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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Dirty bunny?

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    • Mr. Marvin
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        Hello all! Any advice is appreciated for my problem. 

        A few days ago I returned from a unusually long vacation. We had to hire a pet sitter, and I’m going to assume that when I was away, the bunny just rolled around in his cage or something? I’m kind of getting off topic, but to sum up my issue: my rabbit’s area near his bottom is dirty! Everything seems stiff and his poor tail just looks flat. The first thing I tried was a dry bath, but it didn’t yield any positive result and my bun didn’t like me touching back there. Charlie ( His name ) seems to not mind his backside; he is still very friendly and lets me pet him, but I still want to clear up the mess back there . I’m hesitant to use water on him, and the things I’ve heard about trancing have been 50/50, so I don’t really want to try that either. What should my next step be?


      • Bam
        Moderator
        16835 posts Send Private Message

          You can give a bunny a butt bath with luke-warm water. You kind of sit the bunny in a small amount of water, you don’t have to trance it, just make sure he can’t kick out, that’s extremely important or he could break his back.
          Then you gently rinse out the dirt helping with your fingers, if water alone is not enough you can use a mild, preferably organic, soap.
          Afterwards you must dry him carefully but gently, a microfiber cloth is what I use. You can blow dry the butt on low heat, taking great care not to burn the skin.
          Obviously it helps a lot if you have another person to help you hold the bunny.
          If the skin is irritated and/or red you can use a bit of bag balm or other barrier cream on it.
          You’re right in that you should never bathe a bunny, but a butt-bath is ok.
          If he’s dirty due to sticky poop, make sure he gets enough hay in his diet. Or check so he eats the hay he gets, hay is key to bunny health


        • tobyluv
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          3310 posts Send Private Message

            It is best to avoid wetting a rabbit, but sometimes that is the only way if they have a very dirty bottom. I don’t know what you used for the dry bath already, but here are instructions for a dry and wet bath. For the wet bath, you can either use a sink or if you feel more comfortable keeping your rabbit on the ground, you can use a plastic dish tub with a couple of inches of water. I haven’t had to do this in a while, but for the soap, I use what I use on myself – Clearly Natural bar soap. I cut off a little piece before I use a new bar. It’s hypoallergenic and not tested on animals. It comes in unscented or a few light scents.

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


          • Mr. Marvin
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              @bam I feed him Oxbow pellets and timothy hay, so I’m pretty confident its not the diet. Could it just be that he rolls around and occasionally sits down at the places he’s done his business? Thanks for the advice.

              @toby I actually followed the guide below when I did the dry bath, but I was just curious whether or not there is anything else to do before going the extra mile and giving the rabbit a butt bath But thank you for the suggestions, I will plan on a wet bath when I have enough time!!


            • Bam
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                Well, bunnies sometimes do get poopy butt, and it’s not a huge deal if it’s just once in a while. Oxbow pellets and timothy hay is of course excellent food. Sometimes you need to adjust the amounts though, if the poopy butt recurs often, it’s likely you should cut back a little on the pellets and up the hay.

                I have a bunny who I’ve had to give butt baths many times in the past. He doesn’t seem to resent me for it.

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            Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Dirty bunny?