I need encouragement for new rabbits and problems

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C

Colorqueen

Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2010
Messages
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Location
Rochester, New York, USA
Hi,
I am new here, and need some encouragement.

We had two angora bunnies given to us :shock: and one of them was in pretty rough shape when we got him. I have spent two weeks reading up and learning them, and getting them going, but my husband has been out of work for most of two years.

We love these bunnies, but it would be so much easier to let them play together if they were neutered. They are not. They live in separate cages in the house in a nice area we set up for them.

We are not able to afford anything big- just buying a few supplies and food exhausted our financial abilities.

These bunnies needed homes desperately as the owner had a severe life change happen unexpectedly. We know what kind of care angoras need, and have committed to brushing and caring for them.

The issue of neutering has left me in tears sometimes as it makes things a bit difficult. I have looked for neuter clinics in our area, but have not found anything for rabbits. I am pretty discouraged lately. :(

I guess I am just hoping for some encouragement- no discouraging news please, I have enough of that to deal with right now. In a perfect situation, we could do everything just so, but for now, at least we have rescued these rabbits and are taking care of them instead of letting them be neglected or even die.

These are two angoras- one is English and the other is German. Both have been trimmed way down- the English is in rough shape with dandruff, but I have been combing him and he is bouncing back some. I know I will have to deal with the possibility of fur mites too.. possibly ear mites due to lots of scratching.

Is there anything reasonable in cost I can do for ear and/or fur mites that won't hurt the rabbits?:pray::pray::pray:

Thank you for any encouragement you can give.
:)


 
You can give ivermectin orally, sub-cutaneously (if you have experience doing that kind of injection) or topically. This can be found at the feed store for a low price.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/furmite/fur_mite.htm

The easiest way would be to get a smaller tube of the oral paste form of ivermectin and give that. Massage the tube very well before dosing to mix up the stuff inside. Sometimes the medicine is not evenly distributed within the tube but it doesn't matter for larger animals because the entire tube is used for a single dose. If you are only giving a small part of the tube as the dose, they may get an area of locally high or low concentration of the drug.

I would use clippers to trim them all the way down if possible, and only allow them to grow fur once the mites are under control. Since they're inside, you can keep them warm without their coats. Sometimes skin infections and the sort can just get stuck in the coat, especially if the skin gets wet and doesn't get to dry, and that can cause dandruff sometimes too.

Neutering can be done cheaply at some humane societies, so you may want to look into that.
 
The right dosage will be here: put in your rabbit's weight and find ivermectin on the list.
http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rx/drugcalc.html
A 5 lb rabbit will need 0.75mg of ivermectin. You'll have to find the dose of the paste--it will be written as mg/mL, I think. It will be on the side of the tube. A product that is ivermectin for goats or horses, to be given orally, will be what you want. Once you figure out how much the rabbit needs in mg, you have to divide it by the concentration of the paste (in mg/mL) to see how many mL you need to give. You can draw that into a feeding syringe with mL marks on the side and use that to give it to the bunny.
 
Angoras need lots of hay. If there is a horse stable or feed store near you, you can get a bale of timothy or grass hay for about $5-10. This is much cheaper than pet store hay and allows you to give more without worrying about the cost.
As far a pellets, you want at least 16% protein. I don't know what brands are near you, so I can't help with that. Ask the people at a feed store what they have and look at the ingredients. You may need to try some different feeds to find what works for them. A 50 pound bag usually costs about $15-20 and would last about 4-6 months depending on how much you feed.
I give my angoras 1/2 per day along with lots of hay and some veggies. Both of them do well on this and grow nice coats.
 
I agree with doing the Ivermectin as they may have wool/fur mites. I would also put a drop or two of olive oil in their ears once a day for a week (use a cotton ball once a day just before putting in the oil to clean the ear- just as far as you can see) if you suspect ear mites. This is a simple home remedy that I have had success with. I would use either electric clippers (or scissors if you are careful) to shave them down as much as possible- this will make it easier to establish if the wool mites are gone and condition. I recommend Purina Rabbit Chow Complete (I have had great success with my angoras on it- even during times of not feeding much hay).

Check to see if there is a local rabbit rescue organization in your state/area- sometimes they will help with spay/neuter costs. Are they male or female?
 
I'm not a fan of the olive oil treatment although many swear by it. Although the oil can indeed "drown" the mites, it can also trap bacteria in the ears by the same mechanism. Unfortunately the bacteria continue to live when trapped under oil, and can lead to an infection.
 
I have a couple of little tips for the cash strapped pet owner..

The local Humane Society has helped me in the past to spay my cats. I called them and they did a phone interview about my finances (I was in college and not working much). When I was approved, they gave me a list of vets and a voucher to pay. My contribution was $5 for one cat and then $20 for the other two.

And as for clipping.. I had to "do it yourself" for my cats this summer. Honestly, it wasn't pretty but it was effective from a functional point of view. I just used scissors and worked my way around slowly and carefully. They trust me implicitly so they didn't fuss much.

And I agree with the horse hay suggestion. I went out to a boarding barn (I called first)to buy a couple hay flakes and the owner just gave me half a bale for free. I tried to pay him but he refused. He was super nice and totally helpful; people who love animals like to help each other out.

Also when you go to the farm supply store, just get the gigantic 40 pound bag of shavings. It's about $6, but you get so much more for the money. I use it in both my rabbits and my cats litterbox.
 
Instead of buying veggies, you can pick them! Wild rabbit food grows all around, along the roadside, in empty lots etc. I even pick much of mine in the school's front lawn!

Just be sure they haven't sprayed any pesticides on them. If you are on Facebook, let me know. I have pictures and descriptions of the weeds I feed my Hershey! Or I can email them to you too if you want.

Also talk to the produce manager at your local grocery store. They often have a lot of produce that they don't want to sell but is fine for the bunnies and they will give it to you for free.
 
Revolution, for cats, can also be used to clear up the mite problem.

Just Revolution, no other brand. The other brands have ingredients that
will kill rabbits.
 
dont wanna pick greens off the side of the road, car junk and debris can polute it.

good luck and congrats on the new members, sounds like your doing great so far
 
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