Sudden death in rabbits

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Out of this world bunnies

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my French lop/Cali mix doe recently passed of unknown causes it was early morning and it wasn’t hot I was going out to feed her and my NZ buck and I see her dead still locked up in her cage all the locks were secure and she had blood all over her muzzle and her head was in a puddle of blood. I have no clue what happened to her she didn’t have any health problems as far as I know
 
Could an animal have gotten hold of her nose/head through the bars, or a smaller animal gotten into her cage(rat, snake, weasel)? If there are no signs of facial/head injury but the blood is coming from the nose/mouth, are you located somewhere affected by RHD?
 
She could have been trying to get out rence the blood and she could have had a heat stoke and a twisted stomach that's what one of my rabbits had
 
Crows and other birds can be bad for pecking animals through cages.
 
And I am sorry this is unrealated but my iPad is being weird and won’t let me go on the forums to post a thread but my standard chinchilla female just gave birth today and I didn’t know she was pregnant she has 2 healthy babies and had 2 stillborn which I already removed and buried any advice? This is my first litter and idk why she hasn’t fed them yet is that normal?
 
And I am sorry this is unrealated but my iPad is being weird and won’t let me go on the forums to post a thread but my standard chinchilla female just gave birth today and I didn’t know she was pregnant she has 2 healthy babies and had 2 stillborn which I already removed and buried any advice? This is my first litter and idk why she hasn’t fed them yet is that normal?

Yes. It can take up to 48h (rare, 12-24h are more normal) until he milk drops, and some does wont go near the nest or nurse if there's someone around. Check that the kits are cozy, warm and dry, in a nest of hay, and embedded/well covered with fur. Give the doe some rest and privacy, and feed her well, they eat a lot more when nursing.

Should be unnessecary to say that - but first remove any buck if there is one!
 
Yes. It can take up to 48h (rare, 12-24h are more normal) until he milk drops, and some does wont go near the nest or nurse if there's someone around. Check that the kits are cozy, warm and dry, in a nest of hay, and embedded/well covered with fur. Give the doe some rest and privacy, and feed her well, they eat a lot more when nursing.

Should be unnessecary to say that - but first remove any buck if there is one!
i wanted to update you since you did try to help! the 2 babies i mentioned are doing fine and are now 16 days old! they are both very healthy :)marstar.PNG jupiboopi.PNG
 
I am so sorry for your loss and I am not trying to be mean now but this is an example of why. Rabbits should not be kept outdoors. You lose control of your rabbit for many hours of the day and we know they are prey animals. Other predators could have tried to get your bunny with no success but injury did occur.
 
Is it possible a cat may have reached inside to claw at it?
I know this is pretty late but... I do have a cat who does go in the yard near them. But I had a tarp over the cage and it was windy and it got blown up early in the morning and I didn't see her anywhere near my bunny cage she knows to stay away cause if she comes near them at ALL I immediately tell her off. Plus the bars were too small for a cat paw to reach through.
 
I am so sorry for your loss and I am not trying to be mean now but this is an example of why. Rabbits should not be kept outdoors. You lose control of your rabbit for many hours of the day and we know they are prey animals. Other predators could have tried to get your bunny with no success but injury did occur.
I know you are trying not to upset me and I fully respect that, but there are some situations where people, unfortunately, can't have rabbits indoors. I do have one rabbit housed inside which is my breeding female because that is the only environment she has ever known, my two bucks have only known outside except for when I bring them in for a cuddle. My female shouldn't even inside cause my landlord says "NO PETS" but has kindly let me get Ducks, A dog, 15 cats at once, and rabbits. I wish I could even house them in a barn of some sort but am not able.
 
Really sorry to read this. Are you aware of RVHD2? It is present all over Europe and we have vaccine here to protect our rabbits. It has also been identified in Canada and the USA. Canada has imported French vaccine but as yet the US hasn't. However the HRS in Ohio cancelled its midwest bunfest scheduled for this weekend because of deaths in the area. There is information about the disease on our website, specifically in Blog posts but also in the Health section. Here are search results. https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/?s=rvhd2 In short it is highly contagious and infectious. Think of a way any disease can be spread and you have found a route for this disease. There are generally no visible symptoms at all, rabbits are simply found dead although some will be a bit off colour for a few hours beforehand and a few will have seizures very close to the end. Generally there is no blood to be seen from orifices. The virus can survive in the environment (outside of a rabbit's body) for up to a year and presumably has crossed the Atlantic on somebody's clothes or shoes then spread across the continent

It would be great if the US authorities would allow vaccine to be imported. If they won't the pet rabbit population in the US and other parts of the Americas are in extreme danger.
 
Was the bun laying by the side of the cage? I know raccoons will reach into pheasant cages to try to pull them out thru the slits. Any fur attached to the side of the cage?

I am so sorry for you loss. I’d be totally heartbroken.
 
my French lop/Cali mix doe recently passed of unknown causes it was early morning and it wasn’t hot I was going out to feed her and my NZ buck and I see her dead still locked up in her cage all the locks were secure and she had blood all over her muzzle and her head was in a puddle of blood. I have no clue what happened to her she didn’t have any health problems as far as I know
condolences,-prey animals kept outside are subject to the environment and predators.--something ie raccoon,cat,etc-??reached in and caught her head--I am sorry to say--sincerely james waller for joseph r cottontail rip
 

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