COMMERCIAL RABBIT RAISING 47 



Table 4. — Common ailments of domestic rabbits — Continued 



Diseases and symptoms 



Treatment and control 



Enteritis, Bloat, or Scours: 

 Loss of appetite, little 

 activity, eyes dull and 

 squinted, fur rough, 

 and animals may appear 

 bloated. Diarrhea or 

 mucus droppings; 

 animals may grind 

 teeth. Stomach con- 

 tents fluid, gaseous, or 

 filled with mucus. 



Fur Block: Animals re- 

 duce feed intake or stop 

 eating completely, fur 

 becomes rough, and 

 weight is lost. Stom- 

 ach filled with 

 undigested fur, block- 

 ing passage to intestinal 

 tract. Pneumonia may 

 become secondary. 



Tapeworm Larvae: White 

 streaks in li%er or small 

 white cj'sts attached to 

 membrane on stomach 

 or intestines. Usually 

 cannot detect in live 

 animals. 



Pinworms: No specific 

 symptoms in live ani- 

 mals. White threadlike 

 worms found in cecum 

 and large intestine 

 cause slight local irri- 

 tation. 



Metritis or White Dis- 

 charge: White sticky 

 discharge from female 

 organs, often confused 

 with sediment in urine. 

 Enlarged uterus de- 

 tected on palpation. 

 One or both uteri filled 

 with white, purulent 

 material. 



Unknown; never has 

 been shown to be in- 

 fectious or transmitted 

 to other animals. 



Lack of sufficient fiber, 

 bulk, or roughage in 

 the diet. Junior does 

 or developing does 

 most susceptible. 



Larval stage of the dog 

 tapeworms {Taenia 

 pisiformis) or of the 

 cat tapeworm {T. 

 taeniaeformis) . 



Pinworms ( Passalurus 

 ambiquus). 



Infection of the uterus 

 by a variety of bac- 

 teria, nonspecific. 



percent and fed 2 to 3 

 weeks. These treat- 

 ments, combined with 

 sanitation, •will greatly 

 reduce numbers of para- 

 sites and animals 

 infected. 



Add 50 gr. furazoladine per 

 ton of feed to give final 

 concentration of 0.0055 

 percent. Feed inter- 

 mittently or continu- 

 ously. Water soluble 

 chlortetracycline or 

 oxytetracycline at a 

 level of 1 pound to 100- 

 150 gal. of water may be 

 used for treating individ- 

 ual cases; too costly for 

 herd control. 



Increase fiber or roughage 

 in the ration. Feed dry 

 alfalfa or timothy hay. 



No treatment; keep dogs 

 and cats away from feed, 

 water, and nest box ma- 

 terial Eggs of tapeworm 

 occur in droppings of 

 dogs and cats. 



None; infection not con- 

 sidered one of economic 

 importance. 



Dispose of infected animals 

 and disinfect hutches. 

 Infected area difficult 

 to medicate. When both 

 uteri are infected, ani- 

 mal is sterile. 



