How old is Boston again? She’s quite young still right? I cleaned Layla’s for the 1st time a few weeks ago & there was nothing in them. Charlie only just got a bitin his this time, and he’s almost 2. Someone said that it’s more important as they get older so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Just have a check & see if there’sanything in them.

Advice, breathe through your mouth Also have a really good look at pictures & youtube vids before fooling round in their underpants, cause they dont like it!

If my vet clipped nails I would take Layla cause I’d rather someone else did it. I think maybe once a month is what is needed but if you haven’t clipped her nails in a while then the quick will be close to the end and you might have to trim them a little each week until they’re more managable.

I’m thinking when they young the glands usually dont get all that clogged – least that’s what I’m telling myself! I had Jersey for almost a year before I first braved to really check then clean them. When you’ve done it once, it becomes not such a big deal. If you’re really grossed out, I’m sure a local rabbit rescue could do it for you. Else, I have heard of this Canadian chick that offers a spa service……lol !

You should check the anal glands every time you groom them (I give my two a monthy tune-up). It really depends upong the rabbit how much gunk collects in the glands so it is really hard to say how often you need to do it for your rabbit. Check them once a month and see. It is a smelly process but if you smother it with 100% pure aloe gel, it isn’t as bad. Be sure to have a plastic bag handy or be sure to throw out the Q-tips. You might want to moisten them with some warm water, otherwise if they are dry and you try to swab it grabs the delicate skin and can irritate and tear it.

I just cleaned Lily’s today and they were pretty dirty and she’s 8 months. That being said, I would definitely say it probably depends on the rabbit. It’s really not that bad. Of course, I do love animals and I really don’t mind the dirty jobs. haha. All I did was put her in my lap in a blanket and pet her a while and then covered her face and she could relax. She fought a little, but not too much and hey, at least they’ll be healthier.

As for nails go, I trim them as much as we trim our dogs, once a week. Once a week just take of the very tip and no more. That way if they nails are dark, you know your not cutting them to the quick, but you also know that you’re doing it often enough to keep the quick down and the nails short enough.

Kayla

I don’t find the gland cleaning *that* bad. I’ve never been a fan of the “breathe through your mouth” solution – I just feel like I’d rather smell the bad smells than taste the bad smells. I know it’s all in my head, but it weirds me out!

Wally’s about a year and when I cleaned his the first time there wasn’t much there. I don’t know whether the people who had him at the rescue did it before me, but his nails were really really long, so I’m guessing that they probably didn’t do his glands if his nails hadn’t been done recently. Noelle’s were a bit worse the first time, though not horrendous, and now with frequent follow ups (about monthly), it’s not bad at all. It just smells a bit skunky, but not like you’ve just been personally sprayed – more like you’re driving down the highway and somewhere out there a skunk is unhappy, so it’s not pleasant, but it doesn’t make me want to die or anything.

I think it’s K&K that shoves wads of kleenex/toilet paper up her nose to block the smell – but again with the mouth breathing… 🙂

I think there was a thread a while back for gland cleaning month, or something, and I know there were some videos on there – so they are definitely out there! But they made it look a lot worse than anything I’ve ever experienced, so just tell yourself it won’t be that bad!

Good luck! Do let us know if you have any success.

I’ve never done mine either. Stormy is 4 and I’ve never done his. I feel like the worst Momma in the world but I don’t know how to trance and I’m worried about my own safety.

I don’t trance my bunnies – I just personally don’t like the whole idea of it. Wally is the feistier of the two, and he let me flip him on his back in my lap – but he wasn’t tranced. He kept picking his head up trying to take a peek at what exactly I was doing. Kinda funny. Noelle let me put her upside down for long enough last time as well – but normally I will wrap her in a towel, then I sit on the floor with my legs bent up in front of me and let her sit on my lap with her back against my legs and then I can take care of business. I know that won’t work with every bunny, but I’m just trying to say that putting them in a trance doesn’t have to be a necessary part of it.

I’ve found that a big part of bunny handling is my frame of mind going into it. The first time I cut Noelle’s nails was traumatizing for both of us. I was so nervous my hands were shaking, and since I was nervous she was all jumpy. But now I go into it really confident and I’m just like “I’m flipping you now” and I filp and they accept it better I think because they don’t pick up on any anxiety on my part. And if they want to flip back over I let them and we just try again – patience and confidence! Oh – and practice! I make a point of picking up both bunnies at least once a day to get them used to it. And if we’re coming up on gland cleaning, I start doing practice flips to get them readjusted to the sensation before I actually need them to stay put for a bit so I can clean them.

But if it makes you really nervous, maybe it’s something your vet could do the next time you take him in for a check up or something?

I can’t successfully trance Coco either, so I just burrito her and we get through it.

But Yes – it is SO in the frame of mind – At first I was hesitant and jumpy – now, I just scoop up, examine – clean, then done. A few foot flicks, some glaring until a papaya tablet is offered and then we all try to forget it has happened.

My local rabbit rescue offers nail trims/anal gland check for a 15 buck donation – which is super worth it.