← Health section Care at home High risk Affects kits
Enteritis
weaning diarrhoea
Diarrhoea and gut inflammation that happen when the normal gut bacteria are upset. The usual triggers are sudden feed changes, wet greens, too much grain and too little hay, and losses are highest among kits in the weeks after weaning. In young rabbits it can be fatal within a day or two.
When to call a vet
Care at home
Start with care at home and keep watching. If it gets worse, see a vet.
Call a vet if a kit stops eating and drinking, there is blood in the droppings, the belly swells, diarrhoea lasts more than a day, or several rabbits are sick
Symptoms
- Soft or watery droppings and a soiled tail and rear
- Passing jelly-like mucus
- A bloated belly or a sloshing belly full of fluid
- Refusing food, sitting hunched and grinding teeth (a sign of pain)
- Cold ears, sunken eyes and weakness — signs of dehydration
What to do
- 1 Temporarily remove grain, pellets, bread and fresh greens; leave only good dry hay and clean water
- 2 Move the sick rabbit to a warm, dry, separate place and keep its rear clean
- Call a vet if a kit stops eating and drinking, there is blood in the droppings, the belly swells, diarrhoea lasts more than a day, or several rabbits are sick
What not to do
- Do not starve the rabbit completely — going a long time without food makes rabbits worse
- Do not give antibiotics or tablets from a human pharmacy; they can upset the gut even more
When it strikes
Peaks 1–3 weeks after weaning (about 4–12 weeks old) in any season; in Uzbekistan it is worst in spring, when wet fresh greens arrive, and in the summer heat.
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Prevention
- Introduce any new feed little by little over 5–7 days
- Always give plenty of good hay — fibre protects the gut
- Feed greens only dry and slightly wilted, never cut wet with dew or rain
- When buying rabbits, ask what the seller fed and start with the same feed
- Do not change the diet for several weeks after weaning
Causes
- Sudden feed changes, including on the day rabbits are bought
- Wet, heated or fermented greens and mouldy feed
- Too much grain, bread and starchy feed with too little hay (fibre)
- Weaning too early or too abruptly, transport and heat stress
- Bacteria (E. coli, clostridia), coccidiosis and the wrong antibiotics