Weaning early and safe distance questions

[Desert Rose Rabbits]

Went out to feed the buns this morning and found Red blowing snot out of one nostril. We thought we were in the clear, but apparently not. My plan is to cull him, most likely, though my husband is against it thinking that it's just something up his nose. I don't really know. Either way, if he's positive for pasteurella my entire herd is probably infected by now, though they're not showing any signs.

Red has been with Kitty on a daily basis trying to get her bred and I haven't seen any sneezing at all from anyone. Right now, Kitty has a litter with her and they'll be 3 weeks old this Friday. They're munching on hay, but not overly curious about anything else at the moment. I'm thinking of weaning at three weeks, but not thrilled about it. If I do opt for this, what is the best way to feed these guys? Right now everyone gets hay, pellets and alfalfa cubes, and a small amount of Calf Mana.

As for Red, again, hubby wants me to wait and to be honest, I'm not set up for butchering right now. We're still unpacking, and I don't know where ANY of butcher stuff is right now. It's possible it's still up at our old place... anyways... if I opt to wait what's a safe distance for quarantine? Ideally, I'd like to keep both Kitty and Red separated from the herd AND each other in the off chance she doesn't come down with it.

I'm really hoping that it isn't pasteurella because I can't afford for my herd to be wiped out right now. Seriously. Affordable rabbits are hard to come by around here, not to mention healthy rabbits. I'm to the point that since I'm not selling to the public, if they're carriers I don't care. Ugh, I know that sounds horrible, but I'm seriously at my wits end with this whole thing. I really am. If it wasn't for the fact that raising them is cheaper than buying meat in my area, I would just give up.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

if you are not selling to anyone and this is for your own use only... THey don't worry about it.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Since it is only one nostril, it may just be something up his nose. I have treated dogs with foxtail awns up their noses by syringing a bit of vegetable oil into the nostril which lubricates it so it can pass.

I would quarantine him to be safe. As long as he is far enough away that he can't "blow snot" onto the others you should be okay. But do try to move him as far away as possible and feed and water him last.

Some strains of "P" are more deadly than others, and will quickly wipe out a herd. Others seem to manifest as occasional snot or no snot at all and the rabbits can survive with a sub-clinical infection.

Since you aren't selling to the public and it isn't (so far) decimating your herd, you can certainly take the "wait and see" approach. Just keep the healthiest kits as future breeders. The stress of kindling may bring the disease to the fore, but if not, they have good resistance to the particular strain that you may or may not have in your herd.

The meat from infected animals is safe to eat if properly cooked. If you feed the offal to your pets, do not give them the head or lungs from infected rabbits, as they can contract Pasteurella as well.

 

[skysthelimit]

I've had sneezing bunnies drop dead before I had a chance to QT them, and it hasn't affected my whole herd, so she might be alright.

Take him somewhere down wind, handle him last and make sure you wash your hands and change your clothes after handling him. Now that the study has shown Pas. does not linger with out a host for very long, I am not as frightened, but I stil take precautions.

 

[Desert Rose Rabbits]

Since it is only one nostril, it may just be something up his nose. I have treated dogs with foxtail awns up their noses by syringing a bit of vegetable oil into the nostril which lubricates it so it can pass.

I would quarantine him to be safe. As long as he is far enough away that he can't "blow snot" onto the others you should be okay. But do try to move him as far away as possible and feed and water him last.

Some strains of "P" are more deadly than others, and will quickly wipe out a herd. Others seem to manifest as occasional snot or no snot at all and the rabbits can survive with a sub-clinical infection.

Since you aren't selling to the public and it isn't (so far) decimating your herd, you can certainly take the "wait and see" approach. Just keep the healthiest kits as future breeders. The stress of kindling may bring the disease to the fore, but if not, they have good resistance to the particular strain that you may or may not have in your herd.

The meat from infected animals is safe to eat if properly cooked. If you feed the offal to your pets, do not give them the head or lungs from infected rabbits, as they can contract Pasteurella as well.

Since I feed raw to my dog, do I need to be concerned about any other organs? If I can't feed the lungs and head, is it ok to go ahead and let her have at least the kidneys and the liver? Also, slightly odd question but do we know if freezing kills Pasteurella? I know that with a lot of parasites, you can freeze your meat for a few months and you're usually good to go.