Preventional drugs and cleaning

[Karolina]

Hello,
I would like to ask if and what preventive drugs do you use in your rabbitries? I was informed that it is best to:
fenbednazol every 6msc
toltrazuril every 5 msc- 3 days- 5 days break-3 days
Do you use toltrazuril to prevent coccidiosis and at what age in baby rabbits?
How often do you disinfect the cages?

 

[Preitler]

I do not give any medication without a clear reason.

There are pellets available here that have a cocciostatica mixed in, reading up on it makes clear why. It's an antibiotic that does a pretty poor job at that task because it creates resistent strains rather quickly - but it absolutly boosts meat growth, so much that it outweights the higher kit mortality... - No, thanks, that's the worst commercial meat industry has to offer.

Also, I use the wasted grass and hay and manure in my vegetable garden, it do not want any chemicals there.

When I have surplus I do feed chives and some onion greens now and then as a cocci and worm preventative, but I never had any problems even without that. They have access to plants that are on quite some toxic lists, they grew up with that and know what they need and what they can stomach, and what is better left alone.

I use wood hutches woth wood slat floors, and I don't desinfect those, would be a pretty difficult and pointless task if there isn't a very specific reason (like after that Myxo outbreak). I keep them reasonable clean but most times wasted hay and grass builds up for some days, They spend the days outside in the garden anyway, there's nothing in the hutches that isn't outside too.

Rabbits evolved here in Europe, if it is not bred out of them by keeping them in an sterile environment and dosing with medication for generations IMHO they can deal with what is around here. And I don't breed rabbits that can't. Health always was a main breeding goal on farms, little compromises were made for breed standards or cute traits.

 

[Karolina]

I do not give any medication without a clear reason.

There are pellets available here that have a cocciostatica mixed in, reading up on it makes clear why. It's an antibiotic that does a pretty poor job at that task because it creates resistent strains rather quickly - but it absolutly boosts meat growth, so much that it outweights the higher kit mortality... - No, thanks, that's the worst commercial meat industry has to offer.

Also, I use the wasted grass and hay and manure in my vegetable garden, it do not want any chemicals there.

When I have surplus I do feed chives and some onion greens now and then as a cocci and worm preventative, but I never had any problems even without that. They have access to plants that are on quite some toxic lists, they grew up with that and know what they need and what they can stomach, and what is better left alone.

I use wood hutches woth wood slat floors, and I don't desinfect those, would be a pretty difficult and pointless task if there isn't a very specific reason (like after that Myxo outbreak). I keep them reasonable clean but most times wasted hay and grass builds up for some days, They spend the days outside in the garden anyway, there's nothing in the hutches that isn't outside too.

Rabbits evolved here in Europe, if it is not bred out of them by keeping them in an sterile environment and dosing with medication for generations IMHO they can deal with what is around here. And I don't breed rabbits that can't. Health always was a main breeding goal on farms, little compromises were made for breed standards or cute traits.

I bought 2 rabbits mini lop, after 2 weeks it turned out they have coccidiosis. The rabbitry owner told me that this is normal in rabbits. She also said that I should give them toltrazuril every 5months to pretend the invasion because they will have this to the end of live. I am starting my adventure with rabbits that's why I am asking. It is easy to cheat on me now. She said that all of rabbitries have this. May be I should get rid of these sick rabbits?

 

[Preitler]

Are they even sick?

You know, "healthy" just means "not examined enough". If you think they actually are sick, treating them now is an option. At that age a lot of changes happen, along with the changing homes and social environment. This can cause some level of stress that might give bugs a foothold to get plentifull enough to show up on a test.
If the treatment is really safe (others have to comment on what and how since I don't have experience with it), no harm done.

Personally, if there are no symptoms and they eat, poop, and behave normal, I just would wait a some more weeks or months and see if it has cleared up. I would test then again anyway, treatment or not, if you're really worried about that.
But I would not put a rabbit on lifetime drugs just in case even if I don't breed it, since it can mask immune system deficiencies, not to talk about side effects. I would stay clear from a rabbitry claiming to be cocci-free because of preventive treatment, that would ring so many alarm bells.

I'm sure my rabbits come in contact with cocci now and then, even if other critters like birds don't get sick of the Eimeria strain I'm sure some can still spread it. It's out there, always was.
If a rabbit gets sick, treat it. This does happen, and there can be causes giving the bugs a chance to get a foot in the door, like it is every time we ourselfs get an infection. There's a reason pathogenes survive, it's always the hosts a small step back in this arnms race.
If the rabbit is not sick in any way, I (this is just my personal opinion) do not treat it. There's no such thing like a free lunch, I'm more worried about side effects.

As I tried to point out, I'm very sceptical about the promises of some sorts of medicine that brings profit to those recommending it, is done out of habit, or "just in case". Or at least try to apply common sense.