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up date on harriett..plus a question or 2

R

rabbitmum

Mama Doe
harriett is still eating, pooping and weeing well... but the head tilt has got progressively worse along with the rolling:cry:
tried to get to talk to the vet this weekend but she was off and wont be back till today.. we have made an appointment for this afternoon but hope that i can consult with her over the phone as i dont want to upset harrys tummy and stress her, stopping her from wanting to eat etc..
shes been on baytril ,metacam and panacur for 2 weeks now, but she didnt have the head tilt before this weekend... do you think its more likely to be an ear infection? and if so do you think i should ask the vet about putting her on marbocyl (zithromax or similar) and stemitil (or similar)?
plus i have been panacuring my other 2 buns and they have no ill symptoms YET....so would ec in harry make them ill? my mind is all over the place .. i know she has only been ill for 2 weeks but it seems like shes going down hill because of the head tilt and rolling...
 
Poor girl :( my head tilt bun had steroids to reduce the inflammation of brain tissue. Perhaps you could ask the vet to try this-is she Still eating ok? My poor girl died of secondary mucoid enteritis she refused syringe feeding and just gave up. She was my first bun and on reflection I should have rushed her for I v treatment. Although she was so frail I think this wouldn't have made a difference :( keep her eating and make life as interesting as you can to keep her will there x is do hope she recovers and goes on to lead a long life x x
 
I think more effective antibiotics (either Zithromax or something injectable) and Stemetil would be good for her.

You can try putting her in a carry case with rolled up towels around her to prop her up if she is struggling to move and keeps falling over.

Steroids are only recommended at the initial onset and there is the risk that they will lower the immune system making it harder for her to fight off the infection.
 
An ear infection is certainly a possibility and very often is a secondary infection related to EC. If the rolling and headtilt has progressively worsened (and I have no experience of either of these conditions personally) then I too would be asking for covering antibiotics (stronger than baytril) in case there is a serious middle ear infection festering away untreated. I would also want higher pain relief for a few days to help with the pain and inflammation.

Personally I would avoid steroids unless it was very much last resort or the vet prescribing them was a trained exotic vet. Rabbits are VERY sensitive to corticosteroids, more so than other species.

I have also read many stories on here of head tilt and EC buns who do tend to get worse before they get better so please don't feel bad or give up hope. Just hang on in there :)

Yes some stemetil may also help with the dizziness and rolling. Good luck x
 
AFAIK ear infection is the most common cause of head tilt (even if there is no visible evidence of infection in the ear canal).

My Dominic has head tilt caused by ear infection and it took at least 4 or 5 days from him starting to wobble to getting proper head tilt.

I'd definitely recommend the Zithromax (azithromycin), stemetil syrup (prochlorperazine) and anti-inflammatory treatment protocol.

BTW my vet couldn't get Stemetil from their suppliers, but I found the dosage (between 0.2-0.5ml per kg 3 times per day) and they wrote me a prescription out to take to a chemist.
 
I agree, stronger abx and stemetil/meclozine are the way to go now as it is very likely an ear infection.
Mimis head tilt and rolling got worse and worse before it started getting better so stick with it. I remember when shed been ill for 2 weeks it felt more like 2 years but it really is early days amd theres plenty more options to try.
Vibes for you both xxxx

just to add, when Mimi was rolling uncontrollably i confined her to a cage and boulstered her on either side with rolled up towels as this was the only thing that helped her stay on her feet xx
 
have spoken to 2 vets today...the local one and the bun vet 2 hours away:shock:
the local vet said pts as her rolling and head tilt were worsening:shock::cry:
i told her what had been said on here about the different drugs and she said she wanted to read up on them before administering and would ring me back later.. the bun vet said if she was not showing any sign of getting even slightly better in 10 days (the end of her panacur 28 day treatment) then we would have to think about pts:cry::cry:
now what do i do??? he is certain its ec and has said mri or xray might show an ear infection but the stress of the anaesthetic would kill her ,i know hes right about that! i hardly slept last night from worrying about her and cant stop crying..do they ever truly recover? how long should i give the new drugs? and do they get ec even if you panacur religously??
 
My vet gave my Tilly and my Rosie Convenia when they had head tilt, and they showed improvement after 2 days. That's quite a quick improvement and tells you where you are with it.

Did you check out the forum I linked to you?

Well done for fighting for her :)
 
IMO it's best to just treat for ear infection anyway, don't bother with diagnostics whilst she's so poorly :wave:

I've read that eating (or lack of eating) is the main sign to look out for when deciding whether to PTS a head tilt bunny. If they are still showing an interest in food, then they aren't ready to go.

My Dominic was at his worst about 2 weeks into treatment, and is only starting to show significant improvement after about 4 or 5 weeks...so recovery might take a little longer than your vet seems prepared to wait.
 
Ok, make yourself a cup of tea and take a deep breath.
I agree with SkyO that before pts is even considered, the vets should treat for an ear infection. Even without the diagnostics it is well worth doing.
Im disappointed that they have given her a 10 day limit to improve. My Mimi was severely rolling for 5 weeks without being able to stand up herself before she started to show small signs of improvement. I know of many other buns that have taken even longer to recover but have made FULL RECOVEROES. i cant post a link to mimis thread on here as im on my ipod but have a look in my statistics and you'll find it. I think it will be very comforting to you as theres loads of stories of buns who were ill for a very long time and got better, they're what kept me hoping for Mimi.
Personally i dont think its time to give up yet. If you could see Mimi now its like a miracle after how bad she was.
Wishing you both the world of luck :wave:
 
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