Alarming Eye Condition (w/ photos)

Hello I'm new here & also still learning in caring a pet rabbit. I have my bunny since she was 2 months old and she's roughly a year now, she's a Netherland Dwarf cross. Today I noticed the left eye of my bunny have this white crack cloud on her pupil and white ring around her cornea.




Besides those symptoms and occasional redness she acts normal, no head tilt, no alarming eye discharge or losing appetite. I have Cendo Xytrol prescribed by our vet from her last visit for her redness eye but nothing for her white cloud.

I've read a lot of articles about eye diseases in rabbit but instead getting an answer, now i'm more confused ^^; I'm planning to visit a different vet clinic next Monday but I'm 50/50 about it since in my place there is no vet specialized in exotic animals. I hope that you guys can help give me a bit of light in what is currently happening with my rabbit.

I am no expert but it looks like phacoclastic uveitis which may be caused by Encephalitozoon Cuniculi (EC)

I would definitely get your Rabbit back to a Vet ASAP as not only will the eye need treatment additional medication may be needed too if EC is suspected.

More information can be found on these links ?

https://s3.amazonaws.com/assets.pro...9e50005056ad4736/file/PV1112_Pilny1_EE-CR.pdf

http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Parasitic/Encephalitozoonosis.htm

http://www.gwexotics.com/wccms-resources/a/5/0/e/77554b90-a660-11e0-a685-0050568626ea.pdf

Good luck at the Vets xx

Hi Poe! I agree with Jane, that does look like it could be an uveitis associated with e.cuniculi. The mass of red blood vessels you can see around the edge of the eye suggest that her little body has kicked in to try and help by adding extra blood supply, so it definitely suggests that something is wrong. I would not use the meds you have previously been given without going back to your vet first, as it may well be that different medicines are necessary. It may also be sore so she might be prescribed some pain relief too depending on whether she seems to be feeling it.

Best of luck with your little cutie x

I have an ec bunny. He has it badly in one eye and has a cataract and I am afraid to say his good eye has a mark just like your bunny in the pupil. He also has a white semi circle in the iris of his good eye. My vet has checked it out and has said it is most likely linked to ec but it is not a cataract, I can't actually remember what it is she called it, but my bunny can see out of this eye and it is nit getting worse. Get your bunny to the vet and if they think it is ec treat bunny with a 28 day course of panacur, hopefully this will stop it getting worse.

Eta I can't quite see from your picture but is that a pool of blood in bunnys eye? My bunny has this in his bad eye and if it is, it may very well be ec related

Eta again - my rabbit has no other ec symptoms and is eating well and apart from being a grumpy rabbit (nothing out of the ordinary) is quite happy in himself

@ All: Thank you guys for your replies...She's acting normal so I was hoping it's not anything e.c. :'( I've prepared for worse now, hopefully the visit to vet will give me a clear diagnosis.
I'll update after the visit to vet

--Edit:
@ Beki: No there's no pool of blood only redness, thankfully, and no other visible/severe e.c. symptoms besides the white cloud & redness--but a couple days ago I remembered I saw her nodding off when she's resting. I thought that's normal but as I just finished reading one of the articles apparently it's classified as part of neurological signs of having e.c.

ec in the eye can literally just be that - it got into the lens while bunny was in the womb and then got trapped there, so it doesn't necessarily mean that the bunny will have other symptoms of ec or get the full clinical disease. Good luck at the vets xx

@Santa: It probably is from her mother, I can't think of any other possibility of where she got infected since I don't have furry animals except her. Thank you, hoping for the best on Monday ^^

Poe said:

@Santa: It probably is from her mother, I can't think of any other possibility of where she got infected since I don't have furry animals except her. Thank you, hoping for the best on Monday ^^

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Hi there :wave:

I hope you can get to the root of the problem with your bunny's eye. I would certainly recommend seeing an eye specialist, as most vets don't have enough training in eye care to know more than the generalised problems.

Good luck :thumb:

MightyMax said:

Hi there :wave:

I hope you can get to the root of the problem with your bunny's eye. I would certainly recommend seeing an eye specialist, as most vets don't have enough training in eye care to know more than the generalised problems.

Good luck :thumb:

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Hi ^^
eye specialist as in for human?


Vet visit update, the vet told us it was just a fat build-up as commonly seen in dogs and cats....but just to be save can i still give panacur to her? And is it okay to use the Panacur 10% Oral Suspension instead of Panacur for Rabbits?

Poe said:

Hi ^^
eye specialist as in for human?


Vet visit update, the vet told us it was just a fat build-up as commonly seen in dogs and cats....but just to be save can i still give panacur to her? And is it okay to use the Panacur 10% Oral Suspension instead of Panacur for Rabbits?

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I am obviously not giving a 'qualified opinion', but even from a photo I have to disagree with your Vet. Personally I would want to seek a second opinion. Are you in the UK and if so what part, approximately ? We may be able to recommend a Specialist Vet for you to request a referral to. Whilst I re-iterate I am in no way qualified in Veterinary Medicine, but based on what I know from first hand 'Rabbit Care Giver' experience your Rabbit's eye condition appears to be more than 'just fatty deposits' and it requires further investigation and treatment. Not wishing to add stress to your predicament, but if the eye condition is not correctly treated it could result in a very serious situation eventually.

As far as the Panacur goes, it wont treat the eye problem as such as far as any EC involvement goes. All Panacur can do is reduce the number of EC spores in the bloodstream thus reducing the risk of further damage should said spores erupt into various organ tissues. Panacur cannot reverse any damage already done as a result of EC.

You can either use the Panacur Rabbit Paste, dosing instructions are included

http://www.animeddirect.co.uk/panacur-rabbit-oral-worming-paste-5g.html


Or you can use Panacur Liquid, it contains the same active ingredient (Fenbendazole) as the paste. I use the Panacur 10% Liquid and the dose rate is 20mg/kg/day which equates to 0.2ml/kg/day.

http://www.animeddirect.co.uk/panacur-small-animal-oral-suspension-100ml-10.html

Treatment should continue for 28 days and the Rabbit's environment should be bleach cleaned (using a 10% bleach solution) on days 21 and 28 of treatment. Steam cleaning can be used on surfaces that cannot be bleach cleaned. It is also important to minimise the ingestion of urine contaminated hay/food. EC spores being shed in the urine. So re-ingested urine contaminated hay/feed would re-infect the Rabbit

I would agree with Jane that a second opinion is needed. If you post in Rabbit Chat "Rabbit savvy vet needed in XXXX area" then someone may be able to recommend one to you.

I also agree that I would seek a second opinion - the blood vessels which have grown and gathered around the edge of the eye suggest that there is a problem that the rabbit's body is attempting to tackle. It's fine to use the 10% liquid panacur as it's the same active ingredient (although not designed for bunnies so not made as tasty, so you might find it harder to give) but you do need to shake the bottle extremely well as the contents settle out and you can end up massively under or over dosing if you're not careful - at a talk last year an expert bunny vet says he sees more problems with panacur 10% use than any of the other variations because of this.

Whereabouts are you, someone may be able to recommend a vet to see for a second opinion. Good luck x

Poe said:

Hi ^^
eye specialist as in for human?


Vet visit update, the vet told us it was just a fat build-up as commonly seen in dogs and cats....but just to be save can i still give panacur to her? And is it okay to use the Panacur 10% Oral Suspension instead of Panacur for Rabbits?

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No, not a human eye specialist. There are veterinary ophthalmologists who are expert at diagnosing and treating eye problems, as that's all they do. I know people on here are happy with their vet consulting with a specialist, but I have always gone to see one, as it's been worth it (and over all not that expensive)

Yes you can give the Panacur 10%. Your vet can work out the dose for you based on your rabbit's weight. You will also need to thoroughly clean your rabbit's habitat, or steam clean if indoor furnishings, on days 21 and 28 of treatment.

Santa said:

I also agree that I would seek a second opinion - the blood vessels which have grown and gathered around the edge of the eye suggest that there is a problem that the rabbit's body is attempting to tackle. It's fine to use the 10% liquid panacur as it's the same active ingredient (although not designed for bunnies so not made as tasty, so you might find it harder to give) but you do need to shake the bottle extremely well as the contents settle out and you can end up massively under or over dosing if you're not careful - at a talk last year an expert bunny vet says he sees more problems with panacur 10% use than any of the other variations because of this.

Whereabouts are you, someone may be able to recommend a vet to see for a second opinion. Good luck x

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That's a very good point to highlight. The thing I find odd re dosing instructions on the Panacur Rabbit Paste is that it is one graduation (on the syringe it comes in) per 2.5kg of bodyweight. Giving an accurate weight specific dose must be a tad tricky ?

@All:

Thank you all for the helpful information & articles! ^^

Unfortunately, I'm not from UK, I'm from Indonesia. Actually the vet didn't even know what e. cuniculi is when i asked, this is the first time she heard about this disease.....I've changed vets 3 times now and she's supposedly, referenced by many rabbit owners here, is the best in treating rabbit--but I agree with you Jack'sJane that it doesn't look as simple as "fat build-up" because the vet herself wasn't sure about her own diagnosis. Also I am completely aware that Panacur can only reduce the spores not a cure but in my case Panacur is like the best chance so far.

As for vet ophthalmologists I'm not sure I can find one in my city but I'll try asking people ^^

Poe said:

@All:

Thank you all for the helpful information & articles! ^^

Unfortunately, I'm not from UK, I'm from Indonesia. Actually the vet didn't even know what e. cuniculi is when i asked, this is the first time she heard about this disease.....I've changed vets 3 times now and she's supposedly, referenced by many rabbit owners here, is the best in treating rabbit--but I agree with you Jack'sJane that it doesn't look as simple as "fat build-up" because the vet herself wasn't sure about her own diagnosis. Also I am completely aware that Panacur can only reduce the spores not a cure but in my case Panacur is like the best chance so far.

As for vet ophthalmologists I'm not sure I can find one in my city but I'll try asking people ^^

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I dont know if you are anywhere near here

http://www.sunsetvetbali.com/team/

Drh. Wulan Setyaningrum apparently has a specific interest in Ophthalmology and there are a couple of Vets with a special interest in Exotics (Rabbits are classified as an Exotic species)

This link may provide a few options too:

http://www.veterinby.com/veterinary-clinic/indonesia/

Poe said:

@All:

Thank you all for the helpful information & articles! ^^

Unfortunately, I'm not from UK, I'm from Indonesia. Actually the vet didn't even know what e. cuniculi is when i asked, this is the first time she heard about this disease.....I've changed vets 3 times now and she's supposedly, referenced by many rabbit owners here, is the best in treating rabbit--but I agree with you Jack'sJane that it doesn't look as simple as "fat build-up" because the vet herself wasn't sure about her own diagnosis. Also I am completely aware that Panacur can only reduce the spores not a cure but in my case Panacur is like the best chance so far.

As for vet ophthalmologists I'm not sure I can find one in my city but I'll try asking people ^^

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Would your vet not know of one?

I think you are wise to use the Panacur, because it will prevent (hopefully) any further damage by E.C. Though to be honest, it does not look E.C. related to me.

Good luck xx

Jack's-Jane said:

I dont know if you are anywhere near here

http://www.sunsetvetbali.com/team/

Drh. Wulan Setyaningrum apparently has a specific interest in Ophthalmology and there are a couple of Vets with a special interest in Exotics (Rabbits are classified as an Exotic species)

This link may provide a few options too:

http://www.veterinby.com/veterinary-clinic/indonesia/

Click to expand...

MightyMax said:

Would your vet not know of one?

I think you are wise to use the Panacur, because it will prevent (hopefully) any further damage by E.C. Though to be honest, it does not look E.C. related to me.

Good luck xx

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Unfortunately I'm on different island but thanks for the info, Jane ^^

I went to an animal hospital yesterday to get second opinion, the vet there told me it was just because a lack of vit. A so the vet gave her a vit.A shot & prescribed a vitamin syrup for us. As for opthalmologist I found one in the next city! ^^ For now I'll wait for a week to see if there's any progress with the prescribed vit syrup and if not I'll go to the opthalmologist.

Thank you all again for helping me!

Poe said:

Unfortunately I'm on different island but thanks for the info, Jane ^^

I went to an animal hospital yesterday to get second opinion, the vet there told me it was just because a lack of vit. A so the vet gave her a vit.A shot & prescribed a vitamin syrup for us. As for opthalmologist I found one in the next city! ^^ For now I'll wait for a week to see if there's any progress with the prescribed vit syrup and if not I'll go to the opthalmologist.

Thank you all again for helping me!

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Ah you're very welcome Poe :wave:

I'm glad you and your vet have sorted a way forward, and I hope your bunny's eye gets better with the treatment prescribed :thumb:

Poe said:

Unfortunately I'm on different island but thanks for the info, Jane ^^

I went to an animal hospital yesterday to get second opinion, the vet there told me it was just because a lack of vit. A so the vet gave her a vit.A shot & prescribed a vitamin syrup for us. As for opthalmologist I found one in the next city! ^^ For now I'll wait for a week to see if there's any progress with the prescribed vit syrup and if not I'll go to the opthalmologist.

Thank you all again for helping me!

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My geographical knowledge of Indonesia is not good !!

You are obviously doing all you can to obtain appropriate treatment for your Rabbit. Hopefully the Opthalmologist will be able to ascertain an accurate diagnosis and prescribe appropriate treatment xx