Video on administering Sub-q fluids to a rabbit

[Sarita]

youtube.com/profile

If you look at the bottom there’s more rabbit care videos too – haven’t seen those.

Pixel’s slave is one of my friends on the Rabbitwise Bunderground – we met bundergrounding some Katrina rabbits from Baton Rouge to California.

[JK]

Whoa I’m not doing that!  But thanks for the video!

[Sarita]

LOL – it’s not that difficult. I administer mine a little different – I set on the floor of my bathroom and put the bunny in between my legs. I pet and soothe them. It’s really just the initial #$@! of the needle that bothers them – it stings a little but after that they are fine.

[osprey]

Thanks for posting that, Sarita.  Your friend has lots of interesting bunny care videos.  Is she a vet or a tech?  Some of the video appears to be shot in a vets office or hospital part of a shelter.

Knowltons4:   SubQ can really be a life saver if a bunny goes into stasis and there is no emergency vet available (mine seem to like Friday nights at around 9:30 to start me in a tizzy).  I really want to learn how to do it myself, it can be very important.

Sarita: Do you use an IV bag when administering fluids?  I have seen techs do it two ways at the vet.  One is the way it is done in the video, with an IV bag and fed by gravity.  Another way is with a fairly large cath-tipped syringe that is filled with the solution (maybe 50CC?  Not sure), and then injected into the tubing and into the bunny.  Which way do you do it at home?  Do you use lactated Ringers, and where did you purchase the solution?

 

[Sarita]

Osprey – I do the IV bag and I get it from my vet. I usually have 1 full one in case of emergency and my current ones don’t expire until 01/2010. I have the vet’s office put the tubing on too because in the past I’ve always punctured the IV bag and well, that’s a waste of money. The cost per bag with my vet is $21.00 but I’ve seen them on-line very cheap but you do need a prescription. I use the fluids alot with my bladder sludge rabbits and have used this for my rabbits with stasis issues (blockage and gas).

I think the bags would be easier to administer and control than the syringe because you can hang the bags up. Usually I use 100 ml’s to 150 ml’s of fluids and the bag has 1000 ml’s. I do need to find out if the expiration date is good for when the bag is opened although I go through mine fairly fast.

I’ll have to look at my needle size too – I only know it by the cover which is green – that works the best for me.

I put the bag on a coat hanger – the bathtub in my rabbit bathroom has those sliding doors and I put the bag on the hanger on the towel rack thing which is about waist high. Then I put a towel on the floor and sit down and straddle the rabbit with my legs with their face facing outwards (although I have done it with the rabbit facing me as well). I have a big walk in closet in the rabbit room and when it’s not stuffed to the gills with hay and I can use the bottom rack to put the fluids on I can use that too – I think the bathroom is better though because it’s cooler. I don’t think I would have enough control of the rabbit on a table and I don’t cover their face either – just face my rabbit away from me.

It really can be a lifesaver and I think this helps make the rabbit feel better.

My friend is neither a vet or a vet tech – I think her vet’s office helped her do this.

[osprey]

According to veterinarypartner.com, here are the needle sizes based on the cap color:

red – 25 gauge
blue – 22 gauge
pink – 20 gauge
green – 19 gauge
olive – 18 gauge

The larger the gauge, the smaller the needle.  Small needles are easier to insert, but dispense fluid slowly.  Large needles hurt more, but the procedure is quicker.

[Sarita]

It’s the 19 gauge then.

I think for regular shots I use the 20 gauge (pink) and also I have a needle with an orange top that works well for shots – not sure which gauge that is. I usually pull the medicine from the tube into the syringe with one needle (usually a larger one) and then administer the shot with a fresh needle. I’ll have to look at home at the orange needles to see the gauge if I can read the lettering.

[Sarita]

Osprey the Flemish Giant named Teddy Bear in the Nutrition video is from North Texas Rabbit Sanctuary.

I rescued him from one of the Dallas Animal Shelters – he was surrendered because he was getting too big :~( I named him Mr. Magnificent – Rene who adopted him renamed him. I didn’t realize he was in one of the videos. He’s a cool rabbit. He was a big hit at the vet’s office too.

[osprey]

Eeep, the large breed bunny got large.  Who knew?  I’d love to meet a Flemish in person some day. The biggest bunny I have personally met was a 14 pound albino lop named Baxter who thought he was a cat.  He was at the Watsonville shelter for a long time, but then he and his favorite cat were adopted together.

 

[Nicci607]

WOW!!

THANKS sarita, SO much, for posting this video!! Pixel seems to be a very good little patient, but you can see her breathing, rapidly…poor baby.

How do you know, that bunny gets enough air to breathe, when she’s all covered up? that scares me a bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Scarlet_Rose]

Great link Sarita! I’ve added this to our FAQ section.

[Author]

Messages