Safety of Blood draw sites in rabbits

Question
Dear Dana,

Someone in our rescue group had a rabbit go in to one of our vets for a minor problem with soft stools. Her vet wanted a blood sample. They did a jugular vein blood draw, and the rabbit died within a half hour, after coming out from the back room limp and looking like a zombie. The vet mentioned losing another rabbit in this way just last week! Where do you recommend a rabbit's blood draw site to be? The ear, the leg, or the neck? Should it be performed in front of the patient in the exam room? My friend is devastated and needing answers.

Thanks so much, as we respect your advice.

Answer
Dear Jan,

Wow, this is horrible.  And to think the vet would do another jugular stick just after having lost one this way?!?  

Our vet does jugular draws, too, which I don't like.  But I have to admit that the tech who does it is very good, and we've had no problems.  I have to wonder if the person holding the bunny for the "stick" is not experienced in rabbit handling, and did something wrong.  In any case, if this were my rabbit, I would be really hesitant to go back to a vet who is so cavalier about losing a patient like this that s/he didn't seem to learn anything.

If this is a vet who sees mostly dogs and cats, then s/he may not automatically recall that a rabbit is a prey species whose physiology and reactions have evolved as such.  They are much more easily fatally traumatized than a cat, and should *never* be strongly restrained if they struggle.  To do otherwise is to invite cardiac arrest or potentially fatal stress-induced shock.  Rabbits are just different that way, and a good rabbit will understand and respect that.

A very safe place to draw blood, and the one I prefer, is the lateral saphenous vein, which runs diagonally across the outside of the gastrocnemius (calf muscle).  It's big, easy to find, and doesn't upset the rabbit nearly as much as a jugular draw.

The ear works, too, though the largest, central vessel is an artery, not a vein, which is not ideal for blood draws for various reasons.  The marginal veins are easy to see, but they are small and perhaps hard to hit.  Considering they're in such a highly innervated area, the ear isn't ideal, either.

I am so sorry for your friend's loss, and can understand why she'd be devastated.  You turn your beloved friend over to someone who is *supposed* to know what s/he's doing, and THIS happens?  Knowing that this happened just a week ago would make it very hard for me to forgive this vet or ever go back.

I hate it when a vet takes an animal into the back for a blood draw. I want to be there to be sure the tech is holding correctly, as well as to comfort the animal.  You can never know what happens when they take the animal into the back, which is perhaps the idea, if the vets are not very experienced and worried that the client may see something upsetting.

This isn't to say that a client needs to see traumatic things, because some procedures look a lot worse than they are.  I can understand why a vet would not want a really nervous, neurotic client in the same room for some procedures if the client is just going to panic.  But if this is a rabbit-savvy owner who is calm, realistic, and knows what to expect, I would hope the vet would be confident and adept enough to do the procedure in the room.

Just my opinions here, of course.  I am so very sorry about this terrible loss.  

Take care,

Dana