new rex has a runny nose

[canela_2004]

I just bought a Rex rabbit from a girl who does 4H and FFA. It is an 8 month old female, and weighs around 7 or 8 pounds. I noticed that she has a kind of runny nose and she sneezed once during the carride home. I cant get her to the vet for at least 2 weeks becuase our vets are swamped since 2 clinics closed down and there is no opening unless it's an emergency. I bought some pellets (the same kind she was eating) to mix with the pellets that I am going to buy her and gave her a handful of hay and 2 baby carrots. She hasnt eaten anything yet and is mostly sniffing, digging and laying around her cage. anyway, any suggestions for the runny nose? any other bunny suggestions are welcome also. Thanks and God bless!

 

[m.e.]

I responded to your post on GCM

:welcome1

 

[JimD]

Hi canela.
Welcome!!!!

I guess my first question would be...Is the fluid coming from her nose clear or colored/milky/opaque?

~Jim

 

[naturestee]

Is her hay dusty, or was she kept in a dusty environment? Some rabbits have allergies, although it's always best to have the vet check her once you can get an appointment.

 

[canela_2004]

well, when i saw the stuff it was yellowish. but she sneezed one more time and no more came out. also, its not running anymore which is weird... but the hay shouldnt be dusty, it is just a small bale (the kind you buy at Petsmart) and the pellets are fresh as well. thanks for the welcomes and the replies!

 

[JimD]

The yellowish discharge concerns me and might be something that the vet should check out. If it continues or gets worse, I would plan a vet visit.

I have a few buns that are sensitive to hay and pellet dust. One of them (Benji),has a very bad reaction resulting in runny nose & eyes as well as frequent sneezing. I spent a considerable amount of money at the vet before narrowing it down to being an allergy or reaction to the dust.

I buy 6 lbs bales of Kaytee timothy hay at Pet Goods, but even the small bags can be quite dusty. I make sure that Benji gets the first handfuls off the top each time and I try to shake out as much dust as I can.

Pellets only tend to get dusty towards the bottom of the bag. If I notice them starting to get dusty, I use a sifting bowl to help sift out the dust before serving. I buy 25 lb bags so it takes a week or two to get down to the dust. Ususally I end up just throwing out the last of the bag and buy fresh.

I even have to be careful running the vac in the bunnie room, because of the stuff it stirs up.

I also hve an air filter running constantly in the bun room to help.

~Jim

 

[naturestee]

Kaytee hay is, so far, the most dusty stuff I've come across, so it might be irritating your bun's nose. I've had much better experiences with Oxbow and with fresh farmer hay. If you see the bun sneezing again, you might try that.

My bun Loki gets runny eyes from pellet dust, so I sift it out of the pellets for him. His eyes had clear/watery discharge though, mainly normal tears.

 

[JimD]

naturestee wrote:

Kaytee hay is, so far, the most dusty stuff I've come across, so it might be irritating your bun's nose. I've had much better experiences with Oxbow and with fresh farmer hay. If you see the bun sneezing again, you might try that.

Yeppers. It's kind of frustrating. Kaytee's problem is consistently providing the same quality hay . They did start putting date codes on each bag so if I find a nice bag I can search through the bag to find ones from the same cut.

I've gotten VERY nice bags from Kaytee, however (as is with the one I just finished) some bags you end up with a couple of inches of chaff at the bottom. The guys at Pet Goods are really patient with me going through all the bags, opening them up, smelling the hay, sticking my hand in the bags, shaking the bags, etc. I'm there every week so they've gotten to know me and why I do this.

I getting ready to start ordering Oxbow. Even with the shipping it comes out to about half of the price of Kaytee.

I'd LOVE some fresh farm stuff, but the closest place would be several hours away in Creamridge, NJ (where Buck got his from).

~Jim

 

[JimD]

naturestee wrote:

My bun Loki gets runny eyes from pellet dust, so I sift it out of the pellets for him. His eyes had clear/watery discharge though, mainly normal tears.

Same as Benji.

 

[canela_2004]

the only fresh hay i can buy is alfalfa. i heard that is not the best for rabbits. if i wnt timothy or another kind of hay besides alfalfa i have to buy the mini bales at petsmart. the feed store carries timothy hay but its the same Kaytee stuff i can get a t petsmart and walmart and the bales are really dusty and old looking.

 

[JimD]

naturestee wrote:

I've had much better experiences with Oxbow and with fresh farmer hay. If you see the bun sneezing again, you might try that.

After reasearching, I found that I can order directly from Oxbow and end up paying a lot less that buying from the Pet Goods. That's even including the shipping costs.

I can order a 50 lb box of Oxbow for a total of approx $60.
6 lbs of Kaytee costs me $14.99 :shock:....maybe $12 if it's on sale.

Now I just have to DO IT!!

~Jim