Dont know what to do for the best? Arthritis/EC?

I took my 7 year old bunny to the vets 9 days ago as he had a weak back end, they gave me metacam and told me to give him 6 drops (reduced from 8 due to his age) a day on some veg and then told me to give 0.4ml of panacur every day for 6 weeks as it could be arthritis or EC. When I took him, he just toppled over every so often. Since we've had the rain and its gotten colder, he seems alot stiffer and topples over all the time! Hes gotten worse since his vet visit and im not sure what to do now, am I being cruel by keeping him this way? or would it be kinder to have him put to sleep? Should I get him an indoor hutch and try him indoors? I just really dont know what to do and Im not ready to say goodbye just yet

Is he neutered? Have the vets ran a blood test? If not then I would suggest they do that so that they can rule out other things and confirm EC (although I'm not sure how accurate the blood tests would be re EC)

I would personally bring him inside if I were you so you can keep an eye on him. Is his head tilted at all or is he just wobbly on his back end?

The only way you would know if it is arthritis is to do an xray but this means putting him under a GA which is probably not a good idea until you rule out EC.

Hi, no hes not neutered.
The vet didnt run any blood tests or even mention them, she said it could be 2 things. a) arthritis b) EC so she just gave me the treatments for both, but since the visit he has just gotten worse!
His head isnt tilted, he just has a wobbley back end, he toppling over alot, Just fetched him in as I found him laid in his hutch shivering. wrapped him in a warm towel then once he'd warmed up I gave him his food which he was enjoying. I dont know if its gotten worse because of the cold or weather its because hes laying on his side alot which is making him stiff, Im going to book him into the vets as soon as its open again and see if there is anything else he can have, I hate seeing him like this

I would bring him indoors if he will settle there. If he has always lived outside he may find it too stressful to be an indoor Rabbit though.

How much does he weigh ? The dose of Metacam appears to be very low.

Personally I would say it sounds more likely to be EC or an illness rather than arthritis. Has he been eating his hay? If you can keep him eating/drinking and he is pooing plenty that is the main thing. Personally I wouldn't wait until Wednesday for him to see a vet again if he keeps deteriorating. Are your vets rabbit savvy?

I would certainly bring him in- it doesn't sound as though he is coping well outside at the moment. Whether he is sick or has arthritis he would benefit from a bit of extra gentle warmth, and if he is a lone bunny he will probably enjoy the extra company. The fact that he has settled down well enough to eat already suggests he isn't too stressed by the move indoors.

It would be good to get some diagnostics done so you know what you're dealing with but the most important thing at this stage is to nurse him until he's feeling stronger.

If his problem turns out to be Ec they can get a lot worse before they get better and it can be upsetting to see (I've been there) but they often make a good recovery if given enough time- that may be weeks or even months though. Sometimes they never fully recovery but they can learn to live with it and still have a good quality of life.

Lots of get well vibes for your bunny xx

Will the vets be open on a bank holiday?
When she weighed him she said he was just under 2kg. He's lost muscle tone too
He has never eatten hay, its never took his fancy, it took me years to get him to eat a carrot! But he's still eating pellets and iv swapped his water bottle to a dish as iv lost my catch on the indoor hutch for a bottle, he's been drinking plenty out the dish though.
I took him to vets4pets and the rabbit savvy wasn't available until the following week but the receptionist said they are all good with rabbits so I took her word for it. X

:? All bunnies should have hay 24/7. I think people can manage with a bunny not having hay (if they point blankly refuse to eat it) but generally ALL rabbits NEED hay for their digestive systems to work properly and keep their teeth worn down. Does he have access to constant grass? This is obviously just as good as hay but in the winter they would need hay as the grass dies and has basically no nutritional value.

They won't be open until Wednesday I shouldn't think but if he stops eating at any point he will need to go to an emergency vets right away. Like lilbun said he will probably get worse before he gets better and you need to be prepared for that.

Sending him lots of vibes!

I always keep his hay manger filled but it never gets eatten and my conti always ends up with it, Is there any type of hay rabbits cannot resist? Ill go out and get some tomorrow if so and try him again
Do you think he'd benefit from a heat mat? its like now, iv turned off the heating and hes downstairs in the dining room, dont want it turning freezing for him, tried looking for our old water bottles but forgot where iv put them :x
And can anyone recommend a good bedding for indoors.. He has shavings outside but because he has long fur it sticks to him so dont want it all over the carpet when I take him out his cage, at the minute im using newspaper with a towel on top so he doesnt slip and then a knitted blanket so its comfy
x

Jess2107 said:

I always keep his hay manger filled but it never gets eatten and my conti always ends up with it, Is there any type of hay rabbits cannot resist? Ill go out and get some tomorrow if so and try him again
Do you think he'd benefit from a heat mat? its like now, iv turned off the heating and hes downstairs in the dining room, dont want it turning freezing for him, tried looking for our old water bottles but forgot where iv put them :x
And can anyone recommend a good bedding for indoors.. He has shavings outside but because he has long fur it sticks to him so dont want it all over the carpet when I take him out his cage, at the minute im using newspaper with a towel on top so he doesnt slip and then a knitted blanket so its comfy
x

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Sorry, I thought you meant he never got hay. Glad he always has access to it :thumb:
Is he bonded then? He would feel better if his bonded partner came with him.
I don't think it would matter if he had a heat mat if he seems ok. Being indoors should hopefully be enough. How has he been this evening?

Hi, unfortunatly hes not bonded, I have a seperate rabbit (continental giant).
Going to go to pets at home later (hope its open) and buy some Excel herbage timothy hay to see what he thinks about that. Been looking at vets4pets website and their closed today but some of them will be open tomorrow for a few hours so ill ring in the morning but im going to try and get in with the rabbit vet so may have to wait, ill feel loads better if he sees someone I know who knows their stuff about rabbits.

He just seemed the same last night, He just seems to take up speed them flops over onto his left straight away then he spins in a circle to try and get back onto his feet. Been getting him to follow a piece of apple round the room this morning doing little bunny hops which seemed to work with only the occasional topple. Just cant believe the difference he has gone from on his last vet visit cos I was moaning that the vet will be calling me a liar as he was happily hopping round the surgery without falling last time and now its really upsetting seeing him like this Poor Sooty xxxxx

Hi
I have an 8yr old bunny with ec and your bunnies symptoms sound like mine without the head tilt. Not all bunnies get the head tilt with ec.
As someone who has been through ec it does honestly get better....it may get worse before getting better though.
My bunny george did the flopping about and circling and still does everyday a few times.
I have never been able to put him back into a hutch with his partner as he can only walk on carpet for some reason so he is in our house running about on rugs. he cant get into his litter tray either so he uses puppy pads to pee on.
Make sure your little bunny is in a padded area (roll towels, use pillows/cushions...anything soft) to keep him from harm when he flops and if he circles to right himself then the bigger the space he has the better.....this is why geoge never went into a hutch or crate.
Is your bunny on antibiotics? probiotics?anti nausea meds? panacur for worming?
My bunny was given all of these and to this day he still is on metacam for inflammation and pain (0.9ml he is 2.3kg) once a day and metoclopramide (emeprid) twice a day.
Definetly get to your vet ASAP and make sure he is eating and drinking till you see your vet.
Any questions please ask i am happy to help.
I recieved great support from the forum members

hi leesabuntine, Thats very helpful!
The only thing the vet lady gave me was panacur (the dog/cat one) and told me to give him 0.4ml a day then she gave me the dog metacam and told me to give him 6 drops of this a day (reduced from 8) she told me not to give him 8 because of his age and incase he gets liver problems.. apparently she says he weighs just under 2kg. But this is the only medication she gave me.
Ill write the medication down what youv just said and ask them about it, I hope I can get seen tomorrow but the only problem is I dont want to have the same woman I had last time, Want a proper rabbit person.
At the moment hes munching on some swede, broccoli and carrots. He doesnt seem to be as bothered about his pellets though but he is drinking, Ill be off to pets at home in a short while to get some different hay for him to try.
xx

If you post up in rabbit chat with the title "Rabbit savvy vet needed in...." and your area hopefully someone can give you a recommendation. Not sure if this has already been mentioned so I apologise if it has!

Well just been to pets at home, got him the hay with added marigolds and dandilions, hope he eats it or lavender will have more added to her hay stack! Also picked up some probiotics from there to add to his water x

Flopping to one side/circling could be due to an inner ear infection or neurological problem. It would be worth mentioning this to the vet. Some antibiotics would be a good idea just in case (inner ear infections cannot necessarily be seen by looking in the ear) xx

Hi, well iv booked sooty into a different vets, theres still no change regarding his hopping around, still falls to one side then just lays there. Shes got me in tonight at 7pm. Her write up seems good; Rebecca has been with Abbey Vets for over 13 years, she is highly competent in all areas of small animal medicine and surgery, and has a special interest in treating and breeding rabbits especially Lion Heads.
So finges crossed they can get something done.
Iv written all the other medication down that leesabuntine mentioned and ill also mention the ear problem or neurological problem.
Just hope my little buns going to be ok

Good luck at the vets. Please keep us updated xx

I have just seen your post, I am nipping out in a min so will be a quick response, sorry!

I have Inca, she has arthritis and has also had EC in the past. She had a weak back end / hind leg paralysis when she had EC, then she really never got 100% better after and now is dealing with arthritis.

When she had EC she was treated with Steroid Injections, which were later changed to Metacam daily. She also had Panacur and antibiotics. I don't know about the cat / dog panacur. There is panacur for Rabbits, I would have thought that your vet would have given you that.

The Metacam dose does seem really low, It might not be helping very much.

Good luck at the new vets.

Just stick in there with the treatment, bunnies can get through this x

Fingers crossed he will recover! Sending lots and lots of vibes. x