Rabbits get elder and they suffer from various problems. It is obvious that the health of the pets will deteriorate with age and that will not be easy to manage. Thus we would like to focus on this matter in this guide and let the rabbit owners get some help.
Contents
How do you care for your senior rabbit?
There are certain ways to make sure that your elderly bunny lives a good and healthy life even after it has got aged. One such way of taking care of your rabbit is making sure that the rabbit drinks a lot of water. Rabbits do not drink often and that causes them severe problems. So keeping fresh water near them all the time is a way to initiate their drinking process.
Keeping their living area clean is another way of keeping the aged rabbit healthy. They do not get the chance of getting sick from the microbes and bacteria.
Also, the limbs of the rabbit become weak with age. You need to keep the surface rough and non-slippery so that the rabbit does not slip while running or walking. But the resting area should be padded so that it can sleep there peacefully.
How old is a senior rabbit?
When the rabbit becomes at least four or five years old, it can be called senior. They start aging from the age of five years and then until eight years of age, which almost covers the life span of the rabbit, it can be called the senior age.
However, the smaller varieties of rabbits do not get old so soon, and until the age of eight years, they cannot be called seniors.
What happens when a rabbit gets old?
There are certain symptoms that can be seen and will prove to you that your pet rabbit is getting older. One such common way of identifying the aging process of rabbits is the graying of their fur. You can see the graying process if you have adopted a black or brown rabbit. On the white rabbits, this graying is not so visible.
Sometimes the rabbit also faces cataract problems which makes them see with difficulty. The problem can be rectified with proper medication and eye drops. But do not be afraid when you see the rabbit colliding over various items after the age of five. It is only natural to get a cataract after the age of five but you need to take proper care and medical attention.
Weight loss is another issue faced by rabbits when they grow old. Your rabbit can lose weight even after eating the daily diet. When you see the rabbit getting weak and moving slowly, it means that the rabbit is getting old. Taking regular weight is a way of measuring how the rabbit is surviving and that also seems to deter when the rabbit ages.
Sometimes the rabbits also show avoidance of litter boxes. So the chance of messing around in the cage or in the living room or even the backyard increases. This is again a natural habit and you should not punish the rabbit or get annoyed at it.
The rabbits also get more sensitive to the temperature change and they can fall sick from the cold weather. This happens often when the rabbits cross the age of six years. So you should be more attentive to the health and check the body temperature of the rabbit often to make sure that it is not suffering from fever or any cold-related allergy.
What should you feed to your senior rabbit?
Senior or aged rabbits can eat a good amount of hay-like timothy and grass hay. Also, oat hay is another great option for these creatures. These hays do not contain any protein or fat so it will not cause any kind of digestive problem for the rabbits.
But pellets should also be given to keep the nutrients quotient alright. So you will give at least ¼ cup of pellets for the 6 lb of its body weight. The pellets will give them the energy to do all the daily activities that are necessary for their daily life.
You can also provide them with several servings of vegetables as that will retain the moisture content in the body of the elderly rabbit. Also, the vegetables help the rabbits to gain the necessary minerals and vitamins which will be availed from no other sources. Usually, 2 cups of pellets are best for 6 pounds of the rabbit’s body weight.
How old is the oldest rabbit living?
To date, it has been found that the oldest living rabbit is 16 years old. In the year 2019, it celebrated its 16th birthday in Illinois USA. Usually, rabbits die by the age of 10 so it has exceeded that age by six years already.
How can I help my arthritic rabbit?
Aged rabbits often suffer from arthritis. This disease is not thoroughly curable. You can help your pet rabbit to live a good life with some methods though. Medication should be done always so the rabbit feels less pain. Always ask your vet to get the right medicine for your pet rabbit and do not experiment with the over-the-counter medicines with the creature. The inflammation and the pain both can be reduced by the right medicine at right time.
Diet is another mandatory part to be taken care of. When your aged rabbit is suffering from arthritis you should make special arrangements so the rabbit gets only a healthy diet and that too, with lots of calcium. Some commercially available foods allow the rabbits to get ample calcium for their bone density.
Massaging the rabbit’s limbs is also a good way to give it some relief without providing any medicine. But massaging should be done in the right way and you should not do it without proper guidance. Basically taking some lessons from the vet regarding the massage is the right way to proceed with this process.
How will you understand that your aged rabbit is suffering from arthritis?
There are several symptoms that may inform you that your rabbit is getting aged and is suffering from arthritis. When you find that your rabbit is not moving as fast as it used to, then you can assume that it is suffering from arthritis, especially when the age of the rabbit is over six years.
Rabbits usually hop out of the litter tray and hop in when they feel the need. But when the rabbit is suffering from arthritis and inflammation then it does not move out with that much force. As a result, it may get messy and gets stained with urine.
Sometimes the gait looks pretty abnormal and that is a sign that it has the problem of arthritis and joint pain in its limbs.
Ear wax building is a far-related but sign of arthritis or general unwell health of the aged rabbit. It often happens due to the cold weather or the difficulty in the body of the rabbit to catch up with the low temperature around it.
Improper grooming means that the rabbit is getting old and probably is suffering from arthritis. This is related to joint pain and that is why the rabbit is unable to lift its limbs like it used to do. It loses the energy to groom itself and that is how you can tell that it is suffering from arthritis.
How a cataract affects aged rabbits?
A cataract is a white cloudy substance that affects the eyes of the creatures, well, some of them, and the rabbit is one of such creature. This happens mostly at the time of aging. This can lead to severe consequences and make the rabbit blind if not taken proper care of.
The white substance usually blocks the light from the view of the rabbit, and thus they tend to see lesser and lesser. Also sometimes the cataract can lead to infections in the eyes of the rabbit. But not always it will cause such disturbances and just because of aging, the rabbits suffer from it.
Sometimes it takes a few weeks or sometimes it can be a year through which the rabbit will suffer from cataracts. This problem can be solved by surgery on the eyes of the rabbit. However, not all vets suggest surgery to remove cataracts as the chance of getting the surgery done in the right way is not feasible.
So you should try to keep things easy for the aged rabbit with cataracts. As this problem is seen among the aged rabbits, the best years of their life should be spent with some precision. The owners need to keep the rabbit in an open space and also move the furniture out of its way so it does not collide with those and get hurt. Rabbits are quick learners and they learn to deal with things when they lose their eyesight partially.
How to help the aged rabbits with limb paralysis?
This is not actually the condition of arthritis but limb paralysis makes the limbs and joints inflamed. The rabbit finds it difficult to move around. Sometimes this becomes so acute that the rabbit needs to be carried to every place. The owner with multiple stories or turns and up-downs in their homes need to arrange for a flat area to keep their rabbits when they suffer from such limb paralysis.
Why my aged rabbit is not moving fast?
The rabbit, when it gets aged, falls prey to various diseases. As we have already spoken about arthritis and limb paralysis, there is another problem called sore hocks. Hock is the area below the paw of the rabbits. Basically, this is the heel part of their limb. The skin of this part can get brittle and thus the rabbit moves slower than its usual pace.
Some owners prefer to keep their rabbits on soft rugs so the sore part does not get worse. The box of the rabbit as well as the area where it roams around should be kept clean so it does not get hurt by being stuck at something. Also, the moist area makes this problem worse, so the area where the rabbit sits and sleeps should be kept dry. This is also good for other times when the rabbit is in good health.
How can you help your aged rabbit stay stress-free?
When the rabbit ages, it loses its ability to stay relaxed and gets agitated by moderate or simple agitation. You should give it a wide area to roam and make sure that the place does not become too noisy. Also harsh light should not enter there as that will also excite and then stress out the little creature.
You should encourage the rabbit to do small and simple exercises, as and when the rabbit will move less. Also keeping the sides of the litter box low will help the creature to defecate with ease with their growing age.
