#Bunny fly strike windows

I apply the appropriate cleanser, to my eleven special-care rabbits, on alternating days, before they go outside to their playpens. If your bunny's problem is urine-soaked fur rather than fecal material, then ChlorhexiDerm Flush (also non-prescription) may be your best choice, since it has a drying agent. Its antibacterial/ anti-fungal agents soften caked-on feces and/or yeast.Ī good cleaner from your pet supply store is Nolvadent, which you might already be using to brush your dog's teeth. This will also enable you to get to these areas with your cleaning solutions.Įxternal cleansers: Nolvasan Otic solution, available through your veterinarian or veterinarian supply catalog, is used for loosening ear wax but also works well on the hindquarters. (You resort to that only after an infestation but not for prevention.) Instead, use a 'spot cleanser' for softening, loosening and removing feces stuck to the hindquarters. Don't dip the rabbit's rear end into water. To make the environment on the rabbit as hostile as possible to egg-laying flies, here are two rules: So we turn a watchful eye to the potential victim.

#Bunny fly strike windows

Screens on doors and windows reduce the number of flies that get into the house, but some slip through.Īt best we can only reduce, but we can't eliminate flies from the environment. Repellents may work temporarily, but one must remember to use them repeatedly. PreventionRidding the environment of flies, by means of chemical insecticides may damage the environment, animals, and people along with the flies. If you are successful at removing the maggots yourself, you will still need to get your bunny checked by a veterinarian, as treatment may be necessary for shock or toxins. Most of their clients are too squeamish to do this.Ĭhemicals strong enough to destroy the maggots are often too toxic to apply to a bunny in shock. My veterinarians prefer a completely dry technique for maggot removal and pluck them by hand or tweezers. Avoid dampening any more area than necessary. Wet fur provides an environment for more eggs to hatch. It requires about three tub refills, followed by careful drying. It takes two people to do this effectively one to hold the upper half of bunny above water the other to wash out all infested areas. Rinsing them off is very difficult, but I have removed them by completely submerging the trunk in a tub of water. If the larvae are small and still few in number, you can hurry to the veterinary hospital.If the larvae are large and numerous, you have little time. Your course of action will depend on how advanced the infestation is and how far you are from your vet. In the case of fly strike, the rabbit may already be in shock. It usually means something is seriously wrong. Not all rabbits respond this way to an 'attack' on the hindquarters, but if your rabbit does have a seizure,check for surface irritations. When our rabbit Velma had a seizure last year, I turned her over and found that 'foxtails' had worked their way into the folds around her scent glands. Our rabbit Phoebe gave us this early warning years ago, in time to save her life. Rabbits are sensitive to surface irritations. But instead of being toxin related, these are caused by local nerve sensors on the surface of the body triggering a general or overall nerve reaction, resulting in a seizure. Warning signsSeizures: Some rabbits have 'itchy skins' seizures. Once they have consumed external debris, they go right on to sound flesh (sometimes up the back where you don't see it), and once in the flesh, they produce toxins that create a state of shock. The chances are greater if the rabbit is outside, but it only takes one fly indoors to do the damage.What kind of damage? Maggots do not stop at the surface. If open sores are present, or if thick fur is dampened with urine or feces, flies will head toward these warm incubation areas to lay their eggs. They may have pasty stools or urinary problems that require frequent bathing-a problem in itself.Īttractive conditions:Moisture, warmth, and odor attract flies. Often the stricken rabbits are being exceptionally well cared for. And besides guilt, we feel anger-that something as worthy and dear to us as our rabbits can be taken down by something as loathsome as a fly. We blame ourselves for lack of vigilance. Within a 24-hour period an otherwise stable rabbit can enter a terminal state of shock due to maggot infestation.Įvery fatality reported to us last year bore with it considerable human grief and guilt. Flies can strike a healthy animal who has temporary loose stools, butat particular risk are your aging, disabled, or overweight rabbits who are not able to clean themselves. As disgusting as the subject is, we cannot ignore this eminent warm-weather danger.