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Blind Bunny, advice/ideas welcome. Just recently lost sight.

bunemma

Young Bun
Hi all,

So I have just recently taken Daisy back to the vets after she had a very bad inner ear infection at the beginning of February where she was taken in for 5 days and thinking she had the signs of another. She has been very bright and her usual self since returning from the vets but last week she seemed to be disorientated when I got her out of her indoor pen but was fine in the pen and eating & toileting as usual. I took her to the vets to just have her checked over and on examination the vet checked her eyes and told me that she has lost sight in both her eyes and is completely blind - poor little thing. :(

She navigates fine in her indoor pen and knows where everything is, food, water and toilet area, but I just wondered if anyone had any experience helping a bunny who was born with full sight but lost it later on in life? She is coming up to three years old this summer.
They are usually outside in the nicer, not so cold, weather but now I am worried about putting her out there and her not knowing where anything is or navigating around. :?
I also have anther rabbit who I was trying to bond with Daisy which stopped whilst she was well but can they ever be together now as she cannot see, although she would be able to smell him and I wonder whether he would help her navigate outside in their runs and hutch area.

Any information/advice or anything in general would be appreciated.

Thanks. :)
 
Sorry your poor bunny is now blind. My Bobby was blind just before he died but he could navigate quite well, he had the plan of the garden in his head and sometimes would feel his way around. It is possible for a blind rabbit to act as normal in the garden, I had another blind rabbit years ago and you wouldn't have guessed it. They learn where things are and having a friend will be very comforting for your blind rabbit.
 
Hi all,

So I have just recently taken Daisy back to the vets after she had a very bad inner ear infection at the beginning of February where she was taken in for 5 days and thinking she had the signs of another. She has been very bright and her usual self since returning from the vets but last week she seemed to be disorientated when I got her out of her indoor pen but was fine in the pen and eating & toileting as usual. I took her to the vets to just have her checked over and on examination the vet checked her eyes and told me that she has lost sight in both her eyes and is completely blind - poor little thing. :(

She navigates fine in her indoor pen and knows where everything is, food, water and toilet area, but I just wondered if anyone had any experience helping a bunny who was born with full sight but lost it later on in life? She is coming up to three years old this summer.
They are usually outside in the nicer, not so cold, weather but now I am worried about putting her out there and her not knowing where anything is or navigating around. :?
I also have anther rabbit who I was trying to bond with Daisy which stopped whilst she was well but can they ever be together now as she cannot see, although she would be able to smell him and I wonder whether he would help her navigate outside in their runs and hutch area.

Any information/advice or anything in general would be appreciated.

Thanks. :)

Have you asked the vet the possible causes of her blindness? It could be due to the parasite EC, in which case it would be wise to treat her with a 28 day course of Panacur.

I have had blind bunnies, and also bonded them with new mates. Sometimes you need a bit more patience than usual, but it works :D
I think having a friend is the biggest positive in a blind bunny's life - the sighted bun can lead them and 'go fetch' them. And they do :thumb:
 
Have you asked the vet the possible causes of her blindness? It could be due to the parasite EC, in which case it would be wise to treat her with a 28 day course of Panacur.

I have had blind bunnies, and also bonded them with new mates. Sometimes you need a bit more patience than usual, but it works :D
I think having a friend is the biggest positive in a blind bunny's life - the sighted bun can lead them and 'go fetch' them. And they do :thumb:

He was going to speak to his colleagues at the practice and see if anyone else had some more thought on it. I asked again about the EC parasite and he was very adamant that this wasn't the issue the first time and isn't again, it isn't something he sees very often at all so was confident in ruling that out based on everything else. He was very impressed with everything else and how she was coping moving about the room. I did stress to him how worried I was about this parasite but said it wasn't the case.

They are currently next to each other just with a chicken wire decision, he us constantly trying to pass straw and paper to her it's the sweetest thing I have ever seen. I think I will have to do it in a much smaller space, probably back to the bathroom.
If they get bonded, I did think that he would help her a lot In getting about and exploring. They have such a lovely outdoor area and it would be such a shame for her to not be able to enjoy it anymore.

She really is doing so well and plays with her toys etc. other than in big open areas, it just confuses her which I am sure it wpull us too if we were picked up and placed somewhere different and not able to see.
 
Sorry your poor bunny is now blind. My Bobby was blind just before he died but he could navigate quite well, he had the plan of the garden in his head and sometimes would feel his way around. It is possible for a blind rabbit to act as normal in the garden, I had another blind rabbit years ago and you wouldn't have guessed it. They learn where things are and having a friend will be very comforting for your blind rabbit.

Thank you. She does really well in her pen as she has been in there a little while now so it's very familiar. When we was as the vets she was feeling her way around with her whiskers and nose and done much better than she did in the lounge prior to taking her to the vets.
I'm hoping she will be able to recall the setup outside when she goes back out as I do not plan on changing the layout. Archie is next to Daisy with a chicken wire division so she can smell him and knows he is there. I hope they will be bonded so he can help her when they go out.
 
Do you have a good rescue close who could maybe help with the bonding for you - I have seen quite a few buns who do well with a pal but as mentioned above the bonding can sometimes be a bit more tricky so it you are not experienced just a thought that help might be good to ensure safety etc.

I would want to know the cause of the blindness just in my opinion - did they check eye pressures etc - if it's glaucoma related then your bun may need eye drops to regulate pressure - not sure heat tests your vet did.

Hopefully as your bunny is quite young she can have many happy years with a bunny guide.
 
L
Do you have a good rescue close who could maybe help with the bonding for you - I have seen quite a few buns who do well with a pal but as mentioned above the bonding can sometimes be a bit more tricky so it you are not experienced just a thought that help might be good to ensure safety etc.

I would want to know the cause of the blindness just in my opinion - did they check eye pressures etc - if it's glaucoma related then your bun may need eye drops to regulate pressure - not sure heat tests your vet did.

Hopefully as your bunny is quite young she can have many happy years with a bunny guide.

I got Archie from a rescue, they taken on a variety of different animals but she had quite a few rabbits when I went to see about Archie.
I'm not incepredibly experience in bonding, I have had two pairs that bonded instantly. My second pair were Daisy and Humphrey but Humphrey suffered a bad stroke and had to be PTS. This is why we then got her a little friend.

I am wondering whether it maybe have been borough on/caused but the severe ear infection she had. I am back in a few weeks with Archie for his annual myxi jab. He looked at them with lights on and off, and said he could see straight back to the retina? Or something similar to that. He flicked infront of her eyes to test for a reaction which he did not get. She is usually quite agitated and likes to snuggle into my neck but she didn't on her last visit and wasn't like that this time, I can only assume it's because she cannot see.

Never experienced these problems in bunnies that I have recently so all very new to me so any information is appreciated, thank you.
 
He was going to speak to his colleagues at the practice and see if anyone else had some more thought on it. I asked again about the EC parasite and he was very adamant that this wasn't the issue the first time and isn't again, it isn't something he sees very often at all so was confident in ruling that out based on everything else. He was very impressed with everything else and how she was coping moving about the room. I did stress to him how worried I was about this parasite but said it wasn't the case.

I am very surprised he does not see much EC - perhaps he does not recognise it? As many as 60-70% of all buns carry EC - and I would expect say half of those to show some symptoms at some point. My vet sees several a week. Did your vet have the bllod test titre done to check his statement that it wasnt - to me the blindness coming after a period of disorientation (head tilt??) sounds very much like EC.

Re blind buns - a friend is very very important - if she does become sad and finds blindness difficult then they can have cataract removal and new lenses.
 
He was going to speak to his colleagues at the practice and see if anyone else had some more thought on it. I asked again about the EC parasite and he was very adamant that this wasn't the issue the first time and isn't again, it isn't something he sees very often at all so was confident in ruling that out based on everything else. He was very impressed with everything else and how she was coping moving about the room. I did stress to him how worried I was about this parasite but said it wasn't the case.

I am very surprised he does not see much EC - perhaps he does not recognise it? As many as 60-70% of all buns carry EC - and I would expect say half of those to show some symptoms at some point. My vet sees several a week. Did your vet have the bllod test titre done to check his statement that it wasnt - to me the blindness coming after a period of disorientation (head tilt??) sounds very much like EC.

Re blind buns - a friend is very very important - if she does become sad and finds blindness difficult then they can have cataract removal and new lenses.

When we enitially took Daisy in when she wasn't very well the first time I saw a different vet who said it could either be EC or an ear infection, because she wasn't eating still she was admitted and stayed in for 5 days. He then saw her again whilst she was at the vets again and couldn't believe the difference in her after some pain relief and lots of antibiotics. They were both sure it was now not EC based on how she was doing and that she was showing no signs of head tilt and disorientation.

When I got her out into the lounge she was doing little circles but nothing as bad as the first time I noticed where she had the infection. But this was now down to the fact she couldn't see, he got her out at the vets and she hops around brilliantly using her whiskers to get about. She has no head tilt at all and shows no signs of how she was at the beginning of February.
It's difficult to know what to do, I do believe that he would recognise it but he was going to speak to his colleagues and see what they say. He did not do a blood test no.

She seems to me to be coping really well at the moment. She hops about her pen and plays with her toys. She is eating and toileting as usual :)
 
I suppose a 28 day course of Panacur would do no harm (anyone agree?). You could suggest it to the Vet. Rabbits quickly learn the layout of areas - like in their warren where it is dark. I hope you can bond them.
 
I suppose a 28 day course of Panacur would do no harm (anyone agree?). You could suggest it to the Vet. Rabbits quickly learn the layout of areas - like in their warren where it is dark. I hope you can bond them.

I did suggest this to the vet, I really kept going on an on about it when we was there to express my concern over it but he was very sure it was not EC. She had about half the course when she first saw another vet and was staying at the vets and when she was back at home until they told me to stop all medication. I am back again soon with Archie so may take her with me again just for him to see her again.
I understand how important the Panacur would be but at the same time I believe my vet would know a lot more than me, afterall he has been at/running the practice for over 30 years. Thank you all though.

As you say the learn areas quickly and she is getting on really well, if you was to look at her you really wouldn't know she couldn't see. She was laying in her straw this morning very chilled out. Archie was shredding his paper as per usual. Got to love them.
 
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