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Sneezing Rabbits

jolmbagpuss

jolmbagpuss

Young Bun
I got a rabbit about a year ago and he had the sneezes and the vet said this was the snuffles and gave him antibiotics. They never worked, he still sneezes now. I now have another rabbit born in February and he has also started sneezing the poor animal so now they are both at it. What else could it be if it's not the snuffles. Its not the hay as sometimes I use paper and they still sneeze.
 
Rabbits need hay all the time :) so don't remove it. Do you use sawdust? Is the temperature constant ie. not in and out of the house for long periods of time? The hay may be dusty in which case you may want to look at alternative suppliers but don't remove it completely.
 
They are both indoor rabbits. When I first got the new rabbit he wasn't sneezing for a few weeks so it would seem he has caught whatever it is from the older rabbit. I am a bit concerned and guess I will just have to take them both to the vets again but it seems a lot of money for them to just give them antibiotics that won't work.
 
jolmbagpuss said:
They are both indoor rabbits. When I first got the new rabbit he wasn't sneezing for a few weeks so it would seem he has caught whatever it is from the older rabbit. I am a bit concerned and guess I will just have to take them both to the vets again but it seems a lot of money for them to just give them antibiotics that won't work.
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If they are constantly sneezing, is there any discharge, be it clear or white/thick?

If they are still sneezing, it could be several things, eg, a foreign body (piece of hay?) up the nose, an upper respiratory tract infection, etc

If you want to see, you may need the vet to do a Culture & Sensititivy test which would say which bacteria it was, and which ABX to try, but you'd need something to test against etc.

I've so far tried 5 different types of abx for my snuffley bun...so dont give up.
 
Did you get your rabbit from a breeder or pet shop?
If yes, were other rabbits also sneezing there?

Snuffles is a respiratory infection, if noticed early then anti biotics can clear away the infection.
If left too late then can remain forever but could be controlled by drugs.

If the symptoms didn't clear away, then your vet should of have done something else, to clear it, not just left it

ETA: your second rabbit has been passed on the infection too.
So you now have two sneezing bunnies.
 
If the abx didn't work then the rabbit probably still has the snuffles and the first has passed it on to the second. They need more abx, different ones. There are several different types, but most vets will start on Baytril and then move up if they don't work. Please don't leave it or your rabbits may get permanent lung problems, like my Nutmeg.
 
The older rabbit seemed to get a little better after antibiotics but has recently started quite frequently again and also the younger one has started to get worse. I will take them to the vets. The older one is sneezing a white discharge.

When I originally took the older one to the vets, I also had another older rabbit who unfortunately died when given the antibiotics and he also had a head injury.
 
Schuette said:
If the abx didn't work then the rabbit probably still has the snuffles and the first has passed it on to the second. They need more abx, different ones. There are several different types, but most vets will start on Baytril and then move up if they don't work. Please don't leave it or your rabbits may get permanent lung problems, like my Nutmeg.
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Thank you for your advice. I will get them both seen to.
 
jolmbagpuss said:
The older rabbit seemed to get a little better after antibiotics but has recently started quite frequently again and also the younger one has started to get worse. I will take them to the vets. The older one is sneezing a white discharge.

When I originally took the older one to the vets, I also had another older rabbit who unfortunately died when given the antibiotics and he also had a head injury.
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If its a white thick discharge, then the infection has taken hold, you will need a much stronger abx dose and hit it harder.

I'd recommend abx + metacam for its anti-inflammatory properties.
 
What vets do you use?
Do they specialise in rabbits? (Rabbit savvy vets)

Your vet should've given or advised you to purchase another bottle of the medicine to clear away remaining bacteria, because if not cleared away the bacteria would form again rapidly.
 
I'd imagine your existing bun has a respitory infection and the stress of moving to a new home weakened the new bunnies immune system which left him/her open to infection. Either that or he/she already had some kind of underlying condition. I have a long term respitory bun and in my experience it hasn't infected any of my other healthy buns. I'd really want both looked at by a vet asap.
 
As well as the Antibiotics and possible metacam (painkiller & anti-inflammatory) you might find Bisolvon helpful - it thins the discharge to help them clear it out.

Did you go back to your vet when the first round of treatment didn't work? It can sometimes take a longer course or a stronger drug to clear the infection?

If you tell us roughly where you are based, there may be someone local to you who can recommend another vet if your current one is unable to help. Not all vets know much about rabbits unfortunately.
 
I use my local vets. I think they are all rabbit savvy. I feel awful now as I never took the rabbit back to the vets as he seemed to be okay for a little while, not so sneezy so I thought it was clearing up.
 
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