Caring for rabbit is simple yet complicated. While the escalation of popularity of pet rabbits become the phenomenon in this era, knowing basic guideline for the nursery is easy. However, we do understand applying all those guidelines might be difficult at some point – primarily for the first time people. You need to master many aspects such the perfect food to be feed to your rabbit, which is generally, the main food of rabbit is hay and grass, also some vegetables (usually for the extra supplement).
There are available some types of hay, grass, and vegetable out there you should choose carefully. For the example, there are types of grasses that are healthy for rabbits and type of vegetable you should not feed to the rabbit such, the dangers of giving corn. All these things are an example of the aspects you need to master, not to mention the caging set rules. Yes, it is hard, but if you called yourself as rabbits lovers – then I believe you could conquer these issues.
In many perspectives, the most urgent issue you need to pay attention is the health maintain. This should be your first concern while keeping a rabbit. Pay attention to the sanitation, the cleanness, and every single thing that entered their body – every single things that I mentioned are crucial. When you’re not monitor these things carefully, it could turn become high-risk potential of problems, and in the end would lead the rabbit in dangerous situation such diseases and illness.
There is a disease lately attacked some rabbits, which caught many people attention and turn out as a dangerous disease caused by bacterium called tularemia. This particular disease is rarely happened, but there’s a lot of common illness could happen anytime caused by miss-treatment or seasonal illness, such diarrhea. Diarrhea is often happen – the scale of the danger also unpredictable. It could be something easy-to-heal and could be something threaten a life.
Knowing the urgency of this illness, we’re going to give some methods to treat your rabbit from diarrhea: what not to do. At least you would understand how to react when your beloved pals get it – so, pay a very attention my friends, this would be important.
The Causes of Diarrhea
The diarrhea in rabbits could cause by infectious of bacteria and other was something else. The severeness also depend on the causes of diarrhea. That’s why the symptoms in one rabbit to another would different. Some rabbits would still eat even they get the diarrhea, some won’t. Some rabbits have a normal stool, and some are bleeding. One thing you must note, if you find that their stool are watery, it was the indication of the diarrhea is present. These are two causes of bacteria among others:
Coccidiosis is the infection by parasites. This commonly happened to the immunodepressed rabbits, such young bunnies and older rabbit. These parasites also targeting the liver and intestine of rabbit, and cause a serious illness which one of the symptom is diarrhea. To make sure the present of this illness require a microscopic diagnostic test.
Some types of cancer could affect the digestion systems and caused diarrhea in rabbits. To make sure the present of some types of cancers you need the vet help. They (the vet) will do some test (blood or urine) and the scan test included CT scan.
What Not to Do List
Do not change the dietary menu on sudden. The sudden changes might result the intestinal flora of the rabbit. For every mammals creatures, balancing of gut flora is essential. This also happened to human. If your rabbit eat forbidden food, it could upset their gut and basically, this is the common cause of diarrhea.
Nutrient must be given in balance. Health problem could arise by given the nutrient less than it should be caused the gut upset in rabbit. You need to combine the fibber with other carbohydrates to proliferation the dangerous bacteria. The lack of fiber caused some digestion problem such diarrhea.
If you ingest your rabbit with too much of protein you will make the Clostridium Spiriforme and Escherichia Coli bacterium power to proliferate into the unhealthy scale to produce toxin and high result would cause the diarrhea in rabbit. Just like I mention before, feed your rabbit with the balance nutrient.
How to Treat Diarrhea
After known the caused and not to do list during the diarrhea, this time we would teach you how to treat your sick rabbit caused by the diarrhea.
- Bring Your Sick Rabbit to The Vet
It would be better if you bring your rabbit immediately to the vet when you sure of the present of diarrhea. Diarrhea needed immediate help from veterinarian before it turn into some fatal illness. The fatal diarrhea commonly caused by microorganism alteration in cecum – especially for the baby bunnies which very vulnerable prey.
- Provide The Veterinarian with Fresh Cecal & Fecal Samples
It would be helpful for the vet if you already bring the cecal and fecal samples of your sick rabbit. The vet would examine all those samples under the microscope to get the accurate diagnosis of the illness. You could take picture to the feces and cecotropes if in any reasons you can’t bring the sample. For your note, the veterinarian doesn’t need a large amount of sample – just take enough sample and put it in zip lock bag.
- Make Sure That Your Rabbit is Hydrated
Make sure that your rabbit has access to fresh and clean water at all the times. However, if your rabbit refuse to drink the water you could use injection of lactated ringers to make your rabbit stay hydrated.
- Remove The foods Other than Grass & Hay
It is recommended to give the rabbit only their main menus: hay and grass. Do make sure that the hay you given is not a legume hay such alfalfa which contained too much protein and carbohydrate. High fiber grass or hay are recommended to provide the digestion needs of the balance nutrient.
As long as your rabbit digestion system still upset, you need to cut all the treat you usually gave. Even the healthy food would cause other problem during the diarrhea in rabbit. Just stick to give them only the hay and grass.
I hope this treat your rabbit from diarrhea: what not to do; would help you to prevent and give the best nursery for your rabbit during the diarrhea. Don’t be panic and stress, for the good care would heal them! Goodbye my friends.