Anal glands on a trance-free bun…

[Al2]

 Do any of you guys have a rabbit that absolutely will not trance?

If so, how do you clean their anal glands? It’s time for me to clean Frank’s and I have never done it before. I had the vet do it before but i’d like to be able to do it myself!

-Al

[Balefulregards]

Um Yeah – That would be Coco. I burrito her and get in there and get it done. I find that I have gotten better at the “tightness” of the burrito so she can’t kick the crap out of me, and she is a bun who needs her eyes covered, otherwise she knows where I am and what I am about to do.

Aside from that, I get in there – have all tools ready ) warm water/qtips etc..and just Do it. I get more confident every time, but it never gets “easier” and she is Mad for DAYS afterwards….even with papaya treats.

[Elrohwen]

My vet says that cleaning anal glands isn’t necessary unless a bunny has an issue down there. Since neither of my bunnies are good about being handled and go to the vet for their nail trims, I trust the vet and don’t bother with the anal glands. Even with a super calm bunny, I don’t know I’d feel comfortable fishing around down there with a qtip.

[SirThumpsey]

I actually just recently found out that I can’t for the life of me trance Halo. I don’t know why or what it is about her that makes her untranceable. I showed my husband when I tranced Bud and he was amazed…then he said “try that with Halo!” Halo is probaly 3x the size…perhaps that has something to do with it?

[leyley904]

It’s actually dangerous to trance your rabbit. It is something they do when being attacked in the wild (well, the wild bunnies do). They become really still and their blood pressure and heart rate drop very low, and they appear dead. When coming out of the trance their can go into shock. It’s just risky in general.

[Andi]

I cradle the bunny in one arm like a baby, squirt a little baby oil on the glands, and whip with a Q-Tip… done in seconds
I had a bunny who would NOT go on his back what-so-ever, and so I needed 2 people one to hold and the other to trim nails/clean glands.

Some bunnies don’t need the glands cleaned, but always check them just in case.

[leyley904]

Okay, hold on. I need to change what I said.
It has been SAID that it is dangerous or a bad experience by many people. But, many many people trance their bunnies with absolutely no problems at all. So, it’s more a matter of opinion, or what you believe. I guess you could call it controversial.

But, I would never take a chance at harming my rabbits for an easy nail-trim.

^^ That sounds rude, but I don’t mean it to be at all. I don’t really know how to word what I mean. I don’t imply that you are putting your rabbits in harm’s way.

 

http://www.hopperhome.com/Trancing%20Rabbits-Tonic%20Immobility%20.pdf

[Balefulregards]

I think it also depends on the Rabbit. Coco gets really blocked anal glands. I notice if I wait too long she will often end up with some smeared poo on her bum. Jackson, on the other hand – Has never needed his glands cleaned. I look when I do his nails, but so far ( a year now) no build up whatsoever.

So, I weigh it – Would going to the vets be More stressful for her? Can I do it without hurting her? For me, both those answers are Yep, so I take care of it here.

I do know she is never fully “tranced” – more like irritated and confined and barely tolerating the experience. BUT she gets hard, dark wax plugs that need to be soaked a bit to be coaxed out, so I know it can’t be comfy for her.

So really, I think it depends on lots of factors – Your rabbits own “system” and needs being the biggest one.

I also know that coco’s Nails hold an odd delicate balance. When her back ones get even a little too long, the pink callous gets irritated and Then I think “OH NO< NOT SORE HOCKS!", which would be a whole different world of hurt on my part.

I guess I always approached it the same way I have about giving babies medicine. 90% of them Hate it – BUT,as the caregiver/adult it is my job to make sure they are healthy. So I just do it.

[angelicvampyre]

I flip all my bunnies on their back to do their nails. My vet said both being so young and also so healthy so not need their anal glands done regularly. As it stands i take my guys to the vet every 6 months so far (Anya travels better with Bugz so he went with her for desexing and the vet checked him then) and she has said they are fine. She told me that Rufus is also really clean so i guess I am lucky. My dogs on the other hand are another matter all together!

[Minty]

This might be an obvious question but what do the anal glands look like/where are they located? I don’t flip my bunnies on their backs so I don’t really get a good look down there very often… If I attempted to, would it be pretty obvious where they were?

[Balefulregards]

There is a great little diagram in the Monthly Maintenance section

https://binkybunny.com/BUNNYINFO/MonthlyMaintenance/tabid/64/Default.aspx

I find if I lift her tail a smidge while she is on her back I can easily see them. They are two little “pockets” on either side of their urethra. Coco is easy to see cause hers get PACKED, so you can see the dark streaks of the wax plug. Jackson doesn’t get build up, but Phew! He gets skunky when I lift that tail.

[jerseygirl]

Thet are quite close to the genital mound on each side. I remember when I first went looking I was hunting around where the hind leg attached to the body! lol

Just some trivia I’m sure you”ll all be thrilled to know…..these glands are actually called the inguinal glands! But it’s commonly referred to as anal glands. I think the actual anal glands are around the anus (don’t quote me!). It made sense to me when I discovered this as I always wondered how they scented their territorial poop from what I knew as the anal scent glands (inguinal glands, the deeper pockets we do check) as they seemed further away.

Mmm….I think I’ve elaborated to much on this topic!!!!!!

[Al2]

wow thanks guys! I gave up trying to trance Frank for anything because it only works for a second and then he flips out and I don’t want to risk him hurting his hips or back. I am hoping i can burrito him like i do for his nails and have my boyfriend kind of hold him up while i get under there! Frank definitely has a dwarf ‘tude when it comes to monthly maintenance.

[Monkeybun]

I take Monkey to the monthly Rabbit Advocate outreaches for her “spa day” hehe. I let them deal with her rabbitude so I don’t have to She is always so much more well behaved when she is Out.

[Elrohwen]

As far as whether trancing is good for your rabbit or not – I don’t think it’s been proven either way. I’ve heard some good evidence to say it is not a prey reaction (like playing dead) because if it was, it would only happen under duress and the rabbit would be extremely stressed. It seems more like an inner ear thing, similar to the way sharks will stay very still if you turn them on their backs. This would also explain why it only works for some rabbits – if it was a prey reaction thing, it would be more consistent, but if it’s an inner ear thing it makes sense that some rabbits might not be effected as much as others and be able to roll themselves back over. Personally, I think the most dangerous thing about trancing is that they can suddenly wake up and start kicking and hurt themselves, so you have to be vigilant and protect them while turned over.

I wouldn’t recommend trancing just for fun, but from what I’ve read, I feel confident that it’s ok for procedures like nail trimming and gland cleaning. This is just my personal opinion, of course. I would rather have a rabbit calmly lay on it’s back than try to wrestle it right side up and stress it out much more.

[jerseygirl]

I wouldn’t recommend trancing just for fun, but from what I’ve read, I feel confident that it’s ok for procedures like nail trimming and gland cleaning. This is just my personal opinion, of course. I would rather have a rabbit calmly lay on it’s back than try to wrestle it right side up and stress it out much more

I agree. I use it for gland checks etc and try make it quick. Otherwise I just let them be. There is something to that inner ear theory too I believe. I’ve seen both my rabbits zone out when they’ve flopped and rolled further onto their backs, then back onto their sides. It appears similar to when they’re “tranced”. Difference here though is they’re in a relaxed state before the roll/flop and are not being handled by their well meaning slave!

[leyley904]

I’m not trying to argue, as I agree, nothing has been absolutely proved when it comes to this.

But, what is said (by the people who do believe it is bad) is that it is very stressful to be tranced, and they don’t show it. They don’t have to be stressed to trance, it’s just the fact of being in a trance that is stressing…. Sorry if I made no sense

Again, I’m not intending to start an argument. I myself just prefer not to take a chance. But, then again, my rabbits aren’t extremely difficult to handle in these situations (nail clipping, ect), so I don’t have much need to trance.

[jerseygirl]

You make sense. I’ve read alot of the same sort of thing you have. It’s thought it’s a state of tonic immobilisation and that they are stressed while in this state. Actually, I posted in the Lounge not too long ago a bit on this topic. There have been studies done that indicate the rabbit is stressed while in this state. Mine are stressed when being held often too – not always, but they sure are when I’m trying to do nail trims, gland checks or any other grooming. This seems to be one of those topics where we just don’t know enough about it.

[Andi]

I actually posted the link on my rescue group forum, and had some great information and responce about the topic, ad di have to say that i do not really agree with the link, there is just to much information missing.
I think in any handling with a rabbit you want to make them stress free as possible. When i flip my bunnies for nailtrims etc. we get cuddles and pets first to relax, adn then again after we are done… stressed animals don’t eat and mine gobble treats afterwards.

[Elrohwen]

I have heard that studies have shown that rabbits are stressed while in the tranced state. However, they’re also stressed when being picked up. I don’t think the studies have accounted for the fact that just being handled in general is stressful. The rabbit’s heart rate could’ve spiked during the initial pick up and flip over, and the increased heart rate during the trance could be residual from this.

Since all picking up is stressful for the majority of bunnies, I feel that if trancing allows you to get nail clipping over with quickly and easily, that is ultimately much less stressful than holding them and fighting with them (including putting them down halfway, chasing them around, picking them up again, etc).

I wish more studies would be done! If we knew what is causing the reaction (prey reaction vs inner ear) I think we would be much closer to knowing if it is safe or not.

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