3. Spritz water. Rabbits lose heat through their ears, so misting them might help to keep your bunnies cooler. Fill up a spray bottle with cool (not icy) water, and then gently spritz the fleshy parts of your rabbits' ears – making sure not to get water into the ear canal itself.
If you blast your bunny with a jet of water this could not only be harmful if you catch areas around the eyes, nose or ears, it could also be stressful and your rabbit could develop aggressive behavior towards you or become antisocial and timid.
Signs and symptoms of heatstroke in rabbits
Drooling or salivating. Panting and taking short shallow breaths. Overall weakness and lethargy. Reddening and warmth of the ears.
They do not tolerate extreme heat and can die from becoming overheated. Temperatures above 77° F (25° C) are dangerous for rabbits. In summer, heat exhaustion can be an issue for all rabbits but the fuzzy, overweight, old and young are at special risk.
Rabbits often like to play in rain, but if the weather is hot i.e. more than 26 degrees Celsius, they can get heat stroke.
The bunny basics
For example, a rabbit's ideal outdoor temperature is between 12° to 21°C (55° to 70°F) and, while your bunnies can tolerate temperatures as high as 30°C (85°F), anything above that can increase their risk of heatstroke.
Heatstroke is an extremely dangerous condition that can develop if your rabbit's body temperature gets above 40.5°C/104.9°F. It can cause seizures, organ damage, internal bleeding, unconsciousness, and even death.
A temperature of between 10-20°C is recommended as ideal for domestic rabbits, though they can cope with lower temperatures, but tend to suffer from too much heat. If the temperature starts to reach freezing, you may wish to consider moving your rabbits' home indoors or into an outhouse, shed or unused garage.
Cooling mats
Marble tiles or slates stay cold even on the hottest days, so put one into your rabbit's run for the perfect cooling pitstop. You could also freeze a bottle of water and wrap it in a towel to give your rabbit something refreshing to lie next to.
Spaying and neutering your pet rabbit is as important as having your cat or dog spayed or neutered. Rabbits can normally have surgery once they have reached 4-6 months of age.
Altered rabbits are healthier and live longer than unaltered rabbits. One study showed that 85% of female rabbits will contract uterine cancer if not spayed before age 3. These painful and terminal diseases (ovarian, uterine and mammarian cancer) are virtually eliminated by spaying a female rabbit.
Some rabbits love to splash, wade, and even swim in the water. Until you're confident, though, it's best to err on the side of caution.
Edible frozen treats like ice cubes aren't recommended for bunnies as they can cause gastrointestinal trouble, but your bunny will appreciate a nice frozen water bottle to lie next to.
Rabbits can overheat whether they live indoors or outdoors. And humans can withstand temperatures over 10 degrees higher than rabbits can. So even if you feel OK, your rabbit might not. The risk of hyperthermia is particularly high if your rabbit's enclosure is in direct sunlight.
Rabbits don't do well in cold weather, and snowy conditions can put them at risk. Unlike other small animals, rabbits don't hibernate so keeping them warm, dry and protected from the elements is crucial.
The ideal temperature for rabbits is from about 60-70°F (15-20°C), but rabbits can be comfortable in temperatures ranging from around 40-75°F. For rabbits that are used to the cold, they can still do okay in temperatures down to about 15°F as long as they are kept dry and out of the wind.
Rabbits do sleep a lot, especially in the middle of the day. It's normal for rabbits to take frequent naps, especially during the day and when the weather is hot.
Rabbits are unable to cope well with sudden changes of temperature and can start showing signs of heatstroke even at 22 degrees Celsius. Recognising signs of heatstroke in rabbits is very important, these may include lethargy, panting, salivating, weakness, reddening of the ears.
Heat stress is a condition where rabbits are unable to maintain a balance between heat production and emission. High ambient temperature in summer is easy to cause heat stress in rabbits, which brings a series of adverse effects to rabbit production (6).
According to the PetLife website, most rabbits can comfortably handle up to 75 degrees F (or 24 degrees C). While that is mild for us, it may not be for your beloved rabbit especially if they are Flemish Giant or Angora rabbits who are more sensitive to heat.
Can rabbits live outside all year around? Yes, they can. In fact, outdoor rabbits grow a thicker coat in the winter and moult to make their coat thinner in the summer. Apart from that, however, keep in mind that they do not handle extreme temperatures well.
Usually the source of shock is a sudden fear, but it can also be caused by pain or other external stressors (such as a sudden change in temperature). Shock can also be caused by infestations such as fly strike or even a large number of insect stings or bites.
(41' C.). Winternitz 3 and Pratt find that the normal temperature of rabbits ranges from 98” F. (36.6' C.) to 102' F.