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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Caring for a Strayed Domestic

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    • SpottyBunny
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        What a crazy 24 hours it’s been!

         Yesterday afternoon, I did something unusual and decided to go for a walk around the neighbourhood on my break.  At the end of my walk, I noticed a man sic his dog on something in the distance.  As I approached, I noticed that the dog was going after a white bunny with brown ears.  My first thought was that the rabbit was not wild, and someone must have left it loose.  I walked over and calmly picked it up.  The rabbit didn’t squirm or try to take off.  I looked down to see that he or she was missing a big patch of fur on the right leg, and its belly was covered in urine burn.  We have a guinea pig at work, so it was easy to get a box, some shavings, some hay, and a spare bottle of water for the stray. 

         As I set the rabbit down, I noticed that it had green and blue pee.  The bunny flopped on its side and kicked out it feet as soon as it got in. 

         I took a picture and quickly shot it off to my mom and my sister (the rabbit expert in my family).  Then, I found a moment to Google a vet in my area that would care for this rabbit asap.  There was no way I would introduce it to my healthy female at home.  I arranged to get off work earlier and drove there quickly.

        The vet determined that our misfit is a sexually mature buck– likely someone’s Easter cast off at this rate.  He’s got fleas, urine burn, and a bladder infection.  On the plus side, he weighs in at a healthy 3.7 lbs and has a good heart, temp, and lungs.  The vet gave him a shot of Baytril and a shot of vitamin B, as well as some Revolution for the fleas.  He recommended a bath with a small amount of water and gentle shampoo, or a wash cloth.  He’s also on 0.5ml of Baytril (oral) 2x a day for a week.  Once that’s cleared and he’s in good health, we can go ahead with a neuter.  For now, he stays far away from my doe. 

         As I got the box back to my car, I realized that I had no permanent cage for him.  I drove to my parents’ house an hour away to grab an old guinea pig cage.  It wasn’t perfect, but it would do for now. 

         When I got home, my parents immediately came to the car.  My mom picked him up and snuggled with him.  My dad stroked his face.  They were as smitten as I was.  My parents wanted to bathe him, so we filled up the sink with a 1/2″ of warm water and a bit of gentle shampoo just to wash his belly and legs.  NoteHe had fleas, his feet had a speck of every colour of the rainbow, and he was bright yellow on the underside.  While I wouldn’t normally bathe a rabbit, I followed the vet’s recommendation.  After the bath, we made him into a bunny burrito and he fell asleep in the towel in our arms.  He must have been exhausted.

         I put him in the cage in the passenger seat of my car.  As we drove, he periscoped and craned his neck the entire way to get a better view of the trees out the driver side window.  Then, he settled in nicely for the night.

        This morning, I noticed that he was passing stools and urine just fine. I walked in to find him doing this:

        (I noticed the dirt on the edges of the cage in this picture and immediately cleaned everything.  Sorry!  )

         I gave him Baytril.  He wanted to come out and explore the room, so I let him.  I sat down cross-legged, and he ran in circles around me.  As I reached down to get something, he came over and licked my cheeks, then he sat down and groomed himself.  His behaviour shows me he’s feeling safe and secure.

         As of now, the urine burn on his legs is lessening.  It’s become spottier than yesterday.  White hair peeks through the yellow.  He hasn’t touched his bald leg in a while.  I’m excited to see where this goes. 

         My questions were, are bigger, round, wet poops (not diarrhea) normal while on antibiotics? How long will the urine burn take to subside?  Is there anything special I can do to help it shed?  Is there anything else I should be aware of when taking in an animal that may have lived outside for a while?  (worms or parasites?)

        My boyfriend thinks I should ask around to see if anyone is missing a bunny.  I don’t think neglecting an animal and letting it live in filthy conditions merits a return.  It’s clear that someone had tossed him aside.       


      • Eepster
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          I think your BF is right. If they tossed him, they won’t reclaim him. The filthy condition he was living in is the wild, you have no way of knowing if before he got loose if he was living in a nice clean home.


        • JackRabbit
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            He’s apparently been out there awhile, another domestic bunny “set free”. If one of mine got loose, I would be frantic looking for it and wouldn’t stop. This bunny is better off with you.


          • Roberta
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              THANK YOU for rescuing this little guy… I doubt that any one is looking for him and unless you see ads for him I would not put out flyers etc as people look at claiming a found rabbit as a cheap source for a Sunday night casserole….
              He deserves a beautiful life and I think he will get that with you… My most recent permanent bun was s tray found by the council rangers, they brought her to my care after she gave birth in the pound… I am rehoming her babies but Pandora is in her forever home with me now… Her hair has all grown back and she is a fat happy bunny I could never risk her going somewhere that she would not have a life of love and comfort… It’s taking a while to rehome her babies as I am being particularly strict about who gets to adopt them aslo.


            • Roberta
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                Bigger poops would be completely normal for a bunny that has been rescued and is suddenly able to access healthy food and water so I would not be concerned.
                The urine scald will probably take a week to 10 days to settle completely and hair regrowth should start in that time.
                The Revolution from the vet will take care of pretty much all the nasty parasites as it treats mites, fleas and some intestinal parasites…
                I think by the time he has finished his treatments and also had time to recover from his neuter it should be safe for them to meet as most health issues should have made themselves apparent by then and been treated.


              • LongEaredLions
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                  I’m with Roberta, thank you for rescuing him!
                  I say that he has a great home with you, and “found bunny” posters could attract sneaky reptile owners looking for snake food. Unless someone approaches you, I say he’s yours.


                • Eepster
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                    It’s easy enough to tell if someone is just trying to get a free bunny. Put no description on anything you put out, and make anyone trying to claim the bunny describe him. Also, call a few local shelters and ask if anyone has been calling and looking for a bunny matching his description. Check old craigslist posts.

                    There is a really good chance he was a dump, but just in case he’s a well loved pet who just accidently hopped out the door, it seemsworth looking for possible owners.

                    He may have a family like the family in this story. http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-0304-banks-lost-dog-20140304-column.html#axzz2v8ZojuZv


                  • SpottyBunny
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                      Thanks for the kind words .


                      @Roberta
                      : I think I know what you mean. Once you start researching bun behaviour and care, you know that they could be as much work (and cost as much) as a dog or cat. Most people still group them in with hamsters, rats, mice, and guinea pigs even though they are not rodents.

                      @LongEaredLions: My kijiji search of “lost rabbit/lost bunny” revealed one person missing a lop, one missing a black bunny, five people who’ve found rabbits outside and are looking to return to their owners, and two people selling their rabbits for $50.00 with cage and accessories– one noted that “the kids lost interest after the bunny was an Easter gift.” The rage! 


                      @Eepster
                      : That article is ridiculous. I had no idea that it could happen. Thanks for the alternate view.


                    • Bam
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                        Thank you for rescuing him!

                        I have 2 “rejects” that I’ve found outdoors. The second one I quarantined for a month before he was let anywhere near my other rabbit. He only had a slight case of mites though, but you can’t be sure before some time has passed. As Roberta says, the revolution (and the baytril) will take care of most bad stuff he may be carrying around. Since you don’t have Myxi or Calici in the USA, that’s not a worry.

                        Good luck with him! I’m looking forward to reading more about him!


                      • tobyluv
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                          Thank you for rescuing this (very likely) cast out bunny. He obviously wanted to be rescued since he didn’t run away.

                          One of our past rabbits was found on the street. She had coccidia, which was quickly treated with Albon, and she had tapeworm, for which she got a shot of Droncit. Both were found by a fecal sample.

                          Many times when you are giving antibiotics, it’s a good idea to also give a probiotic, like Bene-Bac. That keeps their normal stomach flora in balance.

                          I think that bunny is going to love living in your home!


                        • SpottyBunny
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                            Thanks, bam and tobyluv.

                            I’m in Canada. I did a quick search for all those things and I think he’s alright. Appetite and water drinking have been normal. The vet inspected the poop and said that it looked okay. He was going to take a urinalysis, but bunny wouldn’t cooperate.


                          • LittlePuffyTail
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                              Thank you, you sweet angel for rescuing him! I can’t even imagine how scary it must be for a domestic bunny to be out in the world all alone. Shame on whoever dumped him and shame on that man with the dog.

                              He looks like such a sweet heart! Are you planning on keeping him?

                              ((((Wishing him a quick recovery from his bladder infection)))))


                            • SpottyBunny
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                                Posted By LittlePuffyTail on 6/22/2014 4:39 PM

                                Thank you, you sweet angel for rescuing him! I can’t even imagine how scary it must be for a domestic bunny to be out in the world all alone. Shame on whoever dumped him and shame on that man with the dog.

                                He looks like such a sweet heart! Are you planning on keeping him?

                                ((((Wishing him a quick recovery from his bladder infection)))))

                                Thanks !  Completely agreed.  I keep trying to imagine the time he spent outside.  Dogs?  Cats?  Hawks?  Cars?  All quick possibilities.  The bladder infection seems to not be bothering him.  He takes the Baytril like a champ, licking and chewing the syringe til it’s gone.  I plan on keeping him and neutering him if no one posts an ad wanting him.  I’ve yet to decide if I want to ask around.  


                              • LBJ10
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                                  That is such a sad story Eepster. It reminds me of a documentary that was done after Hurricane Katrina. These people were desperately trying to get their dogs back, but rescues had taken them and rehomed them before their owners even had a chance to claim them. Dogs were shipped much farther away though too. It was really sad to watch.

                                  SpottyBunny – I do want to thank you for rescuing him. He was very lucky indeed. I hope, for your sake, that he was simply dumped by someone who didn’t want him. I agree with the others about making sure he doesn’t have an owner who loves him though. I just can’t imagine losing a pet, only to find out that someone has found him but refuses to give them back. I know that you are becoming attached already. I know I would! That’s why I hope he really was dumped, that way you can give him a loving home with no strings attached.


                                • Bam
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                                    When I found my bunnies I put ads out on the Internet and with Yohio, I even put an ad in the local paper (I’ve a friend who works there) and I put up posters. One person did call, but he was looking for a black rabbit. And when he said that, that his lost bunny was black, (he sounded legit, said his kids had let their bunny out to play on the lawn in their allottment garden), I just thought YAY!! Not that I didn’t feel sorry about his bunny, I did, but I just realized that I so wanted to keep this little yellow bunny.

                                    Sorry if I scared you about myxo and calici, I should’ve seen that you’re from Canada. Those illnesses were my main concerns with Yohio, esp myxo, because that’s so common here (and all over Europe) but you don’t have them on the North American continent.


                                  • SpottyBunny
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                                      Posted By LBJ10 on 6/22/2014 9:20 PM
                                      That is it’such a sad story Eepster. It reminds me of a documentary that was done after Hurricane Katrina. These people were desperately trying to get their dogs back, but rescues had taken them and rehomed them before their owners even had a chance to claim them. Dogs were shipped much farther away though too. It was really sad to watch.

                                      SpottyBunny – I do want to thank you for rescuing him. He was very lucky indeed. I hope, for your sake, that he was simply dumped by someone who didn’t want him. I agree with the others about making sure he doesn’t have an owner who loves him though. I just can’t imagine losing a pet, only to find out that someone has found him but refuses to give them back. I know that you are becoming attached already. I know I would! That’s why I hope he really was dumped, that way you can give him a loving home with no strings attached.

                                      Thanks. I think I remember that. I would hate to do that to someone, especially with kids. I do believe he was tossed out but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to check. *sigh*

                                      Posted By bam on 6/23/2014 2:53 AM
                                      When I found my bunnies I put ads out on the Internet and with Yohio, I even put an ad in the local paper (I’ve a friend who works there) and I put up posters. One person did call, but he was looking for a black rabbit. And when he said that, that his lost bunny was black, (he sounded legit, said his kids had let their bunny out to play on the lawn in their allottment garden), I just thought YAY!! Not that I didn’t feel sorry about his bunny, I did, but I just realized that I so wanted to keep this little yellow bunny.

                                      Sorry if I scared you about myxo and calici, I should’ve seen that you’re from Canada. Those illnesses were my main concerns with Yohio, esp myxo, because that’s so common here (and all over Europe) but you don’t have them on the North American continent.

                                      Glad to hear your situation worked out well. It’s totally possible someone put him in their backyard to play and he got out.


                                    • SpottyBunny
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                                        I posted an ad. Some of the ads of missing pets tugged at my heart. Who knows what will happen now.

                                        I wonder if someone out there felt any remorse for a pet they kicked out the door, if that was the case.

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                                    Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Caring for a Strayed Domestic