Ear tattooing?

[wlc1]

*Shudder* Do rabbits really sit still for their ears to be tattooed/numbered???

[Fat Man]

Not really, you wrap them in a towel or something to control them.

[mygoat]

No, you must safely and humanely restrain them for your and their protection. When I clamp, I set them on a table with a flece rag over them. A hole is cut out for their left ear so that it pokes through the fleece. rub the ink on the ear, and hold the head with my left hand. I usually then butt their rear up against my body so they can't go backwards, and clamp. Some sit there. Some try to run, some try to run backwards. Some holler, by far most are quiet. They're back to running around the growout pen as soon as I'm done.

I also have a pen tattooer for the clamp tattoos that don't come out clear or if I'm just doing one or two. also helpful to take to shows for someone who forgot to tatt a bunny beforehand, to help out newbies who have never shown before, or to clarify ain illegible tattoo. The good thing about them is that they are BOLD and easy to read - sometimes the clamp tattoos do not come out bold or easy to read as some letters are difficult to distinguish (letters N, W, and M come to mind, lol).

Permanent ID is very important in a large rabbitry for recordkeeping purposes, showing, and proper management/health of the rabbits.

[Fat Man]

I gave the short answer.

[GraceAlice]

Wrap em', tatt em'.

I won the short answer! lol but that's not really an answer. oops.

Mine are tattooed as babies so they are easy to handle. I wrap their whole bodies, like swaddling a baby, and then tattoo. They can't move but I'd imagine it's pretty comfy in there! It works even better if you sit 'indian style' or criss cross applesauce, which is what I called it as a little kid. lol

[Dead Rabbit]

i put them in a plastic milk crate. they usually tuck their heads in a corner. i just pull their ear out strait to where i can get the pliar clamp on it and apply preassure. they just try to tuck their head in deeper. i found the crate works great. they cant back out, move forward or got to far sideways.

[secuono]

No, some totally loose it, like some people, while others are better. But you need to look for and avoid veins. Plus using a numbing cream or ice helps a ton.

[Lookin4GoodLife]

How do you know you've applied enough pressure to mark it correctly? I worry I'd mangle an ear.

[ChuckNora]

You can practice on a sheet of paper. You don't want to do too much to go through the ear, just enough to break the skin. Some put more ink on afterwards too, to make sure it gets in there.

[mygoat]

Originally Posted by Lookin4GoodLife

How do you know you've applied enough pressure to mark it correctly? I worry I'd mangle an ear.

I clamp hard. You won't damage it, and you'll get a good bold mark. You want the tines to make big holes otherwise the ink doesn't stay. I'd rather do it good once, than have to redo it. My pad on my tattooer wore out... I now just tape in a piece of fabric or fleece to add another layer of padding.

[redneckswife]

If you look at my rabbits...you really can tell which breeder clamped well and which did it lightly. Some of the lightly clamped tats are barely visible ...sometimes even after only 6 months.

Someone talk to my about the ethics of this....breeder lives far away, they did a not great job on the tat and I knew it within a month of getting them(the tats were already so faded and not deep enough.. it was hard to read which was which doe). So what do YOU each do if you have a badly tatted rabbit? Is there something that is ethical(without stepping on someones toes) I can do to brighten or make the tattoo more ledgable?

How is re-tatting the old tat viewed..is that a no-no? And what happens if they used a different tat clamp...then I 've just created a mess???

[GraceAlice]

redneckswife... I have never used a clamp but have used a pen... I would redo it with a pen if the old one was clamped. I think that would be a lot easier.

[mygoat]

I usually retatt with a pen. Retatting is common and not a problem as long as you keep the same tattoo. Many of mine were faint until I started doing the fleece buffer to get bold marks. The pad just wears out.

[Dead Rabbit]

i clamp down till it bottoms out. hold for a second with full pressure. then release and reapply pressure.

after pulling the ear off the pins. i reapply ink as has been stated. once it all heals and the ink flakes off, i have a clear permanant tatoo. ive never had them wear away, course i dont keep rabbits very long. 3 yrs is the longest, and they have been sold yesterday.

[Buckeye_brian]

Can I use the same tattoer I used for the goats. I really do not want to buy another...

[mygoat]

What size? A 5 digit clamp is what I use. Same for both goats and rabbits. A 4 digit clamp is huge for young rabbits. Can probably be done depending on the breed.