Losing a pet can be extremely distressing, and it can be hard to know what the next steps are. This article aims to give you a brief guide to what you should consider when your rabbit sadly dies.
Table of contents
Give yourself time
Firstly, allow yourself – and your family, if the rabbit was a family pet – to grieve. The loss of a pet can be very hard. It is important to be kind to yourself and allow yourself time to grieve for them. You may even feel you need extra support from a pet bereavement service.
Burial
You may decide to bury your pet in a special place and, although it is allowed, there are a few things we ought to consider.
One, we need to think about our property – is it rented? Are you likely to move away soon? Have you anywhere appropriate? You do not need permission to bury domestic pets and can do so on your own land, for example in your back garden. But this is why it is really important to consider if you own or rent the property.
We must ensure that our pets are buried deep in the earth to avoid other predators like foxes excavating them; it’s a horrible thought but one we really need to think about to avoid upset.
We must also ensure they are not buried near any water sources or ground water that could become contaminated with drugs or body fluids; as this could pose a risk to your health or the pollution of that water source.
Cremation
You may decide that the burial isn’t for you and therefore cremation can be an option. Your veterinary practice will be able to guide you on the options available.
With this option, your pet is cremated in a special pet crematorium and their remains can be returned as ashes. If you take your pet directly to the pet crematorium you may be able to take their ashes home that day. If you use the transport service via your veterinary practice, then it may be more like a few days to a week before their ashes are returned to the practice. You may also decide not to get the ashes returned to you.
Have you another?
One thing we also may need to consider is if you have another rabbit that your other rabbit was companion or bonded to.
Best in pairs
Rabbits are happier in pairs, and you may be left in a situation where your rabbit has lost its companion. At this point you may have to make a decision about whether you want to introduce another rabbit to your remaining bunny so that they can continue to have companionship. You can get another younger rabbit but also consider a rescue rabbit who will also want to find its very own companion.
Disease or injury
Another consideration is to ensure that what your rabbit died of isn’t contagious and could harm or pose a risk to the remaining rabbit.
Did your rabbit suffer an injury that we can prevent from happening again? Did your rabbit die from a disease related to inappropriate diet or husbandry that you can make amendments to avoid with your remaining rabbit? Are your rabbits vaccinated from the highly infectious and often fatal myxomatosis and rabbit viral haemorrhagic disease? Remember that VHD1 often shows no illness but can appear to be a very sudden death.
Conclusion
There are several things we need to consider when we lose our rabbits, but the first step is to just allow yourself time to grieve and then seek support from your veterinary practice to help guide you on any question you may have about the next steps.
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