Monthly Maintenance for Buns

[JK]

FYI – I just discovered under "Bunny Info" on this site a fantastic guide for Monthly Maintenance.  It is so well organized and written and has great pictures.  Just want to point it out in case some of you have not seen it.  The one part that freaks me out though is the anal scent gland cleaning!  Ick!! Gross!! Do we really have to do this??????????? (When I take Edson for his nail trim to Save a Bunny I hope they’ll do this too for me?!?!)

[ScooterandAnnette]

I know!!! We came across that last month and thought oh my, never cleaned there before… thought we’d give it a try and 2 of the bunnies were just fine but 2 definitely needed cleaning!

Definitely not something I thought I’d be doing with any pet.

– Annette

[JK]

Did you have trouble finding the little slits? Did anything come out? I just don’t know if I can do this!

[xnovalentine]

I just call up my vet and ask them to clean lullas butthole. haha, I dont have the heart to be the one to violate her in such a way!

[Lisa_43]

I draw the line at butts; it’s not my thing lol

[BinkyBunny]

knowltons4, I bet the people at saveabunny would check and clean the glands (if needed) when they do a nail trim. Not sure if it cost extra, but you can ask, and at least they would be able to show you how, so you could do it yourself next time.

The anal glands should be checked because they can get filled with this sort of ear waxy stuff. (I know…gag response happening here) The icky stuff can get dry and hard, it can cause discomfort and even infection. Plus, your bunny can become rather pungent. Each bunny is different really with how much stuff accumulates. For example, Jack needs his cleaned every couple of months. Rucy about every three months, but I only found that over time by checking every month.

Good luck…it’s gross, disgusting – a pure downward spiral to the depths of pure ickyness….but be strong…you can do it…or at least have someone else do it.

[babybunsmum]

hahaha… "a pure downward spiral to the depths of pure ickyness" funny bb!   i don’t find it all that bad.  it stinks like pungent skunk but the smell goes away pretty fast & i’ve found baby bun needs a cleaning every so often to help her smelliness.  i think she’s worse because she was never spayed (another of many good reasons to spay).  she, on the other hand, is completely offended at having been violated in such a way.   dear dear

[JK]

Hey I’ll pay extra for that cleaning! I guess it can’t be any worse than baby poop!  I guess the pros will just have to show me what to do.  But grossssssss…..

[babybunsmum]

lol… i’ve never ever changed a baby’s diaper… eww.  but i can imagine that it’s no worse.  you just suck it up & get it done because it has to get done… lol.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I found that section a while ago and *gulp* I cleaned their anal glands….It was super yucky and my boyfriend who had to hold them during the procedure was thoroughly grossed out and disturbed!

I recommend doing it though….When I saw them they definitely needed to be cleaned and it didn’t take long at all…In fact I checked the other night and they are still clean so it’s not too terrible..

Also, stick some tissue up your nose, like your changing a diaper and you’ll be fine! ….What we woulnd’t do for our animals!!!

[JK]

Oh this just keeps getting better and better!  Just can’t wait to do this….NOT!!

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Lol!! Another tip, use a DISPOSABLE cup for the warm water trust me, even though you don’t dip the used cue tip in it, you don’t want to see bum cleaning accessories ever again I cut the bottom out of a water bottle and used that

[Beka27]

at the next nail trim appt i’m going to ask about this.  this is not something i want to do without having seen it done at least once.

[wendyzski]

I finally took a look for Pepper’s after almost a year, and was SOOO happy to find them clean!  Smelly when first opened, but no buildup or anything.  Yay for having a princess-bunny who loves being clean!

[Beka27]

^^^now i’m confused.  is this something that they have the ability to clean themselves?  i thought they couldn’t reach it and that’s why it needed to be cleaned by the "slaves".

[babybunsmum]

hmmm… i don’t know.  i think they can reach the area but i’m not sure if they can manage to part the opening to groom inside.  baby only has the yellowy-orange waxy build-up there once in a while and i can usually tell based on the amount of scented poops she drops.  these poops smell like the same as when i open up to clean there, so i figure they’re working over time and more likely to get clogged.  this is of course, my guess and i’ve read nothing to back it up.

[ScooterandAnnette]

I think that they can clean them themselves, but I suspect that if they’re a little on the "plump" side then it may be difficult for them to do. When we did ours 2 of the rabbits didn’t need anything done, and 2 had buildup. Bailey had the worst buildup, but he’s also the fattest of the 3 (he’s our little marshmallow boy).

– Annette

[Lisa_43]

I have two toy poodles you have to clean their anal glands also, my husband tried to do it but it wasn’t that easy.

I just take them to the vet when they slide their bums along the ground, I wonder if rabbits do this also? lol

[Scarlet_Rose]

Rabbits don’t usually show signs of “needing” things done as they are quite as vocal still about some things like a vulnerability (that prey animal instinct). I have not met a rabbit that cleans that part themselves although I don’t really look when they are taking care of that part either. I imagine that they do not clean it because of the pungent displeasantness of it. I also know that spaniels need it done often as well. What I do is smother a bit of aloe on the q-tip and daub it out if it isn’t hard, and if so, soak it with warm water or even Vaseline before removal.

[ScooterandAnnette]

We first thought that maybe we should be doing this when we saw Bailey kind of scootching his butt along the ground, much like dogs do! It looked like maybe he had a butt itch and was trying to scratch it! That’s when it occured to us that hmmmm maybe we should check this out and sure enough – blech!

– Annette

[BinkyBunny]

Not all bunnies can or do clean the anal glands, they are pretty well buried. It’s just that some bunnies don’t build up the goop like other bunnies do. Many times dominant bunnies that want to mark their poo so much will have more of it as they excrete the stuff more from their glands.

[Ash]

So much stuff you find out about rabbits once you get one! The other night after I was reading the monthly maintance I told hubby we need to check his glands. Oh boy did Mr.B not like it, we have to bunny burito him and then I couldn’t even find the glands! So I took our other bun to the vet today and asked her to show me where it is and know am able to check myself. Luckily our bunny grooms ALOT and very well compared to Mr.B who seems to only want to make his face clean and pretty, lol. My 1 year old gives Mr.B kisses and when she bent down to give him kisses this time on his back and she stood up and waved her hand in fron of her face for “stinky”, my husband and I just cracked up so I guess he does need that cleaning after all.

[Author]

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