Tear Duct Infection

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Once again my bunny has a tear duct infection and will be going to the vets on Monday. Its seems to be becoming a regular problem (third time in about 15 months). Is it normal for tear duct infections to occur this often? He has had a dental problem in the past where he had to have an op to file some spikes down, but has had no problems with his teeth since and he has regular dental check ups. He does enjoy digging around in the wood shavings in his cage and sneezes as a result of it. I am currently washing the fur around his eye (as he a lost a tiny patch of fur) and treating him with tiacil eye drops (this is the usual course of treatment he has after his tear duct has been flushed).

Any further advice would be much appreciated

I would seriously still wonder about dental issues, possibly tooth roots, pushing into the tear ducts. I know you say your vet has done a dental check, but not all dental checks can be done unless bun is under GA, or at least sedation.

Has bunny had an x-ray on his skull to check?

Hi Graham

No he hasn't had an x-ray on his skull. I would be reluctant to let the vet put him under GA because last time he was under he had to be force fed for a week. Forgot to mention that the discharge is milky. The vet did mention the possibility that it could be due to his teeth, the first time he had this problem. But on that occasion, it was a clear discharge rather than milky. I really hope it isn't due to his teeth as the vet said, if this was the case, the kindest thing to do would be to put him to sleep. If it was necessary then i wouldn't hesitate but i would be gutted

I wouldn't necessarily say PTS was definately the option. If its incisors, he could have his incisors removed and become a gummy bunny.

There are lots of avenues to explore before PTS is considered, certainly.

If the discharge is milky, then the infection is a farily strong one and i'd be considering fairly urgent work.

Sorry to hear about your bunny. Sunny at the moment one of my buns has tear duct infections all the time. They just don't drain properly because of the way they are. He also now has pasturella pus coming out of them but has had no dental spurs. He has had his incisors drop out though.

Currently I'm taking him in once a week to the vets for jabs and tear duct flushes as required. He needs them very frequently and recently ruptured his tear duct. This has been ongoing and i think it can recur on a month to month basis for bunnies suffering with this problem.

I wouldn't put a bunny to sleep for dental problems- I'd find another vet who will maintain them. The milky discharge from the eyes needs antibiotic eye drops- tiacil works well if your vet will prescribe this. The white discharge can be pasturella infection also. So it could be a long term bacterial infection that is causing his problems.

The last two times the discharge has been milky, its cleared up within a couple of days of using tiacil. Its just a case of wait and see wot the vets say. Hope its not bad news.

chesterlad said:

The last two times the discharge has been milky, its cleared up within a couple of days of using tiacil. Its just a case of wait and see wot the vets say. Hope its not bad news.

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I was suggested i put down one of my buns by the vets, but she is very happy and i don't think it would have been the right course of action. What they suggest is not necessarily the right thing- just the vets view. I would bear this in mind. Is your bunny happy?

He is a happy bunny. He has taken over my living room, with all his toys (tunnels, willow balls and ring,tents, blankets that he likes to sleep on, a carrot patch toy and big toy carrots that he likes to toss about). The only time he is not happy is when the pet carrier comes out and he let me know it when we get back from the vets.....lol

chesterlad said:

He is a happy bunny. He has taken over my living room, with all his toys (tunnels, willow balls and ring,tents, blankets that he likes to sleep on, a carrot patch toy and big toy carrots that he likes to toss about). The only time he is not happy is when the pet carrier comes out and he let me know it when we get back from the vets.....lol

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Aww change your vets if he suggests PTS- get a second or even a third opinion. I'm sure there are plenty of vets that will work with you and your bunny

she only suggested pts when the discharge was clear. Although its never good that my bunny is poorly, it seems to me that its a good sign that the discharge is milky. The vet gave me the impression that clear discharge which could be nasal discharge due to root of teeth blocking ducts is worse than milky discharge which is an infection. It's really stressing me out!

Recurrent eye infections can commonly be caused by tooth root overgrowth which can't be seen...but you also say that he is bedded on shavings and likes to dig and throw these around? As a first port of call I would swap the shavings for something less irritating. Not only are shavings quite dusty, they can also give off chemicals called phenols which are bad for rabbits' lungs. Many people here use alternatives such as megazorb (a horse bedding), ecobed or carefresh instead. Maybe initially even just newspaper topped with hay - you will find this probably needs cleaning more often but it will probably give an opportunity for the irritated eyes to settle down.

I have also known buns with extremely chronic tear duct infections who have excelled when they have been bonded with another rabbit, because the other rabbit grooms them and keeps the area clear, preventing it from getting too gunked up and infected. Is your bun neutered and would/could you consider getting him a friend? Rabbits are social and most like to have a companion.

One of my own former rabbits used to have overgrown tooth roots which caused infections mostly in the nose rather than eyes due to the shape of her face (it was her back teeth not her incisors which were causing it so removal was not an option), and I also fostered another bun where eye problems were due to tooth root overgrowth. My vet is of the opinion that there is often little point in removing incisors due to tooth root overgrowth because she says by the time the roots have pushed that far through, changes have already taken place in the bone and surrounding area so it is too late for removal to have any effect. If they are still growing and causing more problems then I guess it might be helpful.

I would definitely not pts for a problem as minor as milky discharge from the eyes a few times over the course of a year or two. Even if there is an underlying problem which can't be resolved, it should be fairly manageable with topical eye drops (I've often found fucithalmic to be more soothing than tiacil) and if it does get really bad, sometimes systemic antibiotics can also help.

Depending on whereabouts in Chester you are, there is an excellent specialist exotics/rabbit vet in Manchester, she is called Molly Varga. If it comes to the point where you want a second opinion or a referral, I would recommend you ask your vet to send you in her direction. Having said that, personally I'd consider asking around to see if anyone knows of a good bunny vet near to you because I'm not sure I'd have too much confidence in one who considers pts for such a minor thing :?

Good luck x

I had considered getting another bunny but he is a very anti-social bunny. He prefers to be left to his own devices and let you know himself when he wants some attention, which is not very often. I had a trial run when a family member went away on holiday for 3 weeks and i looked after her bunny. He did nothing but chase the other bunny around, scratching it, biting it, grunting at it etc. This could be due to the fact that he had spent a year being the only rabbit with his previous owner. He was re-homed with me because his previous owner's daughter and husband was allergic to rabbits. After the experience i had with having another bunny around the house being so difficult, he has now spent a further 2 years being the only bunny. I think he is probably used to it now so getting another bunny isn't an option.

I have used megazorb before and he didnt like it. He did nothing but kick the majority of it out of his cage lol. I have also used a horse bedding that are shavings that are alot larger than the normal rabbit shavings and not as dusty. I think i will try him on those and see how he gets on.

chesterlad said:

I had a trial run when a family member went away on holiday for 3 weeks and i looked after her bunny. He did nothing but chase the other bunny around, scratching it, biting it, grunting at it etc.

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The thing is, that's perfectly normal and is exactly what I would expect a rabbit to do to another rabbit that arrives in its territory. From what you've described in your previous post, there is absolutely nothing that makes me think you have an unbondable rabbit. There are specific techniques which need to be employed to bond rabbits because they are instinctively territorial and do need to be introduced in quite particular ways in order for them to accept the other bun. Rescues quite regularly bond rabbits who have been alone for years and never had a partner, and it usually works out fine I would suggest you see if there is a rescue near you who can help with bonding - that way you've got someone experienced to understand what your rabbit is 'saying' during bonding and hopefully get a good match

Hello and welcome to ru sorry to hear your bunny is so poorly. I have no advice about treatment but if you are looking for a new vets chester gates are very good but not cheap also birch heath in tarporley. Also is your bun neutered? That will help if you do try to bond him although he may not be well enough for a GA at the moment

hi. yeah my bunny is neutered. It was one of the first things i did when i got him but don't even get me started about the drama after he had the op.

When i say he bit the other rabbit, i mean a bite hard enough to make her bleed and require vet treatment. I think thats whats put me off bonding him with another rabbit.

oh dear buns can react like that if you bring a new one onto their territory. Maybe the slow bond would work better for him. Have a search on here for slow bonds there are quite a few threads

Another reason that i am not convinced that bonding is a good idea is that my bunny gets easily stressed. A ten minute trip to the vets for a claw trim results in a massive shed of fur, a racing heart and a sulking bunny that doesn't move from the corner of his cage for anything up to 6 hours.

I totally understand where you're coming from - but most bunnies behave like that, it doesn't mean that it will be too stressful to bond them. My own bunnies behave like that in a carrier and at the vets: I've had a few who pant and salivate so badly that their entire fronts are soaking wet by the time they arrive at the vets, and yet they have bonded fine on more than one occasion.

Bunnies will bite other bunnies that come into their territory if they aren't bonded in the 'right' way. I know of bunnies who have absolutely shredded other bunnies where they have just been left to it (before coming into rescue!), but have been totally fine when bonded in an appropriate way with a suitable companion.

I honestly think that it's a shame for your bunny if you won't consider at least trying to find him a friend for those reasons, because you've still said absolutely nothing which doesn't sound like completely normal bunny behavoiur to me. A good rescue will be able to spot early if he is too stressed or not going to cope and will stop it. But having bonded dozens of rabbits of all sorts of stress levels and backgrounds, including those who have fought with other buns, I would think it's highly unlikely that you have a bun who wouldn't like a friend or who wouldn't be able to bond.

Hello there

I have to agree with everything already said here regarding the tear ducts and the bonding.

Your bunny may well need a head xray to determiine if the pinching of the tear duct by overgrown roots is preventing it from draining and resulting in a build up of bad bacteria. However, even if you don't Xray, I agree with Santa that stopping using shavings is the first thing to try. They are a big irritant and we don't recommend them at all for the reasons already mentioned.

Having a bunny friend to groom the eyes is a very good way to keep them cleaned and prevent build up of muck.

Regarding the bonding; I have met very few bunnies that don't benefit from having a friend. Even a very stressy bunny (like Santa's Mavis) was a completely different rabbit pre adoption and after she was bonded to her husbun Dudley. She had been the most nervous rabbit sitting shaking in the corner of her hutch with her back to the front. I bonded her to Dudley and given the right care and method, it can be very stressless. In fact bunnies seek solice from another rabbit often so it can help their stress levels. Putting a rabbit into you fella's area is going to cause major upset so your test is not an insight into what might happen if you adopt from a reputable rescue where they do the bonding for you somewhere neutral. If you would like a leaflet on bonding please e-mail me on therabbitcrossing@yahoo.co.uk. I can also send you a piece about shavings.

I think seeking a second opinion would be my recommendation for your bunny - I have seen many dental rabbits and most can be helped very well indeed with the right diagnosis and treatment early enough.

Helen

X-rays at least will assess the severity of the problem so that you know exactly what you are dealing with.

I would definately remove the shavings as this will irritate the respiratory tract and the eyes of your rabbit, whilst this is unlikely to solve the problem this will make him more comfortable and may reduce some of his symptoms.

As far as bonding him to another rabbit, if he is neutered and bonding is undertaking in the correct fashion this will give him a companion to go to the vets with which will make it less stressful for him. Having bonded a number of buns over the years it woudl be quite easy to find him a suitable companion. Unfortunately rabbits bonded on neutral territory often get injuries from the resident rabbit defending their own territory. By having a companion, this would help keep his eyes clean and dry when they groom him which means he will have less stress in his life from humans having to deal with this.