Tips for nail clipping, and gender determination?

[mark]

Hello everyone,

Our little 5-month-old dwarf, Kimchi, is a squirrely little bun. She (he?) does not enjoy being picked up or held - in any position. However, she absolutely hates being on her back, which has made it very difficult for us to determine the gender. We say "she" because our friend who gave us the bunny told us that she was a she.

I tried to look today - it definitely looks a little different down there compared to a month or so ago. However, Kimchi is very restless, to the point that I almost don't dare to hold onto her too tightly as I don't want to squeeze her inadvertently and end up hurting her.

However, we do need to trim those nails. They are long and SHARP! I would also love to *** her/him, to know for sure (so I can stop typing and saying, "we think she's a she ..." etc.). As I've said before, we will spay or neuter regardless, whichever turns out to be called for. ;-)

Are there any tips or tricks to this? I recall reading once that someone suggested using a towel when holding them, as you can get a better grip on them (and perhaps they can't shred you with their claws as easily?).

Any thoughts on these two subjects - nail trimming and sexing - in the context of a very restless and adorable little bunny, constantly trying to squirm away, are surely appreciated!

 

[RavenousDragon]

100% honesty, sexing is difficult in the best of buns. I would just let the vet do that one if she's going to be a squirmy muffin. In terms of nail trims, if she doesn't like being on her (his) back, you can do it upright- but it's more difficult. One of my rabbits requires a two person nail trim- one to hold and one to hold/trim. He's quite a squirmer too. (oddly, my female is SUPER easy to trim, I do it by myself all the time.) You might be able to look up how to towel wrap bunnies on YouTube- it really is quite a useful tool.

 

[mark]

Thank you very much, RD! I am glad to hear that our squirmy little bun is not that unusual. I guess if I was, as I heard it put once about the octopus, a "perfect, soft ball of protein running around in a dangerous world full of predators with sharp teeth", I would probably resist being held or picked up too!

And I'd damn well object to someone checking my gender! :roflmao:

Thanks for confirmation on the towel trick, and the two-person nail trim. We will probably do that.

Thanks!

 

[samoth]

My rabbits are rescues, acquired at 1 and 3 years of age. Neither has allowed me to clip more than two nails before making it clear they are not going to allow it to happen. So, unfortunately (for my wallet), I have to drive them to the vet every 2-3 months and pay for a trim.

Hopefully you can work with your young rabbit and get him/her to allow you to trim its nails, as it's much easier (and cheaper) for all parties involved if you can do so yourself. Having another individual hold your rabbit whilst you trim its nails is ideal.

 

[RavenousDragon]

One of mine lets me do it SO easily, I could probably do it blindfolded. The other requires a small army and 86 hours. It's definitely personal for each rabbit I think- and pretty much in no way depends on the owner.

 

[mark]

Thanks guys! My wife and I will tag-team our little 3 lb rabbit for nail trimming

 

[ravenmoore36]

Go to your vet for both. Kimchi will have to be vaci ated and spayed too.

 

[samoth]

Go to your vet for both. Kimchi will have to be vaci ated and spayed too.

Mark looks to be in the US. We don't vaccinate rabbits here... I've heard of a few one-off people who've tried rabies and other vaccines, but they were hard to get, expensive, and generally not something vets will recommend. I'm not even sure whether myxo and RHD vaccinations are approved for use here (though vets have much more leeway with non-FDA approved drugs than medical doctors); however, they're commonly administered (if not required) in the UK and Scandinavian countries.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We had 17 rescues, so I asked one of the vet techs to show me how. My son holds 'em and I clip 'em. We had several large bunnies, so I figured holding trumped the burrito--the Checkered Giant was just under 20 pounds!

 

[mark]

Thanks for the additional replies.

Regarding vaccinations, it was the first thing we asked the vet. They told us that it was not necessary unless our bun would be around livestock. Do I need to press harder for this? Sounds like probably not ... and yes we live in Southern California, USA.

We will try the two-man nail trimming. We're about to move this coming weekend, so we'll probably try in a couple more weeks.

 

[RavenousDragon]

Not in the US, vaccines aren't that important in rabbits. The risk of abscesses and tumors is probably not worth it (again in the US, other places it is DEFINITELY worth it).

 

[samoth]

Regarding vaccinations, it was the first thing we asked the vet. They told us that it was not necessary unless our bun would be around livestock. Do I need to press harder for this? Sounds like probably not ... and yes we live in Southern California, USA.

I've found no FDA-approved vaccinations for rabbits. ARBA seems to confirm this, stating there are no approved vaccinations for rabbits on their site.

I can't speak on anything livestock-related. I'm sure there are some people here who live on farms in the US and might have a better idea. I would think parasites would be a bigger concern on a farm.

 

[ravenmoore36]

Vaccines save lifes in the uk. Mixi and vhd are horrendous diseases. Perhaps rabbit diseases arnt as prevalant in the US. Different enviroments and climates perhaps?

 

[RavenousDragon]

In the US (knocks on wood) we don't have mixi and RHD. The worst we have is Tularemia and Pasturella, but there aren't vaccines for Pasturella and Tularemia is not super common. If he were in the UK, I for sure would be encouraging vaccination for his little one- because I agree. Vaccines are SUPER important for mixi and RHD- and are literal life savers as you said.