It was disgusting but worth it! Warning, gross contents.

[Shanti]

Bunny rescue story...WARNING gross and totally disgusting contents!!
May make some ill to read.


My DIL's dog found a nest of baby rabbits outside. We don't think the dog did anything but discover an awful mishap regarding these babies.

The babies were scattered all over the ground, nest torn apart.
7-8 babies seemed to be originally there, not sure of the count cause some were torn in pieces. All about one day old.

Only 3 babies were alive. My DIL scooped them up and took them in the house.
One was torn wide open and shortly died.
One was full of small holes. The other appeared unharmed.

My DIL brought the babies to me, there was a several hour delay before I got them since my DIL was at her dads house, miles away, where the babies were discovered.

The one babies with the holes all over was unresponsive and died quickly.
The last surviving baby seemed almost ok, weak though. I examined it and found 2 tiny pin holes between its genitals and hind leg. No big concern yet. Since it was quickly weakening I gave it a little sugar water in a syringe to boost it up. Worked like a charm. I then got some oral digestive enzymes into the little guy proceeded with a feeding of formula. All went well.
Ok belly full, baby warmed up. I then took a look at those 2 tiny holes. Clean holes, wide open...I wonder WTF? I put triple anti-biotic ointment on the holes and laid the baby to rest a spell. I have angora bunnies so used some of their fur to make a nest.

A short while later I went to do a thorough body check, now that this baby had nourishment, was warm, was rested from the shock.

OMG!!!!!! The 2 holes...'graphic here'....
They were full of maggots!!! I just felt ill.
But task at hand...get them out!! I didn't have vaseline, which is best to use. You can not pull them out. If one breaks apart and any debris is left behind, infection and death to bunny.
So all I had was the triple anti-biotic cream. I caked it on!! The goal is to cut off the air supply to the maggots so they back out of the animal.
It worked...they started backing way out and I could then use q-tips to swipe them off and out of the bunny.
20 maggots were in those 2 little holes!! Totally gross. I then looked really, really close at the bunny's body. Really tiny holes were all over. I called my son and asked him to bring some Vaseline over.

Well, after I got the vaseline and with my son in total shock of it all...I covered each pin hole one by one and sure enough...more maggots started coming out.

This bunny had them in its gut area, butt area, all along its back, one shoulder, 2 legs, its head and neck and one ear and even one in its eye area!

50 or so maggots in total were painstakenly removed.

The largest holes after the maggots pushed out, were on the inside of that back leg, near the genitals. That area was stretched large by the maggots exit. I could see the babies intestines. One good thing, the intestines were healthy looking. There wasn't any damage, bruising or discoloration.

After this was all done, I had to slowly clean all the vaseline off the baby cause he was covered in it. Then I rechecked and checked again for anymore pin holes or signs of anything. All clear.

Now I had a maggot free, clean, full of larger holes, bunny that was limp and exhausted beyond hope. So I thought.

I managed more formula down the baby. I put him to rest and figured he will never survive this.

Well today its 2 days later and I'll be damned. The holes are closed and well in healing. The baby is eating like a horse and strengthening up like a champ! If it wasn't for some scabs and scaring, you wouldn't know anything had ever happened. He is beating the odds. Just formula feeding is often a loosing battle, but this little guy not only suckles the bottle like its totally natural, he poops and pees with perfect results! His response time when stimulated to relieve himself, is perfect!
Healthy clear pee and perfect tiny poops.

Worried about the one eye that had a maggot in it, but when I shine flash light on it, he squints in reaction to the brightness, so that eye is working under those closed lids!

Its all amazing. Everyone is amazed.

When this venture began, I thought that doing rescues for so long is just as hard today as 20 years ago....most can not be saved by the time I get them.

Then here comes this tough little dude. He makes the time and money so worth it. I am so glad I didn't give up even while I was thinking this was another lost cause.:boing:

Oh I don't know what species of fly invaded this guys apparently healthy body, but I have some maggots saved and are allowing them to grow, in a controlled container, so I can find out their species. Its apparent now that the larva bored into a living, undamaged animal. I am wondering if the flies in question are parasitic or if a common corpse eating fly who's maggots decided fresh is good nibbles too.



Adding pics in other post.

[TheWomanMonster]

Wow,
Little guy has been through an awful lot...
You're amazing. I hope he pulls through (sounds like he's doing great).

Wish him luck for me,
Good job Shanti.

I wonder if the flies laid their eggs expecting the little one to die soon?
Silly flies should have known this guy was going to be the lucky one...
I'm interested to hear how the little one is doing and what species of fly it ends up being. Strange and Wonderful story (how sad for the others though).

Be Blessed Shanti Saver of Bunnies. :)
Monster

[NiftyWings]

Bless you, for putting so much time and effort into saving this poor little babe!

[_Banbha_]

What a wonderful thing to do for the little one! Great job. :smile: There was nothing gross about the story only miraculous. :uhhuhuh:

[Shanti]

Ok adding pics I just took.
Pic 1 is his best side, no big holes. A few tiny, tiny ones in his fur on his back. To small to gets pics.
Pic 2 is his bad side, biggest holes, most maggots. They were a lot bigger and blood free, fluid empty, as the maggots kept the air way clean and empty. After the maggots were out, the body could produce blood and fluids to plug the holes and begin the healing.
Pic 3 The frontal ear area holes, a lot of maggots in there.
Pic 4 is his fore arm, one maggot in there.
Pic 5 A close up of hole behind the ear.

[Shanti]

Pic 6 One of the holes from his body. It was hard to get a pic because most are just covered in hair, but this one was big enough to show up.
Pic 7 is his genital area, the location of the first 20 maggots removed.

[Shanti]

I'll get pics of those flies when they metamorphous. Right now they look like typical white maggots.

[Shanti]

Thanks everyone. I just cant not try. And when there is success, man its so worth it.
Now I hope he makes it past weaning, then is strong and well with no lingering side affects so he can be released to be the bunny I know he would want to be.

LOL, I say he, but its to early to tell sex!! :)

[Shanti]

Wow,
Little guy has been through an awful lot...
You're amazing. I hope he pulls through (sounds like he's doing great).

Wish him luck for me,
Good job Shanti.

I wonder if the flies laid their eggs expecting the little one to die soon?
Silly flies should have known this guy was going to be the lucky one...
I'm interested to hear how the little one is doing and what species of fly it ends up being. Strange and Wonderful story (how sad for the others though).

Be Blessed Shanti Saver of Bunnies. :)
Monster
I have been wondering too if with several dead ones about and this one was weakening, if there was a chemical signal that said death was approaching for this guy too, thus the flies did their job.
I see no signs, no symptoms, of any internal damage. It appears they were just under the skin only and hadn't ventured to organs or muscle tissue, yet. From the gut color of the maggots, it looked like they were feeding on mostly blood. Which by burrowing between tissue and skin, small capillaries are going to break and every hole was blood free.
I imagine with growth of the maggots and appetite to match, they would of bored deeper to feed and ended up killing the bunny.
I'm just glad I got them out in time, as it seems so far...~is hoping very much~

[lady_fey]

wow.
Good job. Bless you so much for doing that. I was just at the pet store today talking with a group of animal rescuers that were holding an adoption and got to talking to an older gent who is very involved with the animals and some of the stories I heard broke my heart.
I give you a ton of credit. I don't have a lot of time on my hands right now or I'd be helping as a volunteer.

LF

[Anubis]

the little guy should be fine.. I removed over 2,000 maggots from a baby opossum.. she also beat the odds and lived to be an old lady.. so if she could make it.. I have pretty good hopes for your little bunny!

[HetHert]

What will you be doing with your survivor? I take it he is a wild rabbit. Any theories on why the nest was ravaged and the babies left for dead? Perhaps the mom didn't make it back to the nest? Just really curious.

At anyrate...Your an excellent healer! That baby bunny is really fortunate to have you find 'em when you did and administer the proper aid.

[Shanti]

What will you be doing with your survivor? I take it he is a wild rabbit. Any theories on why the nest was ravaged and the babies left for dead? Perhaps the mom didn't make it back to the nest? Just really curious.

At anyrate...Your an excellent healer! That baby bunny is really fortunate to have you find 'em when you did and administer the proper aid. Yeah its a cottontail.
Goal, Release. That's always the goal. It has to be or your not helping wildlife, your hurting it.
If I cant manage the prep for release because I have only an acre, my friend that's more rural than me takes larger rehabs for prep. He has a lot of acreage and works more with the larger species of animals. Some animals need more time and more acreage than others for their preparation of self care.
Raccoons are one I pass to him. They need a lot of acreage to roam while they go through their adjustment period between human dependency and self efficiency.
Rabbits are easier. Heck their are several that I released right here that still live in my yard. I have rabbit heaven here, wood piles and all!! :)
I also have the option of a nature area out here that's protected from hunters. Its a wonderful prairie, about 50 acres.

No one knows what happened to that nest. The town where my DIL's father lives is only a few hundred people. Totally rural. They have a sorts of wildlife about, not to mention a lot of free roaming domestic cats.
Whatever got them did have some dinner as body parts was all that was left. That's why the number of babies in a maybe 7 or 8. Hard to tell when several are just pieces.

[Shanti]

the little guy should be fine.. I removed over 2,000 maggots from a baby opossum.. she also beat the odds and lived to be an old lady.. so if she could make it.. I have pretty good hopes for your little bunny!Holy cow!!! 2k?
I never ran into this many before. I also never before encountered an infestation, except in a festering wound. I couldn't imagine the work to get 2 thousand out. And it lived? Totally awesome!! :)
Animals can be so amazingly resilient when they have that fighting will to live.

[halfwaynowhere]

wow, that sounds amazing... i know it must have been disgusting, but that feeling you get after saving a life is just priceless. good luck with the baby, i hope the rehab goes well!

[Cindlady2]

Wow! I never had to get even 50 maggots out, I can't imagine 2,000! The most I removed was like maybe 30 but they were a few days old... not good!
Too much damage already and the little guy (kitten) didn't make it :(

I sure hope the bunny makes it! Sounds like he's doing good if all the pluming is working well! LOL That's often the toughest part. What type of formula do you use?

[Shanti]

Wow! I never had to get even 50 maggots out, I can't imagine 2,000! The most I removed was like maybe 30 but they were a few days old... not good!
Too much damage already and the little guy (kitten) didn't make it :(

I sure hope the bunny makes it! Sounds like he's doing good if all the pluming is working well! LOL That's often the toughest part. What type of formula do you use?
Well, with the stores we have here, which is only 3 that carry any formula, (Mounds and 2 pet stores) we only have a choice between Mothers helper and KMR. KMR is my choice. I have had good results with it. Nice protein content and fat content. The general mix is one scoop power to 2 scoops water. I use, for rabbits, 1 1/2 scoops powder to 2 scoops water.
At first I was giving small amounts ever few hours and now have worked it into a good size fill every 6 hours.
I'm happy with that and he seems to be doing real good with it. He's not ravished yet not still totally emptied from the last feeding. 4 hours was to close, he was still to full. So I think its good for now. He's downing 10ml at a time. Leaves him with a nice firm belly.
Shame there wasn't a formula for bunnies that was equal to moms real milk. It would be nice to feed 1-2 times in a 24 hour period. Bunny milk must be really some rich stuff!

The plumbing! LOL, yup! That's always the best indicator of how its going!!! He is peeing real good before each feeding and a few squirts after each feeding. His poop he is doing on his own. Nice color still and consistency. So all good!

Whats really weird is that he was the runt! The other babies that were in tact were twice his size. Amazing that a runt is a lone survivor.

Now that he is on 6 hour feeding, I am finally going to bed!! I haven't slept for the most part since he arrived. The few winks I stole, I still woke every 15 minutes to check on him. I have him in his little basket with nest next to me when I did lay down. Now, I am off to get a good 6 hour collapse!!

Good night all. :)

[Cindlady2]

Mothers Helper is what I usually used... I was hoping there was a bunny formula by now. (Been a few years since I raised bunnies) My worry with Mothers Helper was maybe too much protein for bunnies. They seemed to do OK (I had a pretty good survival rate) considering the condition of them when I got them. (Never had maggots in bunnies but lots of fleas!) I sometimes wondered what the odds would have been for them even if the nest hadn't been attacked!
For bedding you were lucky you had 'donors' for fur. I would get 'angle hair' after Xmas and use that for bedding. It's soft and silky and seemed to work well.
Let us know how he's doing!

[Anubis]

Holy cow!!! 2k?
I never ran into this many before. I also never before encountered an infestation, except in a festering wound. I couldn't imagine the work to get 2 thousand out. And it lived? Totally awesome!! :)
Animals can be so amazingly resilient when they have that fighting will to live.
invest in some plain sterile eye wash (saline solution). it can be used to flush wounds, flush maggots from wounds and is also safe for flushing the darn things from the eyes and ears. Also keep an eye on him for a few days.. just in case there are any that you didn't get.. if there are.. they will erupt in a few days.

To me it sounds and looks like cat bites. flies will lay eggs on a baby animal in a heart beat if it has been bitten by a cat .. since that's pretty much a death sentence.. on the up side.. they do eat out the infected tissue.. which helps alot to get rid of the infection before it spreads and kills the baby (gross as it sounds.. it's still true) And maggots "tend" to be pretty sterile... The problem is that the animal tends to go into shock pretty rapidly and then the body temperature drops.. kidney, liver and heart function slows and stops soon after. With you interveining.. you kept that from happening. So yeah.. if he's still alive today.. he should be ok.. every 12 hours they survive and DON'T go downhill their survival rate increases by about 20 percent.

[Shanti]

Mothers Helper is what I usually used... I was hoping there was a bunny formula by now. (Been a few years since I raised bunnies) My worry with Mothers Helper was maybe too much protein for bunnies. They seemed to do OK (I had a pretty good survival rate) considering the condition of them when I got them. (Never had maggots in bunnies but lots of fleas!) I sometimes wondered what the odds would have been for them even if the nest hadn't been attacked!
For bedding you were lucky you had 'donors' for fur. I would get 'angle hair' after Xmas and use that for bedding. It's soft and silky and seemed to work well.
Let us know how he's doing!
I never had as good success with mothers helper over KMR! Its weird how some stuff works good for some people and not as good for others. When I first stared volunteering back in Milwaukee, the pet formulas back then were pretty crappy compared to today. I remember there were a lot more lousy blends on the market than good ones.

Mothers helper was all I had a few years back for a raccoon baby. For her it worked great. But KMR for me seemed to have less digestive probs than what I had when using mothers helper.

I'm glad too that I have donor fur. It really seemed to help settle the baby. He borrowed into that fur like he was thinking, 'I'm home!'. :)
My female Jersey Woolie is the donor for this wee one. I brushed her last night and she is in major shed!!! :)
Fur sure wont be a prob!!! :)

[Shanti]

invest in some plain sterile eye wash (saline solution). it can be used to flush wounds, flush maggots from wounds and is also safe for flushing the darn things from the eyes and ears. Also keep an eye on him for a few days.. just in case there are any that you didn't get.. if there are.. they will erupt in a few days.

To me it sounds and looks like cat bites. flies will lay eggs on a baby animal in a heart beat if it has been bitten by a cat .. since that's pretty much a death sentence.. on the up side.. they do eat out the infected tissue.. which helps alot to get rid of the infection before it spreads and kills the baby (gross as it sounds.. it's still true) And maggots "tend" to be pretty sterile... The problem is that the animal tends to go into shock pretty rapidly and then the body temperature drops.. kidney, liver and heart function slows and stops soon after. With you interveining.. you kept that from happening. So yeah.. if he's still alive today.. he should be ok.. every 12 hours they survive and DON'T go downhill their survival rate increases by about 20 percent.
Thanks Anubis for the tips. I hope I never run into a situation like this again!! But if I do, I got more info to help out! :)

I know the benifits to maggots, but yeah, its still gross.

Well, today is day 3 and still no sign of anything missed and still improving. Baby's getting feisty too! Starting to do the 'bunny hops' when touched. He is turning into a jumping bean. LOL

We thought about cat bites and/or cat nails. Looks like what wasnt eaten or killed, was played with! The only thing throwing me off, is no damage at all below the skin. I was thinking if it was bites or nail holes that the muscle and other tissues below would also show some punchers, but zero. The skin is so thin that I cant figure how just the skin could get torn without the tissue below being hurt, especially on skin tight areas like the head.

The maggots gave me nice clean open holes to check tissue below and I could not find anything under the skin. No sign of even the tiniest poke from tooth or nail.

Some of maggots I have growing here are getting pretty big. They are close to wax worm size. But to add weirdness to the issue, some of the maggots are also small, real small compared to the few big ones.
They are eating rotting ham. Seem to be enjoying it..yuk.

Man these maggots gross me out. I had a fly paranoia before this, now I am more like phobic mania! ~Feeling strong urge to go take, yet, another shower!!~

[Bluewillow]

That was so wonderful of you to take the time to care for the bunny. :hugz: I'm glad it's recovering. You obviously saved it from a nasty fate!

[alwaysfallingup]

I've never heard of them attacking bunnies...but could it be bots? Bot fly larva will burrow into living things...like horses, or people even. It might be something to look up.

I hope it goes really well for your little guy! (I have a dwarf bunny that I love to death, and therefore, a particular soft spot for bunnies.)

Good luck!
~Alisha~

[Shanti]

I've never heard of them attacking bunnies...but could it be bots? Bot fly larva will burrow into living things...like horses, or people even. It might be something to look up.

I hope it goes really well for your little guy! (I have a dwarf bunny that I love to death, and therefore, a particular soft spot for bunnies.)

Good luck!
~Alisha~ Bots definitely have gone through my mind. As soon as the saved maggots transform, I will know for sure! :)

[Shanti]

Thanks everyone for all the bunny wishes.

Another day, another good day!!!:)

[person of shadow]

Wow, great rescue. I to had a baby rabbit with maggots, I got them all out but he sadly didn't do well with formula feeding.

Congratulations and hope he makes it.

(And might I add he is a fat little guy, looks plenty healthy.)

Good luck and keep us informed! :clapping:

[Shanti]

Wow, great rescue. I to had a baby rabbit with maggots, I got them all out but he sadly didn't do well with formula feeding.

Congratulations and hope he makes it.

(And might I add he is a fat little guy, looks plenty healthy.)

Good luck and keep us informed! :clapping:
Sorry yours didn't make it. It can be hard to keep bunnies thriving with hand rearing, if you can even get them to suckle!! I don't care for hand rearing bunnies. Its so much better to have a mom to use for fostering. But its rare to have a mom with same age bunnies, that are also young enough that she wont care.
My female weaned her bunny over a month ago. So, stuck with hand rearing.
I'm just glad this bunny is working out and thriving.
Special little dude! :)

[person of shadow]

I would never hand rear a bunny if I didn't have to, But as you said it is very rare to have a mother that is at the same stage needed.

[Shanti]

Bunny update:

Doing very well.
His/her eyes are beginning to open!! :)

Maggots are still feeding and growing in their little container.
They are on their second piece of ham. "yuk"

[Cindlady2]

Go Bunnie Go! :fpompoms

[BlueEyedWolf]

Cool Bunnies!!!! Keep up the good work.:fpraise: For taking care of it.

[TheWomanMonster]

Glad to hear he's improving.
Good Luck!!

ick flies...
*cringe*

Monster

[Shanti]

I'll get updated pics prob over the weekend!!
He is soooo cute. Cant help it, he's a bunny!!! They are so darn adorable. :)

[Infinite Grey]

cool! I thought maggots only ate deat meat...

[Shanti]

Bunny update...growing!! Up to 20ml of formula ever 4 hours. His/Her eyes are wide open. He/She crawls out of the nest when it wants food, or attention.
He/She crawls but doesn't lift all its weight at once, yet. Holds its head up and reaches high but lacks control on holding its head steady, wobbles quite a bit.
Ears are up.
Still has scars on its head, but the sores are all healed.
There is one scar on the side. And the side of the genital area is pretty scarred.
But all the sores are healed.

Hair is getting thick, except where the scars are on the head and the one side of the genital area.

Starting to pee on its own!!

So still on upward hill. :)

[Anubis]

Glad to hear the baby is doing good.. Has he/she started jumping yet?.. That's the biggest problem we had hand rearing cottontails.. that little power jump when you least expect it! Even if their crawling wasn't very good.. those back legs could still do a bunny hop. So we used to sit on the floor to feed them just to be on the safe side...

[Silvan]

Hork. That's terrible. Greedy bastards are supposed to wait for dead meat.

I hate maggots.

Good on ya for going to that much trouble, and for having the stomach for it took. Bleck.

[Shanti]

Glad to hear the baby is doing good.. Has he/she started jumping yet?.. That's the biggest problem we had hand rearing cottontails.. that little power jump when you least expect it! Even if their crawling wasn't very good.. those back legs could still do a bunny hop. So we used to sit on the floor to feed them just to be on the safe side...
Yup!!! I call him a jumping bean!! LOL
He doesnt jump as powerful as I would like, yet. But he is slowly gaining in that department!
:)

[AutumnWitchie]

Can we have an update on the bunny? How is it doing?

[WillowsMuse]

I hope bunny is still doing well!!! I would love to see some new pics of your jumping bean! _pounce_

[MysticWitch]

We drove over a cat once on a country high way, we didnt hit it but the car went over him and he was just lying in the middle of the road and I thought.. geez what is that black lump, cause it was moving as I looked back.. so I pulled overand walked towards it and this cat was so cute and looked so tired and lazy and slowly walked off the road and into the ditch and I thought oh my goodness this poor thing is going to eventually wander back onto the high way so I went to pick up the kitty and he didnt even fight me. He enjoyed me being picked up. The kitty purred and I thought aww soo cute.. so as I inspected the cat so I could take him home, I looked through his fur to make sure the kitty was alright and as I looked to the one side of his belly he had a huge hole and I thought oh no I should get him home and clean his wound.. and all of a sudden the hole which i thought was puss started to move and grow and it was like 50 maggots trying to move out of this hole and it was so deep I knew there was no hope for this cat. So we looked around to see if the houses near by owned the kitty and we went to one house but the owner never saw the cat before.. possibly a barn cat. And we showed the hole and the lady said the cat wouldnt live and she told us her son could take care of the cat so he wouldnt suffer no more. I dont know what they did with the kitty but I assume they killed him. I never been so emotionally affected by a cat being so sick. Those maggots.. OMG :sick: I will never forget that :ggrief:

[Gwenhwyfar]

Hey Shanti, how about some more bunny pictures>> please? (so cute!)

[Cindlady2]

I found a cat that had them that deep too, it didn't live long enough for me to even get them all out. :(

[AoibhellFaeryMoon]

Awww what a wonderful bunny story!

And now I know what to do if I find a living animal with maggots starting in on it....I never knew about the vaseline thing.

And yes, more bunny photos!

[Shanti]

I've been really busy lately so I haven't had a chance to take pics.

Our sweet baby has run into probs. We had him checked out. He has Somekind of neurological damage or brain damage. He over emphasises head movements. No, he is not dizzy and the balance is fine. Sight is fine. When he turns his head left or right, he REALLY turns it far left or right!! So far he usually ends up walking in circles for a while. Sometimes you have to stop him because he gets confused. He can go straight but it take a lot of effort to stay focused for him. He wants to turn. Its like he thinks something is there to go to. Its not a lack of control. He functions 100% normal, can feed himself clover and grasses, groom himself and goes potty on his own, finds his food on his own (with circular detours!) but he cant drink water by himself in a lid, because he over emphasises all head movements and dunks his face when he lowers his head. When he looks up, he looks up and all the way back. His overemphasized movements are fully controlled. They're not jerky. They are slow and deliberate movements.

He still bottle feeds but is eating less as he is always nibbling now on the fresh grasses and clover.

He may improve or walk in circles for the rest of his life. He probably wont ever be able to be released. Odds are against it.

I am hoping he improves and can go free some day. I hope. Time will tell.
I don't know yet what his future will hold. I don't know were he will be kept. I have several choices and will wait to see what the future holds before I decide. My main large animal rehabber will take him permanently if I want.

I'd rather he be well and free.
We make a big deal out of it with the kids when an animal is officially set free. Its a time for celebration. This is a sad time right now.

I'll get pics up tomorrow maybe. I have some major over hauling of the house I am doing. He may be different, but he is still perky, bouncy and sweet as honey.

[WillowsMuse]

:hugz:

[person of shadow]

Tis sad to hear that he may never go free, but at least he has you to take care of him and make great choices for him for the time being.

[Cindlady2]

Wow, too bad about the setback. Hope it's something that will fix it's self.

[robinrowland]

What a true and wonderful person you are. That you took the time and effort to save this little one is truely awesome. I'm sure that if your little one could speak, he would be singing your praises. great job!:wave:

[BlueEyedWolf]

:hugz: For you and your bunny!!:hugz:

[Shanti]

I haven't update this thread till now, because it was just to hard too.
The bunny was doing great! It was growing, weaned and showing all signs of total healing.

We got to the point where we had a release date set. We were all excited that he beat the odds.

But one day he passed on. No warning, no clue of anything. He literally just keeled over. He was only one week from release. We were all shocked. No physical reason could be found.
He was perfectly fine one minute and just gone the next.

I feel its just natures way. He wasn't meant to survive. Sometimes us humans just cant control the fate of nature no matter what we do. We try. That's all we can do. Some creatures are meant to survive with our help, some not. He touched our hearts and with that I am thankful to his little spirit for allowing us to share the time we had with him.

Its been hard. I never had a rescue just die with no warning signs like this. I am sorry I didn't update for those who were concerned. I just couldn't bring myself to talk about it yet.

When ever a release doesn't work or a critter doesn't survive to be released, its hard for us here. Its like the wilds lost one more free creature. I know there are plenty of wild rabbits out there, but that doesn't make it easier to loose one. Time is all that helps.

At least this past summer season, 90% of all rescues brought in, survived and made it to release back to the wilds. That's a good year. People often bring in critters, hit by cars, mauled by pets and so on that the odds of survival are to often zero. So 90% is a good rate.

The only other loss I personally had this year was a Cedar Wax wing adult male bird. A cat got it and punctured a lung and broke several ribs. The bird, we knew, would die soon. It lived one hour after it was brought in.

The best success this year I personally had, was a little ground hog. He came to us with his eyes just opening, starved and dehydrated. More than likely the mom was killed. The farms in the area eradicate groundhogs.
Anyhow, that little guy survived, and was released with joy and hope into protected lands. He came with his life hanging on a thread and left full of vigor and strength. We were sad to see him go, but so happy to see him go! I will never forget him. :)

[_Banbha_]

You do great and important work Shanti. Wildlife rehabbers deserve gold stars and all good the good karma you give to wild ones. Nature takes her course and that's how it should be. Sometimes she throws a curve ball. You had the best of intentions and think of what you learned healing such complex injuries successfully.

Wild animals do not belong to anyone but themselves, we should only be guardians when they are in need. Most injuries/illnesses require only temporary care and a truely unselfish heart like yours understands that. :hugz:

[person of shadow]

I'm sorry to hear this, you tried your best and he was loved, what else does a baby want?


:hugz: I know how you feel!

[SnowyMoon]

You did all you could. The little bunny knew love its short live and was cared for. You did good. :hugz:

I also had a wild rescue bunny pass, Foo (http://public.fotki.com/Snowymoon/foo_and_friends/), not long before we had hoped to release her (developed bloat; she had a severe eye infection we were trying to heal). It was heartbreaking, as the little gal wanted to live so much and made it through so much (her warren was destroyed by our neighbor's bulldozer).

[Shanti]

Thanks guys/gals.

We are ok now that time has passed. Healing came for us. Its just sad.

Your kind words are greatly appreciated, thank you so much.

[Sequoia]

*hugs tight*

I couldn't imagine losing such a sweet young one. I have an uppity little dwarf, but he's just like having a toddler around... I couldn't imagine losing him out of the blue like that.

:hugz:

You loved him, healed him. It was probably the neurological problem, especially seeing as he was a runt. Could he possibly have been a natural dwarf? Or have some other genetic issue?

Either way, you did everything possible for him, and I know that the life he shared with you was comforting and loving.

[Shanti]

*hugs tight*

I couldn't imagine losing such a sweet young one. I have an uppity little dwarf, but he's just like having a toddler around... I couldn't imagine losing him out of the blue like that.

:hugz:

You loved him, healed him. It was probably the neurological problem, especially seeing as he was a runt. Could he possibly have been a natural dwarf? Or have some other genetic issue?

Either way, you did everything possible for him, and I know that the life he shared with you was comforting and loving.
This was a wild bun, rescued after a dog got the nest.

But as for the domestic and the dwarf gene. I raise Jersey woolies, a dwarf breed of angora and I raise French Angoras which are normal sized. I purposely breed dwarf Jerseys to French Angoras so I never have to worry about peanuts (name for buns with the double dwarf gene). The peanuts never live more than a few days. When breeding 2 dwarfs, 1/4 will be born peanuts and die. 1/4 will be regular sized and 1/2 will be normal dwarfs. You can only get a peanut from 2 dwarfs breeding.

When breeding dwarf to regular size, 1/2 will be normal dwarf and 1/2 regular sized. No peanuts to watch die.
And the size of the newborn buns is controlled by the mom. So a dwarf mom can breed with a reg rabbit and have no prob birthing.

Thanks hon. Talking about my domestic rabbits feels good. :)

[Sequoia]

This was a wild bun, rescued after a dog got the nest.

But as for the domestic and the dwarf gene. I raise Jersey woolies, a dwarf breed of angora and I raise French Angoras which are normal sized. I purposely breed dwarf Jerseys to French Angoras so I never have to worry about peanuts (name for buns with the double dwarf gene). The peanuts never live more than a few days. When breeding 2 dwarfs, 1/4 will be born peanuts and die. 1/4 will be regular sized and 1/2 will be normal dwarfs. You can only get a peanut from 2 dwarfs breeding.

When breeding dwarf to regular size, 1/2 will be normal dwarf and 1/2 regular sized. No peanuts to watch die.
And the size of the newborn buns is controlled by the mom. So a dwarf mom can breed with a reg rabbit and have no prob birthing.

Thanks hon. Talking about my domestic rabbits feels good. :)

Awwww. :heartthro

I hope to breed sweeties one day. I've read about peanuts before - I'm not sure I could breed dwarfs. I'd be quite worried about the poor little things. I believe ours is a false-dwarf, because he's close to three pounds and is only about seven months old. But he's so damn smart. He's learned that if he stands up completely on his hind legs in front of us, and holds it, he'll get a treat. He'll keep doing it until his little belly would probably burst. But he only does it if you ask him in a special voice, "Yuki, do you want a treat? Do you want a treat, Yuki?"

8O I'll attach a picture... See, he actually holds that position. He'll even hop forward a few steps if you hold the treat out.

[Shanti]

Awwww. :heartthro

I hope to breed sweeties one day. I've read about peanuts before - I'm not sure I could breed dwarfs. I'd be quite worried about the poor little things. I believe ours is a false-dwarf, because he's close to three pounds and is only about seven months old. But he's so damn smart. He's learned that if he stands up completely on his hind legs in front of us, and holds it, he'll get a treat. He'll keep doing it until his little belly would probably burst. But he only does it if you ask him in a special voice, "Yuki, do you want a treat? Do you want a treat, Yuki?"

8O I'll attach a picture... See, he actually holds that position. He'll even hop forward a few steps if you hold the treat out.What a cutie!!
With 3lbs at 7 months and those ears, sure looks like a dwarf!! The next closest possibility is a mini. Mini don't have the gene, they are just small. But male minis are usually 4, 4 1/2 lbs by 6 months and their ears are big like the large rabbits. Dwarfs stop growing by 6 months so 3 lbs would be right. Dwarf ears are smaller than regular rabbits and just how small depends on the breed.
Your 7 month old is an adult! Regular sized rabbits are sexually mature and pretty much done growing at 7 months and dwarfs at 5 months. All they may do after that is fill out a little.

If you ever breed remember one very important thing, females must give birth before they turn one year old. After they turn one year, their pelvic bone fuses and they can not give birth, they can get pg but will die without a c-section. If bred before one year, their pelvic bones wont fuse. I breed my female dwarfs at 5-7 months and regulars at 7-8 months old.

Males can be bred anytime but sometimes in the heat of summer they can become temporarily sterile. Mother natures way of making sure babies are not born during the worse heat of the year. Heat is worse for rabbits than cold. Females don't have a heat cycle. They can get pg anytime because its the act of mating that triggers ovulation. So the males body causes temporary sterility if the weather or conditions are not right. They can still do it, but they shoot blanks till conditions are good again. My best breeding is spring, fall and winter (They have heat in winter). Mid summer and no babies. All my males go sterile in July and August, our hottest season.

Dwarfs have only 1-4 in a litter, they average 2-3. And regular sized can have up to 8 usually. On average 4-5 is a nice size litter for regulars.

Thats is a cute bunny!!!! I love the pose! :)

[Sequoia]

Whoah, thank you for all of the information!! I had no idea about females' hip bones. Thankfully, we aren't at all close to breeding yet - and our little Yuki is safely neutered. (We wanted to make sure that he'd be healthy, no matter what. And it took a while to find a rabbit-experienced vet, but it was well worth the time and money.)

Huh, I didn't realize that he could be a mixed breed dwarf. We got him from (horrors) a pet store, where appearantly the breeder who supplies them breeds for Show Rabbits, and her faulties get sent to the pet store. (If nobody buys them, well... her son has some large boas and pythons... :wah2: ) We are normally rescuers and adopters - we were planning on going to a shelter in a few months - but we saw this teensy, scrawny bunny, much smaller than all the others, and getting rather pushed around. We were convinced he was a sickly runt (as he also had a little cold at the time), and pulled out our savings to "rescue" him and hastily pick up the proper supplies.

Much to our surprise, we found out shortly therafter that he fit the profile of a Dwarf perfectly. I'll attach a piccy of him as a baby, because it's just too adorable to possibly live through.

So, we didn't actually "rescue" him from anything, but our hearts were in the right place. 8O and he's become the dearest addition to our household. I can't imagine a day without our Yuki. Even if he was a terror before we got him fixed. -_-;

[Sequoia]

Oops! Forgot the pictures. Here are some from when he was TINY, when we first got him... and maybe if I have space, some of his more recent "portraits" :lol:

[person of shadow]

This was a wild bun, rescued after a dog got the nest.

But as for the domestic and the dwarf gene. I raise Jersey woolies, a dwarf breed of angora and I raise French Angoras which are normal sized. I purposely breed dwarf Jerseys to French Angoras so I never have to worry about peanuts (name for buns with the double dwarf gene). The peanuts never live more than a few days. When breeding 2 dwarfs, 1/4 will be born peanuts and die. 1/4 will be regular sized and 1/2 will be normal dwarfs. You can only get a peanut from 2 dwarfs breeding.

When breeding dwarf to regular size, 1/2 will be normal dwarf and 1/2 regular sized. No peanuts to watch die.
And the size of the newborn buns is controlled by the mom. So a dwarf mom can breed with a reg rabbit and have no prob birthing.

Thanks hon. Talking about my domestic rabbits feels good. :)
I must ask, do jersies and angoras have the problem of the non-dwarf gene? were the body and ears don't match the head? Nehter. dwarfs have the problem, and yes we have peanuts too. I've never seen one that lived past 3-4 days.

You're bun Sequoia looks like a dwarf to me, what type I'm not sure.....

This is what I mean when I say non-dwarf gene, if you look at the picture of my Sable Marten(Gray one) she has the non dwarf gene. and my Himilayan(white) she doesn't have it.

http://www.freewebs.com/fsrabbitry/river%2001.JPGhttp://www.freewebs.com/fsrabbitry/himmie%2001.JPG

[person of shadow]

Oops! Forgot the pictures. Here are some from when he was TINY, when we first got him... and maybe if I have space, some of his more recent "portraits" :lol:
He's a cutie, Himilayan I take it from the pictures?

[Sequoia]

He's a cutie, Himilayan I take it from the pictures?

I suppose so, though he's faulty. He isn't dark brown or black, but rather a very pale cobolt colour. (He did go through a darker phase, but with his next shed it was gone.) His front paws and nose have good colouring, but his hind paws are black, his ears are only grey on the front, and his tail is very pale with only a hint of grey and a teensy spot of ultra-pale brown.

I wuv him, though.

[person of shadow]

I suppose so, though he's faulty. He isn't dark brown or black, but rather a very pale cobolt colour. (He did go through a darker phase, but with his next shed it was gone.) His front paws and nose have good colouring, but his hind paws are black, his ears are only grey on the front, and his tail is very pale with only a hint of grey and a teensy spot of ultra-pale brown.

I wuv him, though.
Blue is a showable color. My Himilayan is the lightest I've ever seen and almost won!(she got DG'd because of her tail, it's only half colored)

** Points to picture of my rabbits** That pic doesn't show how light she is but she is PALE!


I'm so happy I just had to share it!!!! My himilayan finally bred!!!!!I sure hope it took!

[Sequoia]

Blue is a showable color. My Himilayan is the lightest I've ever seen and almost won!(she got DG'd because of her tail, it's only half colored)

** Points to picture of my rabbits** That pic doesn't show how light she is but she is PALE!


I'm so happy I just had to share it!!!! My himilayan finally bred!!!!!I sure hope it took!

Oooo, congratulations!!! *BABY BUNNY DUST*

My little boy's had his balls snipped, so he won't ever be a daddy... too bad, too, 'cause he's so smart and well-tempered. BUT, his health comes first. :)

[person of shadow]

I know how you feel, I think I'm going to get all my bucks fixed once they're too old....I just can't show the fixed..........Or breed to better the breed.

[Shanti]

I must ask, do jersies and angoras have the problem of the non-dwarf gene? were the body and ears don't match the head? Nehter. dwarfs have the problem, and yes we have peanuts too. I've never seen one that lived past 3-4 days.

You're bun Sequoia looks like a dwarf to me, what type I'm not sure.....

This is what I mean when I say non-dwarf gene, if you look at the picture of my Sable Marten(Gray one) she has the non dwarf gene. and my Himilayan(white) she doesn't have it.

http://www.freewebs.com/fsrabbitry/river%2001.JPGhttp://www.freewebs.com/fsrabbitry/himmie%2001.JPG
The jersey woollie, a dwarf breed has a nice head/body porportion. They just look like small, young, French angoras. The ears are what tell you its not a young French but an adult Jersey. If you dont look at the overall size, a Jersey and French are porportioned the same. The Jerseys ears are about 2/3 of the length of French. The only other noticable differance is the face shape. Jerseys have a flat face compared to the French rabbits.

Put a French adult next to a Jersey adult and its wierd. It looks like they should be the same kind of rabbit, almost....and the size...
8-10 lbs vrs 3 lbs!! LOL

You know from all these absolutely wonderful rabbit pics, I think I shall start a rabbit pic/chat thread!!! :)

All the buns here are totally cute!!!!

[person of shadow]

Thankya for explaining, I didn't know to much about angoras.

Good Idea!