Pet Punter

Posts Tagged ‘rabbit’

Pets are the most adorable creations of God! They save us from loneliness, make us feel happy, we get the feel as if someone is there living for us, and in some cases they even act as our guides and philosophers too. Pondering about each pet, they have some message to say to us. While the dog speaks in volumes about faithfulness, the cats teach us as what love and closeness is.

The rabbits teach us to be active and silent always, while the lovebirds want us to be cheerful at all circumstances. The fish takes us into a new world of imagination thus expanding our creative horizons. In the similar way, each pet inculcate so many values in us that even the mortal human beings fail to do!

The rabbit known as the Beveren also originates from Belgium and was developed during the 1890’s. Today, the breed is large, typically weighting up to 4.5kg and has a distinctive mandolin-shaped body. The coat has an attractive silky texture, withindividual hairs that are over 2.5 cm long. The traditional color is a pale shade of lavender. The black form was developed in 1919, followed by albinos and dark-eyed whites, and then the brown. One of the most recent additions to this group of friendly rabbits is the lilac, created during the 1980s. Recognizable by its white body and dark markings on the extremities, it is now becoming more common.

This slim, athletic, long-legged Belgian breed resembles a harem but is nevertheless a rabbit. Its highly distinctive appearance caused a stir when it was first developed at the end of the 19th century. Early attempts at cross-breeding rabbits with hares always proved futile, which confirms that the Belgian Hare is in fact a pure rabbit, The coat is a deep chestnut color with black shading. The long body means that is require a tall hutch, to enable it to sit up on its hindquarters. It is active by nature and this, coupled with its sleek appearance, makes it an attractive choice for a pet.

Specially designed hutches are now available for rabbits living indoors. It is a good idea to fit a pen around the hutch for extra safety, and to keep your rabbit in its hutch or pen when you are out. Although it may seem appropriate to place the hutch and run in a conservatory or porch, bear in mind that the temperature here can rapidly raise to a fatal level for your rabbit on a hot day. Prepare the hutch in just the same way as outdoor accommodation.

Do not forget to provide hay as this is an essential source of fiber in the rabbit’s diet, and will lessen its inclination to chew at the carpets. For house training, choose a low-sided cat litter tray that gives the rabbit easy access, and use a lightweight litter. Scoop up some of the rabbit’s droppings on the litter, and then put the rabbit on the tray. It is often helpful to have a pen at this early stage as you can keep your pet confined here until it is trained in using the litter tray and this will avoid any soiling around the home.

The vast majority of small mammals that is popular as pets belong to the rodent family. The term “rodent” comes from the Latin word rodere, meaning “to gnaw”, and describes the very sharp pair of chisel-shaped incisor teeth found in each jaw right at the front of the mouth. The sharp and strength of these teeth is crucial to the survival of rodents as they enable to crack seeds and nuts easily. Unlike our teeth, they continue growing throughout the rodent’s life. This is essential to stop them from wearing down, which would prevent the rodent from eating.

Rabbits are not actually rodents, but are grouped instead with hares and pikas in a separate family known as lagomorphs. However, the structure of their teeth is very similar to that of rodents; except that they have a further tiny set of incisors each side of the main teeth at the front of the mouth. Most rodents are relatively small in size, which makes them vulnerable to larger predators. As a result, they have keen senses to help them avoid detection. Their hearing is very accurate, and they often communicate with each other using ultrasonic calls, which we are unable to hear because the frequencies are too high for our ears.

Rabbit shows at local and regional level are listed in newspapers and specialist publications and, if you are interested in one particular variety of rabbits, there may be a breed club that you can join as well. Rabbits are rung for exhibition purposes at about two months of age, before the ankle joint becomes too big for the ring to pass over it. Rings are produced in various sizes for different breeds and it may be necessary to band the smaller breeds at a slightly younger age. The breeder’s details and the year of the rabbit’s birth are encoded on the ring, which will normally remain in place throughout its life. Check the ring occasionally, however, to check that it moves freely on the leg and is not causing the rabbit any discomfort.

If the ring needs to be removed for any reason, ask your vet to do this for you. Ringing is not the only way to mark rabbits for identification, however. In many countries, tattooing is preferred. At a show, it can appear as if the rabbits are being compared with each other to find the winner. However, in reality, they are being judged against the breed standard. It is vital that show rabbits are used to being handled, so that when being judged, as here, they will not struggle but remain relaxed. Rabbits are kept in pens before and after judging. Vaccination, especially against the rabbit disease VHD, is very important for show rabbits.

The most significant viral illnesses for owners of small animals occur in rabbits, and both have been developed with a view to controlling wild rabbit population by biological means. Viral haemorrhagic disease (VHD) has only been recognized in rabbits since the 1980s, but has spread through the wild population and infected domestic stock as well. There are very few symptoms, and an affected rabbit will usually die suddenly. One tell-tale sign in a slight haemorrhaging of blood from the nose. There is no treatment, and vaccination against this disease is important, particularly for show stock because the virus survives well in the environment.

It is spread by contaminated food and water bowls, housing pens and even clothing, as well as directly from one rabbit to another. Because the rabbits are prone to digestive upsets, viruses may have a role in some cases of digestive illness, although the role is not yet clearly understood. The hope of recovery stems from preventing dehydration, which accompanies severe diarrhea, from becoming life-threatening. This should enable the body’s own defense mechanisms to overcome the illness. A vaccine to protect against VHD being administered moreover the vaccine is essential, especially in exhibition stock, to guard against this relatively common killer rabbit disease.

This is a virus which can be spread to domestic rabbits by wild rabbits visiting their hutches; for this reason it is recommended to stand hutches at least 60 cm off the ground in areas where wild rabbits are prevalent, and to double-wire runs on both faces of the timber around the perimeter. Outbreaks of myxomatosis tend to occur in the summer in more temperate areas because biting insects, such as mosquitoes tend to occur in the summer in more temperate areas because biting insects, such as mosquitoes, are also capable of spreading the infection, and these are most numerous at this time of year.

The earliest signs of infection are inflammation of the eyes, quickly accomplished by a whitish discharge. By this stage, the rabbit will be seriously ill and will have lost its appetite. Sadly, there is no treatment for myxomatosis, and most affected individuals will die within a couple of days. Those which survive beyond this stage develop scabs around their eyes, and their ears become badly swollen and start to droop. With virtually no hope of survival therefore, it will be kindest to have a rabbit which has contracted myxomatosis painlessly euthanased after diagnosis. In areas where this infection crops up regularly, it is vital to have pet rabbits protected by vaccination, since they are more vulnerable to the disease than wild rabbits, which have some immunity to this illness.

With the growing interest in keeping rabbits in the home, larger breeds have become very popular and they can be given plenty of space to roam. Some of the rabbits are larger and heavier in size that s a small dog. As an example, the British giant is closely-related to the Flemish giant, weights up to 6.1 kg. The breed originated from stock kept as long ago as the 1500s around the city of Ghent in Belgium.

Flemish Giant:  The traditional color of the Flemish giant is steel grey, and it was the refusal of the British show authorities to recognize this breed in other colors that originally triggered the development of the British giant strain in the 1930s. The Flemish giant is still better known internationally, and is also slightly heavier, averaging 7-8kg. These large rabbits are known to be friendly, with calm temperaments. As house-rabbits they will settle quickly into a domestic lifestyle, and can be trained to use a litter tray from an early stage. Although the typical agouti-patterned form, resembling that if the wild rabbit, is commonly seen, a range of colors from pure white through to blue and black is available as well.

New Zealand Varieties: Several varieties of rabbit have their origins in New Zealand. The original white variety was created as a meat breed. It has well-muscled body and relatively short ears, typically weighting up to 5.4kg.

There are many different types of rabbit food on the market. Most of the mixes contain a variety of ingredients, such as cereals and pellets. Recent concerns over locust beans, which have been blamed from the death of some rabbits, have led to these being removed by some manufacturers. Check the labeling for the precise ingredients, and make a note of the “use-by” date for the vitamin and mineral content of the mix.

If your rabbit has not been used to fresh foods, introduce this carefully in small amounts. You can feed a rabbit a wide range of fresh foods, including dandelion, grass, carrots and cabbage. Always wash the food beforehand and make sure it is fresh. Many rabbits develop serious diarrhea when they are first put in an outdoor run, because they are not used to eating grass. The consequences can be fatal, so it is important to acclimatize the rabbit to grass before it goes outside.

A rabbit that is fed a commercial formulated food is unlikely to need any supplement to its diet. Treats available from pet stores can be offered occasionally, but watch out for signs that your rabbit is overweight: pet rabbits can become obese, especially if they are fed a diet that is too concentrated. Aim to provide a balanced diet, matched to your pet’s energy requirements. Rabbit kept outside need more food than those kept indoors. A neutered rabbit will also need less food. Pet rabbits can be tamed to eat from the hand. Children need to be taught not to hold on to the food item for too long, however, because the rabbit will crazy on nibbling  and may then take a bite at their fingers. A rabbit diet should consist of both fresh and dry foods. Make any dietary changes gradually to avoid digestive upsets.