Rabbits & small pets

Rabbits and guinea pigs are prey animals. They hide illness until they can’t any more, so by the time something looks wrong it usually needs attention today. We see them in a quiet room, handle them the way they are used to, and know what normal looks like for each species.

What we see most

• Teeth: overgrown back teeth, spurs and abscesses. We check them every visit.
• Gut stasis: a rabbit that stops eating or passing droppings. Call the same day, out of hours too.
• Flystrike: in warm months, flies lay eggs on a dirty bottom. Check twice a day in summer.
• Skin and parasites: mites, lice and fungal infections, common in guinea pigs.

Anaesthetics

Small pets carry a higher anaesthetic risk than dogs and cats, so we use protocols designed for them: no fasting, a warmed table, oxygen throughout and a nurse with them until they are eating again.

Not sure whether something can wait? Try the symptom checker and pick “Rabbit or small pet”.