Putting sick rabbits down
 By Karen Fischer
         I realize that this group is composed of both breeders and pet owners. Putting a sick rabbit down is very important to a breeder due to the fact that keeping it around can cause the disease to spread to the rest of the rabbits in the herd if not isolated. (And this also goes for a pet home with more than one rabbit) Also breeders do not make large sums of money raising rabbits. If they kept every sick rabbit, they would soon need to built a huge barn to house them all. Snuffles is very common and spreads readily, even if measures are taken.          Pet owners can and do manage sick rabbits well because they have fewer of them to care for and can give them the attention necessary to make them comfortable. Pet owners are not motivated by breeding or breeding for sound genetics. They have their rabbits as pets and it stands to reason that they would not consider putting a rabbit down unless the prognosis was rather poor and the rabbit would be suffering.

         Although most GOOD breeders do care a great deal for their rabbits, they must also keep in mind that being a breeder means breeding rabbits with sound genetics and traits, one of them being disease resistance. There are far too many cats, dogs etc; that do not have these sound genetics being bred by "mills." Unless a breeder wants to be considered a mill, they need to take seriously their role as a breeder of sound and healthy animals. Breeders simply cannot afford to hold onto each and every sick animal. They are often left with the decision to humanely put them down and many breeder anguish over this decision, as do pet owners. It is one of the most distasteful things about owning any animal. Eventually, the decision must be made to put an animal out of its suffering.

         I've had rabbits, cats, dogs and horses put down and I have to say that none of those experiences were pleasant. Would I go to the ends of the earth to keep them here? Some would, some won't. My personal position on this is that there is a point where everyone has to say, enough is enough. To keep an animal around because we will miss them in not doing the animal any good. I see a lot of people who spend tons of money on an animal that is dying, giving pain meds that would kill an elephant only to have more time with the animal. I would rather remember my animals when they were relatively healthy instead of remembering their last days in pain, drugged and miserable.

         Rabbits that do not respond to treatment for snuffles are suffering. They cannot breath well (how would you like to live with a constant asthma attack?), they generally have a low grade fever all the time, their appetite is not very good, they cannot get enough oxygen into their bloodstream so they lose condition (and thus cannot maintain their core body temperature as well), often the pathogen spreads to other areas of the body forming unseen abscesses in other organs. They are prone to other diseases since the constant infection lowers their immune response.... Where do you draw the line? If they respond, it is one thing, if they don't, they should be put down so they don't have to suffer anymore. This is just my opinion. I realize others have a differing opinion on this.

Used with written permission from Karen Fischer

Original post...RabbitVet-digest@yahoogroups.com
Date: Thu, 16 Jan 2003 18:05:14 EST
From: JWPERSON@aol.com
Subject: Re: Putting sick rabbits down

For further reading on specific methods of euthanasia I suggest
Humane Rabbit Euthanasia
by Debbie Jones of Prairie Wind Rabbitry.

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