Health
As rabbits are essentially a prey animal, it is their natural instinct to hide any illnesses that might make them look weak and vulnerable. This makes it very important to spend time with your rabbit daily. If you get to know your rabbit and spend time with it you will notice quickly any strange behaviour that might indicate illness. If your rabbit stops eating, drinking or pooping you must take it to the vet immediately.
You should visit your vet at least twice a year. During that visits your vet will check over your bunny’s teeth, nails, coat condition and weight. You should ask your vet how to check these things yourself throughout the year and ask for essential vaccinations against viral infections such as myxomatosis and viral haemorrhagic disease (also known as VHD).
Vaccinations
Myxomatosis is a deadly disease which can be passed by parasites and causes infected rabbits to suffer from skin and face swelling, fever, discharge from the eyes and sluggishness. To help prevent your rabbit contracting myxomatosis your vet will recommend that a vaccination is administered twice a year.
Viral haemorrhagic disease (VHD) is a relatively new deadly disease which can be passed by flies or direct contact with contaminated matter. This causes internal haemorrhaging, fever, spasms and lethargy and there is no cure, but it can be avoided with an annual vaccination.
Neutering
Female rabbits are prone to uterine cancer and to eliminate this danger you may wish to have your rabbit spayed. This is a routine procedure to remove her uterus and ovaries.
Spaying (female rabbits) or neutering (male rabbits) your rabbit reduces the risk of disease and removes their hormonal instinct to mark their territory with urine and to reproduce. It also prevents false pregnancies and nest building. After the operation, as your rabbit’s hormones come out of its system you will find that it becomes much easier to house train, and any aggressive or destructive behaviour will reduce or disappear. This can be done before the rabbit reaches six months old.
Flystrike
A rabbit’s rectal area and thick fur around the tail makes a happy home for flies to lay their eggs, especially if the rabbit is overweight and unable to clean this area itself. This is called flystrike and can lead to severe illness or death if left undetected, as the maggots that hatch will quickly feed on your bunny’s flesh. Make sure you regularly groom and check this area for matting, soiling or bleeding to ensure that there is no maggot infestation or irritation. You can reduce the risk of this happening by using products available at your pet shop which can be regularly applied to deter flies and parasites from settling in your bunny’s soft coat.
Teeth
Rabbits have three types of teeth that continue to grow throughout their lifetime - incisors, molars and premolars. A common problem with rabbits is that if they are not given ample opportunity to chew and grind down their teeth on hay, wood and foods, their teeth become too long. Rabbits in the wild spend all day chewing, so why shouldn’t your bunny? Unfortunately, in some rabbits dental problems can also be genetic.
If your bunny cannot groom itself, dribbles, has discharge from the eyes or nose, shows problems with eating or loses weight, it may be showing signs of having overgrown teeth. Your vet can trim rabbit teeth and provide you with further advice on dealing with dental problems.
Hygiene
To ensure the happy health of your bunny you must look after its environment and implement a daily cleaning regime. Litter training will help with this as it concentrates the mess. Your rabbit’s litter tray and bedding should be cleaned regularly. Any uneaten food should be removed and replaced with fresh food and the water bottle should be cleaned and refilled every day to prevent it going stale. Doing this will reduce your rabbit’s risk of respiratory diseases and flystrike and will also keep your bunny contented.
Exercise
Providing your rabbit with plenty of free exercise time will keep its weight down, prevent osteoporosis, and provide mental stimulation. Access to an outdoor run will allow your rabbit to soak up some sun, getting vitamin C and D which help keep teeth and bones healthy.