7 week old baby bunny with runny nose, eyes and rather soft poop

[SnowyShiloh]

Hi everyone! I just picked up my new 7 week old baby bunny from her previous owners a couple hours ago (the owner said she turned 8 weeks today but I found out she was born on November 14th, sounds like 7 weeks to me!). I am SO worried. Her nose is running clear liquid, her eyes are running clear liquid (one more than the other) and her eyelids are red. The liquid isn't so much that it's dripping or anything, but if you touch her lips, your finger gets wet. The owner said her nose wasn't running until we got there, and it's gotten worse over the past couple hours. The owner thinks it's stress related.

Also, the bunny's butt is clean, and she's been pooping lots and peed, but her poops are weird. They look normal at first glance, but if you squeeze them they're fairly soft and they're stinky.

She has a vet appointment scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. I'm so worried because there's clealy something going on, what do you all think? I was planning to bring her on the airplane home to Fairbanks with me on the 14th, but I won't travel with a sick bunny. If the vet thinks she's ill and it isn't something small, I'm going to have to return her to the previous owner! I'm also worried because I know baby bunnies go downhill quickly...

At the moment, she's in a quiet room with the lights dimmed. She hasn't been acting lethargic and has been hopping around and is of course rather scared, considering she was just taken from the only home she's ever known!

Here are some pictures showing the runny nose and one eye. The other eye is weepier, but the liquid is also clear.

What do you guys think? I know we'll be at the vet soon enough, but I am so worried here!

 

[Pipp]

What's her story? Is she part of a litter? Are her previous owners thebreeders? What were they feeding her and where was she housed? Did you see the parents or sibblings?Exactly when did it start?

Stress will indeed do that, so will diet changes and even temperature changes.

The only way to know for sure is to probably do a culture and sensitivity test on her discharge (?) and maybe a fecal test to make sure she's bug free.



sas :?


EDIT: Seven weeks is pretty young to be flying her up to Alaska. (I just read your other post). Not recommending anything, but if it was me, I'd take her back and get a young shelter bun who's already been spayed (a lot cheaper I imagine than spaying in Alaska?) and is healthy. Honestly, a baby bunny on Craigs list will be snapped up in no time, you won't be abandoning her.

EDIT 2: Just pointing out that the cost of the visit AND the tests may make for a big bill and may well take time for results.Seeing as the point of the visitwill be for a health certificate, doubt they'll issue you one without some testing. Highly unlikely they won't be able to sign a document saying she's healthy on speculation alone. You haven't bonded with her, I'd cut your losses and run.

 

[timetowaste]

and here's the poster i was talkin about in your other thread, its sas!

much more experienced than any advice i could ever give out...:X

just kidding!

tracy

 

[Bo B Bunny]

Honestly, I dont' think she'll make the flight if she's even just stressed - it will only get worse.

I would return her to the breeder and tell her that since she's stressing and so young, you can't take her on the flight.

Honestly, I think she looks sick. Had they even weaned her before you took her? Normally breeders wait 8 weeks before letting them go.

She's really cute but I wouldn't chance it.

 

[RAL Rabbitry]

Was she housed in a colder barn at her breeders? It could be the temperature

change of bringing her into a warmer enviroment.

She is a bit young to be flying in the cargo hold. Are you bringing her as carry

on in the cabin of the plane or is she riding in cargo?

Roger

 

[pamnock]

The poops are not abnormal (especially for young Hollands - they are prone to mushier poops).

The clear discharge could just be stress related - especially with her travels and the wild weather changes we've experienced recently. Adding another plane trip could additionally stress her, especially at this young age (in some states, it is illegal to sell such a young bunny).

I doubt that the vet will be able to give you much information as to whether any pathogens are currently involved (if any). I believe you were sold a healthy bunny, however,she is currently under stress that is predisposing her to succumb to possible seriousillness.

Bunnies can easily be weaned very young, but the changes of feed, environment, and exposure to pathogens from a different area can be too much for them. Because young bunnies are so sensitive to stress factors, I'd be highly inclined to returnher rather than subjecting her to more stress at this tender young age.



Pam

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Pipp wrote:

What's her story? Is she part of a litter? Are her previous owners thebreeders? What were they feeding her and where was she housed? Did you see the parents or sibblings?Exactly when did it start?

Stress will indeed do that, so will diet changes and even temperature changes.

The only way to know for sure is to probably do a culture and sensitivity test on her discharge (?) and maybe a fecal test to make sure she's bug free.



sas :?


EDIT: Seven weeks is pretty young to be flying her up to Alaska. (I just read your other post). Not recommending anything, but if it was me, I'd take her back and get a young shelter bun who's already been spayed (a lot cheaper I imagine than spaying in Alaska?) and is healthy. Honestly, a baby bunny on Craigs list will be snapped up in no time, you won't be abandoning her.

EDIT 2: Just pointing out that the cost of the visit AND the tests may make for a big bill and may well take time for results.Seeing as the point of the visitwill be for a health certificate, doubt they'll issue you one without some testing. Highly unlikely they won't be able to sign a document saying she's healthy on speculation alone. You haven't bonded with her, I'd cut your losses and run.

Hi everyone! Thanks for your replies! The breeder had told me she would be 9 weeks old the day after her flight, and I didn't look at the paper she gave me with her birth date until after we had her home. The little one has been eating and drinking well, too.

To answer your questions: The previous owner is a breeder who's been breeding for 25 years. She has 15 rabbits. This baby was one of a litter of 5, the pick of the litter (the breeder had planned to keep her for herself) and all the other babies have been taken home by their new families. She was living outside in a hutch right up until the day before yesterday, when they brought her into the garage/house. So there was indeed a temperature change, yesterday it actually snowed here! I didn't see the parents or siblings (the baby had been brought into the house), but she said the baby had been healthy up until that point and she still believed it was healthy in spite of the runny nose.

The lady was quite thorough telling me what the baby has been fed, and gave me about 4 cups of pellets to feed her over the next few days and as I wean her to a new food in Fairbanks. She also gave me a large bag of orchard grass. The little one has been eagerly chowing down on the pellets and hay. She's also been grooming herself. The food is a blend of Pfaus, Purina Show and Ringmaster foods.

I just went and checked on the baby and guess what! Her eyes and nose are much better! Below her nose is barely noticeably damp and her eyes don't look like they're running and are less red. Her poops are a bit firmer and aren't stinky anymore. How odd! What does that mean?

I whipped out a calendar and the breeder WAS correct about how many weeks old she is. She was born on November 14, a Sunday, and will be 9 weeks and two days old the day of the flight (if she goes with me).

I think I'm still going to take the baby to the vet this afternoon, not really for the health certificate but to see what the vet thinks. The vet is a very cautious, conscientious woman who has been caring for my cockatiels for the past 6 years- she is an awesome doctor, the best in the area, always with the most up to date information and she conveniently has been seeing rabbits for years, too!

My mom and brother have fallen in love with this little bunny and I was talking to them last night about the possibility that I won't be able to take her home. My brother said that he wants to take her if I can't. He used to take care of Cinnabun with me and is a smart guy who would get this baby what she needs.

Also, she would be flying in the cabin with me, I bought a very snazzy soft sided carrier for her yesterday. If the birth date the breeder listed is true, she would be exactly 2 months old on the day of the flight. The flight is four hours long and no connections or anything, thank goodness, so she'd be in the carrier for probably about 7 hours...

I'm not too hopeful that I'll get to keep her at this point, I'll do whatever the vet says. If I can't keep her, I hope at least the vet can tell me whether or not anything the baby has is contagious! If not, I have my eye on a couple mini lops at the Everett shelter and there are lots of older baby bunnies (like around 12 weeks when the pictures were taken, and I've been looking at those pictures for the past 3 weeks or so, who knows how long they've been up) at the shelter in Seattle. I still have time to make another vet appointment for the health certificate for one of them and the flight arrangements have been made.

I want to do whatever is best for this baby, even if it means I don't get to keep her but will be paying for a trip to the vet and meds anyway. I hope at least my brother can keep her (he lives with my mom at the moment but is moving out soon so my mom has final say really). She is the cutest baby bunny I've ever seen.

Thanks for all your help!

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Okay, I talked to my mom and she said no, my brother can't keep the baby bunny. He's 25 years old, but since he'll be living with her for at least a month or so more, what she says goes.

I e-mailed the breeder to explain the situation and asked what she'd like me to do as far as the vet goes. I'm willing to pay for the exam (I mean, I'd like to be re-imbursed if I can't keep her, I'm not rolling in money here but I understand if she isn't willing to pay me back) but I asked her if she would pay me back for any medications the bunny may need or extra testing or what she'd like me to do. The little one will be going back to her breeder this evening if I can't keep her.

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Darn it! The forum isn't letting me edit any of my posts and I noticed that I said I e-mailed the VET. I did not e-mail the vet, I e-mailed the BREEDER. I'm such a dolt! :X

 

[pamnock]

I wouldn't expect the breeder to absorb the cost of the exam.

I think you've done a great job in gathering information and considering your options as well as taking into account what would be best for the rabbit.

I hope everything works out - keep us updated!

Pam

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Pam, I didn't ask the breeder to pay for the exam. I wouldn't mind of course, but I told her I would pay for it. What I did ask her is what she wanted me to do about medications and tests and stuff. If they need to do tests and have me bring her back, I won't be able to since I won't be in possession of the bunny anymore. If the bunny needs medication, I also won't be able to give it to her since I won't be with her. To me it seemed reasonable to ask the breeder if she wants me to get medication for the bunny, and if she does, that I wouldn't have to pay for it. What do you think about her just potentially paying for the medicine?

 

[undergunfire]

I am going to think as if this was me, bringing home 7 week old Brody....

Brody was nervous and scared for a few days. I couldn't imagine putting him on an air plane at such a young age and a bunny that might have never known stress before.




To be honest, I would return her to the breeder. What happens if she goes into stress and shock on the plane? There isn't a vet at the airport.

I traveled with Marlin on the plane, but he was 4 months old at the time and had already traveled in the car a lot since he was 6 weeks old. Marlin did just fine, but at times he did get scared and it worried me.

I worry that your young bunny will go into shock and there won't be anything that you can do because you will be up in the air. Airports are busy and loud and airplanes are loud.


If you do decide to go ahead with it and take her on the plane, then please ask me if you have questions with flying with a bunny in the cabin .

 

[Pipp]

I think what Pam is saying (and it's more correct than my info) is the problem is NOT that the bunny is sick now, it's that she's showing signs of stress now, stressweakens her immune system and she's open to getting sick. Sothe bunny is probably health now, but putting that kind of stress on a baby that age will compromiseher immune system (I think the signs showed that already) and that she's open to getting ill.

They have natural pathogensthat arekept at bay until stress allows them to surface.There are a lot ofstories on the board about Pasturella infections, EC, Syphilis contracted at birth, etc, thatshow up in conjunction with stress or stress from some other stress problemeven years later.

(I'm very tired, I hope I'm making sense!)



sas :?

 

[pamnock]

SnowyShiloh wrote:

What do you think about her just potentially paying for the medicine?

I would return the rabbit to the breeder for them to pursue further action if you think the rabbit needs medical attention.

Pam

 

[timetowaste]

pamnock wrote:

SnowyShiloh wrote:

What do you think about her just potentially paying for the medicine?

I would return the rabbit to the breeder for them to pursue further action if you think the rabbit needs medical attention.

Pam

agreed. i think you know what you have to do at this point. i'm sorry that sucks pretty badly, but, it's not your fault this bunny is stressed out. you don't want to put her health in jeopardy any more by putting her on an airplane to even colder weather in alaska, you know? and i bet vet visits up there are even more expensive than down here in the continental USA.

you haven't bonded with her yet, so i would just suck it up and be brave and at least you know the breeder will take her back and she will have other bunnies to play with for now, and she's adorable....she will be snatched back up, hopefully by someone who loves and knows as much about bunnies as you.

tracy

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Oh, guys... The breeder e-mailed be back and said she'd prefer if I didn't mess with the vet visit and just return her tonight. So that's what I'm going to do. I'm sitting here crying like a baby over it, I feel so dumb! I hope she gets better back at her breeder's house and is later bought by someone who will love her like I would have (and had started to, despite trying not to).

To make matters worse, one of the bunnies I was interested in at the shelter was removed from Petfinder today. Apparently that shelter is high kill and I'm so upset and guilty that she may have been killed but would have been safe with me if this whole thing with the baby bunny hadn't happened!

Do you guys think this baby bunny is stressed or is it something contagious? I ask because tomorrow I'll be heading to the shelter and coming home with another bunny. I don't want to expose her to anything the baby has. The baby hopped around on the carpet a bit, but other than that didn't really touch anything. She WAS in the brand new carrier I bought for the airplane, though. I'll wash the pad that was in it, but do I need to worry about exposing the new bunny to anything?

 

[Bo B Bunny]

Awwww I'm sorry - I think that you are making the right decision for the little one tho.

Tell me - do they not have shelters in Alaska?

I hope you find the perfect friend for Rory.

:hug:

 

[Thumpers_Mom]

Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry about this but I do think you are doing the right thing.

As for her having something contagious...i wouldn't really know but you did mention that her eyes and nose discharge was getting better. It seems that it was stressed induced . She went though a lot. Moved indoors from being outdoors, new people and places...and she is just a wee little baby.

I hope the other bunny did not get killed but please do not blame yourself! You didn't do anything wrong. You are going to the shelter to save a sweet bun tomorrow. You can't save them all. :hug:

 

[Pipp]

Aw, so sorry... but glad to see you looking at shelter bunnies.

It's unlikely she has anything contagious, but I think you can just lightly spray itwith a mild bleach and water solution and that will take care of any problems. (I'd feel more comfortable hearing from others on this, though).

And it's really unlikely the Petfinder bunnies will be put down unless they really have a run on rabbits and they've been there a long time. I'm not sure about Everett, the rescue that JordiWes pointed out would have more info, but most of the time they will go into a rescue before that happens. More often it's the ones the shelterdeems 'unadoptable' because of 'behaviour problems'(like being frightened half to death) that are the most at risk.

I'm really not sure of the situation at that particular shelter. The ones here vary so much from area to area, really hard to say.

But again, being on Petfinder, it'slikelythey're successfully pushing for thatbunny's adoption.

Good luck!



sas :bunnydance:

 

[tundrakatiebean]

:hug:you're doing what you can and that's the most important thing. I know there are plenty of bunnies here in Alaska that need a home too and it would be easier to get them home safely.