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Please help me: bathed baby rabbit is panting and stressed

22 9:53:46

Question
Hi

My rabbit is just a small baby bunny. I am not sure how old she is , but she is small. She is vibrating and breathing faster than usual. I have really made a bad choice , i took it for a short , warm bath (that was not a smart thing to do). She has been eating pettels and drinking water. She just snuggles up to me and/or sits in the corner of a cage. I have only had her for exactly a week , and i never had a rabbit before so i am very scared. Please help me. I really need help , i am nervous. I keep thinking she is going to pass out any minute.

Thank you :)

Sara

Answer
Dear Sara,

You're right:  giving any rabbit a bath is a bad idea, and especially a very small baby.  But what's done is done, and now you need to avoid stressing her any more.

First, be absolutely sure she is warm and dry.  You might need to blow her dry with a warm NOT HOT blow dryer, but if she's terrified of that, then you may have to content yourself with a thick towel warm from the dryer and be sure she is wrapped and drying until *completely* dry.  If she is damp, she could catch a fatal chill in this weather (if you're in the Northern hemisphere).

If she is acting sick, please read this immediately:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/sickbun.html

and

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/poop.html

and get her to a good rabbit vet without delay, as her life could be in danger:

www.rabbit.org/vets

You have not given me much detail about what she's doing, so it's hard for me to advise you.  Is she eating now?  Drinking?  Producing fecal pellets?

Please just be sure she is warm and dry and after you read that article above, get her to the vet ASAP if you have any suspicion that she is sick.  Please also read this, with respect to bathing a rabbit:  

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/buttbath.html

Hope this helps.

Dana