Howdy bun friends!
At the risk of being controversial, I want to discuss what I call the "over-vetting" of our house rabbits. Clearly, I am not a veterinarian and I do not argue against getting vet care for pets in need of treatment...please take this post in context, I do have a wonderful vet myself. What I am saying is, I see folks running their rabbits to the vet at the first sign of an issue being given caustic medicines that are so hard on the digestive system and then causing further harm and needing yet more treatment. It is a vicious cycle. My mom took in a foster rabbit in just such a situation. She had e. cuniculi, like so many other rabbits. The vet she had seen had her on 3-4 different meds and her poops were just awful. My mom took her off every last one. Granted this bunny was a compromised little gal, but rather than tear her down with pharmaceuticals my mom worked to build her up with herbals. So, her last year of life she was pooping much better and alert and eating regularly. This can't be every case, there are absolute times when meds are a necessity-I am a staunch supporter of pain management for instance, but, you don't need to medicate every issue your bun has. I have a rule at my house-we medicate bacterial infections only, virals we treat the immune system with herbs to help support and we treat the environment to keep things from growing. We also treat the spirit. Spirits up, they are more apt to fight.
It is that urge to run to the vet and follow whatever they say that is my pet peeve. Ultimately our pets care is our responsibility and we (as pet parents) should be a partner in care with the vets, not hoist the responsibility on them and, to be honest, not all vets are created equal. You absolutely Must stop, look, listen and use your intuition. If it doesn't feel right-walk out. You are Not required to get care. Don't be bullied-you are the consumer. I am so lucky to have the quality caregivers I have for my pets. I do 100% trust them, but, I still research stuff and offer what I can depending upon the situation. Granted it isn't always possible. I had a rabbit with an eye issue and I had nothing to add, I had no idea what it was...turned out to be a rare genetic thing.
In our house when a bun seems a little under the weather my very first course of action is to go outside and cut some blackberry branches to offer. This enticement alone has kick-started a rabbits appetite. My other favorite is lavender essential oil-anytime I wish to calm, keep infection from taking hold or starting I drip a few drops on a cloth and put it down for them to access. I had a rabbit choke (I will post on this topic soon) and was afraid of the potential for pneumonia so I made sure there was a lavender diffuser close by. Manuka Honey is my favorite wound care! This stuff is magic and should be in all emergency kits! I had a self mutilating bunny (she ate her foot to the bone 3 toes gone!) and this stuff saved her foot from infection! I will say I was in constant contact with my vet over the course of my care for this situation. I credit it with her not losing her life to a blood or bone infection. I also use chamomile as an eye treatment. There are so many more, these are my most used.
There are a few sites I go to that have a great list of herbs and the uses for rabbits. I will post them under "links" on the main website. One thing, the sites are breeder sites. just move past it, the information is solid and has really been helpful to me at odd hours with an uncomfortable bun...I was able to alleviate the discomfort.
Again, I welcome your input. Not everyone will agree with my methods, that is okay. I will try and put a link button here with the websites I mentioned.
All my best!
Erin
At the risk of being controversial, I want to discuss what I call the "over-vetting" of our house rabbits. Clearly, I am not a veterinarian and I do not argue against getting vet care for pets in need of treatment...please take this post in context, I do have a wonderful vet myself. What I am saying is, I see folks running their rabbits to the vet at the first sign of an issue being given caustic medicines that are so hard on the digestive system and then causing further harm and needing yet more treatment. It is a vicious cycle. My mom took in a foster rabbit in just such a situation. She had e. cuniculi, like so many other rabbits. The vet she had seen had her on 3-4 different meds and her poops were just awful. My mom took her off every last one. Granted this bunny was a compromised little gal, but rather than tear her down with pharmaceuticals my mom worked to build her up with herbals. So, her last year of life she was pooping much better and alert and eating regularly. This can't be every case, there are absolute times when meds are a necessity-I am a staunch supporter of pain management for instance, but, you don't need to medicate every issue your bun has. I have a rule at my house-we medicate bacterial infections only, virals we treat the immune system with herbs to help support and we treat the environment to keep things from growing. We also treat the spirit. Spirits up, they are more apt to fight.
It is that urge to run to the vet and follow whatever they say that is my pet peeve. Ultimately our pets care is our responsibility and we (as pet parents) should be a partner in care with the vets, not hoist the responsibility on them and, to be honest, not all vets are created equal. You absolutely Must stop, look, listen and use your intuition. If it doesn't feel right-walk out. You are Not required to get care. Don't be bullied-you are the consumer. I am so lucky to have the quality caregivers I have for my pets. I do 100% trust them, but, I still research stuff and offer what I can depending upon the situation. Granted it isn't always possible. I had a rabbit with an eye issue and I had nothing to add, I had no idea what it was...turned out to be a rare genetic thing.
In our house when a bun seems a little under the weather my very first course of action is to go outside and cut some blackberry branches to offer. This enticement alone has kick-started a rabbits appetite. My other favorite is lavender essential oil-anytime I wish to calm, keep infection from taking hold or starting I drip a few drops on a cloth and put it down for them to access. I had a rabbit choke (I will post on this topic soon) and was afraid of the potential for pneumonia so I made sure there was a lavender diffuser close by. Manuka Honey is my favorite wound care! This stuff is magic and should be in all emergency kits! I had a self mutilating bunny (she ate her foot to the bone 3 toes gone!) and this stuff saved her foot from infection! I will say I was in constant contact with my vet over the course of my care for this situation. I credit it with her not losing her life to a blood or bone infection. I also use chamomile as an eye treatment. There are so many more, these are my most used.
There are a few sites I go to that have a great list of herbs and the uses for rabbits. I will post them under "links" on the main website. One thing, the sites are breeder sites. just move past it, the information is solid and has really been helpful to me at odd hours with an uncomfortable bun...I was able to alleviate the discomfort.
Again, I welcome your input. Not everyone will agree with my methods, that is okay. I will try and put a link button here with the websites I mentioned.
All my best!
Erin