home, he looked so frightened and lonely we just couldnt leave him in the store. Admittedly he wasnt planned, but very much loved and wanted and ended up in our home around about the middle of January 2005. We bought him a large hutch and we let him out of his hutch at least twice a day and he had the run of the house under close supervision. He very much liked the cats and dog and they got on very well together (he often followed the cats most places). We fed him rabbit nuggets and a mixture of fresh veg that was cut to a size he could manage. His hutch was changed every other day and his poo was cleaned twice a day and he always had fresh water. We researched looking after rabbits extensively and did everything we could to benefit his well being as we do with all our pets. He passed away today and he was only 16 weeks old. We dont understand how he could have died?
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Why did my rabbit die so suddenly?
- Thread starter catatonic
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Sudden deaths are quite common in bunnies bought from a large petshop chain. A lot of the bunnies are too young to be away from their mum or in poor health when they leave the shop, or just too inbred for their own good. I'm very sorry for your loss, and I'm sure you must be feeling awful about it, but a lot of these bunnies die through no fault of their new owners.
One thing that can be a problem with young bunnies, is too much fresh veg. They have very sensitive tummies and it can be a good idea when you first bring them home to keep them on hay and water, with a little probiotic, until they've settled in. They're very sensitive to stress, and being away from mum, dumped into a pet shop and then being moved again into a new home can be very traumatic for them and can lead to complications in their digestion.
Did you notice any soft poo about the place, or any hardness to his tummy, or any wetness/stickiness about his bottom?
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One thing that can be a problem with young bunnies, is too much fresh veg. They have very sensitive tummies and it can be a good idea when you first bring them home to keep them on hay and water, with a little probiotic, until they've settled in. They're very sensitive to stress, and being away from mum, dumped into a pet shop and then being moved again into a new home can be very traumatic for them and can lead to complications in their digestion.
Did you notice any soft poo about the place, or any hardness to his tummy, or any wetness/stickiness about his bottom?
[Admin Edit: No company names please
]
He did have a bit of soft poo, but whenever he had something like that we would just keep him on his nuggets. his poo was ok. He didnt seem stressed, he was very playful especially with the other animals. He was a completly different bunny than the one we got from pets at home, he was no longer shy or frightened as he was then, he was playful, curious and very happy. You can tell when a pet is unhappy and he certainly wasnt so... I just dont know. I knwo when we got him from pets at home he was in a bit of a state, his paws were yellow, they used sawdust for litter (which got tangled in his fur) and he was very frightened and thin. But after a couple of days being here he brightened up a bit. Even last night he was still hopping around following the cats bright as anything.
Bunnyboarding
Alpha Buck
Hi there,
Sorry to hear your news.
Unfortunately rabbits can & do die sometimes with little or no symptoms as they are particularly vulnerable at this tender age. It could easily be coccidiosis or even environmental stress which can happen to anyone now matter how well reared/cared for the babies are.
However unfortunately, the likelihood is greater for any rabbit that starts life via the pet trade/in a commercialised envirnoment. This can also be for obvious reasons like the correct care was not provided prior to your purchase, higher risk of infections from these pet places or even too many people looking at them & picking them up & sudden or incorrect or sudden change of diet.
You would be better off going to an reputable animal charity or even a reputable breeder (if you want a specific breed) to minimise the chances of this happening.
As has been said the particular pet chain you mention has a notorious reputation.
Chin up. :wink:
Sorry to hear your news.
Unfortunately rabbits can & do die sometimes with little or no symptoms as they are particularly vulnerable at this tender age. It could easily be coccidiosis or even environmental stress which can happen to anyone now matter how well reared/cared for the babies are.
However unfortunately, the likelihood is greater for any rabbit that starts life via the pet trade/in a commercialised envirnoment. This can also be for obvious reasons like the correct care was not provided prior to your purchase, higher risk of infections from these pet places or even too many people looking at them & picking them up & sudden or incorrect or sudden change of diet.
You would be better off going to an reputable animal charity or even a reputable breeder (if you want a specific breed) to minimise the chances of this happening.
As has been said the particular pet chain you mention has a notorious reputation.
Chin up. :wink:
Bunnyboarding
Alpha Buck
PS. He didn't go on the grass did he yet? (that can cause fatal problems in domestic rabbit youngsters more commonly before 4 mths.
Going back to the pet store subject, the problem can also lie with the pet trade breeder/suppliers that have an exclusive contract with these stores (ie. they buy from the same people not from anyone else). For theses pet trade suppliers to make any kind of money they have to produce a high output of rabbits, which means cutting corners & taking them away from mum too early etc etc.
You don't know what the rabbits have been through prior to arriving with you.
At least you had provided him a caring home for him in his unfortunately short, life.. you must try to take some consolation in that at least.
Going back to the pet store subject, the problem can also lie with the pet trade breeder/suppliers that have an exclusive contract with these stores (ie. they buy from the same people not from anyone else). For theses pet trade suppliers to make any kind of money they have to produce a high output of rabbits, which means cutting corners & taking them away from mum too early etc etc.
You don't know what the rabbits have been through prior to arriving with you.
At least you had provided him a caring home for him in his unfortunately short, life.. you must try to take some consolation in that at least.
hi there catatonic,
i would say the same as bertie, the rabbits from that store are not look after properly in most cases and because your bunny was from a store there was no way of knowing the exact age of your bun or what it was feed on.
young buns are prone to stomach problems and stress, when they are from a pet shop they have been probably taken from there mum too early and feed on one thing, then moved to a pet shop and feed on something else, then moved to a owners house and feed on something completetly different and introduced to veg..... this is just stress, stress stress to a young bun.
bunnys need to be introduced to vegtables very slowly.
did you get a post mortum done?
i am very sorry this as happened to you and the best advise i can give if you were thinking on getting another buns is stay on the forum and learn more about them, you will get some brilliant advise and knowledge here.
take care
Eve x
i would say the same as bertie, the rabbits from that store are not look after properly in most cases and because your bunny was from a store there was no way of knowing the exact age of your bun or what it was feed on.
young buns are prone to stomach problems and stress, when they are from a pet shop they have been probably taken from there mum too early and feed on one thing, then moved to a pet shop and feed on something else, then moved to a owners house and feed on something completetly different and introduced to veg..... this is just stress, stress stress to a young bun.
bunnys need to be introduced to vegtables very slowly.
did you get a post mortum done?
i am very sorry this as happened to you and the best advise i can give if you were thinking on getting another buns is stay on the forum and learn more about them, you will get some brilliant advise and knowledge here.
take care
Eve x
So sorry to hear of your loss, he certainly sounded as though he had a good life, even though it was short. Please dont be put off getting another bunny as it sounds as though you are a very caring person, and there are so many unwanted bunnies on the rabbit rehome site just aching for someone to love them.
bunnytales
Mama Doe
Oh Dear - I'm so sorry to hear about your loss - this must have been a terrible shock for you - its always bad enough when a bunny is ill and they pass over but when it's sudden you just end asking yourself all kinds of questions.
I can only echo everything already said really but you did give this bunny a loving home and well done you for doing so much research into care as well. This won't be easy but eventually the pain will ease if only a little and you'll remember your little bun with love and smile and loads of affection.
Binky Free little one.
I can only echo everything already said really but you did give this bunny a loving home and well done you for doing so much research into care as well. This won't be easy but eventually the pain will ease if only a little and you'll remember your little bun with love and smile and loads of affection.
Binky Free little one.
Adult bunnies are a lot easier to care for, so if you're all set up now to keep a bunny and you haven't been too put off, you should definitely consider rehoming an abandoned bun. A bunny can live to a ripe old age, so missing a year of it's childhood isn't as huge a chunk as you might think. An adult bunny will be settled into its personality, so you know what you're taking home with you, will probably already be neutered and vaccinated, will be easier to litter train, and already grown to full size, so no horrible shocks in buying a dwarf and coming home with a French lop. And the best thing about bunnies is they never stop being cute. An adult bunny will still have huge floppy ears and over-sized feet.
By rescuing a bunny you'll free up space for another bunny to be rehomed, and you'll have an expert at the rescue who's only a phone call away if you have any worries or problems. I'm not trying to go for the hard sell, but it seems like you really did care for your bunny and it would be a shame to be put off by one bad experience.
By rescuing a bunny you'll free up space for another bunny to be rehomed, and you'll have an expert at the rescue who's only a phone call away if you have any worries or problems. I'm not trying to go for the hard sell, but it seems like you really did care for your bunny and it would be a shame to be put off by one bad experience.
I'm so sorry for your loss. About eight years ago when I first started keeping rabbits I got my first pair from Pets at Home (not knowing then what I know now!!). My little boy Pepsi died suddenly after only 2 weeks. He had a few soft poos the day before but being inexperienced I didn't know what this meant and he weas still sprightly. But next morning I found he had died overnight . I was very upset but realised he had prob caught a bug in the shop as when I rang them they said a few buns had passed away from a tummy bug.
I can only echo what everybody else has said above, it's hard to know what caused it but you sound like you did everything for him. There are lots of bunnies in rescue if you haven't been put off and want one in the future Lots of adult buns just desperate for a home and somebody to love them.
I know how hard this is but chin up, and think of those good few weeks you had with him
Nicola
. I was very upset but realised he had prob caught a bug in the shop as when I rang them they said a few buns had passed away from a tummy bug.I can only echo what everybody else has said above, it's hard to know what caused it but you sound like you did everything for him. There are lots of bunnies in rescue if you haven't been put off and want one in the future
Lots of adult buns just desperate for a home and somebody to love them. I know how hard this is but chin up, and think of those good few weeks you had with him
Nicola
Maaike_Butter
Mama Doe
So sorry to hear about your loss.
The only way to know why your bunny died, really, is by having a vet perform a post-mortem on it.
Again, I'm sorry
The only way to know why your bunny died, really, is by having a vet perform a post-mortem on it.
Again, I'm sorry
Rspca Medway
Warren Scout
I'm so sorry to here about Dylan. The trouble with buying rabbits/animals from pet shops some do interbreed to keep stock levels high.
You sound like you done everything right and gave him a good loving home although for such a short time. Just think that if he had an underline problem he might of died in the store, so although it was a short time at least he knew he was loved.
If you are going to get another rabbit i would suggest you go to an animal shelter or a good breeder, at least you know they would have been health checked and some vaccinate, i know we do.
Once again my heart goes out to you x
You sound like you done everything right and gave him a good loving home although for such a short time. Just think that if he had an underline problem he might of died in the store, so although it was a short time at least he knew he was loved.
If you are going to get another rabbit i would suggest you go to an animal shelter or a good breeder, at least you know they would have been health checked and some vaccinate, i know we do.
Once again my heart goes out to you x
Bunnyboarding
Alpha Buck
Maaike_Butter said:So sorry to hear about your loss.
The only way to know why your bunny died, really, is by having a vet perform a post-mortem on it.
Again, I'm sorry
Hi Maaike,
Unfortunately PM's don't always give the definitive answer with a situation like this as a vet was explaining to me once...very often one of the few things a vet can report is that there is 'gas build-up in the intestines' which would occur after death anyway.
In some cases there is a significantly different-looking organ or other finding , but the vet reckoned that rabbit PM's usually don't tend to show anything too significant.
What could be carried out though, (I think it needs to be done within 24hrs) is a coccidial count to determine how high the levels of coccidia are (coccidia occur naturally in all rabbits but elevated levels could suggest that this is the cause of death/coccidiosis).
Maaike_Butter
Mama Doe
Oh, thanks for that, Cheryl! I guess it's a more indicative procedure on dogs & cats. My only experience with doing PMs is in sheep, so...:?
We had a few talks on PMs and I was under the impression that counts/analyses such as a Coccidia count would be done when the PM was done? Am I incorrect?
The main reason I said it is because none of us will know why a rabbit we've never seen dies...
We had a few talks on PMs and I was under the impression that counts/analyses such as a Coccidia count would be done when the PM was done? Am I incorrect?
The main reason I said it is because none of us will know why a rabbit we've never seen dies...
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