Baby With Runny Nose

[GypsyG]

I heard a sneeze come out of Wendy's nest box today and upon inspection I found one of her kits has a runny nose and dry snot on the insides of his front legs. Only one, the rest are fine. The snotty one is still eating and as energetic as ever. They are way too young for me to isolate the one with symptoms... What should I do?

 

[Tale of Tails Rabbitry]

Isolate the kindle and mother doe from the rest of your rabbitry, then wait and see, and use biosecurity measures, as in handle them last and then wash hands and clothing. Rabbits tend to look fine up to the time of death, so that really is no indication of their healthiness. However, it is not unheard of that one rabbit of a kindle is allergic to the nesting materials hay/straw or irritated by the dust in it.

 

[GypsyG]

I did that first thing, @Tale of Tails Rabbitry . Being in town I don't have that much space to work with, so I was only able to move her hutch an extra twenty yards away from the others. I don't know if that will be far enough but...

My feed store has been out of straw for a month, so I've been having to use hay for bedding. The bale I broke into last was kinda dusty. It would be a blessing if it does turn out to be an isolated case of allergies.

So far no changes. Everyone else appears fine. The one with the runny nose is still eating fine and does not show any signs of diarrhea or anything like that.

If there is no improvement or it seems worse tomorrow, should I cull it in an effort to protect other nine kits of the litter, or since they have already been exposed should I just let it play out however it's going to play out?

 

[Tale of Tails Rabbitry]

Personally, it is a judgement call. However, since it is only the one presently, I personally would wait and see, especially since you used hay that seemed to be dusty. Since their eyes are open and they have enough fur to stay warm together, I would change out the nesting material and see if the one improves.

 

[GypsyG]

I just realized that I forgot to post an update on the kit with a runny nose. I figured out the problem. He had not mastered the art of drinking water yet and was putting his face too deep in the crock. When I figured out what was happening I was concerned about the possibility of aspiration pneumonia, but he mastered the art of drinking water and his sniffles cleared up after a day or two.