Bum bath question

We were away for a long weekend there, had our usual pet sitter looking after the buns.

Unfortunately I messed up my food instructions and they got way more pellets for breakfast and dinner than they should have, as a result I came home to one mucky bummed Philip.

So, last night I gave my first ever bunny bum bath. We put about 1" of warm water in the bath (about 2" at the 'deep' end), rubber mats on the base and put Philip in. We decided to use the bath rather than the sink because I figured he wouldn't be able to get out (WRONG). He hated EVERY SECOND OF IT.

Anyway, I got most of it off but I can still feel a few bits underneath him. He was super stressed so I took him out and dried him off. Question is, how long so I leave him to try and get these bits off himself?

here is on my knee getting dried after his bath

I used to have to do similar with Artie on a fairly regular basis. He hated the method you describe so much that I just couldn't put him through it. (It's what I did originally as it is the obvious way to deal with the problem). Eventually we got a method of me dabbing his underside with a wet cloth several times to get the area very wet, let it soak into the caecotrophes to soften them then I managed to very carefully peel them off. Then wet cloth again to wash and dry cloth to try and remove as much residue/water as possible.  He really, really didn't like being put into water however shallow it was so this method worked well for us.

We fill the kitchen sink with about an inch and a half of Luke warm water and then pop Annie's back end only in and I use my hand to rinse.  I them pop he onto a ruffles up towel and pop my hand underneath to help the towel soak up the water.

Oh bless him.  I used to have a long haired bunny whse tummy was very sensitive and boy, did we have to have some botty baths and she to hated it.  I had to be so careful what she ate but everything used to have the same effect.  She wasn't a sickly bun but her diet was very limited. I adored her, she was like a little cotton puff.

Hugs
JO xx

He's so cute!

We have a baby bath for Miranda she enjoys being pampered but she freaks if you don't hold on to her.
Soundwave no chance lol
My previous bun Lofty loved his baths and getting wrapped up for towel cuddles after it.

There are rabbit bum wipes you can get if it isn't too bad
If they are still wet are they soft enough to maybe get a wee brush out?
Xxx

I use the bathroom sink, so that bun can plonk their back feet in, and keep their front paws dry. Occasionally, Marley has sat there quite happily.

Bum baths are rare here, but ive done a fair few at work and college. When baby wipes, or cotton pads dont work, i use a litter tray, paint tray or similar if water is necessary. If bun really cant stand it, i tend to let them dry off and use blunt ended scissors to cut the rest out. Now and again it takes two.

As for length of time, depends wether theyre indoors, outdoors, or what season it is. I think you just use common sense, and if bun needs time to destress, fine. I suppose it depends if giving him a break is going to make him more amenable, or if hes just going to flip even more; in which case, its probably better to just get it over and done with. xxx

I used to use the bathroom sink also, it was much easier somehow and didn't take as long.

Hugs
Jo xxx

Bathroom sink here too but it was most definitely a two person job! One to hold Thumper, one to wash bum!

Thanks all, I'll try the sink next time (tho hopefully there won't be a next time!). I just figured the bath would be better as there was less chance of him getting away

jolovesbunnies wrote:Oh bless him.  I used to have a long haired bunny whse tummy was very sensitive and boy, did we have to have some botty baths and she to hated it.  I had to be so careful what she ate but everything used to have the same effect.  She wasn't a sickly bun but her diet was very limited. I adored her, she was like a little cotton puff.

Hugs
JO xx

Philip seems to be a bit like this, a few times now he's left uneaten ceacals after having fresh herbs so I'm having to cut right back compared with what I'd usually feed MJ. I know he's amost half the size but he's getting way less than half of what MJ would get. Also means MJ isn't getting as much because Philip is a greedy guts and I feel really bad keeping them apart for food because I know that they can sense that there is food in the vicinity!

Philip also has a roll of fur just above his tail (we call it his bum skirt) which you can see in this pic from when we were bonding them, I do wonder if that ever gets in the way :/

Miranda was a greedy bunny when I first got her, kept her I a strict routine and now she eats at her leisure.

Shouldn't imagine his kilt would get in the way, he might just be a sensitive bun, try cut out high in water veggies like cucumber (not sure if celery is one either).
Xxx

gemma997 wrote:Miranda was a greedy bunny when I first got her,  kept her I  a strict routine and now she eats at her leisure.

Shouldn't imagine his kilt would get in the way,  he might just be a sensitive bun,  try cut out high in water veggies like cucumber (not sure if celery is one either).
Xxx

he doesn't get any veg at all, just the occasional fresh herbs. We've started giving him dried forage which doesn't seem to be causing any issues. Gave them dinner last night seperate and breakfast as well, just put MJ's down first but got Philip to run about for his a bit so MJ had a head start - Philips sensitive tum is NOT reflected in his appetite

just cause he's small doesn't mean he hasn't got a big tum in there lol 😁😁😁😁

Xxx

Oh that little kilt is so cute LOL!  It is a problem when you have one greedy guts, I have had that problem in the past.  Tammy the bunny I was talking about was greedy, in fact all my ladies have been but the males have been strong natures enough to not let the girls eat it all.

Hugs
JO xx

So, re Philips kilt. He's wee'd on me 3 times recently ( ) but I've noticed that you can't tell when he's weeing, so I think his kilt might be getting in the way of him lifting his tail up to wee as I've also noticed his bum is sometimes a bit damp. Think I'll make an appt at the vet to see about getting his kilt trimmed :\

So we took Philip to the vet today to get his kilt trimmed, but something strange happened. His kilt disappeared at the vets! must be because he was all tensed. She clipped above his tail anyway and it seemed to be enough but once home the kilt is back

He doesn't want to lose the kilt, true scotsman lol

Xxx

That's understandable if he's a true Scot... I mean what does a true Scotsman wear under his kilt?

All you have to do is ask one in a kilt, if he true he'll flash you. Well they do in Coatbridge lol.

Xxx

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOh! Remember: I'm someone's 64 year old maiden aunt!

Borrowed my OH's clippers and decided have a go at Philips kilt myself!

I dono how on earth he managed to make it disappear at the vets (too cold maybe ), its like thick wool!

Anyway, our living room carpet afterwards (it didn't bother him but he wouldn't stay still for longer than a few mins at a time so there was a bit of following him about )


Looks a bit messy, but at least his tail is now visible!


Tail!


zzzzzzzzz tired after that

Poor wee chap.... that second shot looks like a tortoise coming out of it's shell.
I'm sure glad Henry as a neat bum.

If a girly bun or guinea pig has a little kilt or skirt, we call it a tu-tu.

Hugs
Jo xx

UD, Philips kilt has been recently retrimmed as best I could but he's still not keeping his butt clean. I've tried in the bath, the shower tray and the kitchen sink. Even with his paws on the counter top he still struggles like crazy and tries to get out. I tried covering his eyes and he stayed still briefly but the poo stuck on his butt is solid, as soon as I touch his butt to try and remove it he starts struggling. Even touching it wet it won't budge, even gently tugging it won't come off. The vet nurse who tried to clip his butt last time I am sure had never clipped a rabbits rear again, waste of time tbh. Dono if I want to try the vet again and hope I get someone different and get right underneath him clipped as well as above his tail. There is a new boarding place opened not a million miles away and they do home visit grooming services including bum baths (the girl used to help at the rescue MJ came from, I dono if that would be better :/

He also feels like he's lost a bit of weight again but the more he eats the more uneaten ceacals the dirtier his bum gets
I'll take them both to the vet soon anyway to get weighed.
I've got some uneaten ceacal samples to take to the vet school to get tested so hopefully we can at least get an answer on that