A Natural Rabbit Diet

We hear so often from pet rabbit owners that their bunny has gut stasis and a big vet bill. Sadly some lose their bunny to this condition which is sad because it can be avoided with a natural diet. 

Kim Cooney, founder and bunny slave at The Rabbit Sanctuary has worked with thousands of rabbits over the years and has pretty much tried most ways of feeding rabbits. She recommends the following rabbit diet to keep gut stasis away:

Oaten Hay

Timothy Hay or Oxbow Blend

Fresh lawn grass (cut with scissors)

1 Oxbow Treat per day

Oxbow Pellets

NB. The diet for a nursing mother rabbit and for baby rabbits or a sick or thin rabbit would include Lucerne Hay and Oxbow Baby Rabbit Pellets. 

Read Kim’s article on why a natural rabbit diet is best. 

Https://rabbitsanctuary.com.au/f/grass-or-greens 

Rabbits for Adoption in Lismore

Lismore Rabbits for Adoption

The Rabbit Sanctuary rescues, rehabilitates and rehomed rabbits in Lismore, NSW. We take in abandoned, stray and injured rabbits all along the north coast of NSW. 

When a rabbit is rescued in the Lismore area we firstly take him or her to the vet for a health check. Our vet attends to any injuries or illnesses. Once the bunny is stable our vet vaccinated, microchips, desexes and parasite treats the bunny. 

When the rescue rabbit is eating well and in good condition he or she is available for adoption. 

We only rehome our rescue bunnies to indoor homes where they can be part of a family. 

Tweed Heads Rabbit Rescue

The Rabbit Sanctuary rescues abandoned pet rabbits in Tweed Heads NSW. We collect from the Tweed Shire Council Pound and from local Tweed vets who have strays handed in. This provides the pound and the vets with a humane option for the poor abandoned bunnies.

Currently in May 2020 we only have two available bunnies for adoption. Enya and Bono. They are a gorgeous pair of bunnies. You will see them advertised on our site at Rabbits for Adoption Tweed Heads

Bunny Runs Continue

Our wonderful volunteer Bunny Runners continue to move rescue rabbits around from place to place despite the current Coronavirus pandemic. Little rescue rabbit Shugo left today with Bunny Runner Leigh heading from The Rabbit Sanctuary in Grafton NSW to his new owner in Sydney.

Leigh also took one of our amazing Bunny Castles along for the ride to deliver to its sponsor in Central Coast.

For the safety of all concerned social distancing was practiced.

Rabbit Stress

Stress in Rabbits can be quite dangerous to their health. Here is a chart to show some signs of stress in your pet rabbit and what to do to calm them.

Signs of rabbit stress	What to do
Biting or scratching	Adjust handling method
Running away	Train to come for treat
Not eating	Try fresh herbs, fresh grass, lucerne hay, Oxbow Critical Care
Not drinking	Provide water bowl instead of bottle, offer wet kale or grass
Hiding	Leave to hide in a box or hutch, surround pen with a sheet
Urinating outside tray	Larger tray, change litter type, remove fabrics from pen
Hair pulling	Possibly starting labour, provide nest box, health check at vet
Excessive scratching	Vet check for fur mites, check skin, apply Revolution, vet check

Calicivirus RHDV2 vaccine development

Summary of RHDV2 vaccine development – December 2018 Extract from Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

Along with three strains of RHDV1, an exotic RHD virus called RHDV2 is also circulating in Australian rabbit populations, after being first detected in wild rabbits in May 2015.

We now know this virus has spread throughout most of Australia and is currently the dominant
circulating RHD virus strain at a national scale.

In collaboration with its Members and Partners, the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions has begun
two projects to further assess the biological properties and distribution of RHDV2 in the Australian
landscape and its potential as a future additional registered product.

Along with this work, the Centre has also provided some funding that contributes to the development
of a vaccine specific for RHDV2, being led by NSW DPI.

There has been excellent progress to date, and documentation is being prepared for submission to
APVMA for a pilot "standalone" RHDV2 vaccine.

Once submitted, the proposal will be assessed by the APVMA. Once all regulatory requirements are
met, the commercial vaccine manufacturer will be able to commence production of a pilot batch.
As it is unknown how long these processes will take, it is currently not possible to provide an estimate of when this vaccine will be available to the public.

Research to develop a multi-valent vaccine that would provide protection against both RHDV1 and
RHDV2 strains, is ongoing.

It is still recommended by veterinarians that all pet rabbits are vaccinated with Cylap® to protect
against RHDV.

While this vaccine is not fully effective against RHDV2, it will protect rabbits from any circulating
RHDV1 K5 strain released in the vicinity for rabbit control, as well as any other naturally circulating
RHDV1 strains.

Around The Rabbit Sanctuary

There has been a lot happening at The Rabbit Sanctuary with visiting volunteers dropping in and lending a hand. Here are some photos for you to enjoy...

Monica with Bun

Monica Lorkin flew up from Victoria to stay a week and worked very enthusiastically and very hard on quite a few projects. She donated lots of great things for the bunnies such as dustpans, brooms, toys and tunnels and more.

Paul and Marshall Mann drove down from Tweed Heads and painted fences, pressure cleaned the Bunny Barn exterior and cement areas as well as doing many other helpful jobs for the rescue rabbits benefit.

Heather comes each week from our local disability service with one of her carers and hand feeds the bunnies and other animals.

Andrew comes each week to maintain and develop gardens and grow herbs for the rescue rabbits.

Fred the ‘Bunny Santa’ makes bunny castles and accessories for the rescue rabbits each day in his workshop at The Rabbit Sanctuary.

Last chance to donate before EOFY for your tax deduction

Please consider a donation large or small to help us continue rescuing rabbits in the upcoming financial year. Donate via bank, Paypal, or Credit Card on our site at www.rabbitsanctuary.com.au

Save on tax and save rabbits! End of financial year donations

The Rabbit Sanctuary needs your help to be able to rescue rabbits. Please DONATE!

Tax time is near so we are asking for donations. Our vet bills are high as are our feed bills. 

Our charity is Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation Ltd. 

It is DGR registered so you can get a tax deduction for amounts over $2.

Please help us to help the bunnies. 

Donate Today on this link please.

Burgess Australia Donation

Burgess Australia has made a generous donation of their rabbit pellets "Excel Nuggest with Mind" which the rescue rabbits LOVE! See our facebook post showing a photo of rescue rabbit Petal trying to sit on her bunny castle amongst the many bags of Burgess Rabbit Pellets! Thank you to Burgess Australia for their generosity and support of our rabbit rescue.

Myxomatosis rabbit immunity

There has been a study on rabbit immunity to the rabbit virus, Myxomatosis with results published in "Science".  The Natural History Museum in the UK has published an article about the way rabbit genes have evolved since the time of Charles Darwin who studied this in his own rabbit. 

'Often evolution works through big changes in single genes,' explains Joel, 'but our findings show that resistance to myxomatosis likely evolved through lots of small effects spread across the genome.'

Crucially, these all occurred in the same genes relating to immunity.

Hopefully, for our pet rabbits in Australia, the genes will continue to evolve until there is complete immunity to the dreaded, incurable rabbit Myxomatosis virus. 

Symptoms of Myxomatosis are:  reddening of both eyes, a pinkness and swelling of nose, ears and anus. The rabbit's ears will be hot. Gradually lesions appear. Finally the eyes will swell shut, the swelling in the rabbit's mouth will stop eating and drinking. 

If a rabbit is found with Myxomatosis, it should be taken to a vet for humane euthanasia as there is no treatment and no cure. 

Should a Rabbit be Caged?

Show a rabbit in a small cage over and over again and that is what becomes normal.

There is nothing more natural about a rabbit in a cage, than a woman in a kitchen. 

Pet shops continue to show rabbits in cages. They sell small cages that they call "Rabbit Cages" which are cruel homes for pet rabbits because of their small size and the bunnies can't hop around freely and in some cages they can't even stand up. 

People think that caging a rabbit is ok because that is the way the pet shops market them, as caged rabbits rather than as needing space to hop around in an enriched playpen or room in the house. 

Adopting a baby rabbit or adult rabbit

How about a cuddly baby rabbit? People often ask, “Should I adopt a baby rabbit or an adult rabbit”?  Well, the answer is that there is little difference but these are points to consider:

A baby rabbit will only remain tame and friendly if handled gently on a very regular basis. Many people are scared to pick up a rabbit because when they try, the rabbit jumps out of their grasp and runs away.  This often means that they just pat the rabbit, which is fine, but the problem there is that the baby bunny is never groomed, checked or has his or her nails clipped. This creates a health problem for the bunny as they do need daily checking and grooming with regular nail trims. 

Selecting an adult rabbit that is people friendly (having been gently and well handled as a baby) can easily be groomed and handled using the correct methods of picking up the rabbit and handling on the grooming table. 

For the house proud, a baby rabbit may still be learning to use the litter tray while an adult rabbit will already be accustomed to going straight to the tray which means a cleaner rabbit playpen and less tidying up each day. 

Some think that adopting a baby rabbit will mean a stronger bond between rabbit and bunny parent. Depending on how the baby is handled this may be true but an adult rescue rabbit will quickly grow to love his or her new owners if they are kind and interact often and well with the bunny.

The Rabbit Sanctuary has both adult and baby rescue rabbits in care.  Adoptable rabbits are listed on our site and our rabbit Foster Carers also add photos and information about the bunnies in their care to our Facebook group Adopt a Rabbit which you might like to visit and join. 

Hand Rearing a Baby Hare Leveret

People sometimes come across baby hares, known as leverets who have been somehow moved from their mother's nest or carried away by cats, birds or dogs or other predators. The Rabbit Sanctuary has set up an educational help group for people wanting to raise baby hairs, leverets. Here is a link to join our Hare Raisers facebook support group...

HARE RAISERS Public group · 386 members Join Group A group for those that love hares and raising them to release to a safe hare habitat. A Rabbit Sanctuary educational group.

Making hand-made hay bales with a box baler

Rabbit owners may like to make their own hay for their pet bunny. If you have a paddock of grass or if you can plant some ground with oats or other grass seed then harvest it with a scythe you can then either stack it into a haystack or make it into a bale of hay with a homemade box hay baler. Watch the video... _____________________________________________________________________

New Rabbit Sanctuary Website and Logo

The Rabbit Sanctuary has a brand new website and logo. Please have a look here

We would like very much to publicly thank Rebecca Darmanin for her hours of work and great talent in setting up the new website which will help us do what we do best and that is to rescue rabbits and rehome them to good homes. 

Please have a look around our new site as there is a lot of information about adopting a rabbit and caring for rabbits. 

2019 will herald in more exciting changes to our website to make it a very valuable resource for the rabbit owning community. 

We love our new logo which features a rabbit and a dandelion to indicate that time never runs out for rabbits at The Rabbit Sanctuary.  Once again we thank Rebecca as well as Melya who added our brand colours. 

The Rabbit as a Companion Pet

In Australia, pet rabbits have traditionally been kept in outdoor cages and hutches. This has resulted in rabbits being undervalued in our culture as a 'caged animal' rather than as a companion pet.

The Rabbit Sanctuary is encouraging people to think of the benefit to their family of a 'house rabbit'. On our website you will find quite a bit of information about keeping a rabbit in your home.

RHDV2 Rabbit Calicivirus Alert

Bunny owners may not be aware that there is a very deadly rabbit virus on the loose in Australia. It is known as RHDV2 Calicivirus and was released in Canberra in 2015 from a government laboratory in a security breach.

It has spread now to all states of Australia and rabbits are being reported as dying suddenly.

We encourage rabbit owners to:
Keep rabbits inside the house
Keep rabbits flea and fly free
Keep rabbits away from other rabbits either wild or domestic

There is no vaccine specifically for RHDV2 Calicivirus in Australia. Other countries such as USA, European countries and New Zealand have quickly moved to developing or importing a vaccine to protect pet rabbits and other domestic rabbits.

We suggest to pet rabbit owners that they contact their local MP and Federal MP to ask them to cut the red tape to allow the importation or manufacture of a vaccine to protect our pets.

The current vaccine, Cylap, protects against other strains of RHDV Calicivirus. We recommend vaccinating 6 monthly.

COMPETITION

COMPETITION! 

How to enter....

🐰Tell us why you would like to attend! Share this post to Facebook or other social pages. 

Rabbit Education & Fun Day...

Win Spring Conference tickets for 2!

www.rabbitrescue.com.au

A day of bunny fun & learning:

🐰Take home a rabbit show bag of goodies

🐰Learn how to avoid rabbit gut problems 

🐰Learn how to handle a difficult rabbit

🐰Learn how to groom & remove fur matting

🐰Learn how to have a fur-free house

🐰Find out about the magic of the Snuggle Coat

🐰Learn how to have a contented bunny

🐰Learn how to avoid destructive chewing

🐰Learn Rabbit Sanctuary handling & bonding methods

🐰Hands-on learning from experts

🐰Ask experts questions 

🐰Learn how to teach your rabbit tricks & jumping

🐰See a demo on rabbit show jumping & have a go

🐰Take home our parasite prevention knowledge 

🐰Learn how to feed and care for your rabbits 

🐰Learn how to protect bunnies from viruses

🐰Learn about rabbit teeth & dental health 

& so much more...

Draw Date: This Thursday 4/10/18

Rescue Rabbit Kissysnoot the Mini Lop