• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.
  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

A quick 'survey' for people with 'Snuffle' bunnies...

Treatment of 'Snuffles' with Baytril, how long did it take to notice an improvement?

  • A few days

    Votes: 3 12.0%
  • Less than a week

    Votes: 2 8.0%
  • One to Two weeks

    Votes: 1 4.0%
  • Three to Four weeks

    Votes: 3 12.0%
  • Five to Six weeks

    Votes: 5 20.0%
  • Baytril was ineffective.

    Votes: 11 44.0%

  • Total voters
    25

Sooz

Wise Old Thumper
Just wondering if you guys could take a few minutes to vote on the poll and answer the following questions if necessary. This is mainly for my own research but if it confirms something my vet has mentioned previously I will probably be passing the results on to her (if there is enough of them).

This is relevant to anyone whose rabbit has ever had 'snuffles' of any severity and wether it was a one-off, constant or re-current.

If your answer to the poll was 'Baytril was Ineffective' please could you post an answer to the following questions:

How long did you try Baytril for:
Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what:
Which antibiotic did you switch to next:
How long did you use this antibiotic for in total:
Was the antibiotic effective:
Did the snuffles recur at a later stage:
If so was the same antibiotic as effective second time round:

Thanks :wave:
 
Last edited:
How long did you try Baytril for: Months, Not sure how long. She had a couple of short courses before starting long course.
Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what: None at all
Which antibiotic did you switch to next: Marbocyl
How long did you use this antibiotic for in total: 10 days...I think
Was the antibiotic effective: Not at all
Did the snuffles recur at a later stage: There was never any improvement
If so was the same antibiotic as effective second time round: -

Also Sooz, Just thought I'd add that Jen never responded to any medication throughout her life - So maybe not the best case X
 
We don't find batril that good, and our vet prescribes Oxytet and we find that much more effective

We very rarely use baytril to be honest
 
I found Baytril was ineffective against Smokey's snuffles. I can't remember how long she was on it, but at least a month or so.

We switched to Septrin for a few weeks (again I can't remember exact length of time) but that was also ineffective.

Thirdly we tried Ronaxon, which showed an improvement within a matter of days, definitely under a week. It is damn had to get into a rabbit though because it's in tablet form, and doesn't seem to taste very nice.

Amy
 
Last edited:
Amy, You've probably tried this but mixing the crushed up tablet with apple juice & syringing it made it so much easier getting it down Jen X
 
Basically Anneke told me the other day that she dosn't rate Baytril or its effectiveness.

She thinks its an over valued, over prescribed drug which is outdated but that many vets still refuse to go off license with more effective antibiotics, mainly because they consider Baytril the only 'safe' abx.
 
Basically Anneke told me the other day that she dosn't rate Baytril or its effectiveness.

She thinks its an over valued, over prescribed drug which is outdated but that many vets still refuse to go off license with more effective antibiotics, mainly because they consider Baytril the only 'safe' abx.

That is a very sweeping statement. Baytril definitely has it's uses.

The term 'snuffles' covers numerous ailments...not all of them caused by the same bacteria...and some not bacterial at all!

Also baytril (like any antibiotic) is better at killing certain types of bacteria. In general I've found baytril to be good for UTIs, but not so good for RTIs.

IMO baytril is a good, safe, first antibiotic to try if a C&S hasn't been done.

Amy
 
Not denying it has its uses but she feels there are better drugs available for certain conditions, Pasteurella being one of them.

I am not in a position to carry out a full blown scientific study but just wanted to see other people experiences as Baytril is doing sod all for Lexie ATM and she is a very unhappy little bunny.
 
We had Eeyore for only 18 months, but he had Pasteurella when we got him (as does Twiggy). Eeyore was treated with Baytril but it was never effective. He suffered extremely badly and had a couple of stints at the vet with 24 hour care. Unfortunately the last time it went to the lungs.

Twiggy doesn't seem to suffer as badly, but she did get a bad ear infection, maybe as a result of pasteurella? I don't know...all too technical. But whenever this flares up I inject her twice daily with some antibiotic for about a week or so that I'm afraid I don't know the name of. Luckily the 3 times this has happened it's cleared it up successfully.

If your bunny has the snuffles, I would say have a test done to confirm whether it is Pasteurella or something else. (if you haven't already had it confirmed).
 
How long did you try Baytril for:
10 days

Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what:
complete recovery

Which antibiotic did you switch to next:
N/A

How long did you use this antibiotic for in total:
10 days

Was the antibiotic effective:
yes

Did the snuffles recur at a later stage:
no

If so was the same antibiotic as effective second time round:
N/A
 
How long did you try Baytril for:
21 days then another 14 days straight after

Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what:
complete recovery

Which antibiotic did you switch to next:
Had been on 3 courses of Septrin before, but swab showed that the bacteria (Peptostreptococcus) was resistant to Septrin

Was the antibiotic effective:
yes

Did the snuffles recur at a later stage:
no

Hope this helps

Melanie
 
How long did you try Baytril for:
About 2 years ago, for 2 weeks at 10mg/kg 2* daily dose (have tried it lower dose in past to no effect)

Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what:
yes, complete recovery

Did the snuffles recur at a later stage:
yes (due to tooth roots)


But then after the snuffles took greater hold (presumably deeper in the cavity where the tooth roots are)

Baytril was prescribed and after 4 days it was clear that she was getting worse, not better, and was losing weight rapidly.

Over the years she has had baytril, ronaxan, terramycin/engemycin (same thing different supplier I believe), penicillin, septrin.

Of these, septrin has never made any difference at all, all of the others have worked to varying degrees, but I tend to stick to engemycin now as it seems to have the quickest effect, less stressful to administer (injection every 3 days), safer than penicillin and generally works well. Although because it's related to her teeth it does recur if we stop the abx for a long time.

I have also read that giving bisolvon alongside tetracyclines (ronaxan, engemycin etc) anecdotally gives better penetration of the antibiotic in humans so as it doesn't harm, I always give bisolvon with it too. Fortunately Santa is a good girl and will happily drink it from solution straight out of a syringe.

I do think that baytril is a good drug and it does have its uses in appropriate situations - I also think that a lot of vets are using too low dosages around the 2.5-5mg/kg mark (which is what the standard drug dosage book suggests for small animals) whereas the newer rabbit texts suggest 10mg/kg. I wonder if this is another reason why baytril doesn't seem effective in some circumstances?
 
Last edited:
If your answer to the poll was 'Baytril was Ineffective' please could you post an answer to the following questions:

How long did you try Baytril for:
round:

Funny you ask, because Bernie is going thru the same thing. And it does seems that Baytril is not working, although I vote 3 to 4 weeks because that's where he is currently on--the 3rd week.

Did you notice any improvement at all, if so what:

He was on for since Feb. 4, and there is no sign of white stuff on his nose since Feb. 13. Somehow on Sun. Feb. 17, he stopped eating, and on Feb. 18, the white stuff on his nose came back, but not much.

Which antibiotic did you switch to next:

the vet increase his enrofloxaun to 0.88 cc, originally 0.44 cc, (he's 2.25KG) but add the following:

1) Pen. G by SC (under the skin) for 7 days
2) Benebac (good bacteria) -- 1/8 teaspoon on the green/fruit per day
3) metacam x 7 days (metacam is also an anti-inflammory drug)
4) Ciloxan 0.3% (nose drop), 1 drop every 12 hr.
5) metocloprimide x 7 days
6) Cisapride x 7 days
7) Sub Q at 50 ml x 3 times / days

NOTE: Pen. G can kill a rabbit if feed by mouth, but under the skin, it by pass ???, so it's safe, my vet has under Pen. G under the skin for thousands of rabbits. (I forgot the name of the organ Pen. G by pass, when I re-visit, I'll ask)

How long did you use this antibiotic for in total:

So far, 2 days

Was the antibiotic effective:

unknown so far

Did the snuffles recur at a later stage:

Yeah, See above, w/ just Enrofloxaun (baytril)

If so was the same antibiotic as effective second time

so far, don't know
 
Last edited:
I do think that baytril is a good drug and it does have its uses in appropriate situations - I also think that a lot of vets are using too low dosages around the 2.5-5mg/kg mark (which is what the standard drug dosage book suggests for small animals) whereas the newer rabbit texts suggest 10mg/kg. I wonder if this is another reason why baytril doesn't seem effective in some circumstances?


I've been wondering the same...one of my vets prescribes much higher doses than my other vet...usually twice the dosage.

I have n't noticed any difference in recovery rates/times so far, but I will certainly monitor any differences.

Amy
 
But then after the snuffles took greater hold (presumably deeper in the cavity where the tooth roots are)

Baytril was prescribed and after 4 days it was clear that she was getting worse, not better, and was losing weight rapidly.

Over the years she has had baytril, ronaxan, terramycin/engemycin (same thing different supplier I believe), penicillin, septrin.

so what happens in the end? How's Santa today?
 
I had a rabbit on baytril 2 weeks ago for snuffles, I can't say it didn't help as there was definately a slight improvement but the penicillin cleared him up within 4 days of use. I have had snuffly bunnies in though where baytril as cleared them up so I really think it depends on the severity of the snuffles.
 
so what happens in the end? How's Santa today?

She's up and down and on engemycin more often than not - it's related to tooth roots affecting her nasal cavity so it's never really going to go away, we just have to manage it for as long as we can :cry: But she's a cheeky happy little girl and she loves her husbun very much so for now we carry on.

Oh I forgot - using tiacil eyedrops directly up the nose (but only with the agreement of the vet) has also really helped, although I can't say Santa's terribly impressed by it!
 
Back
Top