Rabbits seem to have at least as many troubles as any other small pet, and perhaps more than most. It is important to remember that rabbits are prey animals in the wild, and any prey animal that looks ill will be targeted by predators – so they will hide signs of illness until they get serious. This is still instinctive in pet rabbits, so owners must pay close attention to their rabbit’s health to spot illness early.

TEETH
Teeth overgrowth is a recurring problem in some rabbits that are born with the upper and lower jaw out of alignment. This is an inherited fault called malocclusion, and reputable breeders destroy young rabbits with malformed jaws because they will have problems throughout their lives, and their offspring will be affected too. Ill informed breeders may sell this type of rabbits as pets, so always look in the mouth of any rabbit you want to buy. It is also recognised that many cases of dental disease in rabbits are caused by feeding an inappropriate diet. Many rabbit mixes – the muesli types – encourage selective feeding where the rabbit eats the bits it likes and leaves the bits it does not. This leads to dietary imbalance of the minerals calcium and phosphorus, which results in poor and unhealthy teeth. Pelleted rabbit diets are available, where each pellet is the same, thus avoiding selective feeding. Rabbits in the wild spend a long time chewing grass and other herbage – if pet rabbits do not do this, their jaw muscles and bone become very weak, so they must always have grass and hay to eat.
Signs of tooth problems are
– not eating well, or going off food
– salivating
– overgrown front teeth protruding from the mouth
– swellings around the face or jaws
– weight loss
– poor grooming and matting of faeces at the back end
– discharge from the eyes
Regular trimming or extraction of the front teeth makes feeding possible, and plenty of fruit tree logs or branches, or even dog biscuits to gnaw, lead to some wearing of the teeth and less frequent trimming. Problems with the back teeth – the molars – are more serious and difficult to treat. Your vet may recommend that the rabbit is given an anaesthetic so that the back teeth can be examined and filed if overgrown, but this will have to be done repeatedly throughout the rabbit’s life.

MITES
Ear mites are a common problem. Ears become encrusted inside and painful. They may bleed because the rabbit causes damage with its vigorous scratching. It is caused by a mite that is easily killed by parasiticidal injections and ear drops.
Mites can also affect the skin and cause baldness and excessive dandruff in the coat. One mite called Cheyletiella may cause an allergic skin reaction in humans. The infection in rabbits can be treated with a course of injections, drops or washes.

SORES AND ABSCESSES
Badly kept rabbits have sore skins as a result of lying on wet soiled bedding. They may develop pressure sores on their hocks (the joints on their hind legs) which can become infected. They may also get sore skin on their abdomens or back ends when faeces, stale urine and soiled bedding stick to the fur and scald it. This can also happen if the rabbit has diarrhoea (and diarrhoea must always be treated by the vet). Fly strike is the worst consequence of a soiled rabbit – blow flies are attracted to the soiled rear end of the rabbit and lay eggs on its fur. Maggots then develop and feed on the living rabbit. If this is detected in time, cleaning, washing and physical removal of the maggots can lead to a recovery. If not, and rabbits will often not show that they are in pain until the damage is very advanced, the rabbit will die. This highlights 2 important points – always keep your rabbit and its bedding clean, especially if it has had diarrhoea, and examine your rabbit all over regularly.
Fly repellent sprays are available to help prevent fly strike.
Abscesses develop beneath the skin, sometimes as a result of fights and bites, but more often without any obvious injury. Rabbit abscesses are not usually hot to the touch and are relatively painless, even although they can be large. Treatment involves opening up the abscess and draining the pus under a general anaesthetic. However, they can sometimes recur.

DIGESTIVE UPSETS
Digestive upsets and diarrhoea occur frequently in rabbits, often caused by a sudden change in food. What might seem a rather boring diet to us is good for the rabbit, and if “treats” are given they should be the same each day. Mucoid enteritis is the name given to a particularly acute digestive upset affecting young rabbits between 6 and 12 weeks old, and change of home appears to be one of the predisposing factors. Feeding large amounts of good hay for the first week or two in a new home seems to reduce the chances of trouble. Treatment by your vet gives your rabbit a chance, but many die despite treatment.
Bacterial diarrhoea can be very serious or fatal.
Matting of formed faeces around the back end can be caused by a diet that does not have enough fibre in it, obesity or an inability to groom properly through illness, injury or mouth pain.

RESPIRATORY DISEASE
This is a common ailment too. This is a catarrhal infection of the nose, eyes and chest. It is caused by the Pasteurella organism, which many healthy rabbits carry, but the disease breaks out when the rabbit is kept in poor condition or suffers stress such as a change in home or pregnancy. Treatment with antibiotics usually results in a clinical cure and the rabbit seems better, but latent infection remains. Middle ear disease can be a complication of this, when infection spreads to the semi-circular canals in the middle ear, which regulate the rabbit’s balance. The rabbit develops a head tilt, and severe cases fall over whenever they try to move. Treatment may produce an improvement, but the head tilt will remain forever. There are other important causes of head tilt and nervous signs in rabbits – the vet must examine the rabbit to diagnose them.

MYXOMATOSIS and VHD
Myxomatosis is still a common cause of death and illness in wild rabbits, and pet rabbits are at great risk if infection is present in the district. The virus is spread by rabbit fleas and certain biting flies, so there does not need to be direct contact with wild rabbits for the disease to be caught. Swollen head glands and eyes are the first signs, and the death rate is high. A vaccine is available and vets in rural and suburban areas highly recommend its use.
VHD or Viral Haemorrhagic Disease is a newer viral threat to rabbits. This virus has spread throughout the country in recent years and often causes sudden death with no prior symptoms. Fortunately, a vaccine is also available against this disease from your vet.

OTHER PROBLEMS
If nails overgrow they must be cut at regular intervals. This can be a problem of rabbits in small hutches, and if a larger run cannot be provided, a flat piece of stone covering a quarter of the floor is an effective nail file.
Back injuries of varying severity occur when the rabbit struggles or kicks violently. Recovery depends on the extent of the injury, but let your vet advise you on the chances rather than keeping a paralysed rabbit.
It is common in older does to get cancerous changes in the womb, causing bloody urine and vulval discharge. If caught early, spaying is the necessary treatment.

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