Massage and Herbs

[MyBabyBunnies]

I was searching good rabbits books and Istumbles across'The Relaxed Rabbit:Massage for Your PetBunny' so I was wondering if anyone's ever tried massage on rabbitsand how it worked out with the rabbit.

I've seen massages done on horses and I know it did wonders for themand I'm assuming it would be very good for a bunny and bonding!

Another question I have is how many people have tried alternativemethods to healthy common ailments? When I mean alternative methods Imean herbal remedies. I happened to stumble across a site withdifferent herbs and what they can help with (in relation to rabbitsspecifically) and thought it might be worth looking into!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

A friend of mine has seen a demonstration of thebunny massage and she said it is very good for them. I dotend to do a bit of massage on Bo when I am holding him and pettinghim. He loves to have me gently rub either side of his spinewith the very tips of my fingers, all the way from his neck to histail. He ends up stretching completely out and purring

My family has a horse chiropractor It does help!

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I learned a few basic massages for horses which Ihave applied to my bunnies and they seem to love it (Mocha really likesit!). Generally I just use my pointer and my middle finger to gentlymassage in circles down the spine.

I stumbled across this book and I'm thinking it might be worth looking into!

http://www.beal-net.com/laluna/relaxedrabbit.html

 

[Bo B Bunny]

I might have to pick that up also. I have seen obvious relaxation in Bo when he is being massaged.

 

[m.e.]

I haven't tried any natural remedies on thebunnies yet (haven't needed to, thank goodness), but I have used themwith great success in the kitties. I got the book Veterinarian'sGuide to Natural Remedies for Cats for Christmas and it has beenvery helpful. Supplementing it with my own research, my medicinecabinet now includes:

- Rescue Remedy, a flower essence and stress reliever (safe for petsand people). When my cat, who has a stress-induced heart murmur, wasgoing in for her spay operation, I gave her a couple drops under thetongue, and rubbed a drop into each front paw pad and behind her ears.She sailed through surgery and the staff said she was very calm andrelaxed.

- Arnica, a flower and treatment for injuries. I have it in both pilland oil form. As a pill, it's good for any major or minor injuries, asit controls pain and shock in animals. I picked it up after our kittentook a six-foot tumble from a closet top. The soreness in her jaw andfront end was relieved dramatically. I also gave this to Scully afterher surgery, and she was active, eating, and playing the verynight she came home from the hospital :shock:. As an oil, I use it morefor the non-furry family members . It's not for open wounds, butrather to be rubbed into bumps and bruises. Worked great on the shinermy lil' bro got the other day.


That's all for now, though I probably will aquire more as my researchcontinues. I do know that both these natural remedies are safe forbunnies .

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Cool! Would have helped to know the 'RescueRemedy' (you by chance read any of the Heartland book series?lol) when Spice was stressing outside in the garagethis week!

I found this site with some information on different herbs:

http://www.healthypetcorner.com/rabbit.html

 

[m.e.]

Heartland books. . .? Nope, 'fraid not :?

Thanks for the link!

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

lol, just curious! It's a kids seriesabouta rescue farm that rescues horses. Manytimesin those books they refer to the Rescue Remedy and that it calmsnervousness. I just passed thoseremedies off, but I guessthey really do exist!

 

[m.e.]

Yes, and for anyone else who's curious, here it is:

Bach Flower Essence's Rescue Remedy

(it also comes in a spray and cream form)

A natural pharmacy recently opened near us and I've been spending a lotof time there. That's where I got this and the Arnica; for some of thevitamin supplements and other things for the cats, I have orderedonline.

 

[m.e.]

And as far as the massages, I'll have to checkthat book out! I have done massage with the cats (really, they're justthe guinea pigs for anything I do on the bunnies ) and it worked outwonderfully.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

m.e. wrote:

Yes, and for anyone else who's curious, here it is:

Bach Flower Essence's Rescue Remedy

(it also comes in a spray and cream form)

A natural pharmacy recently opened near us and I've been spending a lotof time there. That's where I got this and the Arnica; for some of thevitamin supplements and other things for the cats, I have orderedonline.

I'll have to check it out!

There's a few stores around here that you can buy your horses bridle atthe same place as your tooth paste! They also sell things like petmedications (lower doses of human medications) so I'm sure some arebound to have stuff like that.

I'm glad the massaging seems to work! I really hope it ill bond me and Spice more.

 

[ariel]

ok Pardon my ignorance, but that link haddandelion, now what we call dandelions here are a weed, can someonepost a pic of one please??
I read somewhere in here that you canbuy them from the market, I'll have to look , (yet another thing to askthe vet, gawsh I can see me now with a long list and writting down theanswers LOL)

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Dandelions are weeds and that's the only dandelions I know!

You can buy dandelion greens in stores. We actually grow dandelions in the summer, lmao.

 

[Carolyn]

Hi Laura,

Massage helped Tucker a great deal when he was going through his GIStasis. It's also very helpful for aches and pains as they get older.

A professional massage is something everyone should have so that you can experience what it's like when it's done right.

Your muscles are like uncooked spaghetti. When you get all tensed up,they entangle and become knotted as if spaghetti has been cooked. Agood massage can help to untangle that mess.

Can't see how that wouldn't help for any creature great and small.



-Carolyn

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Thanks Carolyn,

I think I'm going to look for that book then because I don't reallyknow the crucial areas to massage or how to do it. Plus it will be somereading to keep my mind sharp. I'm also going to look for 'RabbitHealth in the 21st Century'. But one question, where did you guyslook for books like this? Would a normal bookstore have them? (Chaptersis a rather large bookstore in Canada so it might be worthlooking there!)

 

[Buck Jones]

ariel wrote:

okPardon my ignorance, but that link had dandelion, now what we calldandelions here are a weed, can someone post a pic of one please??
I read somewhere in here that you can buy them from the market, I'llhave to look , (yet another thing to ask the vet, gawsh I can see menow with a long list and writting down the answers LOL)

It is considered a weed by some and a healthy addition to anyone(bun)'sdiet by others. We enjoy them in salad or sauted lightly inoil.

Buck

 

[LuvaBun]

I have massaged both Pernod and perry, and theylove it. It was the only way I could get near Perry to start with, ashe didn't like being petted. Now he lets me do both, though he reallyhunkers down for a massage. I believe Gabby massages Brice for his headtiltproblems.- Jan

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Yippee! I found a store about 20 minutes away that carries the Bach Flower Herbal Remedies!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

Don't feed your bunny dandelion stems..... the milk in them is poisonous from what I have read.

 

[AnnaS]

My mom was petting our bunny and gave him agentle massage, he loved it, he closed his eyes and was attached to herfor half an hour.