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Sneezing Fits

A

Amanda0810

New Kit
Hello,
For the past year our Dutch Dwarf has had sneezing fits. He has had medications from the vet and Baytrill. Nothing has stopped his sneezing. There is no white or clear mucus coming out of his nose. The vet has looked at his teeth and mouth and can think of no other cause and doesnt seem concerned, as there is no mucus.
This started after he had a small mixy lesion on his nose (thankfully he had been inoculated just before this so it was not a full blown infection). Our vet has now agreed with our suspicions that the sneezing could be due to the scar that has been left on the outside of his nose possibly being mirrored on the inside of his nose - causing an irritation.
These fits appear quite violent and at times he makes a squawking or gagging noise. But it does not stop him from eating a treat at the same time!!
The only thing our vet has suggested (before thinking it was due to the scar and before noting that there was no mucus) is to put him under to check there is nothing wrong. Unfortunately, we have had bad experiences with putting rabbits under and are reluctant to put him through this extra potentially dangerous check when he seems fine the rest of the time.

We would be grateful for any advice, suggestions, thoughts or similar anecdotes as we obviously hate seeing him sneezing. :-(
Thanks in advance.
 
I have no advice on the sneezing part, but how savvy is your vet? It might be a more rabbit-savvy vet could offer a bit more advice/help for your bunny, if yours isn't too confident. It can't be very nice for your bun, bless him :(
 
It may be the scarring. I know someone whose rabbit had a broken jaw. Even though it healed, he still has sneezing fits!
Sorry I can't give you any advice!
 
FloLo said:
It may be the scarring. I know someone whose rabbit had a broken jaw. Even though it healed, he still has sneezing fits!
Sorry I can't give you any advice!
Click to expand...

They didnt break their jaw sneezing did they?? Poor thing. Did they get any reasons for the sneezing?
 
JemimaH said:
I have no advice on the sneezing part, but how savvy is your vet? It might be a more rabbit-savvy vet could offer a bit more advice/help for your bunny, if yours isn't too confident. It can't be very nice for your bun, bless him :(
Click to expand...

He is quite good. We have had a few over the years. But you're right - maybe a quick visit to another vet may be a good idea at least for clarity.
His little ears flap around so much and the fits seem to go on longer and longer - bless him. Just concerned all anyone will say is to put him under without any real understanding of what may be the problem. 1) not cheap and 2) not always safe. Thank you for your suggestion though.
 
tonibun said:
Do you use wood shavings or dusty food ? Did you get him from Pets at Home?
Click to expand...

No they have a hutch for food off the ground but a big run behind the hutch which they choose to sit in most of the time. When we are home, they have the run of the garden. They are very healthy. We tried giving him less dry nibbles etc in case it was making him dry and sneezy but it seemed to have no affect. We bought him from a private home (all of our others have been rescue rabbits).
Why pets at home?
 
Amanda0810 said:
They didnt break their jaw sneezing did they?? Poor thing. Did they get any reasons for the sneezing?
Click to expand...

No, he got attacked by a dog, poor thing! But it caused him to start sneezing, the vet thinks that it was simply because of the facial damage.
 
FloLo said:
No, he got attacked by a dog, poor thing! But it caused him to start sneezing, the vet thinks that it was simply because of the facial damage.
Click to expand...

:-( How long ago was this? Sounds like a similar possibility/reason for sneezing? Where is this vet?!
 
Sorry to hear your rabbit is sneezing loads. I think it would be worth while getting an x-ray from a rabbit savvy vet to see what if any damage there is in the nasal area.

If it is an infection and it is left, it will eventually cause damage inside the nose.
 
weedug said:
Sorry to hear your rabbit is sneezing loads. I think it would be worth while getting an x-ray from a rabbit savvy vet to see what if any damage there is in the nasal area.

If it is an infection and it is left, it will eventually cause damage inside the nose.
Click to expand...

How do you find out who is more rabbit savvy though? We have tried this before and they all say they are just to get your money and then seem just as clueless as the last. Over the years we have tried no less than 5 practices and the current one seems the best.
Without knowing what the potential causes are we really are reluctant to have him put under after losing a rabbit when he went for the chop as they didnt have oxygen ready.... The only indication of infection we have been told about is mucus coming from the nose and he doesnt have that. Have you heard of anything else we should be looking for?
 
Amanda0810 said:
No they have a hutch for food off the ground but a big run behind the hutch which they choose to sit in most of the time. When we are home, they have the run of the garden. They are very healthy. We tried giving him less dry nibbles etc in case it was making him dry and sneezy but it seemed to have no affect. We bought him from a private home (all of our others have been rescue rabbits).
Why pets at home?
Click to expand...

Well unfortunately quite a few of us who have got rabbits from PAH have found them to be suffering from Pasteurella type illnesses, eg sneezing Do you think he might have some hay caught in his nose. A strand can make its way from the throat up into the nasal cavity. I had this with one of my bunnies, they thought he had an infection but then the hay started to make its way out of his nose on sneezing. Cats have this problem frequently the Vet said. Hope you can sort it out. If you post for a Rabbit Savvy Vet in your area we will be able to put you in touch with one.
 
Amanda0810 said:
How do you find out who is more rabbit savvy though? We have tried this before and they all say they are just to get your money and then seem just as clueless as the last. Over the years we have tried no less than 5 practices and the current one seems the best.
Without knowing what the potential causes are we really are reluctant to have him put under after losing a rabbit when he went for the chop as they didnt have oxygen ready.... The only indication of infection we have been told about is mucus coming from the nose and he doesnt have that. Have you heard of anything else we should be looking for?
Click to expand...

Where are you? If you post a new thread in Rabbit Chat titled 'Rabbit Savvy Vet needed in (location)' then someone may be able to recommend one :)
 
Amanda0810 said:
How do you find out who is more rabbit savvy though? We have tried this before and they all say they are just to get your money and then seem just as clueless as the last. Over the years we have tried no less than 5 practices and the current one seems the best.
Without knowing what the potential causes are we really are reluctant to have him put under after losing a rabbit when he went for the chop as they didnt have oxygen ready.... The only indication of infection we have been told about is mucus coming from the nose and he doesnt have that. Have you heard of anything else we should be looking for?
Click to expand...

If you're in the UK you could put a post on here asking for a rabbit savvy vet in your area.

A good vet should be able to do an x-ray, or better still an MRI, on a rabbit with either sedation or light anaesthetic. I have a bun who has sneezed for years. There wasn't always mucus to see, it depended on when you looked at her. I took her to see another vet and she was eventually sent for an MRI. It showed her nasal cavity full of pus although at that time there was no evidence of anything from her nose.

Are the insides of her front paws/lower legs clean? She might use them to clean the mucus if there was any.

Even if it was scar tissue, the vet might be able to sort it a bit for her.
 
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