Just found our rbbit dead

[SevenEleven]

We have two lovely rabbits who we have had for just over a year. Last week they had their annual check up and vaccinations. Yesterday evening I cleaned them out, fed them and all was OK. This morning I went out to find one of them dead

I didn't tell the DC as I didn't want them to be upset before school. I will tell them after school so they can take their time to understand it and have a cry.

I have spoken to the vets as I don't know if it is a reaction to the vaccination that killed her -although she had her vaccinations last year and was fine. I am taking her in tomorrow for cremation to give our other rabbit a bit of time with her (I read that this can help the remaining rabbit, rather than just removing the dead rabbit straight away) and also so that the DC can see her if they wish.

Is there anything else I should do? Do I just wrap her in a blanket and put her in a box? How long before she is unsafe to touch?

It's a sad day.

Sorry forntypo in title. Am a bit shaken up!

And again...

So sorry to hear this. What a shock for you. Being prey animals they can hide any illness very well until it's too late. It's unlikely to be a reaction if she had no issues previously with vaccinations. You'll probably never know what happened. It sounds like you're doing everything you can for the remaining bunny. When my guineapig died a few months ago, I left him for a few hours with his friend then parcelled him into a shoebox and took him for cremation. I would leave them together for a few hours then remove her and place her in a box. It depends very much on whether you think your DC would want to see her to say goodbye or not. If not, I would remove her before they get home from school. Good luck with telling them, although children can be surprisingly good at handling the death of a pet.

Give the remaining bun lots of cuddles and fuss. It'll feel lonely and sad on its own for a bit and will need extra attention.

Thanks for the advice, FernieB. I have just removed her from the hutch (Luckily as it was raining last night I had put them in to keep them dry, otherwise who knows where I would have found her as they have the run of the garden!). The remaining bunny was still snuggling her, but moved away when I went to get the dead bunny out. I've wrapped her in a blanket and put her in a box ready for cremation and have put her in the shed ready to take to the vets tomorrow. I thought that DD might want to see her, but thinking on I think I will let her if she asks, but not offer it as poor rabbit is very stiff with her eyes open and it's really not a nice way to remember her. I really hope that she didn't suffer and I hope that we did everything right so that she had a happy life. She was a lovely rabbit. Very sociable and actually liked being fussed and picked up, where as the other one really doesn't like it at all and prefers being stroked on her terms!

We will make sure that the remaining bunny gets lots of love and cuddles.