HARE Rescue

Welcome to our fabulous team leader Hayley who has kindly offered to step up and take the lead for our wonderful carers group!! Thank you - we are in great hands, our new leader has many years of experience and tonnes of experience and successes in raising, rehabilitating and releasing these amazing little creatures 👍

It’s that time of year again.

Did you know that leverets (baby hares) are born above ground rather than in a burrow and are also fully furred with eyes open!

The mother will visit to feed the babies once or twice a day and will leave them unattended for the rest of the day and the baby will remain very still and quiet so as to not be detected by predators.

If you find a leveret please do not be tempted to touch it or cover it with a box. Please observe from a distance as they will move if frightened; watch to make sure they re-hide themselves.

Leverets make a little “form” in ground by scraping at the earth to make a shallow hole deep enough to nestle down in but still see out of.

We here at HARE Rescue, understand the initial thought of seeing a Leveret and thinking it’s abandoned. It’s not, please let it stay where Mum can find it later as the sun sets.

This little treasure was rescued by a beautiful couple up near brisbane airport on the road. Feeding on small amounts of goat milk, no injuries evident, fingers crossed ❤️❤️❤️

Good morning everyone!

This painfully cute creature is a leveret that was brought in to us earlier in the year and successfully hand reared and released this week. If you would like to see a video of the whole process please visit: https://fb.watch/k2gmg6ELtf/

Sometimes we are asked about the difference between rabbit kits and leverets and how we can tell.

-Rabbits are born pink and look like a bunch of thumbs dug into a wee hole in the ground.
-Leverets are born furry, eyes open, ears back, and sit still on a 'scrape' in a field.

-Rabbit kits get to a certain age and start looking a bit like this age of leveret in the picture, which can be a little confusing. But rabbits at that age tend to look quite like a soft toy version of a rabbit and they look ridiculously sweet. Also by this age, rabbit kits will be eating for themselves and relatively independent despite being really tiny.
-Leverets are dependent on mum for a while and sit and wait all day for her to come back at dusk to feed. I imagine during that waiting time they are forming important logical thoughts and drawing conclusions to the world's greatest mysteries. They certainly have the expression that they hold the responsibility of all that knowledge in their brains and would love to share it with us, if we only understood them. Or, they laugh at us puny humans, still not having the answers to these things.

You can see the difference by viewing this similarly sized rabbit in our video here: https://fb.watch/k2g--8m_i6/ The rabbit is several weeks old, the leveret in the picture above is only a couple of days old. A big shout out to animal carer Sophie for her fabulous rabbit hand rearing skills, and Paige for her leveret hand rearing skills!

Have a lovely Sunday!

Spiller is 90g handed in to WestVETS yesterday by a caring finder. Only a day or two old, currently on tiny amounts of goat milk with a pinch of impact formula added. A tiny teat pushed over a 1ml syringe to feed at this early stage.

Two of the latest three. Little man didn’t make it, poor little fellow was pretty banged up. Little Po in front is pushing through we are at a week in care now and still going. Three seed ticks removed from his face on arrival, drinks like a little trouper, so fingers crossed he makes it. His brother at the back is going great, we are starting to see a difference in size even with the same milk intake indicating that little po is struggling quite a bit.

Here is another tick information sheet

Tick Paralysis

Awesome information

This is a Paralysis Tick before and after feeding.

Tick season has started and tick paralysis is a life-threatening event. It can escalate quickly from slight wobbliness in the back legs and a change in the sound of your pet's bark or meow, to extreme difficulty breathing. It is one of the most common preventable causes of death in dogs and cats along the east coast of Australia.

The tick toxin interferes with nerve and muscle communication. In dogs, the sound of their bark may change and they might regurgitate food or water. Their gait becomes wobbly and within a short period of time they are completely paralysed.

Cats usually present with different symptoms including agitation/distress, an altered breathing pattern, and an audible grunt at the end of their expiration breath.

Tick patients treated early have a much greater chance of recovery. So if you find a tick on your pet remove it immediately, and if you notice any signs of wobbliness or changes in your pet's bark/meow, head straight to your vet for emergency care.

Did you know holistic treatments can be integrated into tick treatment protocols, improving your pet's chances of recovery?

Most pets affected by ticks will need to have the tick anti-serum administered. This is life-saving, and any vet can administer this. Vets will also implement critical care measures, such as supplemental oxygen if your pet is struggling to breathe, intravenous fluids to prevent dehydration while they can't drink or eat, lubricating their eyes to prevent eye ulcers if they can't blink, and assisting them to wee.

In addition to all the usual supportive treatments conventional vets do we have other powerful tools including administering intravenous vitamin C. This gives a high dose of antioxidants straight into the bloodstream where it is most needed, and improves recovery. We give tailored remedies throughout their stay to alleviate their stress and minimise their symptoms. And we have a dedicated critical care nurse monitoring them at all times.

We know how special pets are to us all. If your pet shows signs of tick paralysis this season, know we are here to help save your pet from this life-threatening emergency.

The Natural Vets are a full service veterinary clinic integrating traditional western medicine with alternative therapies. We are based on the Sunshine Coast but also treat animals Australia wide via phone or video.

We do normal stuff. Differently.

If you would like to make an in-clinic, phone or video appointment with one of our fabulous vets please call 07 54767674 or reserve your appointment online:

www.thenaturalvets.com.au/book-now

PLEASE NOTE HARES ARE NOT RABBITS
They are a different species.
They do not burrow, they are born with fur and in nests in the grass. They DO NOT fall under the same ban for keeping rabbits in Qld.
You will NOT get in to trouble for assisting, moving, raising, keeping or releasing them in Qld.

HARE Rescue cards are being issued to any of our fabulous Qld carers who request one. Great to have when you need to advise/educate anyone on the regulations regarding caring for this species in Qld.

Flaaffy (big ears) & Eevee (ears down) breakfast is done, Flaaffy wants a bit more attention but his sister wants to be left alone.
Transitioning to the hexagon today 😁