TH E B U N OL OGIST

Your FREE monthly rabbit newsletter brought to you by BOING To join, visit www.scribd.com/bunologist or www.boingonline.com

January 2012
The end of the Year of the Rabbit New Melbourne Rabbit Clinic website Myxo campaign continues Famous bunny lovers Life at the Do Hop Inn Peta & Leroy need a new home Head tilt not the end of the world

Why Im glad the Year of the Rabbit is coming to an end

18 January 2011 Natalie Reeves, New York Daily News (US)

New MRC website!

The Melbourne Rabbit Clinic has a new website which is now up & running. See all the wonderful things that happen at this wonderful clinic and see all the fantastic and caring staff that look after your bunnies!

www.melbournerabbitclinic.com

On 21/22 January, the Year of the Rabbit under the Chinese zodiac ends and not a day too soon. While the Chinese associated rabbits with good luck, the rabbits themselves are the unluckiest of popular pets. Rabbits are the only pet in America that we also hunt, eat and wear on a regular basis. And this honorary rabbit year led fortune seekers to breed and then abandon or kill more rabbits than ever before. Sometimes people who know I live in Manhattan are surprised that I live with four bunnies, all adopted from shelters. They shouldnt be. My rabbits run to greet me at the door when I get home, just as a dog would, and they are litterbox trained like cats.

Myxomatosis Campaign
Summer is upon us and we need your help to remind Mr Joe Ludwig in Canberra that we still want the myxomatosis vaccine for our bunnies. He may have forgotten our beloved bunnies, but we havent!! You can write, email and send him something to remind him of our bunnies (toy bunny, photo, painting, whatever you like!). Joes email joe.ludwig@maff.gov.au

Write to: The Hon Joe Ludwig Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry PO Box 6022 Parliament House CANBERRA ACT 2600 They are intelligent, funny and generally quiet (two of my
bunnies snore, but at least they dont bark). No wonder more than 6 million rabbits are kept as pets in this country including by celebrities such as Clint Eastwood and Matt Lauer.

Famous bunny lovers

Bob Barker
Retired game show host, bunny lover & Sea Shepherd supporter

ACTOR-WRITER AMY SEDARIS SHARES HER LOVE OF INDEPENDENCE, BUNNIES

By: Budd Mishkin http://www.ny1.com/content/features/131968/one-on-1--actorwriter-amy-sedaris-shares-her-love-of-independence--bunnies

It's not every interview where the interviewee is upstaged by a bunny rabbit. But "Dusty," the roommate of actor and writer Amy Sedaris in a Greenwich Village apartment, is not just any other rabbit. "That breed is smart and dominating, and I need to be with someone who's dominating," says Sedaris.

Retired game show host Bob Barker holds his 8-year-old rabbit Mr. Rabbit at his home in Los Angeles. Barker would like his rabbit to spend more time in his litter box. And Mr. Rabbit's resolution for Barker? What else? "To continue urging folks to have their pets spayed and neutered, including rabbits."

Once, Sedaris turned down a film role in Los Angeles because it would have taken her away from the rabbit. "I really want to do a series of videos for rabbit training and rabbit care -- how to trim their nails," she says. Amy Sedaris is being serious, really. It is sometimes hard to tell. Her choices for a life and career in show business have been anything but conventional. But as NY1 witnessed at book signings in Brooklyn and Manhattan, Sedaris has a large and passionate fan base. Her popularity results from hit off-Broadway plays written alongside her brother David Sedaris, her cult hit TV show Strangers With Candy with co-stars Paul Dinello and Stephen Colbert, roles in big-budget movies and frequent guest shots on "Late Show With Dave Letterman," in which she describes married life with her imaginary husband, Glen.

Clint Eastwood
Hollywood actor, director and bunny lover

Clint and his wife Dina adopted August the bunny from the SPCA in Monterey County. Dina and Clint support adoption and urge others to adopt from a shelter. They call their new bunny August, their son. He is the newest addition to their family and they love him very much.

Life at the Do Hop Inn

By Karen (www.boingonline.com)

Bonding update
At the end of last year were were attempting to bond Finn with Isabelle. It was working, then not working. Now its officially off.

Mr Rupert Bunny
I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas & New Year! At the Do Hop Inn we welcomed a new little bunny that came to stay with us after being surrendered just before Christmas due to health issues. This little bunny is suffering from a head tilt from an inner ear infection. He was undergoing treatment at the Melbourne Rabbit Clinic but needed somewhere to stay during the Christmas break.

They are still great living next to each other but when together, Finn (pictured right) is more interested than Isabelle to be friends. Isabelle always looks uncomfortable when hes around. It just wasnt worth continuing the dates so well have to find another friend for Finn.

Adopt me!!
Mr Rupert Bunny curled up watching tv on the bed Being a bit of a sucker for a head tilt bunny, I took him home for the rest of his treatment and a holiday break. Of course, Nimal and I fell madly in love with him and he is now staying permanently with us. The medication has not fixed his tilt unfortunately so hell probably stay lop sided but he handles it really well. We have named him Mr Rupert Bunny and he loves playing on the bed and watching tv. He loves his little front paw being held and scratches on his bottom and back where he cant scratch himself. He has two nicknames: Sir Lunge-a lot (because he does lunge at things he sees out of the corner of his lop sided eye) or Speedy (because he can take off and run really quickly!). I know many people are upset when they see a bunny with a head tilt, but once the bunny adapts to their disability, they can do really well. Mr Rupert is great at getting around. He is very confident. He still falls to the side every so often but he has stopped rolling which is great. Rupert doesnt have a proper litter tray at the moment as he would have trouble getting over the lip of the tray. He is currently living in a small enclosure with plastic sides so he can toilet at the end of the enclosure on towels and he has a little soft sided bed where he sleeps. These two gorgeous indoor bunnies are desexed and currently looking for a new home (only because of moving house and there is a resident fox terrier that is a danger to the bunnies). Leroy is placid, sweet and can be very entertaining. Peta oozes personality. She's affectionate (although doesn't like being handled) and loyal and has no issue speaking her mind! If you could offer Peta & Leroy a new loving indoor home, please contact Emma at emmalouisesaunders@gmail.com

Peta & Leroy Location: Melbourne

Head tilt not the end of the world!

http://www.boingonline.com/head_tilt.html Possible causes of head tilt (also known as torticollis or wry neck) are: * Middle/inner ear infection * E. Cuniculi * Stroke * Trauma * Cancer * Cervical muscle contraction * Intoxication

Stroke
Strokes in rabbits is not very common. Whenever you discover your bunny with a head tilt or losing balance, please see your vet.

Trauma
A blow to the face, neck or head can result in an injury to the brain which can cause the rabbit to have a head tilt. Trauma even could result from a panic reaction. Depending upon the severity of the trauma, an anti-inflammatory might be helpful to speed recovery.

Cancer
Tumors occurring in the brain, neck or ear could produce a symptom of head tilt.

Inner Ear Infection

Inner ear infections can be quite common in rabbits. Please consult an experienced rabbit vet for the best medications to treat infection. Treating an inner ear infection needs long term care and can take some time for your bunny to recover. Head tilts can remain after the infection has been treated but rabbits can cope very well with their disability. Our Dingleberry (pictured above) suffered an inner ear infection when she was four years of age in 2005. She took months to recover and suffered major balance issues. At the start, she was falling over regularly and her eyes flickered until the infection healed. Luckily she did recover but was left with a permanent head tilt for the rest of her life. We have since lost our Dingy who passed away in late 2010 at the age of nine from natural causes. Dingy needed care with her toileting. As she had a permanent head tilt for five years, she saw the world at a different angle. She could no longer jump up on furniture, was scared by unexpected noises or items in her way so we kept her bedroom clear. She could no longer use a normal litter tray with sides. We discovered that she was quite happy to use a large plastic lid off an underbed storage container, lined with newspaper and topped with hay. Dingleberry was a very happy head tilt indoor bunny that remained very well litter trained.

Cervical muscle contraction

A "muscle spasm" could cause a temporary head tilt. This situation will resolve itself once the muscle is relaxed.

Intoxication
This could be caused by ingestion of lead, found in paints or imported pottery, or ingestion of a toxic plant.

Caring for a rabbit with head tilt

Regardless of the cause, most cases of head tilt have similarities. The "down" eye (the one facing the floor) needs special attention, may not close and may require eye ointment to keep the eye moist. Lack of balance is what causes rabbits to "roll" and be unable to stand, so pick them up as little as possible. When you must pick your rabbit up, hold him securely against your own body, to help him feel as stable as possible. Depending upon the size of your rabbit you can usually figure out how to confine him to a smaller space. Place one of the synthetic sheepskin rugs (that allows urine to pass through but will keep the bun dry) on the floor of the cage or box, and then place rolled towels or small blankets to help prop him up, so that he will be less likely to roll when he loses his balance. A stuffed toy bunny friend also helps. Most rabbits will keep eating but may need to be hand fed. Offer hay to encourage eating lots of roughage and offer a bowl of water to the mouth for ease of drinking. If your rabbit decides to decline food, you will have to be ready to syringe feed. Critical Care is an excellent product you can purchase from good vet clinics. It is a dry, high fibre food that is mixed with water & syringe fed to your bunny. The primary point is to get food into the stomach so that the gut doesn't stop moving, which would add further complications for your bunny.

E. Cuniculi
Encephalitozoon cuniculi, a protozoan parasite,can result in paralysis anywhere in the body. Frequently there are signs preceding a head tilt caused by E.cuniculi such as tripping, dragging of feet, tipping over. These symptoms may have appeared and then vanished weeks or months prior to the head tilt. A blood test for antibodies to E. cuniculi can tell whether your rabbit has been exposed. E. Cuniculi is suggested to be passed by an infected mother to her babies through urine in the nest or before they are born. Please see an experienced rabbit vet for treatment.

Acupuncture
An alternative therapy for rabbit head tilts is acupuncture. Of course, this treatment is to be administered only from experienced vets but it helps treat muscle pain & balance.