What makes a rabbit unfit to eat

I am new to the meat rabbit journey,
several of my fryer rabbits have started getting a yellow wet matted rump area, appears that maybe they are having diarrhea to cause this.
They are being raised on grass and pellets.

I am researching to see what exactly it is, I am thinking maybe coccidia?

My question is, are they safe to eat? I don't want them to go to waste, but definitely not worth getting sick over.

If it is coccidia can I treat their water with corrid like I did my chickens?
I would prefer to treat them as a precautionary at a young age to give it plenty of time to wear off before it is time to butcher.

I would add stuff containing tannins to their diet, like willow, hazel etc., I feed some willow almost every day as prevention (and because they love it), but I didn't have problems with cocci before either, so I have no first hand experience with treatment.

Threads on this topic:
how-do-you-prevent-treat-coccidia-in-your-herd-t29971.html
post302419.html

Although there isn't much that would make the meat bad I would toss an infected liver, somewhat gross.

The diarrhea could indicate weaning enteritis, which is pretty common among young pellet-fed rabbits.

When you say that you feed your rabbits grass, do you mean actual green grass or mixed grass and weeds? Some grass is fine, but it is better mixed with weeds -- this may be the reason for the diarrhea.

We have a Safe Plants List that will give you alternatives.
safe-plants-for-rabbits-list-t55.html

For the present time, I would remove the pellets and grass and give them hay and old-fashioned kitchen oatmeal -- large-flake is best -- and the leaves of blackberry, raspberry and strawberry, as well as the lawn weeds plantain and shepherd's purse. Willow is also good and has pain-relieving qualities.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_major
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_lanceolata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_ovata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capsella_bursa-pastoris

These measures should stop the diarrhea if it is a dietary problem. Then you can slowly add back the pellets to their diet.

If the problem persists in spite of these changes, then you might want to consider treating for coccidiosis. Preitler has already given you links to some relevant threads about cocci.

The meat of rabbits with coccidiosis is still edible, but do not use the diseased livers either for yourselves or your pets.

Currently the rabbits are in a pen, that is 40 ft. square. It is all grass, which I haven't been able to id what type of grass it is yet.

The rabbits that are having the problem are close to 5 months old and have been on the grass for 2 months with no problem until now.

I did have a batch of younger rabbits (8-10) weeks old, that all died from living in this same grass. Some on here said it could have been enteritis. One person said If they are on fescue grass then that could be the problem, because there is a fungus that grows in/on fescue grass that is deadly.

I am starting to think letting the rabbits free range on my 1 acre fenced section may be better, it will allow them to seek their own shade rather than me have to make it for them to stay cool. And they will be able to eat whichever plants they enjoy.
Surely through evolution they would know enough to not eat poisonous plants, at least not very often. The only thing I don't like about this is spreading a domesticated rabbit population, I can't afford to put chicken wire around the whole area to keep the small ones in.

DoubleA, please add your location (state, province or country) to your profile. Questions like yours are difficult to answer when we don't have a clue where you live. The further south you are, the greater the risk of parasitic problems.

I'm not surprised your rabbits are having problems if you are keeping them on the ground where other rabbits fell sick and died. Something like coccidiosis stays in the ground a long, long time.

Free ranging rabbits is not a great idea either. Besides the possibility of escapees, they are at risk from many kinds of predators. Also, although some domestic rabbits seem to be able to steer clear of poisonous plants, it is not something you can count on.

Generally speaking, the safest way to raise rabbits in a colony is to locate the colony in a shed or outbuilding or at least in a clean secure outdoor pen that has a surface other than dirt or grass. Greens can be gathered and brought to the rabbits. That way you have more control and the rabbits are safer from disease and predators.

Rabbits that are five months of age are not fryers. They are mature roasters and the things they are susceptible to are different than rabbits just weaned and making the transition to entirely solid foods. Enteritis can afflict rabbits of any age, but young fryers are most susceptible.

Just some things to consider when you post. Incomplete or misleading information makes it difficult to help you.

several of my fryer rabbits have started getting a yellow wet matted rump area

Click to expand...

The rabbits that are having the problem are close to 5 months old and have been on the grass for 2 months with no problem until now.

Click to expand...

The term fryer indicates a young rabbit (tender enough to fry), generally under 12 weeks old. By 5 months, they would typically be called roasters, juniors, or seniors if they have made senior weight and/or started breeding.

Hm, I don't think that fungus thing is very likely, heard the first time about that. Lots of other possible reasons.

Letting them roam free, on 1 acre without secure fence, well, it isn't unlikely that you'll either lose a lot or all to predators, disease and parasites or create a rabbit plague in your area, depending on where that is.

Also, you can't secure anything against diseases and parasites that wild rabbits carry. Even if there are no european rabbits, Myxo for example can be spread by other spieces. If there are, they will mix with the wild population.
They will dig their own holes and burrows, and you'll have a hard time catching those which grow up there, or even finding all the holes and litters (had that happen once, nest in an earth hole)
About what they eat free ranging - yeah, they know pretty well what to leave alone, I let roam mine about 1/8 acre when I'm at home. I don't know if it's in their genetics or a learned thing. May depend on where you live, but it shouldn't be too bad in any agricultural used area.

Updated my location, Liberty Missouri.

Housing the rabbits in a cage has never been my idea of raising rabbits, but if it has to be done for their health then It will have to be done.

I was trying to give the rabbits a more free range lifestyle and minimize feed costs. For now I would like the rabbits to provide a cheap but healthy food source for me. Raising them on pellets proves to be way too expensive, it doesn't take long for them to be worth as much as a KC strip. And cutting grass and taking to their cage is ok every now and then, but not something I can work into a daily routine.

My protocol for any rabbit showing signs of diarrhea:

1. Remove pelleted feed and stop feeding any random greens or treats.
2. Instead give good clean hay and kitchen oatmeal -- the large-flake, old-fashioned kind.
3. Lots of fresh water in a crock as well as a bottle. Electrolytes if the rabbit is dehydrated.
4. Feed any or all of the following "regulator" plants:
- the leaves of raspberry, blackberry or strawberry
- the above-ground parts of certain lawn weeds: any of the plantains and also shepherd's purse.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_major
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_lanceolata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_ovata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capsella_bursa-pastoris

If the problem is simply that the rabbit is having problems adjusting to only solid foods or perhaps the type of pellets being fed, these measures should clear up the diarrhea fast.

Humid areas seems to have more cocci issues than dry places.
The protozoa that causes hepatic coccidiosis, E. steidae, is known to be carried and spread by cottontails.

I also wanted to give my rabbits more freedom than was offered by living in cages.
My rabbits and property were initially free from the disease, and I had no problem with letting my fryers growout in a big pen on the ground. It worked for about a year. Unfortunately, I accidentally introduced the protozoa to my soil by keeping a rabbit that had previously been on pasture.
She was skinny, with a bloated belly. Had I known what I do now about rabbit diseases, that rabbit would have been culled the moment she was dropped off here, instead of being placed in my growout pen for a while before processing.

I had to permanently retire my ground pen due to that one rabbit.

I had 1/2 a litter on the ground about a month after she was processed. The other half was in cages.
The ones on the ground suffered and died. The ones in cages has one or two small white spots on their livers, but never had outward symptoms and continued growing.


These were some livers from ground dwelling kits. It only took about two weeks to do this to them.


To this day, I have never treated my herd with corid or any other drug. (Although I have experimented with treating individuals for other conditions.)
I mostly just keep their pens clean for cocci, and brush out any feces that gets trapped above the wire. It's been enough to keep them healthy. I'd personally rather have non medicated buns hanging above ground than medicated ones on the dirt. I did spring for large pens (still, not large enough!) and I do bring them forage daily during summer months.

Still looking for that perfect compromise.
Some way to give them a more natural setting and socialization, without the higher mortality rate that seem to come with it. I think the problem really comes down to the fact that high mortality rates are perfectly natural for rabbits. It's actually part of their design.

I've been able to get 97% survival rate for my litters (for this year and most of last, according to Hutch) with the way I keep them now. The main mortality factor for me recently has been certain does having too many kits. When there are 15 live and healthy, I feel the need to cull a few for the doe's sake. :|

Wow Zass, that's a fantastic percentage!

Thanks for all the good education on this thread. I too have wondered about doing ground pen rabbits. Have only found a few references to a French style of keeping angora rabbits in stalls on straw.

Most of what I know of animal husbandry comes from my experience with goats and sheep. There are many diseases that are common to those animals and rabbits.

I have a very hardy herd now though had issues with parasites and cocci early on.

I'm wondering if there is any natural selection with the rabbits so after a few generations there would be rabbits with better immunity to those issues?

One thing I do know for sure is that spent pasture is sick pasture. Stocking rate is a big factor in disease control. I have free range chickens, totally free range, no pens, etc. And they are crazy healthy. But they have as much room as they want to roam around. I love that I can let my chickens free range. Wish I could do the same for rabbits.