Too hot

[BINKY_Libsre]

Recently it’s been getting extremely hot with each day. The first couple of days my bunnies have been fine going about their usual routine. But as of late starting around yesterday morning I noticed them less active and just laying down in one spot. I can understand this as it seems like a normal thing for one to do when it’s hot and you’re tired.

what I’ve also come to notice is that when they are sitting still or laying down their breathing is much faster than usual and you visibly how fast they are breathing, which has me slightly worried. As well as the fact the odd times they do come to lay right besides me or ontop of me I can feel the breathing as well.

Also when they nudge me I can feel their noses are rather moist.

I do provide them with cold water straight out of the fridge and change is out every hour to insure it stays cold and refreshing.

I also have an air con on so the room is pretty cool throughout the day but I haven’t seen any change in their breathing and they still mainly only lay around.

 

Is there anything else I could do to try and get them to cool down from the heat?

[Bam]

As you know, rabbits aren’t very good at dealing with heat, so what you describe sounds natural for rabbits when it’s warm. Rabbits can’t sweat and they can’t pant like dogs. They can pretty much just spread out, and rest so as not to generate more heat through muscle work. Sending blood to the ears is their main way to cool themselves, but it won’t help much if the ambient temperature is too high.

There are things you can do though, we have some cooling tips here: https://binkybunny.com/infocategory/cooling-tips/

[LBJ10]

Yes, what you’re describing sounds pretty typical. When bunnies are hot, they tend to not move around a lot. If the cool air from the AC circulating well? Perhaps you need to set up fans or turn on ceiling fans to ensure the air is getting to your bunnies. If it’s a plug-in fan, make sure you aim it so your bunny can get away from the direct air current if they want to. Ceiling fans are fine to just leave on all the time with the setting on low.

[DanaNM]

I agree that providing a fan near them can help a lot. I usually give my buns a frozen bottle each day in the summer, and keep a fan on near them that they can lay in front of if they choose to.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[Ellen]

The AC in my room doesn’t work the best and I have experienced this issue quite a bit! What i typically do is take a frozen water bottle put it inside a sock and let my bunny lay next to it. Something else that works well is wetting your bunnies ears, as you may know their ears is where they store all the extra heat in their bodies so cooling this area helps relieve some of that heat. Another suggestion is giving them wet veggies but this shouldn’t be done that often!

[Ginger&Seal]

Why shouldn’t be wet veggies be given often?

[Wick & Fable]

Unsure of @Ellen ‘s reasoning, but my thought is too much veggies will reduce hay appetite, which we do not want.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Ginger&Seal]

I understand that, but I always give moist/wet veggies to my bunnies like never dry just to increase water intake. I just thought there was something i was doing wrong lol

[Ellen]

I have heard that wet veggies could cause tummy issues(meaning excessively wet not meaning the dampness like they usually come out of the fridge as)  , this could be false and if so I apologize!

[Ellen]

So I did a bit more research on the topic..come to find out it’s a myth! I’m sorry about that, I was miss-informed  🙁

[Bam]

Thank you for checking! Its great to know, there are a gazillion myths around, and then there’s a gazillion  things that seem a bit strange but aren’t myths at all.

Any radical change to a rabbit’s diet can of course cause tummy trouble, and when its hot, greens wilt fast. So I still think its wise to give small-ish portions of wet veggies throughout the day.

[LBJ10]

Yeah, I wouldn’t give more veggies than you normally would. But wetting them first certainly won’t hurt anything. I like Bam’s suggestion of breaking them up into smaller portions so they don’t wilt.

[DanaNM]

I’ve actually heard it’s best to feed freshly rinsed veggies so they get even more water from them.

But yes agree with others, you don’t want to overdo the veg to the point that hay consumption is reduced or the bun gets a tummy ache.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[BZOO]

And maybe a marble/quart slat. I used some this last summer and they really seemed to like them.

They were marketed for Chinchillas, that might help you get more info.

[Author]

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