# mosquitos in the rabbit hutch



## abbigail10398 (Oct 30, 2018)

hi every one, i am new here, very excited to join. i have one rabbit she is almost one year old. she has an outdoor hutch and i see mosquitos all the time in there and i never i did not know if they could harm her or not. she has not has any shots but she still seems healthy. if the mosquitos can give her something what is it and how do i know if she has it. and what can i do to keep them out of her hutch. i have three dogs so i cant bring her inside. thanks so much. 



Abbigail


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## Mariam+Theo (Oct 30, 2018)

My rabbit is also outside and the mosquitoes are always around him. I don't think they can hurt her, and it's fine that she doesn't have her shots. My rabbit has never been to the vet because we don't have the money. If it is an emergency than I would take him. Wow I got wildly of topic... your rabbit should be fine. Check the link below for mosquito repellent.
https://www.healthline.com/health/kinds-of-natural-mosquito-repellant#lemon-eucalyptusoil


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## abbigail10398 (Oct 30, 2018)

thanks


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## majorv (Oct 31, 2018)

Our rabbits were always outside and, being on the Gulf Coast, we had plenty of mosquitos certain times of the year. We never had any problem.


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## Euph (Oct 31, 2018)

I have no idea why the other two are saying this is OK, because it's not, 
*myxomatosis *and *Rabbit (Viral) Haemorrhagic Disease* (R(V)*HD*) are BOTH spread by mosquito's and are both extremely deadly and awful for your rabbit. 
And they certainly aren't as rare as you think. I know 2 cases personally and I don't even live in a all year round hot climate. 

It is very simple and cheap to get some mosquito screens or nets and put them on or over your rabbits cage.
Why did none seriously suggest this??
You very much need to get your rabbits vaccinated.


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## Blue eyes (Oct 31, 2018)

Euph said:


> I have no idea why the other two are saying this is OK, because it's not,
> *myxomatosis *and *Rabbit (Viral) Haemorrhagic Disease* (R(V)*HD*) are BOTH spread by mosquito's and are both extremely deadly and awful for your rabbit.
> And they certainly aren't as rare as you think. I know 2 cases personally and I don't even live in a all year round hot climate.
> 
> ...



Rabbits in the US do not get vaccinated. The virus is far more rare here and is only periodically found in pet rabbits on the Pacific coast. 

This from the House Rabbit Society:
_The Myxomatosis vaccine available in Europe and in the UK has not been approved by the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (APHIS) Center for Veterinary Biologics. There is no vaccine available in the United States, and it is not legal to import the vaccine from other countries. The European vaccine is for a different strain of Myxomatosis. The California (US) strain of Myxomatosis is more virulent, and it is unknown if the European vaccine would be effective against the CA strain._

It still seems prudent to use screens to minimize the mosquitos around an outdoor rabbit - especially for those on the west coast of the US.


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## Blue eyes (Oct 31, 2018)

abbigail10398 said:


> i have three dogs so i cant bring her inside. thanks so much.
> Abbigail



Many (not all) dogs can get along just fine with rabbits. It is often just a matter of training the dogs as to what is proper behavior around rabbits. Just a thought to consider.

My dogs have all gotten along just fine with my rabbits. We currently have 2 dogs. This video I happened to record just last night..


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## JBun (Oct 31, 2018)

Like Blue Eyes said, myxo is extremely rare in the US and doesn't really occur in your area. RHD is even more rare with only a few isolated cases occurring. So far anyways, that could be changing in the near future but hopefully not anytime soon.

The primary risk from mosquitoes in your area in the US, would be the shope papilloma virus. Even then it is pretty rare for it to affect rabbits here, but it does happen on occasion.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Viral_diseases/Pap/Papilloma.htm (contains medical related photos)

If you are concerned you can always get some petscreening to put around your rabbits cage to keep the mosquitoes out.


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## abbigail10398 (Nov 1, 2018)

thank you everyone


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## Bam Bam (Nov 2, 2018)

I have a question.
I have had 6 rabbits in the last 15 years and my vet has never suggested any type of vaccination. Has anyone here have vaccinations for their buns.
Not just mosquitoes but tics and botflies are something you should worry about. I have helped rescue over 100 bunnies and I cannot tell you how many tics and flies we have removed and how many we have lost to them. That is why we never keep our bunnies outdoors. Also, they are social animals and love attention. Keeping them outdoors takes away from that.
I don’t mean to insult anyone but please consider that.


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## Popsicles (Nov 2, 2018)

@Bam Bam there is some confusion over vaccinations as different countries have different policies. You’re in the US, which explains why you have never vaccinated your rabbits, whereas here in the UK we vaccinate against myxomatosis and RHD, both of which are pretty common here.
Also if you regularly clean out your rabbit and ensure they aren’t left getting damp and smelly, botflies will not be an issue. They will lay their eggs in damp, smelly, organic material such as wet bedding, poopy back ends, and wounds. Keep them clean and they will have nowhere to lay eggs. As for ticks, as long as they aren’t kept in areas with lots of long grass and shrubbery which is also accessed by wildlife, they shouldnt be susceptible to ticks. You can also use spot on treatments of selamectin or ivermectin to prevent tick infestation, like you would for your dog or cat (speak to your vet about this if you are worried)


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## Jenny Durling (Nov 3, 2018)

We can’t grt vaccines in the US. Apparently our government is afraid a vaccinated domestic pet could get into
The wild and spread immunity. Personally, I think
That would be great but the govt wants a way to be able to cut back the population if necessary. I used to keep my bunnies outside but my vet told me he had recently seen a couple of myxo here and it’s fatal. Now they live indoors and we are all much happier. If yours need to be outdoors, you can get bug nettingnor window screen material to protect them.


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## abbigail10398 (Nov 5, 2018)

Bam Bam said:


> I have a question.
> I have had 6 rabbits in the last 15 years and my vet has never suggested any type of vaccination. Has anyone here have vaccinations for their buns.
> Not just mosquitoes but tics and botflies are something you should worry about. I have helped rescue over 100 bunnies and I cannot tell you how many tics and flies we have removed and how many we have lost to them. That is why we never keep our bunnies outdoors. Also, they are social animals and love attention. Keeping them outdoors takes away from that.
> I don’t mean to insult anyone but please consider that.


 hi. yes i would love for my rabbit to be indoors, but i have three dogs that think she is dinner and she gets very scared. but i do spend time with her outdoors. thanks for replying.


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## abbigail10398 (Nov 5, 2018)

thanks everyone


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## cwebster (Nov 16, 2018)

We have an indoor hutch and an outdoor playpen. We just put really inexpensive mosquito netting over the outdoor playpen to protect our girl. She had an eyeworm when we adopted her so want to prevent her from being exposed to flies etc.


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