Petz 5 bunniez
We’d advise scheduling a first appointment as soon as possible after this, to ensure your rabbit will not catch either disease before they can be vaccinated. Again, though, these vaccines only give immunity for about a year.Īll rabbits can be vaccinated from 5 weeks of age. There are also, now, vaccines available against RHD2 as well, but they usually need to be given separately. Many myxi vaccines protect against RHD1 too, so there is protection when you vaccinate for myxi. Both are slightly different, so different vaccines are needed. There are actually two strains (forms) of RHD RHD1 and RHD2. Sometimes there are no symptoms at all, until the rabbit dies. The symptoms of RHD can be much harder to spot than myxi, but include fever, anorexia, lethargy, difficulty breathing, blood around the nose, mouth and anus, seizures, and a quick death within 48 hours. Rabbit haemorrhagic disease, RHD, is also a viral disease found in both wild and pet rabbits, though it is only spread via direct contact with other infected rabbits. It is important to remember this so your bunny is always covered. The myxomatosis vaccine used in the UK protects against myxi for a year, so a booster will be needed every year for the rest of your rabbit’s life. And if a vaccinated rabbit still does, the symptoms will be a lot milder and the chance of survival much higher. This is why the vaccine is so crucial – it cannot provide perfect protection (no vaccine can) but it heavily reduces the chance of catching myxi. Should a rabbit sadly get myxi, they will usually have to be put to sleep. This can happen very rapidly, within 48 hours, or more commonly over several weeks. These include runny eyes or conjunctivitis, high fever, anorexia, lethargy, and general depression, ultimately leading to death. It is important to recognise the symptoms of myxomatosis, so that any infected rabbits can be isolated. This means that it will be impossible for your rabbit to avoid the myxi virus entirely, particularly pet bunnies kept outside. Myxomatosis is a viral disease of both pet and wild rabbits, and highly infectious – it is spread by direct contact between infected rabbits, or via a flea or mosquito bite. In the UK, we most commonly vaccinate against two rabbit diseases: myxomatosis (or myxi) and rabbit haemorrhagic disease, RHD.
Vaccinations are as important for rabbits as they are for dogs and cats – like all pets, rabbits can get ill, and there are a few dangerous diseases that you should always vaccinate against. !Rabbit Awareness Week might be over, but the Protect and Prevent motto is still just as important! Rabbits are great pets, however, looking after them is not as simple as just carrots, hutches, and hugs.