Our rabbit died and I don't know why

[AmIAWeed]

I'm not sure if anyone can offer any advice but I'd appreciate any ideas.
We rescued a rabbit in August last year, he'd been dumped outside pets at home and was in there almost 3 months because no-one wanted him. He wasn't friendly, had no interest in people and as such was overlooked.
We took him as I hated the idea of him being there, he wasn't neutered and I chose not to get him done, we had no intention of getting another rabbit as he was bad tempered so it seemed daft risking him on an operation.
So he has a double layered 6ft hutch and a run that's about 2 x 4 metres. Each night-time we close the hutch, and in the morning he comes out and runs about.
We have chickens he loved to chase (they have their own run but would flap/jump into his run, often we'd leave the chickens run open so he could double his space to run about, when our dogs were in he was also given the run of the garden, he loved going under the hedge to explore.
He still didn't like being stroked, but he'd come to us for food and allow us to hand feed him.
His run was also next to our guinea pigs run. He didn't go in with the guineas in case he kicked them. Not sure if it's relevant that he lived near chickens and guinea pigs. None have shown any sign of illness at all.
Yesterday he was his usual self, jumping about, chilling and doing what he wanted.
This morning we open his hutch up to find he's died.
I can see no sign of injury, there is no way a fox or other creature has got to him. He had a regular diet of pellets and veg, always fresh hay and water.
I simply don't understand what could have happened to him.

So sorry you lost your bun :(

Was he fully vaccinated? VHD and VHD2 can kill very quickly with few symptoms.

They can also suffer from heart attacks, these can be genetic or come from a fright i.e. a fox sniffing too closely.

A vet can perform a post mortem to get proper closure on what happened.

His paperwork said he was vaccinated but we didn't do it so I couldn't tell you if it was VHD and VHD2

His run is fox proof, built at the same time we did the chickens so im confident nothing got close to him :(
I hope he didnt suffer

Nothing in our set up sounds like we caused it though?

The exact same thing happened to one I got from the adoption section at PAH. No idea why, was fed as per advised and always had fresh water/bedding/hay etc.
Starting to wonder what they do to these poor bunnies

So sorry about your bunny. If the bedding / ground around him wasn't disturbed then he probably didn't feel a thing.

We've lost two for no apparent reason. All kept as per instructions. When the last wee lad went I was about to go to PaH to get another bun to keep him company. We'd got him because we'd a previous one. It does become a never ending cycle.

Rabbits are very good at pretending to be fine when they are ill, however if he was hopping and jumping about the day before enjoying himself it seems like this was something very sudden. Perhaps a blockage in it's gut. Could it have eaten something it shouldn't have?

Perhaps it just had a weak heart or something though. It doesn't sound like he suffered.

Fyi, if you rescue again it is wise to neuter as rescue rabbits I've found tend to be a bit more...feral sometimes and from my exp, neutering completely calms them down.

If there's no signs of injury or illness (for example clean nose and bum) or him struggling then it may have just been his time. You've no idea how old he was when he was dumped but at least you know he had his last 8 months or so living the high life, he probably wouldn't have had anywhere near that if you hadn't taken a punt on him.

Oh, no. l'm so sorry. l agree with TeaForTheWin - rabbits are prey animals, and they can mask illness really well. By the time you notice something's wrong, it's pretty bad. l belong to a couple of bunny groups on social media, and unfortunately it's not uncommon for this to happen, with no apparent reason.
At least he was loved and cared for while you had him. So sorry x

Given the wise words of those more in the know, is it recommended that one takes a bunny to the vet for, say, monthly check-ups?

I was devastated to lose my last wee lad. Have given up and the hutch remains with us but is empty.

Thank you all, I've felt thoroughly miserable all day.
We have lots of rescue animals, 4 guinea pigs, 3 chickens, 5 cats and 2 dogs, the rabbit was a bit of a first and I was terrified i'd done something wrong and caused it.
I really hope his last 8 months were happy ones

It's been an odd day, I had a stray cat trying to break in earlier. We have a missing cat in the village so I thought maybe it was that persons, sadly it wasn't so I took him to the vets to see if he was microchipped. He wasn't, also not neutered, has worms and fleas - estimated about 5 years
I don't know what came over me but the next thing I agreed to bloods to see if he has cat aids, had him deflee'd and a worming tablet with the aim of introducing him to ours.
When the vet came out 20 minutes later to tell me he didn't have aids I burst into tears.
Tried telling my husband the rabbit has come back as an old, abandoned cat!
We already have 5 house cats so unlikely we'll be able to keep him but I'll get him squared up, neutered and contact some rescues if no-one comes forward to claim him in the next 2 weeks, I cant help our rabbit more but hopefully this little cat has come at the right time.

What a horrible and odd day

A horrible day for you lass, but a great day for the cat you've just helped.

VHD is probably most likely - he may not have been fully vaccinated due to vaccine shortages
Glad he had a good life with you OP

Given the wise words of those more in the know, is it recommended that one takes a bunny to the vet for, say, monthly check-ups?

That would cost a fair bit. No, car journeys are stressful for them too so I certainly wouldn't take a rabbit for check ups, ever, unless they appeared to be ill. Often when they are not well (trapped gas can be a cause) you will see they get up and lie down and then two seconds later, do the same and repeat it. Up and down and up and down, basically they look uncomfortable. They may also be off their food. If that continues for more than a day or so take them to the vet.

TeaForTheWin Thank you. Mine was similar to the OP's, seemingly fine the day before and the morning of, then I looked a few hours later and he was gone.

Had it happen with one of mine too, think it was only about 3 years old at the time. I rememeber my mum being really worried thinking it might have eaten a bit of cellotape that had come off something. But who knows. I think sometimes it's just their time.

We lost ours from PAH aged 23 months, he was ok the day before, I went to feed him the next day & he was stretched out on his side, I stroked him but he was dead. I'm not getting any more animals from PAH, our last hamster only lasted 6 weeks. I'm wanting another hamster but I'll ask at the independent pet shop if they know of any home bred ones.

Probably gut stasis. When a rabbit looks ill then they are probably past help. One of our buns died last tear and it’s partner went into shock. I had to syringe feed it. The vet was amazed it survived! They are quite tricky to care for really. At least you looked after it and gave it a home. That’s more than the last owner did!

most likely reason for sudden death in otherwise healthy rabbits is rvhd2 which is now everywhere - PAH dont routinely vaccinate their rabbits - they do give vouchers which some people use but that only used to be for rvhd1 which is not so prevalent now - so if your buns are not vaccinated against rvhd2 then you really need to consider getting it done asap