Giving Medication to the Bunny Rabbits

May 4, 2011

After a recent visit to the vet, Liz and I found out that our rabbits needed a bit more medication, day to day. Quincy has some liver issues (high liver levels, which suggest an infection), and was also diagnosed as being anemic. Baxter was developing some mats of fur under her chin, and the doctor suggested some pain medication (thinking it might be related to her mouth, teeth or gums).

Feeding the rabbits medicine with syringes is not a new thing. We’ve gotten used to the process and, over time, have stockpiled a good number of plastic syringes.

Four syringes, filled with treats. Surprisingly, the rabbits love this stuff and it’s not a problem getting them to take their medicine.

It’s best if we can get the rabbits alone, because if they’re together… they’ll start competing for the medicine. When the rabbits are out and about in the evenings, we try to get Quincy isolated in the kitchen and feed him quickly, before Baxter knows what’s going on.

Quincy, standing up.

One thing we’ve learned is to hold on tightly to the syringes. If the medicine doesn’t come quickly enough, the rabbits will oftentimes tug (and tug really hard). When we were first learning to give them medicine, they’d rip the syringes right out of our hands and run off with them.

L to R it’s Baxter, Quincy and Liz with her bunny slippers.

Quincy closeup, all nose and mouth… and on the verge of looking very disapproving.

And of course, the documentation wouldn’t be complete without a bit of video. It’s actually quite fun to feed the rabbits medicine, and surprisingly funny how into it they are.