Does anyone know what this is?

One of my rabbits is about 8 months old, just after i got her i noticed her head moving slowly to one side and back again, she does it both sides. I took her to the vets and they gave me a wormer, and said there was nothing more they could do. That didn't help, she still does it, but she has put on lots of weight and keeps getting poo stuck to her, and i have to keep washing her bum. She nearly fell out of her hutch the other day luckily i caught her, but i have noticed she sometimes bumps into things. I just wondered if anyone knew what was wrong with her, and if there was anything i can so.

I am by no means an expert, but it does sound a lot like an ear infection to me.

Is your vet very rabbit savvy? Loss of balance and slight head tilting are quite common with ear problems.

Have her teeth been checked too?

Does she have red eyes? I think red eyed bunnies can have sight problems and it could all be due to that...

Loosy said:

Does she have red eyes? I think red eyed bunnies can have sight problems and it could all be due to that...

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I was also wandering if she was scanning-common in red eyed whites

If your vet gave a wormer (Panacur) I assume he suspected EC? If so he should have prescribed a 28 day course along with some anti-inflamatory drugs and special cleaning of accommodation on days 21 and 28 and seen her again to assess progress.

A loss of balance could also be caused by an ear infection - did the vet rule this out?

The messy bottom could be diet related or just the mobility problems - rabbits need to eat a certain kind of poop they produce straight from their bottoms and if she is unbalanced this could be impossible for her.

Please say where you are so you can be recommended a rabbit savvy vet in your area.

Is your vet very rabbit savvy

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No i don't think they are.

I will have to take her back to check her teeth.

Does she have red eyes

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Yes she is white with red eyes.

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There are two different issues here:

One is the sight/possible balance problem

The other is most likely an overweight/faulty diet problem.

With the first problem the first question is, is the rabbit a red eyes bunny? If so they have a lot of sight problems and so 'scanning' is ver common. If not then s/he may have one of several problems that affect balance. The two commonest are E.cuniculi and ear infection. both can be treated and should be treated. For E.C the commonest treatment is 28 days of panacur or lapizole. For ear infection other treatments are prescribed.

The second problem is most likely due to a too rich diet resulting in the bunny putting on weight and not eating/being able to reach to eat her caecal pellets. GRADUALLY (over 2 weeks) change the bunnies diet to pellets rather than a mix feed, or if already on pellets try a less rich one (such as Science Selective rather than Excell). Also only give about an egg cup full a day and make sure the bun has TONS of GOOD QUALITY hay to eat.

Also having read the post I would try and find a better vet. Start a thread on here saying where you live and that you want a vet recommendation

sillymillie said:

No i don't think they are.

I will have to take her back to check her teeth.


Yes she is white with red eyes.

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Ah it could be a sight problem then - quite common in REW's I believe.

...oh and post some pics of her

Is the head going side to side slightly robotic , then all of a sudden sort snaps back out of it, like in a trance, scanning ? if so this is common with rew's and other breeds with poor eyesight


parsnip bun basically says what i would of suggested
indeed we need piccies

Is the head going side to side slightly robotic , then all of a sudden sort snaps back out of it, like in a trance, scanning ? if so this is common with rew's and other breeds with poor eyesight

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That's exactly what she does. I did change her food, i will put her back on pellets. Here is a pic of her before she put on weight.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE IM SOO IN LOVE the change in diet says to me the reason for the poo change, it has to be done slowly, she's still young, so a sudden change in foods can upset tummys

there is a lot of info on rews here, yours is just adorable,

she is gorgeous!!!!

Better not show little Jimby or he will fall in love!!