No time to read a story? Scroll to the bottom of the page to see listed symptoms of shock.
It’s late at night. You’ve just finished watching your favorite show, and Floppy’s all tucked away in his cage. You roll your electric recliner forward, about to go to bed – and you hear a shrill, heart-wrenching scream that makes your blood run cold. Immediately you go to recline back again, and it seems like ages before the chair finally goes up enough. Not really caring whether you break the chair or not, you scramble out of it to locate the source of the noise – it’s Floppy, the Houdini rabbit! You snatch a glance over at the cage, hoping you’re wrong – but the door is hanging wide open. Immediately, you grab your rabbit, not really minding that he’s screaming and kicking and thrashing. You calm down your rabbit with a couple of “Look at me”‘s, but he’s absolutely petrified. You cuddle him for a while, check him over for injuries, and put him back in his cage. You go and get a drink of water after the ordeal – but Floppy’s sprawled out on his side, his breathing more rapid than it has ever been. His eyes are half-lidded and glazed over… You rush over, screaming your rabbit’s name in a horrible panic. You think that he’s dead, but logic reinforces itself and you remember he is breathing.
You reach out for him to find that he’s cold and stiff. Your heart lurches – but he’s still breathing. His ears are cold. His pulse is weak in his veins. You immediately squeal with terror and reach for the phone, looking up the nearest emergency vet – a good 2 hours away. Oh, no! Curse you, countryside! You grab him and rush him to the vet – but shortly after his arrival, he dies.
Now let’s put the situation in reverse, a little after the second paragraph of the story. Your one mistake? Driving to the vet, 2 hours away. If the vet is more than 45 minutes away, the drive is probably not worth it.
So what’s wrong with Floppy?
He’s in shock. His untimely death was caused by added stress of the drive and then of the vet.
Signs of shock in rabbits: (Note: DO NOT TAKE THIS AS A LIST FOR ANY OTHER ANIMALS!!! IT IS ONLY FOR RABBITS, NO MATTER HOW SIMILAR SITUATIONS MAY SEEM.)
* Extremely rapid breath
* Extremely rapid heart beat
* Weak pulse (see that purple/red vein near the middle of your rabbit’s ear? Gently take this between your thumb and forefinger and check for a pulse! Thumb on outer-ear, forefinger on inner-ear, or vice versa!)
* Pale/whitish gums
* Still body
* Cold extremities (feel the ears; they should not be cold)
* Glazed eyes
(Note: For some people, they will be afraid they don’t know what the glazed eyes or pale gums will look like. I can almost guarantee that you WILL know if it happens!)
What to do if Your Rabbit is In Shock
If there is an emergency vet nearby, wrap your rabbit in a blanket and immediately take them to the vet.
IF NOT
Do NOT attempt to drive your rabbit 5 hours away to see an emergency vet. This will almost certainly kill your rabbit. Car ride should be a maximum of 45 minutes, MAYBE an hour.
Wrap your rabbit in a blanket and massage the ears. Do not worry if their eyes remain closed or glazed; just keep rubbing. Try to keep calm and definitely keep away from pets and other distractions/loud noises in a dimly lit area. If you are a friend/sibling/acquaintance of the rabbit’s keeper, have the keeper do this if they are calm enough (if they’re around, of course). The rabbit will probably feel more comfortable. Try to administer water or Gatorade (preferred due to hydrating electrolytes) to the rabbit via syringe.
At this point, there is not much else you can do except keep your rabbit cuddled up. After a while, you can try to see if rabbit will eat or drink on their own. If so, your rabbit is improving, but NOT completely out of the woods. The rabbit needs to be seen by a vet ASAP, so wait until normal office hours of the closest vet if you have to, but get them there as soon as you can. Remember: no long trips while rabbit is in a state of shock!
NOTHING I have written here is definite. Absolutely nothing. There IS a chance your rabbit WILL DIE, even when following the steps provided. There is also a chance your rabbit WILL NOT die. Nothing is absolute.
The steps provided are from my own experience and research. Shock is a dangerous thing. Never leave a rabbit in shock unattended.
Best of luck,
Primrose
(Pasted for those who need symptoms listed immediately)
Signs of shock in rabbits: (Note: DO NOT TAKE THIS AS A LIST FOR ANY OTHER ANIMALS!!! IT IS ONLY FOR RABBITS, NO MATTER HOW SIMILAR SITUATIONS MAY SEEM.)
* Extremely rapid breath
* Extremely rapid heart beat
* Weak pulse (see that purple/red vein near the middle of your rabbit’s ear? Gently take this between your thumb and forefinger and check for a pulse! Thumb on outer-ear, forefinger on inner-ear, or vice versa!)
* Pale/whitish gums
* Still body
* Cold extremities (feel the ears; they should not be cold)
* Glazed eyes
(Note: For some people, they will be afraid they don’t know what the glazed eyes or pale gums will look like. I can almost guarantee that you WILL know if it happens!)