baby dwarf rabbit death

Question
hi, i bought a dwarf rabbit on sunday at the markets, it died on tuesday night. i have no idea how it died, i bought it food,(though it didnt eat, it only drank) water, hay and a large cage, before it died it was shaking as though it was cold, and very weak and floppy, so i put a blanket on her. half an hour later she was dead . why do you think she died??

Answer
Dear Manal,

I am sorry about the loss of your baby.

Unfortunately, a post mortem exam/necropsy is the only way to establish a cause of death.  Without that, we can only guess.  But I can tell you that most rabbits sold at markets and fairs are far too young to be weaned, and die of intestinal infections and/or respiratory infections because of the lack of protection afforded by their mother's milk.

Hypothermia can be associated with either of these conditions, and without aggressive supportive care (subcutaneous fluid therapy, antibiotics, etc.) from an experienced rabbit vet, many of these babies are doomed.

I am so sorry.  But I hope you will not buy from those markets again, because this only encourages the unethical practice those breeders are already doing:  raising too many rabbits and taking them away from their mothers before they are ready to survive on their own.

If you are in the US, UK, or Europe, please visit:

www.rabbit.org/

to find out how to adopt a rabbit, rather than buy one from an unscrupulous breeder who took advantage of you, and sentenced that poor little bunny to death.

I am sorry you were both victimized in this terrible way.

Dana