Rabbits in the News

Youth take up challenge to popularise rabbit meat in Kisumu. 

"I  make samples and take them to the hotels and restaurants around the city to convince them that they can add rabbit stew in their menus and we can supply them with the meat,” she says.

Raising rabbits remains popular in Texas.  

Don Mersiovsky, president of the TRBA, began raising rabbits when he was a 9-year-old 4-H student in Belton. Living in the city, rabbits were the easiest animal for him to raise. He's been raising them ever since. Where rabbits rank on the list of most popular animals for 4-H students to raise depends on the part of the state, Mersiovsky said.

"In areas that are more urban, where there are a lot of subdivisions and neighborhoods, you're usually going to see more rabbits," he said. "They're not as big as other livestock, but you can learn the same life skills and the same sense of responsibility that you get with any other animal. You have to take care of it and make sure it's healthy and well-fed. You have to learn the right way to do things.

"We have a lot of physically-disadvantaged kids who show rabbits. You don't have to be physically fit. Some of the special needs kids find rabbits a lot easier to handle, and they're not as scared. We've had kids with cerebral palsy and one with muscular dystrophy. It's a good way for them to learn the same life skills as anybody else."

 Rearing rabbits changed his life.

 A youth who had taken up rabbit rearing as an excellent means of self-employment, is leading a content life now.

Rabbits Are Not Overpopulated: The Ethics of Rabbit Breeding.  

The answer is, perhaps surprisingly, that rabbits do not actually contribute to pet overpopulation. Despite being very prolific breeders, pet rabbits are not overpopulated in the United States, so breeding them does not present the same moral concerns associated with the breeding of cats and dogs.

 The Rabbit Overpopulation Myth.  

The only reliable figure for rabbit abandonment comes from a 1997 shelter survey that estimated 43,519 rabbits abandoned in US shelters in 1996. This estimate does not come from any rescue group or animal rights group, as they all claim they have no information about shelter numbers, but rather from an individual who did it himself. And from Rabbits Annual 1998-99 "Fewer rabbits are being dumped because people know how to care for them." Paige Parsons HRS educator.

Useful Blog on Rabbits.     Lists a variety of topics.  Seems fairly knowledgeable.

 

 

 

Vent Disease or Rabbit Syphilis

I had this crop up in my herd once from a rabbit that was given to me.   Since she was in isolation it was simply a matter of treating her.

Vent disease is not a particularly good disease to have in your rabbitry and often requires all rabbits to be treated for it.

some resources to pursue in one's search for more knowledge on this disease

Three little ladies.

Vent disease is highly contagious and can be spread either by direct contact, during breeding, and passed to offsprings to kindling. Any rabbit showing signs of vent disease should be removed from your breeding program until they have been properly medicated. Quarantining the rabbit from the herd for a short time should also be practiced.

Topical application of ointments may relieve the area of its soreness but will not rid the rabbit of this disease. Vent disease can be effectively treated using Pen BP-48 which is a combination of Procaine Penicillin G and Penicillin G Benzathine. We successfully treated by giving a dosage of 20,000 IU per pound of body weight. As with any medication, care should be taken to read the label so you understand how much medication you are administering to the rabbit. The bottle of Pen BP-48 that we purchase contains 300,000 IU per mL. So a 4 pound rabbit would receive 2.5/10 of a mL. This should be administered once a week for three straight weeks. The medication is to be given subcutaneously (SQ). A 25 gauge needle should be small enough for the rabbit, yet large enough for this somewhat thicker medication.

As with any antibiotic care should be taken to watch your rabbit for any signs of diarrhea. Hay should be free fed during the treatment to aid the rabbits digestive system and prevent diarrhea. You may also consider removing pellets from the diet for the first couple of days after treatment.

Rabbits Online (note this is a rescue forum)

 This link has pictures and a variety of links to look through.

The Nature Trail.

According to Ferrets, Rabbits, and Rodents: Clinical Medicine and Surgery by Katherine E Quesenberry and James W. Carpenter, my source for this article, penicillin G benzathine-penicillin G procaine (sold as Combi-Pen and commonly referred to as pen B) administered at 7-day intervals for 3 injections (42,000 to 84,0000 IU per kilogram of rabbit weight given subcutaneously) is an appropriate treatment.

My Combi-Pen has 300,000 IU per milliliter. A 4-lb. rabbit weighs 1.8 kg. The range for a 4 lb. rabbit is therefore 75,600 to 151,200 IU or 1/4 to 1/2 mililitters or cc’s. The convention many breeders use is 1/10 cc per pound. Please make your own calculations and consult your vet before administering medications.

If you use Pen G, then you must give it for 5 to 7 days straight intramuscular. I find this treatment harder on the rabbit’s GI tract, though, and harder to administer. Other breeders have found that vent disease is more likely to reoccur with the Pen G treatment.

Merck Veterinarian Manual.

Treponematosis, a specific venereal disease of domestic rabbits, is caused by the spirochete Treponema paraluis cuniculi . It occurs in both sexes and is transmitted by coitus and from the doe to offspring. Although closely related to the organism ( T pallidum ) that causes human syphilis, T cuniculi is not transmissible to other domestic animals or humans.