With the weather starting to get warmer this week it is important to make sure our rabbits stop nice and cool. Unlike ourselves they are unable to sweat or pant like a dog to help keep cool, they lose heat through their ears, this makes for an excellent way to check to see if they are overheating. (the ears should not feel extremely hot)
A great way to cool your rabbit down is to apply water to his ears and have a cool fan blow over them. If your rabbit is outdoors, make sure that the cage is placed in a nice shaded part of the garden out of direct sunlight and is well ventilated. Make sure that he has plenty of water to drink throughout the day and give him plenty of fresh vegetables, as well as these, contain water too.
You can place some large stones in the freezer overnight and give them to your rabbit the next day these make pawfect cooling packs for your rabbit.
If you can't find any suitable rocks you can fill up some old plastic bottles with water and freeze them overnight instead.
It is important to bear in mind the time of day as the garden heats up quite dramatically from midday and reaching its highest temperatures around 3 pm. With this in mind, it is best to allow exercise and grazing first thing in the morning or after 6 pm when the outdoor temperatures are much cooler.
Rabbits are not good swimmers, they hate been immersed in water and can send them into shock which could be fatal to your rabbit, so never place your rabbit into a swimming pool or try to hose them down.