A rabbit who grazes outdoors meets a different set of risks from one who lives entirely inside, and parasite prevention works best as a conversation about your particular garden rather than a product picked off a shelf. Your vet will want to know how long your rabbit spends outside, whether the run moves around the lawn, and what else visits the garden — hedgehogs, cats, wild birds and wild rabbits all change the picture. Go in ready to describe that setup honestly and to ask which risks genuinely apply to your rabbit and which are unlikely enough to simply keep an eye on.
Flystrike Belongs at the Top of the List
The most urgent garden risk to discuss is flystrike. Blowflies are drawn to damp or soiled fur, particularly around the rear end, and in warm weather eggs laid on a rabbit can develop frighteningly fast. Ask your vet how often you should be checking your rabbit over in the warmer months — for outdoor rabbits, a hands-on check underneath at least twice a day is the usual advice — and what early signs to look for: a rabbit who is quiet, off its food, or has an unpleasant smell around the rear needs to be seen the same day, because flystrike is one of the true emergencies of rabbit keeping. Ask too whether your rabbit's shape, age or a previous episode puts it at higher risk than average.
Fleas, Mites and Ticks From Grass and Visitors
Grass is not sterile ground. Fleas can arrive on visiting cats or wildlife, mites can be carried in hay and bedding as well as picked up outside, and ticks lurk in longer, rougher grass at garden edges. Ask your vet which of these they actually see in rabbits locally, what each looks like at the earliest stage — scratching, dandruff-like flakes walking through the coat, small attached bumps after time in long grass — and what they would want you to do first if you find one. Whether any preventive product is appropriate for your rabbit is the vet's call to make with the full picture; never borrow a treatment meant for a dog or cat, because some are dangerous to rabbits.
The Parasite You Cannot See
Ask about Encephalitozoon cuniculi, a microscopic parasite many rabbits carry without symptoms, which spreads between rabbits mainly through urine — relevant if your rabbit shares ground with others or grazes where visitors have been. Your vet can explain whether testing or a preventive course is worth considering for your rabbit's circumstances, and what signs — head tilt, wobbliness, changes in drinking — would make them want to investigate. Also raise the grass itself: lawns treated with weedkillers or fertilisers are not safe grazing until well weathered, and your vet can help you judge how cautious to be.
Agree a Checking Routine, Not Just a Product
The most useful outcome of the appointment is a routine: how often you check the coat and rear end, what you are looking for each time, and the point at which you phone the practice rather than monitor. Ask the vet to show you how to part the fur down to the skin around the tail and belly, because that is where problems hide on a fluffy rabbit. Write the agreed plan down when you get home, including anything seasonal, while the details are fresh. KinsLe's Pet Passport keeps that prevention plan with your rabbit's weights and visit notes in one packet, so the routine you agreed is in front of you at the next check rather than buried in memory.