Guide for Rabbit Sitter

[align=left] Here is a vet guide I made for my Rabbit sitter who has not experience with Rabbits but very reliable. I will be away for a week. Please look it over and let me know if there is anything I missed. As I pack her stuff I have also been writing directions on the bags, such as "Litter for Purple Litter Tray - This is about 4 days worth" or "Carrot Flavoured Yogurt Drops. She loves these treats and can have up to 2 a day".
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[/align][align=left]A Guide for Smudge[/align] Contact information:
In the event that there is a medical problem with Smudge please contact the vet office below, they can provide general advice, you can also drop her off, all vet services will be direct billed to me.

Vet Clinic Name - Address - Phone number - Vets name

If you do end up taking her to the vets or there is a problem and you can no longer care for her when I am away please call. Either Name or name have been given permission to make medical decisions regarding Smudge and have the necessary information required for back care for Smudge if needed.

Contact information for my mother

If you have any General Rabbit Questions:
Contact information of rabbit Savvy friend.


General Information about Smudge:

Smudge is a 6 month old Female Dwarf Lionhead rabbit. I believe she was born sometime in January 2011. She is not yet been spayed, but will be mid August.

Her first day with you:

Smudge will be nervous and a little stressed. Please do not handle her for the first 24 hours. You can sit beside her cage and talk to her, watch her interact with the things in her cage and even try to pet her through the bars. When feeding her and cleaning her cage in the morning, simply work around her, chances are she will hide in her log hut. Do not try to pet her during this time as she may scratch you or nip at you.

Smudge Feeding: Smudge eats twice a day.

In the morning:
When you wake up place 1 scoop Timothy Pellets in her gray food dish. Remove her white water dish and refill with fresh water.

At night, around dinner time:
Give her a large handful of the bagged lettuce provided. Place this in her gray food dish.

Right before you go to bed place 2 scoops of Timothy pellets in her gray dish.

Throughout the day:
Smudge is allowed unlimited amount of hay, please ensure that her hay rack is always full of hay.

Treats:
You will find various treats for Smudge in her bag. Directions of feeding these are in the bag with each treat.

Do not feed her any other Food. This is really important as rabbits have a sensitive stomach and cannot throw-up food that does not digest properly.

Smudges Living Space:

Smudge loves to explore, but with exploring comes chewing. Please do not allow her to run loose in a room. She will chew on just about anything, she really likes walls and cables and I cannot afford to replace anything she destroys. Smudge is not allowed to go outdoors as she will run away given the opportunity.

Play Pen:
Her play pen is new to her; I am not sure yet if she can jump out or not, so please do not leave her unattended as she may escape. She can have as much play time in her pen as you are willing to provide, just be sure to place her litter box in the pen along with a water bowl and her various toys found in her bag.

Locking her cage:
Smudge feels the safest in her cage. She is unable to escape her cage, just be sure the clips are closed securely. The top latch can be tricky, be sure to pull the top gate forward so that the gray bars rest under the green tabs and the gray clip is over the rim of the cage. The front gate slides up and is spring loaded, just be sure it is clipped to the gray bar above it.

Cleaning her cage:
Smudges cage is cleaned once a day, in the morning. Cleaning is done as follows:

• Empty purple litter box into the black bag provided.
• Give the litter pan a wipe with the Kleenex provided and refill with new litter.
• Use another Kleenex or two to wipe the other surfaces of her cage and pick up loose hay and pellets.
• Throw all Kleenex and other garbage into black bag and throw out bag.
• Place litter pan back in cage.

Smudges Behaviour:

Smudge is very shy and does not like being held for too long. Please only pick her when needed to transfer her from cage to play pen.

She does like to be petted, just pet her gently from the tip of her nose all the way to her tail; she may even let you gently rub her ears.

Pooping and poop eating: Rabbits continually eat and poop. This is very important to keep them healthy. Eating poop especially at night is a normal behaviour for rabbits and important for them to get all their nutrients. Rabbits must poop all the time, if she does not poop in a 24 hour time period this is considered a medical emergency and she must go to the vet right away.

Smudge Talk:

Squealing or constant thumping: Very scared, rabbits are prone to high stress. If she exhibits any of this behaviour please leave her alone in her cage in a quiet place until she calms down.

Squeaking/growling/whining: She does this when she is feeling threatened. This is usually accompanied by charging and swatting with her front paws. When she exhibits this behaviour please leave her alone. You can watch her and try to get her to play with you, but if the behaviour persists leave her alone in her cage. This may progress to biting. If she is outside of her cage while she is growling and you need to place her back in her cage please wear the gloves provided to pick her up.

Medical Information:

SIGNS OF ALARM – GET TO THE VET IMMEDIATELY

• Not eating, not drinking, not urinating, not pooping
• Lethargy, extremely tired
• Straining to urinate; blood in the urine
• Drinking or urinating too frequently.
• Loss of coordination, head tilt, unable to move properly
• Grinding the teeth (often accompanied by dull eyes and a tight uncomfortable posture) is a sign that your rabbit is in great distress or pain.

ALL of these situations warrant immediate veterinary attention!

If you are unsure call vets name at the Vetrinary Hospital Name and explain the symptoms to her, she will provide advice over the phone and advise if a visit to her office is needed.

As a person who has both sat and hired sitters, I highly advise keeping instructions simple and precise - a sitter is not going to appreciate reading a novel before caring for your pets and mayoverlook critical information. If they have any Q's, they can contact you.

I tried to keep it as short as possible with all the information. It is two and half pages typed.

Unfortunately I do not have Cell Phone Service where I am going so they will not be able to call me.

If you can make suggestions on where I could trim information that would be great.

I think it's great just the way it is. You obviously care very much about your rabbit! I don't think it's too long or too detailed. If it were poorly organised, it may be hard to follow, but the point form and subtitles make it easy to read, easy to follow, and easy to refer to.

I read it over from the view of someone who knows nothing about bunnies, and I think it's perfect.

I am now so nervous about Smudge going to the pet sitters tomorrow. I am currently over prepared with a back-up to the back-up.

Everything written down, but still nervous. I have never left her any where with anyone before.

I can not even think about what I would do with a real kid.

I agree with Pam on keeping it short. I think the segmented categories are good, it keeps everything organized. But I would probably use bullet points instead of sentences. It's more brief, and if the sitter needs to look for a particular piece of info it's easier to scan.

Some of the things like The First Day you can probably tell the sitter in person and just have some really brief bullet points written to remind them of what you already explained. General Information I would probably leave out. Anything that's not direct instructions or important explanation can be cut.

Good luck with your sitter! I always worry about my animals when I go on vacation, but other people are more capable and animals are stronger than you might think. Your rabbit will most likely be just fine, don't forget to enjoy your vacation!

ray:

As a petsitter I like getting written instructions and some of my clients leave a couple pages written out. Most of the instructions I receive are about feeding amounts, times, etc. I would probably suggest putting most of it in bullet form. It makes it easier to go over if she needs to check it. You probably dont' need to add paragraphs about behaviour and living space. Most of that stuff you can tell her in person before. Then just put something in bullet form if you think she might forget.

If you have internet, have your friend post on the RO forum to keep updated. They could post any problems or questions here, and someone could answer from the forum.
Most of the people that I bunnysit for are members here, and I am able tell stories and put up pictures of their bunnies staying at my place.

Well that is it, Smudge made it to the sitters. I was not sure what to go over, so just listed the basics, and left.

She was nervous but not to frightened, no thumping or any noise at all, she just hid in her log hut. ray:

It was awkward because as I was leaving her pet carrier broke, so I ended up keeping her in her huge cage, which then got stuck on the door and made the cage come slightly apart, I fixed it before she could make a break for it outside. Then as I was driving there I noticed my door light was on and sure enough it was the back right one which I could not reach.

The kid seemed a little less attentive, but Dad listened and asked questions, plus everything is written out so I am sure she will be just fine.

She will get a new carrier before I go back to pick her up.

I think I having separation anxiety though, it is so weird being in the living room without her. I think when it because time for her to be spayed I will be a nervous wreck.:rollseyes

Smudge is back from the sitters and in a great mood. She even gave me kisses right away. :bunnyheart

She did great with all the kids and parents and did not bite anyone which is great. Although she was a bit destructive on her cage, I will have to post some pics and see what the best way to fix it would be.

Kat I am so glad Smudge is back and still in one piece.:biggrin:

I know howstressful leaving bunnies can be. When i was married we went away for a couple of nights and had a dog walker come twice a day to see thebunnies.

Unfortunately because I am alone now with 4 bunnies I tend not to go anywhere which really isn't fun for me but I wanted them so I have to take care of themand deal with a boring life. Oh well they give me lots of joy.

I'll just have to find a new man that likes bunnies and knows someone who will bunny sit. lol

Susan

Just wanted to say thanks for posting this. I'm taking my bunnies to a sitter while my family is visiting. I rarely even leave my kid with other people, and she has the ability to ask for things or say, "I don't feel good!" Reading the original post and the suggestions after really helped me think of what to write in my note.

hey this is great! I"m copying it for when I"m gone for my friend who cares for the bunnies if you don't mind!

Not at all.