[techinstructor]

We have lots of bunnies hanging out in our yard and at the edges of the woods. They freely leave little piles of "goodies" that the pups like to find and eat. This morning on our morning walk, the pups found a dead baby bunny near the edge of the woods. I told them to "leave it" and they did, mostly because I was able to reinforce the command with their e-collars. The bunny was very young, maybe a week old - about 4" long. Its belly was split open and the blood was still wet, so whatever had attacked it had done so recently. I threw the dead baby up into the woods and we continued our walk.

Fast forward about four hours, and I was walking the pups again, but this time without their e-collars. Dasha found another dead baby, about 40' from the where the first one had been. By the time I noticed she had it in her mouth and she refused to "drop it." She knows the command well, but I struggle to get her to comply when she really wants to keep something. She proceeded to eat the bunny right in front of me, consuming it quickly. GROSS!

I'm pretty sure the bunny was already dead and mostly likely had been dead for some time and had been from the same nest as the one we found earlier. A search of the area revealed a third dead baby, this one was missing its whole upper body. I’m not sure what had killed them, but I suspect a stray cat.

Dasha doesn't seem to be any worse for wear, but I did wonder what parasites she may have exposed herself to. A Google search revealed that dogs can get tapeworm from eating whole rabbits, so I plan to call my vet tomorrow and ask if I should treat her for that or any other problems prophylactically. If anyone has suggestions for what to be on the lookout for, I’d appreciate the advice.

 

[karmen_maddison]

Omg that's crazy

snaptube vidmate​

 

[dogma13]

Gross yes,but no big deal health wise if Dasha is up to date with her immunizations.Both dogs can pick up parasites from the bunny poo anyway. Just dogs being dogs,though it's not pleasant to witness.

 

[Kiki18]

yikes! My dog ate part of a dead rabbit I’m guessing that’s how he got worms ( worms are gone now)

 

[wolfy dog]

In the past my dog ate the entire litter. No problems with parasites

 

[Sunflowers]

Meh… just watch her poop.
I’m sure she’ll be fine.

 

[Baileyshuman]

I didn’t know that dogs actually eat whole animals… not sure why. i just didn’t think they would lol

 

[WNGD]

This is definitely the year of the bunny around here. In a 20 minute walk this morning there were 6-7 on the path, all this year's litters. We see Moms or Dads (Dam and Sire just like dogs so why do they have kittens?) all the time. They're often on the lawn at dusk or dawn. There's so much long grass along the path that they wait until the dogs are less than 15 feet away before they hop in.

 

[Sunflowers]

I didn’t know that dogs actually eat whole animals… not sure why. i just didn’t think they would lol

Yup.
Give your dog a whole 2 lb rabbit and see 😁

 

[techinstructor]

Thanks folks. I wasn't particularly worried, but thought it was a good idea to find out if I should be. I try to keep them from eating the rabbit poop too but that's somewhat of a losing battle if I let them hang out in the yard.

 

[WNGD]

They do love rabbit (and deer) poo .....

 

[tim_s_adams]

If it were me, I'd be more worried about them refusing to "drop it" on command without the ecollar! They're coerced but not yet trained! And that's good info...

 

[SFury]

Your heartworm medication should take care of any parasite issues. The most common way dogs get worms where I live is from eating deer or rabbit turds.

 

[Benny's Mom]

Benny brought us a dead mouse the other day, grateful he didn't eat it, just wanted to share it with us. Not sure where he found it in the backyard. We've also have wild yard bunnies, but they are pretty smart and quickly hide. I have been told their droppings can, make a dog sick and of course cause worms

 

[Kiki18]

yikes! My dog ate part of a dead rabbit I’m guessing that’s how he got worms ( worms are gone now)

I forgot to end this was before he was treated for worms so he got the treatment when he got the worms if that makes sense..

 

[techinstructor]

My vet didn't think there would be any problem due to the bunny being so young, but she said I could give Dasha Cestex (for tapeworm) if I was concerned. I think the other major worries were covered by the Interceptor.

 

[Fodder]

In the past my dog ate the entire litter. No problems with parasites

sometimes reading about Deja, I swear we have (almost) the same dog.... Keys ate and entire "litter"(?) of opossums once - sigh.
but to the OP, same... no problems. in fact, he had suburb stool quality in the days following (silver lining)

I didn’t know that dogs actually eat whole animals… not sure why. i just didn’t think they would lol

yes. whole prey is a common feeding model in the raw fed dogs world. we stick to quail and fish tho.

 

[wolfy dog]

sometimes reading about Deja, I swear we have (almost) the same dog.... Keys ate and entire "litter"(?) of opossums once - sigh.

That was another GSD but Deja ate a baby turkey a few years ago. I was stuck home with sciatica and hubby wanted to take her outside. I told him...(well you can imagine what) and of course that was useless so after a a while I heard, "Hey, she caught a Turkey chick!" Me, "Is it dead?" He, "Almost, some stuff is hanging out!" Me, "Let her kill it and let her eat it". It must have tasted like her own diet.

 

[Fodder]

That was another GSD but Deja ate a baby turkey a few years ago. I was stuck home with sciatica and hubby wanted to take her outside. I told him...(well you can imagine what) and of course that was useless so after a a while I heard, "Hey, she caught a Turkey chick!" Me, "Is it dead?" He, "Almost, some stuff is hanging out!" Me, "Let her kill it and let her eat it". It must have tasted like her own diet.

oh, haha…
well Keys got a baby turkey last year so we’re still in similar company. i didn’t let him finish tho…. since there was already a hawk that had been circling mom and chicks.

ugh these dogs!

 

[Hopps]

My vet didn't think there would be any problem due to the bunny being so young, but she said I could give Dasha Cestex (for tapeworm) if I was concerned. I think the other major worries were covered by the Interceptor.

That's good! My friend's dog ate a maggot infested bird carcass. They fed the dog some tic tacs to freshen his breath and moved on lol...