this post was submitted on 18 Jul 2023
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The other thing with rabbits (and prey animals in general) is they don’t always form a good bond with a human; it can take a long time if they are fussy. Even if they do take to liking you, prey animals tend to only show subtle signs of illness until they are critically unwell by which point it might be too late. That’s before we get to whether there’s a vet nearby who has a special interest in “exotic pets” and who knows how to help.
Edit to add: the signs of illness are subtle because they actively hide it - key to survival is to avoid looking like easy prey.
Agreed.
Iirc their diets are highly specialized too. It’s not what everyone thinks. You can just give them lettuce and the occasional fruit.
I’d say most animals mask their illness/injuries well, unfortunately. Pet owners really need to know their pet well and see the very subtle changes most of the time.
The main reason I'm not interested in practicing on exotics, even though I love them, is because they hide their illnesses so well. It feels like by the they're sick enough for an owner to notice and bring them in, 9/10 the prognosis is so grave they're euthanized on presentation or die a few days later.