I feel rather sick this morning.  My dog is now a murderer of a rabbit.  She dived into the brambles and I heard the poor thing squeak.  Meg ran off with it (any approach on my part would have had her gobbling for all she is worth making things worse)  and proceeded to tear it apart and eat it.  All I could do was run on ahead and hide in order to keep her moving and not eating.  I couldn't distract her or prevent her from eating a good part of it. 

What I would like to know please - are there any consequences to eating a wild rabbit?  It could have been sickly hence getting caught easily.  It was an adult rabbit.

Other than catching fleas and ingesting tapeworms, there are unlikely to be any consequences - although she might be sick if she's eaten too much! This BARF in its natural glory!

Canine readymeal.  Only thing is to make sure worming up to date.

> Canine readymeal.

LOL!!!

It must be a shock to see your dog catch & kill it's own meal, but it's natural, strange how we don't bother if a cat does it.....
My dog is not agile enough to catch anything more spritely than kibble LOL!!

Thanks both - the worming is something to address.  She was wormed for lungworm just before Christmas - but that didn't include tapeworm.  I should be alright to go ahead and worm her again now. 

I hope cats are better at escaping a dogs clutches.  Our son and partner have acquired 2 cats when they moved into our old house - I was aghast - we are building next door to them and Meg will go bananas when she sees two cats in the garden.  I have no doubt now what she will do if she catches one.  We thought of introducing Meg to the cats gradually (probabally never work) but I think that it is best the cats have a healthy fear of her and say OUT of our garden.  

My lot are expert bunny catchers and gobble the lot down in an instant. Never had any repercussions though, just as has been said always make sure worming is up to date.
If she is anything like mine they still want their breakfast when we get home...little piggies..LOL
Aileen

EEK! If my two get up close and personal with a rabbit they lick it, but more in a friendly than hungry way. Honey used to sleep on the sofa with our rabbit Fudge!  It makes me laugh when the vet asks if she eats things like this as she is a dog who will not cope with eating a sausage unless it is cut into bite size pieces! How different dogs can be.

I would imagine the main consequence will be looking for more!! Last summer, two of mine caught and demolished a mummy rabbit, then to my horror, went to her nest and polished off her babies!! I suppose it was better than leaving them to die of starvation. Now when we are in my daughter's fields, the little beasts think only of yummy bunny!

> expert bunny catchers

Oh and they look as if butter wouldn't melt.  Thanks Aileen I feel slightly better now.  It is a shock to see nature at work.  I found it hard going when we had a cat and she caught things - although she never killed outright - I used to chase her to get her to put the poor things out of their misery.  Meg dispatched it quickly. 
My husband said 'now she will have the taste for fresh blood'   :-)   She is actually sitting very contentedly after her walk this morning.  Just hope she isn't sick because she always chooses the carpet rather than the hard floor.

We live on a farm and our dogs are always catching and eating their kill(rabbits). My surprise was actually seeing my Berner catch one, think it may of been ill. Not seen any ill effect of any of our dogs eating rabbits. Same goes for our cats, they also like birds, frogs, mice and rats..

<Just hope she isn't sick because she always chooses the carpet rather than the hard floor>

Isn't it funny how it's always the same. Most of my house has no carpets, but if one of them is sick you can guarantee it will be on the edge of the rugs or on the one area that is carpeted!

Yum yum ...my dogs have done this before now...prior to walking onwards through town, blood dripping from jowls *sigh* .....goodness knows what people thought ...Mals LOVED it though :)

The next door cats will probably very quickly teach your dogs that claws are very sharp and hurt.
Cats are good teachers  most dogs quick learners....

Blood dripping from  jowls .....LOL

She burped in my face just now.   Phooey!

both my boys catch rabbits , the older will eat his but , younger one(dont think he has much between his ears ) catches them live and brings them to me , he drops them and they bound off , dont know if they survive or die of shock later on.

At least it was fresh.  I'm not very good with 'dead' anything but I sometimes get a flat, dry, crusty article brought over for me to look at - gee thanks!!

I remember when my mongrel caught a mouse - I'm not sure who was more shocked, him or the mouse.  He had been rooting about under a water trough when it literally ran straight into his mouth, he dropped it immediately but grabbed it again when it moved.  I think it died of shock, as he didn't bite it, but he kept picking it up and putting it down trying to make it move again...  More like a cat than a dog :)

lol mine caught a hare between them a couple of years ago and Alfie insisted on carrying it home through the village - right past the fish and chip van where people were queueing for their tea

Alfie is actually rabbit obsessed, he loves the spring when the cat brings home baby bunnies, he mugs her the minute she is through the cat flap :(

A friend of ours uses our field to do a bit of shooting rabbits,we were stood talking to him and 1 of our goldies took the rabbit off him to carry around [dead of course] so pleased with herself.
When we returned home in the evening  she was scratching alot, so i checked her to see why,well she was pickled in fleas running everywhere off that dead rabbit,so i wont be letting her carry a rabbit again in a hurry.

I had just the same problem last week when Harry caught a rabbit; when he brought it to me his face was absoutely crawling with fleas, which I frantically brushed off him, then picked up the rabbit to carry it home. A few yards on I glanced down and my own hand was being infested! I've never had that happen before - quite, quite disgusting!

>eaten a rabbit any consequences?<

Christine,

I don't wish to be alarmist...but

Possible effects

have been reported

and ought not to be ignored!

((((( )))))))

Even more serious .....

Very good .

Thanks for that laugh both - really needed that after all the flea stories.  Bit late now - she has had the run of the house! 

Well we went out to the pictures and I came back half expecting something to clean up.  She had actually had a wee by the look of it - certainly didn't look as if she had been sick and cleaned it up herself.  Thank goodness for my carpet cleaner.  My hubby had taken her out before we left the house.  She hasn't done that since she was a pup.  She has a super bladder. 

thats a really freaky picture!!