Spring cleaning !!

Hi Folks,

well, I seemed to be complaining about being too busy in my last blog, however, Friday morning I decided to take advantage of a long weekend without day time work to clean the rabbitries and clean up every bunny. Spring cleaning so to speak, to get ready for even warmer temps and being able to leave the bunnies at peace.
A few coats grew back very uneven and thin on a few moms that just weaned litters, and few buns grew back enough wool to make them uncomfortable. So, the scissors came out as well as the toenail clippers, Ivomec syringe and box of baby wipes.

A good " cleaning " in my Rabbitry goes like this : 1 or 2 buns at one end of the cage rows come into the house for a few hours and sit in transport cages. Next , the cage is taken apart as in removing all plastic sitting boards and soaking them in hot bleach water or Vanodine water. food dishes, toys and water bottles go into the house for a soaking in bleach in the sink. The cage floor is scrubbed with a wire brush to remove any stuck manure, a yard stick helps break off " strings of pearls " from under the cage. Next, a good spraying with Vanodine water in a Windex spray bottle, then removal of wool, cob webs, dirt etc. Next, a bucket with more hot vanodine water will help with a rag to remove the last stubborn dirt, dust and urine stains. Both cages will be cleaned this way, the pan under the cage is flushed and the cages are left to dry. Last but not least, a second spray bottle holds 100% Listerine ( original) that is sprayed all over the cage to kill any parasites that might be lurking. I return to the house to pay attention to the bunnies. I clip any wool that needs clipping, growing coats get a good grooming with the slicker brush ( no shows in the area now, so I do not have any coats that need blowing, not yet ). Coats under 4 inches long do not need much grooming, so I have it easy at this time of the year. I check ears well, I check the skin for possible fur mites. Then we work on the belly, groom belly wool, clip wool around the private area short, clip toenails, and clean the vent area with a baby wipe. I pay close attention to the hind legs, looking for matts in the long wool on the bottom of the feet, cut it shorter if needed. I check for sore hocks. Then bunny is placed one more time on the grooming table and gets a dose of Ivomec 1 % orally to prevent fur mites and ear mite infestation. My calendar is marked to repeat the dose in 14 days. Bunny is placed back into the transport cage and rewarded with a treat, mostly a small piece of banana. Then the second bunny gets the same treatment, and both return back to their now dry cages and two more buns come into the house.

It sounds labor intensive, but, this way is actually very efficient since a lot of cages in a row are cleaned, a lot of buns are treated to a spa day and everything is clean and parasite and germ free. WHY treat a bunny for fur mite prevention or infestation, and not clean the cage and treat it as well ????

All bunnies that received a complete haircut will be sprayed as well with a healthy dose of listerine to condition the skin , kill off active fur mites, and take away some itch from having been clipped. They don't seem to mind it, actually, they enjoy a good massage to rub in the listerine well. They don't seem to mind the taste of it as well, they go right to grooming themselves .

I do this routine about once every 8-10 weeks, by that time every bunny and cage will need a good spa day. Between the cleaning days I clean food dishes and water bottles as needed, as well as some cage floors. Some buns are better housekeepers then others.

So, Friday I did 10 buns ( including 8 hair cuts) ...... Saturday I managed to do 8 buns ( including 6 haircuts), Sunday I had company but still managed to do 2 buns and cages, today I will finish off all that will be much easier, no haircuts needed, just clean cage and Ivomec. Last but not least, the purchase of a NEW MOP will make barn floor washing tonight a breeze :)

I also managed to take pictures of all of the older babies, and will post a list of sexes and colors of all for sale in the next blog.

Have a great week :)

Angie :)