Doe sneezing.

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fuzzy9

fuzzy9

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I have a doe who is sneezing. We got her around early feb. with some of our first rabbits that we purchased. She sneezed on and off about a couple weeks after arriving, for about a week, and then stopped. She started again a couple weeks ago, on and off, and then it went away for a bit. Today I noticed she sneezed a few times in a row, a couple times. :shock:

She's never looked sickly, no snotty nose, and no matting on the paws. Once I saw a bit of clear dribble from the nose, but once, and only once. I didn't feel I had need for concern, but now that I'm noticing it more frequently, does this sound like something to be alarmed about? Maybe just from pellet fines?
 
That's kind of what I'm hoping. I've started emptying her tub more often to keep her as clean as possible, so we'll see if that helps too.
 
I know that with mine, even pulling out a Clorox wipe in the shed will cause them to sneeze a bit. They seem to be super sensitive to smells. They also will sneeze after they have been snuffling around at the bottom of the feeder. I bet it is just fines or allergens in the air.
 
She's sneezing a little more today, and I did actually see a bit of yellowish snot under the nose this time. That's a first, anything she's had before has been clear. It was just a small amount, and she seems to keep it clean with her tongue. No matting on the paws though.

I'm just really uneasy about this, we're new at this, and trying to grow our breeding herd. I really like this doe, she's a nice big doe, and was just bred, but I'm wondering if the little bit of yellowish mucous is normal with allergies? Would you cull this doe?
 
I agree. Quarantine her. If she stays more or less okay, let her kindle and grow out her kits and then decide whether to send them all to freezer camp. I would not save breeders from a doe with a habitual sneeze, for whatever reason.
 
That's what I was afraid of. I talked with my husband, and we decided we just don't want to deal with this. We're just getting started, and trying to build our breeding herd. It's not worth the risk. I pulled her, and put her in a cage in the garage for now, and we'll send her to freezer camp tomorrow night.

The meat will be safe to use? I want to use it for my kitties, organs and everything. Does it need to be frozen for a specific amount of time?
 
As far as I know, snuffles is only contagious to other rabbits, and not other species of animals, so the meat should be fine to feed to your cats. I feed my dogs a raw diet, and I personally always freeze meat for 2 weeks before thawing it and feeding it.
 
Culling this doe is a valid option. All too often, people take chances with their herds, hoping all will be well. When trying to build a good meat herd, you want all your breeding stock to be extremely healthy.

Edited to correct some bad advice I gave. :oops:
Originally, I had posted that "The meat will be fine for your kitty or for your family. Freezing it for a period of time certainly won't hurt anything, but I have never heard of snuffles affecting any animal other than rabbits."

Apparently this is wrong, and snuffles (pasteurella) can affect cats. See the next post by Ladysown.
 
actually there is some ancedotal evidence that some cats can catch pasturella from rabbits. With cats is actually best to err on the side of caution and not feed infective rabbits to them. I would be more inclined to cook the meat for them and discard everything else.
 
Yikes! I'm so glad you posted, Ladysown! I'd never heard that snuffles could affect cats. You are perfectly right to advise caution if there is any chance at all that it could harm Geri's cat. In fact, in view of how much we love our moggies, I think I would put the meat to some other use altogether. I know I would never take a chance with Marilla.
 
I know people that actually pressure cook the whole animal- except for feathers and rice!!, empty the bladder, remove the small intestine, and cook away- fur and all.

feathers and rice will stop up the petcock, making it blow---One friend put a hole through the kitchen ceiling and attic floor while cooking rice. A friend of hers-- cooked a whole bird for his dog-- he lost a skylight!
 
What a wealth of great information! Thanks so much! I think given this additional information, I'm going to with hold from feeding this one to my kitties. They've been through so much the last couple years with allergies, and I know their immune systems are depleted as it is. I've finally gotten them to the point of finding a feed that they can eat, one that doesn't make them itch, I'd hate to wreck all the work I've done to get them to this point, by bringing something else into the home.

It's just a shame though. I can deal with losing the doe from my breeding herd, but to not even be able to use the meat seems like such a waste. :(
 

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