vet bill help

It happens to us all.

You look at your bunny and notice something is not quite right. You panic a little, but head to the bunny community online for support. After a few keyword searches in some Facebook groups, your fears are realized. Off to the vet!

Then the vet calls you in. Your fur baby is perfectly fine – except for maybe one minor thing that never warranted the drive out.

That will be $70+ please.

Here’s why that bill is worth it.

You’re not an expert

Bunny owners are trained by a plethora of articles to keep a close eye out for their rabbit’s health.

As prey animals, rabbits tend to hide their illnesses. It would be deadly for a fox or hawk to find out their leg is a little bruised or they have some ear mite that’s preventing them from being at the top of their game.

For hooman parents, that means slight changes could mean big trouble.

Poop analysis: A change in their poop could mean they’re ingesting too much of their fur, not getting enough hay, having a digestion slowdown.
A tilted head: When a rabbit consistently positions their head to one side, it could mean they have a parasite.
Head shaking: Excessively, this could mean your bunny has ear mites.

And that is just the start!

It can be easy to feel like you’re overreacting. But in the end, this is the life of your child we’re talking about.

Sometimes you need a rabbit whisperer

We had a rabbit named Avalanche (RIP), a very shy, white lop-eared bun. Over the course of her life, she had many ailments – definitely the most medically needy bunny we’ve had.

One day, she started barely eating. My whole family was worried and couldn’t figure out what was wrong. She had plenty of hay, pellets, and lettuce available to her. We would occasionally give carrots as treats.

After a vet examined Avalanche, the bunny whisperer had a startling conclusion.

She wasn’t diseased.

She had no broken bones.

She wasn’t in pain.

What was the matter? She didn’t have enough variety in her life. Avalanche wanted more greens – the expensive kind.

It was that simple. We went the the grocery store and added some pizzazz to her diet. She was fine.

While we joke she was a picky princess, we probably wouldn’t have figured it out on our own. She could have died from stubbornness instead of living a long, happy life!

The money may be worth the reassurance

More recently, I had a scare with Baby, my white lionhead son.

I had been monitoring him for several weeks. The vet had told me he was overweight and needed to eat more hay to make sure his teeth didn’t become overgrown (Lionheads are prone to it because of their face shape).

Over the next two months, I started only giving pellets as treats. This encouraged Baby to eat A LOT more hay, more than he’s ever eaten daily in his life. I started giving him more romaine leaves, fed by hand, as a supplement for the excitement that is pellets.

But his stomach started gurgling.

I would give him belly rubs to try to stop the gassy-ness. And I stopped giving him romaine lettuce in case that was what was bothering his stomach.

Then I noticed Baby’s poop was getting to be gigantic and oval-shaped. Definitely not his usual.

After hours of research online and in Facebook groups, I was convinced he had megacolon, a rare genetic disease that affects the digestive system.

I brought him to the vet and anxiously waited outside in my car (ahh, pandemic social distancing rules).

The vet called me an hour later. Baby was perfectly fine, even eating the hay I had put in his carrier! He had lost about a pound and a half since the last visit.

I learned several important things because of that “wasted” vet visit.

Baby did not have megacolon.
I needed to start feeding him a QUART of varied veggies A DAY! Not what I expected.
Gurgling stomachs are just digesting – not necessarily a sign of GI Stasis. Being constantly with him (working from home) just made me notice it more.
Sometimes poop looks different.
It’s not about weight, but about health. You don’t want a chubster bun, but you also don’t want to feel bone. It might be a good investment to get a baby scale if I was actually that worried about the numbers.

My worries were gone after that visit, and I learned some valuable information. Considering my fears had been mounting for about two weeks, I’d say it was a good investment.

Create a vet bill plan

Not everyone can afford these random vet visits. But it is something you should prepare for, especially if the visit unearths a pricey medical problem.

Make a budget

My strategy is to budget out a certain amount of money each month for “Emergency Rabbit Costs.” This came in handy when Baby sprained his front paw! I had enough money to cover it.

Besides emergencies, annual pet visits are around $70, something I can also budget for.

Pet insurance

Other people have recommended Nationwide pet insurance. The company has an Avion & Exotic Pet Plan that covers medical treatments and surgeries.

Before purchasing, I would make sure to read up on what is covered and what isn’t. From what I’ve read on Facebook, some people have been burned because they didn’t realize a certain, specific thing wasn’t covered.

Ask the bunny community

There are a lot of really nice, caring people in this world.

Consider joining the Bunny Vet Bill Help Facebook group before a disaster strikes. Make sure to read the description so you understand what members can help with. And of course, if you join, try to donate to another person’s cause – even if it’s just a couple dollars.