Myxomatosis is one of the worst ailments that could afflict your rabbit, only 15-20% of rabbits survive infection with this miserable virus, and only if you take very good care of the animal, it can take months for your rabbit to return completely the old one.
Myxomatosis
Myxomatosis is a virus that belongs to the poxviruses. Myxomatosis is spread by stinging insects such as fleas, mosquitoes, and flies, or by contact with an infected animal or materials with which an infected animal has been in contact.
Precautions
- Because prevention is always better than cure, it is important that you vaccinate your rabbit twice a year, in the spring and in the autumn.
- Try to keep insects out of the cage by hanging gauze or placing screens
- Thoroughly clean the rabbit’s hutch at least once a week, preferably with a lemon-scented product, so that insects don’t like that smell.
- Fight fleas!! A good tool for this is an advantage. Prevent your rabbit from coming into contact with cats, dogs, and hedgehogs, as they can transmit fleas.
Symptoms
Should your rabbit unexpectedly become infected with myxomatosis, the symptoms will be noticeable within a few days to two weeks?
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- Swelling of the eyelids, mouth, and anus
- Lumps in the skin, mainly on the back, around the mouth, and around the ears.
Within a few days, the animal will contract pneumonia and die from it.
Therapy
Once your rabbit has myxomatosis, you can’t really do much more for him than take good care of him, make sure he stays warm, and that he continues to eat, if necessary by force-feeding. It is also important that you give the animal a good painkiller because a rabbit in a lot of pain will lose the will to live and stop eating. The bacterial infections that occur with myxomatosis can be treated with an anti-bias agent and eye ointment.
Keep in mind that a rabbit with myxomatosis only has a 15 to 20% chance of surviving this disease, and it will take months to get back to normal. So it is really important that you have your rabbit vaccinated against this nasty virus.
Some vets hold vaccination consultations in the spring and autumn, which saves considerably in costs. However, if you think your rabbit already has myxomatosis, don’t vaccinate it again, as this will weaken the animal and make it sicker.
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