Sneezing rabbits?

[GriffinBun101]

In the past two weeks, my rabbits have begun sneezing for no apparent reason- their noses are clear, their paws are fluffy and clean, they don’t have difficulty breathing, there’s no discharge in their eyes, and their butts look clean and healthy. Their stool is perfectly round and firm, and is healthy looking. I have not changed anything in their feeding/watering programs in months, and they rarely, if ever, get hay. I haven’t been to a show in over four months. Would anyone have any idea what’s going on with them? It’s starting to scare me a little…

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Could be dust

 

[eco2pia]

could be mold--my climate is currently wet and cold. I have had sneezing that lasted months with no mortality--it is not inherently disastrous. The lack of discharge makes me think it is less serious.

On the other hand, it could be a mild viral or bacterial infection--in which case, you should just be offering the best care, ie, clean space, good food, clean water, the bunny equivalent of bed rest. If discharge develops you need to isolate, and cull or seek vet treatment as your goals dictate. You can also isolate now if you have the means.

 

[GriffinBun101]

could be mold--my climate is currently wet and cold. I have had sneezing that lasted months with no mortality--it is not inherently disastrous. The lack of discharge makes me think it is less serious.

On the other hand, it could be a mild viral or bacterial infection--in which case, you should just be offering the best care, ie, clean space, good food, clean water, the bunny equivalent of bed rest. If discharge develops you need to isolate, and cull or seek vet treatment as your goals dictate. You can also isolate now if you have the means.

That’s actually a good point… I just looked at the weather and the humidity in my area for the past two weeks, when I really started to notice it flare up, and the humidity has not dipped below 50% since. It’s also been constantly raining/snowing on and off.
Another thing I noticed is that it seemed like all of my rabbits started sneezing around the same time (rather than spreading throughout my rabbitry, which is segregated), so that could explain that factor too.

 

[ladysown]

What type of building do you have them housed in? Does it have beyond excellent ventilation? Often in the winter rabbitries are protected too much and that proves to be not healthy for the rabbits being protected.

 

[dizzybumblebee]

Also check deep inside their ears. I've seen infection way down inside the ear of a rabbit that caused sneezing. Although it did hold that ear cock low and occasionally shook its head. But something to think about

 

[GriffinBun101]

What type of building do you have them housed in? Does it have beyond excellent ventilation? Often in the winter rabbitries are protected too much and that proves to be not healthy for the rabbits being protected.

They’re in a nice, big barn- the rabbitry itself takes up about 70ft of space in a 300ft barn, so ventilation is usually pretty good, even with the door shut.

 

[ladysown]

Then I'd be looking at food borne mould, or something in (if you use any) bedding used.

 

[GriffinBun101]

Update: today was a really nice day outside, so I decided to open up all of my doors and windows and let my rabbitry get a ton of fresh air, and I’m already noticing a significant decrease in sneezing- I only saw two sneeze today, opposed to the five I saw yesterday.

 

[user 8990]

Update: today was a really nice day outside, so I decided to open up all of my doors and windows and let my rabbitry get a ton of fresh air, and I’m already noticing a significant decrease in sneezing- I only saw two sneeze today, opposed to the five I saw yesterday.

Excellent! Sounds like ventilation is the culprit.