Please help me figure out why a litter died

[bo_murphy]

Hey guys and gals, just wondering if you could help me figure out why I had two litters of bunnies die recently. Here are the symptoms I noticed.

First, I had a single bunny die. There were about 20 bunnies in two grow out cages, side by side.

Then, about two days later another died. I thought they were getting smothered trying to get to the feeder when it was time to eat.

Then, about a week after that I had two die in one day, in the same cage. At this point I knew something was up. Every time I had one die, I noticed the belly was extremely bloated.

The last straw was Friday the 4th, I went out to feed and water the rabbitry and 4 were dead. But when I carefully looked at the others, it was obvious they were going to die as well. I have about 50 rabbits in all between my breeders, bucks and babies. So I decided to put down the rest of the ones still alive in those two cages to avoid whatever this was from spreading to the entire rabbitry.

When I looked at the ones that were still alive here are some of the things I was seeing:

1) Glassed over eyes
2) Lethargic
3) Not eating from the previous 2 days feed
4) Several were extremely skinny
5) Several had diarrhea
6) All of their bellies appeared bloated
7) Whatever "it" was, started in the cage to the left, and moved to the cage on the right. Since I put all of the others down, I had another rabbit in the the next cage to the right die displaying the same type symptoms.

I have fans running at all times to keep the heat down, and I recently installed automatic water nipples in each cage. (At first I was thinking cause of death could be heat - but only rabbits in those two cages were affected)

I'm sure I'm leaving out some details, but at this point that's all I can think of.

Any ideas? Thanks - Bo

 

[Marinea]

Two things pop into my head after reading your post- bad feed and an issue with their water (plugged up or not working right).

Is it a new bag of feed? Does it smell different? Is it moldy or, looking at the bag, does it appear it may have gotten wet? Is it very dusty?

With the waterer, make sure it is working well and clean? I don't know.

So sorry for your losses, Bo. I hope you get it resolved soon.

 

[MaggieJ]

Very sorry you had to go through this, Bo.

It would help to have more information. How old were the rabbits? At what age were they weaned? What have they been eating? Have there been any changes in their feed?

It may be the feed or water, as Marinea suggested. It may also be weaning enteritis, a problem that crops up sometimes when young rabbits have trouble transitioning from nursing to pellets. If you give us more details, we'll try to help. Losing rabbits like that is heartbreaking.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Sorry about the lost litters, Bo.

Firstly, are you certain that they know how to use the new water system? I had some rabbits in a growout pen last year and they all got really skinny, so I butchered them to see if I could find a cause. They all appeared healthy in every way except they were underweight.

After cleaning the cage I put a few more rabbits in there and about a week later, same thing! :shock: Skinny rabbits.

I had a water bucket with a stem valve in the cage for them, and had an "Ah-ha!" moment (I'm a bit slow sometimes. ) and when I checked the valve it was clogged.

None of my rabbits had any of the symptoms you mentioned, but lack of water could be a contributing cause by weakening them.

 

[squidpop]

Just throwing out another idea to explore. Intestinal Coccidiosis? It can cause bloat and diarrhea and would explain why it would seem to spread from one pen to the next.

Also, bugs that cause intestinal problems like e.coli, salmonella and giardia.

 

[ottersatin]

COCCIDIOSIS
I believe this may be your problem,
I hope this information helps to solve it!


There are two types of Coccidiosis Intestinal and Live Form. The disease is caused by a protozoan parasite which attacks the bile duct or the intestinal tract. There are ten different species of the genus Eimeria which may infect the intestine. Generally these are not of much concern, unless a case of enteritis makes an apperance. This can lead to enterotoxemia and or Mucoid enteropathy, although enterotoxemia has been reported in rabbits which are free of Coccidiosis. Liver Coccidiosis is a problem as it causes white spots on the liver which renders the rabbit uneatable.

SYMPTOMS
Include lack of appetite, rough coat, loss of weight, poor weight gain, potbelly, listlessness and diarrhea. All of which often lead to death.

TREATMENT
The best treatment is the use of sulfaquinoxyline in the drinking water as the only available water for 5 days on, 5 days off then 5 days on again.. [one teaspoon per gallon of water] Repeat the treatment in 30 days to get any hatchlings. DO NOT use the treated rabbit as a food source for at least 30 days after the last treatment.

PREVENTION
Brush the cling-ons from the cage floor within 24 hours. This will aid greatly in preventing the spread of Coccidiosis. Do not allow fecal contamination of the feed or water.

Ottersatin ldtimer:

 

[MaggieJ]

Good information, Ottersatin. Just one small quibble. You wrote:

Coccidiosis is a problem as it causes white spots on the liver which renders the rabbit uneatable.

It renders the liver inedible but not the rest of the rabbit.