How to vaccinate decorative rabbits
Decorative rabbits are vaccinated for the prevention of rabies. Unfortunately, today we have to deal with this disease more and more often. In addition to rabies, rabbits are susceptible to many diseases, against which it is necessary to make vaccines so that animals can fully develop and coexist next to humans. Even when a pet is constantly kept at home, it still has a chance of contracting an infectious disease brought from the street on the feet of its owners.
Vaccinations for decorative rabbits
Why vaccinate an animal
Vaccination of decorative rabbits - protection against all kinds of incurable diseases. One of the features of animals is a high susceptibility to various ailments of an infectious nature, and in most cases, infection leads to death. For example, only a few suffer myxomatosis, most individuals die, the mortality rate is almost 100%, and therefore it is necessary to make sure in advance that the animal is vaccinated. In addition, there is always a risk of transmitting the disease to other pets or humans.
Sometimes vaccinations may not provide protection:
- with helminthiasis;
- when infected with an ailment for which a vaccine is made;
- when the vaccine was stored improperly;
- if the revaccination scheme is violated.
Vaccinations are not given to individuals who have just been ill, because their immunity is weakened, and the vaccine can provoke a new infection or a relapse of the disease. Fetish rabbits are also not vaccinated so as not to infect the offspring. In such cases, vaccination is postponed to a more appropriate period when the animals are completely healthy.
Rabbit immune system, preparation for vaccination
The initial protection of the rabbit is given with mother's milk, however, at 2 months, with the transfer to adult food, the body's defense system begins to weaken. To ensure full development, it is necessary to carry out various activities to strengthen the immune system. This includes ensuring optimal conditions of detention, full-fledged balanced nutrition, as well as timely vaccination.
The first vaccinations are given as early as the 6th week, but only if there is no epidemic. If the risk of infection is very high, then the first vaccination is given already on the 28th day after birth. But before vaccinating rabbits, their body must be prepared:
- to carry out preventive measures of helminthic invasion;
- stop bathing the crawl a week before vaccination;
- a few days before vaccination, monitor body temperature;
- carefully monitor the state of health: the quantity and quality of stools, nasal secretions, the color of urine and its quantity.
The first vaccination is carried out on the 45th day from the moment of birth. It is very important that the animal at this age weighs half a kilogram. The second vaccine is given after 3 months. Scheduled revaccinations are prescribed every six months.
The first stage of preparation: deworming
It is very important to carry out anthelmintic therapy before vaccinations. The eggs of parasites can enter the body of rabbits with food or from other animals. Parasites, being in the body, poison it with the products of their vital activity, causing intoxication and a decrease in protective functions. Today, veterinary pharmacies offer a wide range of all kinds of safe drugs that can quickly rid the animal of parasites. Most often used:
- shustrik;
- dirofen;
- parasicide.
Give anthelmintics 2 weeks before vaccination. In 14 days, the animal will have time to fully recover its strength. If the planned prophylaxis of worms was carried out 3 months before vaccination, then the vaccination can be done without additional prophylaxis of parasites.
Fostering and vaccination
It is allowed to vaccinate rabbits at any time, but not at the time of bearing the rabbits. During pregnancy, the female's body undergoes hormonal changes, and the immunity is weakened, so there is a very high risk of contracting an infectious virus from which the vaccine is being made. The vaccine is harmful for both the rabbit and her offspring. Vaccination is carried out in advance. After a week, you can mate.
After vaccination, the protection will work for six months, this period is quite enough for bearing and feeding the offspring. Then you can do a revaccination. If absolutely necessary, if an epidemic has begun, pregnant rabbits are vaccinated. Females are not vaccinated during lactation.
Vaccination schedule
For a decorative rabbit, vaccination is simply vital. Unlike meat counterparts, such individuals are much more susceptible to various diseases. The first vaccination against HBV in the rabbit's life, as mentioned above, is carried out at 6 weeks when the body weight reaches 500 g. After 3 months, the result is fixed by doing it again. To maintain immunity, injections are given every six months.
The next vaccine for myxomatosis is given when a minimum of 4 weeks of age is reached, then a month later and 4-5 months after the secondary vaccination. If the process was successful, revaccination is also carried out every six months: in early March, and then - in early September. For this vaccine, the binding does not go to age, but to the season, because insects carry the disease. Vaccination is also carried out against:
- pasteurellosis;
- salmonellosis;
- rabies;
- listeriosis.
If outbreaks of any disease are detected in this area, all individuals will be vaccinated. Vaccination against pastrellosis and paratyphoid fever should ideally be carried out when buying males immediately on the first day. Nevertheless, it is impossible to inject 2 reagents at once, there should be a break of 2 weeks between vaccinations. For such cases, it is necessary to use complex preparations.
Self-vaccination
You can vaccinate a decorative rabbit yourself at home by purchasing the necessary vaccine. Buying a vaccine yourself, you should be very careful about the conditions of transportation and storage. The drug must be diluted with distilled water. After reconstitution, the vaccine can be stored for no more than 3 hours. The drug is administered intramuscularly, fixing the animal well.
At this stage, all vaccines are completely safe for animals and do not cause side effects. How long a pet will live depends directly on a responsible approach to its vaccination. Before you get vaccinated yourself, you need to consult a veterinarian, choosing the right vaccine.
A vaccine preparation can be composed of live or inactivated viral cells. If live viruses are injected, the body's defenses will be stronger, but such a load is difficult for rabbits to cope with. Inactivated viruses have a long lasting effect.It is recommended to use complex vaccines containing 2-3 viruses: this will save time on revaccination and will be much cheaper.
When using monovalent formulations with one virus, an interval of 2 weeks must be maintained between vaccinations. It is strictly forbidden to administer 2 such vaccines at once. The drugs do not always have good compatibility and can cause unwanted side effects.
Conclusion
Today, many people keep rabbits at home not only for dietary meat and valuable fur, but also as pets. Decorative rabbits, in contrast to their meat counterparts, have reduced immunity. They are often exposed to various infectious diseases. Initially, antibodies are laid in rabbits along with mother's milk. At 2 months, when the young are deposited and transferred completely to adult nutrition, the body's resistance to various bacteria decreases sharply.
In order for the rabbit to fully develop, it is necessary to provide it with conditions as close as possible to natural conditions, which is not so easy to do in an apartment. Animals must not only be properly fed, but must be vaccinated. Many diseases for ornamental individuals are fatal, so vaccination is a vital necessity for pets.
Before vaccinating an animal, it is necessary to prevent helminthiasis. When helminths are present in the rabbit's body, they poison it with their waste products, which has a detrimental effect on immunity. Deworming is carried out a couple of weeks before vaccination, so that the body has time to recover after taking the drugs.
Animals need to be vaccinated throughout their life, starting from 4-6 weeks. Revaccinations are carried out every six months. You can vaccinate pets in veterinary clinics or on your own at home, having previously received the advice of a veterinarian.