I raise meat rabbits as a backyard pursuit, and have just started to keep quails.
To cure weaning enteritis in rabbits:
To prevent: when you wean, remove water supply, hang up bottle with 1l water and 5ml pepto bismol. Fill the feeder with a standard amount and keep watch that it gets eaten. If it doesn't, you have problems. I process the boys and separate the females into pairs.
Watch your newly weaned buns like a hawk to spot odd behaviour, a small wireless camera is a great tool here.
Offer grass that is freshly cut at the roots, strawberry leaves, brambles, to keep their stomachs on the go.
When you have a sickie: as soon as you see a fat belly or a miserable bun, isolate on wire in a big plastic box in a quiet area, wash off any caked muck and dry 'em, rehydrate with 10ml of water every 2 hours, and syringe feed Kaolin Morphine (US folks: this is a over the counter remedy in the UK and the morphine is a miniscule amount that stops the watery diarhea, and it's indicted for children). Also, give Pepto Bismol in the syringe water which you should add 1gr sugar and 1gm salt for 1l to make it isotonic.
Offer grass that is freshly cut at the roots, strawberry leaves, brambles, camomile, parsley, dill, anything to get your patient to eat.
If there is no improvement and you start to feel their spine you should cull the rabbit because it's a painful condition and also, they get unpleasantly high from the toxins produced by the bacteria and it causes them painful cramps. Even if they recover from that position, they'll not fatten up.
Weaning Enteritis happes because when the doe weans them, the stomach pH changes and at that time, they are more vulnerable. Rabbits also playfully bully each other over the water supply, the moment one of them goes to drink, another will want to wrestle them over the nipple. This is all good fun if they are strong, but a weak bun loses out here. Two or more nipples don't help either as the thirsty bun gets persued!
To cure weaning enteritis in rabbits:
To prevent: when you wean, remove water supply, hang up bottle with 1l water and 5ml pepto bismol. Fill the feeder with a standard amount and keep watch that it gets eaten. If it doesn't, you have problems. I process the boys and separate the females into pairs.
Watch your newly weaned buns like a hawk to spot odd behaviour, a small wireless camera is a great tool here.
Offer grass that is freshly cut at the roots, strawberry leaves, brambles, to keep their stomachs on the go.
When you have a sickie: as soon as you see a fat belly or a miserable bun, isolate on wire in a big plastic box in a quiet area, wash off any caked muck and dry 'em, rehydrate with 10ml of water every 2 hours, and syringe feed Kaolin Morphine (US folks: this is a over the counter remedy in the UK and the morphine is a miniscule amount that stops the watery diarhea, and it's indicted for children). Also, give Pepto Bismol in the syringe water which you should add 1gr sugar and 1gm salt for 1l to make it isotonic.
Offer grass that is freshly cut at the roots, strawberry leaves, brambles, camomile, parsley, dill, anything to get your patient to eat.
If there is no improvement and you start to feel their spine you should cull the rabbit because it's a painful condition and also, they get unpleasantly high from the toxins produced by the bacteria and it causes them painful cramps. Even if they recover from that position, they'll not fatten up.
Weaning Enteritis happes because when the doe weans them, the stomach pH changes and at that time, they are more vulnerable. Rabbits also playfully bully each other over the water supply, the moment one of them goes to drink, another will want to wrestle them over the nipple. This is all good fun if they are strong, but a weak bun loses out here. Two or more nipples don't help either as the thirsty bun gets persued!