How To Care For Your Rabbit In The Heat
You need to take care of your rabbit in the heat, as this is the time when it needs specific efforts to preserve its good health. In general , these animals tend to get used more easily to temperate or cold climates.
Due to the characteristics of rabbits, high temperatures in summer expose them to various risks, such as dehydration. Therefore, when temperatures exceed 24ºC, we must be careful. It should be noted if our rabbits show any change in their appearance or behavior.
If they reach more than 30°C, it will be essential to provide them with a cooler environment to prevent them from suffering heatstroke. Next, we’ll see a little more about caring for rabbits in heat. In addition, we will teach you how to prevent and how to act urgently in the face of heat stroke.
How do you know if your rabbit is hot?
Some signs allow us to easily tell if our rabbits are being affected by intense heat. When identifying them, it is essential to act quickly to prevent the animal from becoming dehydrated. These are the main symptoms of heat in rabbits:
- Excessive panting.
- Apathy and unwillingness to play.
- Lethargy.
- Lack of appetite.
- Stretch your legs and lie down with your belly on the floor to cool off.
Tips on how to care for your rabbit in the heat
Once we know how to spot the signs of heat in our rabbits, we’ll look at guidelines for caring for these small animals in the summer. According to these tips, it will be possible to preserve your health during the hot season.
Reinforce your pet’s hydration
Hydration is a fundamental care to preserve the good health of rabbits in heat. When temperatures are too high, rabbits lose a lot of water and electrolytes. If they can’t replace them properly, they can suffer severe dehydration.
To take good care of your rabbit in summer, always remember to leave fresh, clean water at your disposal. Also, your water cooler, feeder, and cage should be in a cool, well-ventilated place. If left in the sun or in a very hot region, the water will heat up and the food will spoil.
Provide a lighter and more refreshing diet
Rabbits need to receive complete, balanced nutrition throughout their lives to strengthen their immune system and maintain optimal health. Therefore, it is always better to have the guidance of a veterinarian to choose the most suitable diet for them.
To complement the rabbits’ diet in hot weather, we can offer lettuce and fresh fruit. These foods provide your body with water and help keep you well hydrated.
Place your rabbit’s cage in a cool area
During the summer, it is very important to look for the coolest part of the house to place our rabbits’ cage. Ideally, this room should be well ventilated and have balanced lighting, but not expose the animal to the elements of nature.
If your house is too hot in summer, you can add a fan. In this case, the wind should never be directed towards the rabbit, but it should spread through the environment to cool it. We can also add one or two ice cubes to your water to keep it always fresh.
How to take care of your rabbit and act against heat stroke?
The above tips will be very helpful to prevent heat stroke in rabbits. However, it is also important to know how to act in this situation to help our pets.
- To lower your rabbit’s body temperature, start by moving it to the cooler area of the house as soon as you notice the first symptoms of heat stroke.
- Then apply some fresh water – note that it shouldn’t be cold or cold – under the animal’s armpits, head and foot pads. For this you can use a clean cloth, gauze or even cotton.
- If you notice that his body temperature is still too high, sprinkle some water on his fur. The objective is not to give the rabbit a bath, just to lightly dampen the fur to cool it.
- Always leave a bowl of fresh water available for the rabbit, but don’t force it to drink.
- In the meantime, strive to freshen up the environment so that it can always be relaxed and comfortable.
- If the rabbit does not respond or shows signs of improvement, it is essential to seek emergency veterinary assistance.
In this process, remember that we must never cool the rabbit at once to avoid thermal shock. So don’t use ice or ice water to lower your body temperature.
In addition, we recommend taking the animal to the veterinarian, even if it is to hear these basic guidelines from a professional. Your veterinarian can help you establish a more appropriate diet and offer more specific advice on how to care for your rabbit in the heat.
