Giving your rabbit medicine: the right technique, without the stress

• Ask your vet whether the medicine can be crushed, diluted or mixed with a little food: some can’t.
• Prepare the syringe before you go and get your rabbit.
• Settle where they are most cooperative: on the floor, on a table covered with a towel, or on your lap.
• Keep their companion close by: it reassures them.

Keep your rabbit on all four feet, with their hindquarters well supported. According to the PDSA, you should never turn a rabbit onto their back: this position is very stressful for them. If they struggle or nip, wrap them snugly, but without squeezing, in a towel laid flat, with only the head showing: the “bunny burrito” technique recommended by the House Rabbit Society. If there are two of you, one holds while the other gives the medicine.

• 1. PositionSlip the tip of the syringe into the corner of the mouth, pointing towards the back of the mouth.
• 2. Push slowlyPress gently, a little at a time, letting them chew and swallow in between.
• 3. Keep the head levelDon’t tip their head back: according to the House Rabbit Society, the liquid could go into the lungs.
• 4. RewardA leafy green they love: the next dose will be easier.

If your vet allows it, a tablet can be crushed and mixed into a small amount of a favourite food, or dissolved in a little water and given by syringe. Check they have taken it all. For eye or ear drops, ask your vet to show you how during the appointment.

• Log every dose with the time: when several people look after the rabbit, it is the only way to avoid a missed dose or a double one.
• Give the treatment for the full prescribed course, even if they seem better, unless your vet says otherwise.
• If a dose is missed, ask your vet what to do: never double the next dose without advice.
• During a course of treatment, keep a close eye on their appetite and droppings.

The Scottish Government’s pet rabbit welfare guidance is clear: only use medicines prescribed or recommended for your rabbit by a vet, as some medicines for humans or for other animals are dangerous for them.

According to the MSD Veterinary Manual, some antibiotics that are safe for other animals, such as penicillin given by mouth, can destroy a rabbit’s gut flora and cause severe diarrhoea or death. Parasite treatments containing fipronil can cause severe neurological problems and death.

A rabbit’s gut must keep working all the time. When it slows down or stops, the rabbit is in pain, eats even less, and things get worse fast: this is gut stasis, an emergency that can be fatal without prompt treatment. Pain, stress, a dental problem or a lack of fibre can set it off.

MyArk reminds everyone in the household of each dose at the scheduled time. Whoever gives the medicine ticks it off: the others see it’s done, and the dose isn’t doubled.

• A reminder for each medicine, at the time and for the course prescribed
• Every dose ticked off with the time and the person’s name
• The treatment kept in your rabbit’s health record
• The current treatment on the pet sitter sheet, for when you’re away