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Over-Scratching Ears / Another question!

sidereus7

Mama Doe
Milo scratches his ears, no more than usual, and he gets these cuts in his ears when he does. They bleed and scab over and heal. These wounds are in the same spot inside both ears.

His nails are trimmed down and fairly blunt, but this still happens. I've thoroughly checked his ears, and I've had them checked, but there's nothing abnormal.

What should I do? :(
 
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Scratching his ears until they bleed is not normal, i'm afraid.
I would treat him with ivermectin, just in case it's a mite issue (both ear and fur mites can cause intense itching.
Ear infection is a possibility, and not always visible externally so I would talk to a vet and again and maybe get a swab done to look for bacteria, yeast etc.
I hope you can get him sorted xx
 
I'm wondering if his nails are a bit sharp too? I find my buns nails are always most sharp just after they've been trimmed. Does your bun get a chance to wear his nails or blunt them a bit hopping on the odd bit of stone/paving or digging in a tray? Carpet only isn't very good at wearing nails. Obviously just paving/stone/concrete is not ideal as an only surface, but in the wild buns will dig and scrape a lot and blunt their nails this way, soil/stones and sand is very wearing. Perhaps a tray of soil or sand would help him wear his nails down a bit.

I agree about ruling fur/ear mites out first definitely, but I would also be inclined to encourage him to blunt his nails a bit after you've trimmed them.
 
Sorry I didn't see the bit about 'blunt' nails already. In that case I expect he is scratching a bit too much which might indicate a problem...possibly mites....in which case I expect a vet check up and some Ivermectin would be a good idea.
 
Scratching his ears until they bleed is not normal, i'm afraid.
I would treat him with ivermectin, just in case it's a mite issue (both ear and fur mites can cause intense itching.
Ear infection is a possibility, and not always visible externally so I would talk to a vet and again and maybe get a swab done to look for bacteria, yeast etc.
I hope you can get him sorted xx

Ear mites were my first suspicion too. Unfortunately, I am really strapped until my next pay check (although I will go if it's the only thing I can do). I have a saline to wash out his ears, but I've never used it. Is it possible to try that out first and see if that stops it before running him over to the vet?

(I normally have plenty of cash for the buns, but Eddison's x-rays a few weeks ago, plus an emergency visit, cost me $350. Please believe I will take him to the vets if need be.)
 
Sorry I didn't see the bit about 'blunt' nails already. In that case I expect he is scratching a bit too much which might indicate a problem...possibly mites....in which case I expect a vet check up and some Ivermectin would be a good idea.

Actually, my buns do just run around on carpets and blanket and polished marble. I've really wanted to get them stuff to dig in, but I've wussed out because I'm afraid of them ingesting it. Is sand safe or might they possibly inhale it?

What do you use exactly? (They're indoor buns, btw :))
 
I wouldn't put anything in the ears without a vets advice.
Can you buy an ivermectin anti-parasite spot-on without seeing a vet in your part of the world? If so I would try that first and book him in to the vets if he is still scratching. If it is mites you will need to repeat the treatment at fortnightly intervals for 3 goes to clear it up, thoroughly clean and disinfect the living quarters at the same time.
Eta, you will need to treat all in contact rabbits at the same time.
As Milo is a lop he is at increased risk of ear infections so he will need to see a vet if it doesn't improve quickly, or if he seems in pain
 
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I wouldn't put anything in the ears without a vets advice.
Can you buy an ivermectin anti-parasite spot-on without seeing a vet in your part of the world? If so I would try that first and book him in to the vets if he is still scratching. If it is mites you will need to repeat the treatment at fortnightly intervals for 3 goes to clear it up, thoroughly clean and disinfect the living quarters at the same time.
Eta, you will need to treat all in contact rabbits at the same time.
As Milo is a lop he is at increased risk of ear infections so he will need to see a vet if it doesn't improve quickly, or if he seems in pain

The saline for the ears was given to my by my vet, as she said lops tend to get more waxy build up. (And she's helped clean out Milo's ears before.) There is some wax build up in his ears, but nothing that would worry me terribly.

I'll have to see if I can buy ivermectin anywhere.

Eddison and Milo are separated by a NIC wall, so to speak, but they groom each other through the bars. I assume that's enough contact to have to treat Eddison also? (Although he was checked for mites a week ago by my vet, and she couldn't see any mites under the microscope.)
 
The saline for the ears was given to my by my vet, as she said lops tend to get more waxy build up. (And she's helped clean out Milo's ears before.) There is some wax build up in his ears, but nothing that would worry me terribly.

I'll have to see if I can buy ivermectin anywhere.

Eddison and Milo are separated by a NIC wall, so to speak, but they groom each other through the bars. I assume that's enough contact to have to treat Eddison also? (Although he was checked for mites a week ago by my vet, and she couldn't see any mites under the microscope.)

Is the wax yellow or black? black wax would suggest ear mites
 
If there is wax blocking the ear canal it creates an ideal breeding ground for yeast and bacteria so an ear infection is likely. If the infection spreads to his middle/inner ear he may end up with a head tilt.
It sounds like he is going to need to see the vet i'm afraid xx
 
If there is wax blocking the ear canal it creates an ideal breeding ground for yeast and bacteria so an ear infection is likely. If the infection spreads to his middle/inner ear he may end up with a head tilt.
It sounds like he is going to need to see the vet i'm afraid xx

Alright, I see what I can do first thing Monday.

(He just finished a round of Baytril a week ago too. :? At least I still have some...)
 
I agree with Lilbun, but just to answer your other two questions: Treating for mites even if they aren't there shouldn't do him any harm, but it would be worth running the Ivermectin question past your vet at the same time. As we treat a bun's companion for mites whether they have it or not, it is usually quite safe to give even if a bun doesn't need it. It would certainly help rule one thing out if he had a course and very often, buns who are run down with some other illness can have a flare up of fur or ear mite populations anyway (most apparently carry them at low levels without issue normally) so it might actually benefit him were he to have another underlying infection. However, as it is an insecticide, you may not want to overload his system if he is very unwell with an ear infection so I would discuss with your vet first to be on the safe side.

Re. what do I do for my buns? Mine are house buns too.....but I guess scrabbling around in their litter trays and hopping outside on the patio as well as the lawn blunts their nails off a bit, as does running up and down the stairs in the house. I do have to cut them every couple of months though so they don't wear that well but they do blunt off nicely here somehow. I can't imagine that a tub of sand or half sand/soil would do any harm. Wild buns often live in quite sandy soil :)
However, it would seem it is more to do with his lop ears and a predisposition to a warm, waxy breeding ground for bacteria and yeasts. Hope he feels better soon :)
 
Sorry for all the questions. :oops:

Milo has this kind of crust at the tips of his ears. I can feel them, but they're still buried under fur. There's no fur loss, and they're a whitish/yellowish. I managed to scrape off one of the little "scabs", and there was a little black in it.

Is this at all related? I haven't heard anything about tips of ears, and I can't see a single thing in his ear besides the wax with my flashlight.

Any ideas?

(I will still take him to the vet on Monday, or at least call for my vet's opinion. I'm just curious as to what this new thing is. :?)
 
Sorry for all the questions. :oops:

Milo has this kind of crust at the tips of his ears. I can feel them, but they're still buried under fur. There's no fur loss, and they're a whitish/yellowish. I managed to scrape off one of the little "scabs", and there was a little black in it.

Is this at all related? I haven't heard anything about tips of ears, and I can't see a single thing in his ear besides the wax with my flashlight.

Any ideas?

(I will still take him to the vet on Monday, or at least call for my vet's opinion. I'm just curious as to what this new thing is. :?)

Well not that i've seen this myself so i'm just guessing here....but it does sound like ear mites to me potentially :?
 
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