Seizure??

Hi there :wave:

Need a bit of advice here. I have a 5 month old orange std Rex buck. Yesterday my husband heard a noise in his hutch. Went to check and the rabbit was on his side jerking his legs like he was running. He then managed to get back on his feet and looked a bit dazed with his mouth opening and shutting and front legs sliding forwards as he tried to get his balance. This all happened in a very short space of time ie +- one minute. The rabbit then appeared totally norma,l and rather stupidedly, I allowed my daughter to remove him from the hutch and cuddle him to comfort him. Reflecting back he should have been left quietly in his hutch, npt taken out, but we still learning. Anyway, prior to this episode, he had been outside in his run for exercise (one part is shaded for him). Weather had been warmish, not very very hot as we are still in spring here in England, but as I carried him in, I did feel he felt warm and his ears were red. He is a nervous rabbit and his ears often get red and hot if we hold him, anxiety?? If anyone could give me an idea of what happened I'd appreciate it. Soooo hope he is not an epileptic ... As I say his behaviour was back to normal almost immediately it was over. Any ideas what to expect in future? He is not neutered as yet, but that is the plan when his a little older

Hi :wave: a seizure is definately possible, for a number of reasons, and the seizure itself could cause an increase in body temperature and hence the hot ears. You are right that he needs to be kept quiet if it happens again, but you weren't to know. I'd also make the floor as non-slip as possible to make it easier for him.
There isnt a lot of point in taking him to the vets urgently if he is now well, but if it happens again then he may need some diagnostics and seizure medications.

Are you sure bun wasn't dreaming? One of ours lies on her side and jerks her legs and has REM when she is dreaming... but it is usually quite subtle. If it was quite pronounced then it could have been a seizure of some sort yes. I think a vet trip would be a good idea on Monday if you can to have a rabbit-savy vet give your bun a good check over, and you can discuss symptoms then.

Hot ears normally mean that bun is dumping heat... they use the veins in their ears to do this as they do not pant or sweat. I prefer bun ears to be warm rather than cold to be honest but very hot ears can mean that bun is too warm.. in high summer etc... however, infection can cause a raised temp so for example an ear infection if deep enough to affect a certain part of the brain - middle ear for example - could be responsible for seizure of some kind? There is also a parasite called EC (E. cuniculi) which can cause neurological symptoms almost anywhere in the body... and in the brain. So a 28 day course of Panacur (fenbendazole) might be a good idea also. Perhaps when you see the vet you could ask for an EC blood test and some other bloods to eliminate some diseases from the diagnosis.
Good luck.

prettylupin said:

Are you sure bun wasn't dreaming? One of ours lies on her side and jerks her legs and has REM when she is dreaming... but it is usually quite subtle. If it was quite pronounced then it could have been a seizure of some sort yes. I think a vet trip would be a good idea on Monday if you can to have a rabbit-savy vet give your bun a good check over, and you can discuss symptoms then.

Hot ears normally mean that bun is dumping heat... they use the veins in their ears to do this as they do not pant or sweat. I prefer bun ears to be warm rather than cold to be honest but very hot ears can mean that bun is too warm.. in high summer etc... however, infection can cause a raised temp so for example an ear infection if deep enough to affect a certain part of the brain - middle ear for example - could be responsible for seizure of some kind? There is also a parasite called EC (E. cuniculi) which can cause neurological symptoms almost anywhere in the body... and in the brain. So a 28 day course of Panacur (fenbendazole) might be a good idea also. Perhaps when you see the vet you could ask for an EC blood test and some other bloods to eliminate some diseases from the diagnosis.
Good luck.

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Many thanks for the replies. I'd love to think it was a dream, but hubby who saw it happening said he doesn't think so. He felt it was a seizure of sorts. I will be contacting my vet too for her opinion. I have 8 rabbits (stupidly gathered them all impulsively last year) .. and now the idea of panacur for 8 rabbits over 28 days seems an enormous task lol. But what must be must be, because they are just the sweetest little things, each with their own personality. 6 Rexes and two lop ears. This one that had the fit is the most nervous of the lot. He is very timid and nervous, where as the others are much calmer and relaxed with us. But thanks anyway for the advice :thumb:

Sunny said:

Many thanks for the replies. I'd love to think it was a dream, but hubby who saw it happening said he doesn't think so. He felt it was a seizure of sorts. I will be contacting my vet too for her opinion. I have 8 rabbits (stupidly gathered them all impulsively last year) .. and now the idea of panacur for 8 rabbits over 28 days seems an enormous task lol. But what must be must be, because they are just the sweetest little things, each with their own personality. 6 Rexes and two lop ears. This one that had the fit is the most nervous of the lot. He is very timid and nervous, where as the others are much calmer and relaxed with us. But thanks anyway for the advice :thumb:

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Is he housed alone ?

If he is with another Rabbit then what your husband witnessed may have been 'post coital behaviour'

Orange Rexes are known to be prone to very poor eyesight so this *might* account for your Rexes timid nature

Jack's-Jane said:

Is he housed alone ?

If he is with another Rabbit then what your husband witnessed may have been 'post coital behaviour'

Orange Rexes are known to be prone to very poor eyesight so this *might* account for your Rexes timid nature

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Hi there .... he is housed alone. The hutches are all next to each other but they are all individually housed in case of fighting. We bring them together in a group quite often, under supervision so we can immediately remove any trouble makers. Our plan is to have them live as a group very soon, barring our one very tiny little miniature black rex (she's very small at 12 months old, and probably the cheekiest towards the other rabbits) .. she hates them all .. but loves my small dog lol. Possibly been made too tame?? So no, unfortunately not post coital. Gosh I didn't know about orange rex's and eyesight .. that's horrible ... He is such a pretty and gentle rabbit. Anyway I'm just taking it very slowly with him ... talk a lot to him through the wire... stroke him in his cage ... lift him out for a few minutes cuddle but stay right by his cage. Hoping if he gets tamer and tamer, anxiety will lessen and risk of fitting will go ... wishful thinking maybe. Anyway he is looking as well as ever now so I'm hoping it was a one off. I wondered if he saw a bird fly past and panicked (he gets frights very easily ... like if we just walk past the hutch and he suddenly sees us unexpectedly, he can get a fright and take off so fast and crash into the end or side of his hutch. So I have wondered if this 'might' have been the case (head bump) and caused the fit .. but who knows... I'll always be a bit concerned now about him having another

A friend of mine had a bunny have a head injury and subsequently small seizures possibly as a result of this.

I think your bun needs a good check over with your vet.

I doubt very much the fitting is related to fear or anxiety, but I could be wrong.
EC would be the most likely cause, and failing a positive titre something else causing similar seizure symptoms - some bunnies do fit sadly if they have neurological issues but it is uncommon.

Hugo's There, another member on here, has a rabbit I think who gets seizures, she may be able to give you more advice.

prettylupin said:

A friend of mine had a bunny have a head injury and subsequently small seizures possibly as a result of this.

I think your bun needs a good check over with your vet.

I doubt very much the fitting is related to fear or anxiety, but I could be wrong.
EC would be the most likely cause, and failing a positive titre something else causing similar seizure symptoms - some bunnies do fit sadly if they have neurological issues but it is uncommon.

Hugo's There, another member on here, has a rabbit I think who gets seizures, she may be able to give you more advice.

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Thanks for ur reply ... I will be contacting my vet tomorrow because he is also ready to be neutered .. so need to chat to her about both things. Thanks for ur help :thumb: