Travel needed for my surgery–what is safest option for bunny?

[Bunny Bride]

I have a 3 year old rabbit that I love very much so his safety is my number one priority here. He has always been a very nervous and skittish rabbit when out of his environment. At 2 years old he developed gi stasis from going to a routine vet visit. Since that occurred, I have not taken him out of the house at all. I would only take him to the vet now if something appears wrong, but I am too scared to do yearlys.

I am needing three separate surgeries. Each surgery will require a 3 week stay on my part and must be spaced at least a month apart. It requires a cross country trip for me–east coast to Los Angeles so about three days of driving I think? Possibly more. I would never take my bun on a plane as I know he couldn’t handle it. I am looking for input on what would keep him safest?

My two options are driving or taking a train out to Cali and bringing him with me, for this option I would rent an apartment and just stay out there for 6 months to avoid extra travel. Or the other option is to leave him at home with another person that he is used to, and I would just fly three separate times out to CA.

So what is more guaranteed to keep him safe? I prefer to take him with me, but with his history the travel scares me. But then I have talked to people who left rabbits at home with someone to go on a trip and came home to find the rabbit sadly passed away. So I am also terrified of leaving him and having him get sick with me being away for three weeks at a time. I just want to make the right decision. Thanks!

[DanaNM]

That’s a tough call, but I think if the person who would look after him at home is trusted and will spend a lot of time with him (either staying at your place or him staying with them), then that would prob be the least stressful for him. But I would go over things to watch out for very carefully with the sitter and make sure they know what to do if he shows signs of a tummy upset, etc. Maybe even show your sitter how to deliver medication and syringe feed if necessary.

I do think a flight would prob be less stressful than a very long drive or train ride (3 days of driving is a lot), just because it will be less total time traveling, if you chose to take him with you.

. . . 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.  

[Bunny Bride]

Thanks for the input. After reading that I realized you are probably right about the plane–not ideal, but even a 5 hour flight is way better than 3 days of packing and unpacking him in hotels. At least it would be over with faster. I am not sure if the train would be any better than car. Also as far as a sitter, I would have the person stay at my house. SO guess that is still the best option. Do you know how much rabbits typically miss their owner? Is it similar to a dog or not? That would be my only concern with this option, that my rabbit will miss me too much no matter how nice the sitter is to him. LOL But that is probably largely in my own head! 🙂

[DanaNM]

Agree, if the sitter stays there that’s prob the best bet!

Whether bun will miss you prob depends on the bun, but in my experience with pet sitters usually the buns adjust after a couple days of being fed by the sitter. I think the most important thing for the bun’s comfort is for the sitter to keep the same routine (feeding times, play times, etc.). Is your bun very social with you normally? Shy to new people? The way to most buns heart is def through their stomach. 🙂 If the sitter is a friend maybe you could have them come over and give bun some treats just to start warming them up to them? But either way they will prob get used to the new person after a couple days. You could even stock him up with some new boredom buster toys for while you are gone. I haven’t experienced bunnies getting separation anxiety like dogs do, traveling stress seems more related to the type of care they are getting. I’m sure he will miss you though! 😉

 

. . . 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.  

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