Does our bun have mites or is my girlfriend allergic

Hi,

Since early January my girlfriend has been getting what look like bite marks in random places on her body. A single mark on her arm, then her leg, then her bum. They've continued for a while. Up to the point where she would get 5 or 6 marks at a time, though they wouldn't be in any sort of cluster

Initially we thought they were fleas and treated bun with Advantage (I think thats the right name), we also had pest control in. He said it was unlikely to be fleas as we hadnt seen anything and could possibly be mites, but he put a universal spray down and said it would kill everything.

Unfortunately it hadnt stopped and we had to get him back out for a second treatment.

We've also treated bun with Xeno 350 (?), which shes now had 2 doses of, yet the marks are still contuining, at a rate of 1 or 2 a night. My girlfriend has also now got a rash on her back too.

Ive checked bun's ears and right deep inside you could see with a torch that they looked a little dry ( she was more than happy to let me look at her ears as likes to have them rubbed!), so im wondering if she does have some sort of ear mite and subsequent canker. Should xeno 350 clear that up?

My girlfriend is convinced that it's an allergy now and she's allergic to bun, but in everything ive seen online, allergic reactions seem to be a number of clusters of marks and blotches over the body and dont really resemble anything that I've seen on my girlfriend. Does anyone have any previous experience?

I should point out that my girlfriend is having minimal physical contact with bun at the minute, but theres obviously hair and stuff lying around the flat.

My girlfriend went to the doctors when we thought it was bites and prescribed her with antihistamines and some menthol cream to help with the rash. She's not sneezing or having any other symptoms of an allergy (sneezing, runny eyes etc), but is taking antihistamines at the moment.

Thanks

Personally I wouldn't jump to conclusions and go blaming your rabbit. If the rabbit had fleas the Advantage would have sorted that out and you would be able to see the flea droppings in the rabbit's fur. Mites don't usually affect humans. I do hope you removed your rabbit when the house was being sprayed as it could make your rabbit ill. If you think bunny has ear mites, which I doubt, the best way forward is to see the Vet who can look right into the ears. These wouldn't bite a human, I am pretty sure.

From what you have described it sounds rather like bed bug bites and sprays don't tend to work with these pests.

I hope you can sort this out soon. Has she been to a doctor who might be able to recognise the bite marks?

I wondered about bed bugs too.

http://www.orkin.com/other/bed-bugs/bedbug-bites/

Yes I agree with Tonibun , I'd be very surprised if these bites were being caused by your bun. Did your pest control person check for bedbugs ? it's sounds suspiciously like them.

I agree with everyone else. It sounds remarkably like bedbugs - have you had anything new brought into the house, gifts from family that have gone abroad, new mattresses etc? We once had bedbugs that came into our home from Egypt.

We had 4 treatments in theh ouse (someone came out and sprayed the entire house). All our teddys etc were put into bin bags that were made air tight and stored in the loft for 6 months. All posters were removed from the walls as they sometimes hide behind these we also changed our divan beds to metal frame beds.

You can sometimes see them yourself if you remove everything from the bed, flip the mattress and look between all the crevices (where the stitching is). They'll move out of the light quickly but you can sometimes catch a glimse.

The like clean, cluttered houses as the clutter gives them somewhere to hide. We made our beds islands - so away from walls etc to make it harder for them to get into the bed if there were hiding somewhere on the floor.

If your girlfriend has a rash on her back, I would suggest it probably isn't from the rabbit but from something else she has had direct skin contact with. Fleas etc normally only bite exposed areas of skin, so any areas normally covered by clothes shouldn't be affected.

Has she seen a doctor to confirm what sort of a rash it is?

Have you actually seen any evidence of mites on your rabbit (like walking dandruff)? Fleas leave droppings in the fur which are like small dark coloured grit (but are actually dried blood).

I would suggest vacuuming your / her beds, sofas, etc thoroughly and regularly to remove any mites (there are lots of household ones and they can cause allergies in some people) and residual rabbit fur. You can also get a long lasting spray to treat fleas in the house (eg http://www.vetuk.co.uk/flea-product...prays-c-3_419/staykill-flea-spray-500ml-p-835) which may treat other unwanted mites. I would be inclined to spray all carpets (especially edges and near radiators), soft furnishings and mattresses (including underneath and under cushions) with something suitable, just in case - I am assuming that the pest control person just did a general floor spray and didn't do these as well.

Yeah we removed her from the flat for 24 hours (rather than the recomended 8 hours) , on each ocassion.

Pest control wondered if it was bed bugs, but said he couldnt find anything or notice anything on the sheets or mattress but sprayed everything anyway.

She has another appointment next week with the doctor, so will get checked again then.

Appreciate youre saying not to blame the bun, personally, im not sure it is her, but it's all a little desperate at the moment and we are trying to rule things out. Has anyone ever had an allergy test in relation to rabbits?

All very difficult for you. It's the not knowing that's the most stressful in these sorts of situations, I think.

To me it doesn't sound like an allergy, because of the little isolated marks that look like bites.

my first thought was bed bugs too. i doubt it would be from your rabbit as their own immune system controls any mites they may have and they don't tend to affect humans.

it might be an idea to get your vet to check bunny over just to he/she isn't having chemicals applied randomly. these shop bought ones are not always great anyway and reactions have been reported. it's best to get the vet to treat if needed to make sure correct types/amounts are given etc and are safe. having chemicals applied, plus being in an environment where they have also been used could cause bunny problems aswell.

hope you can work out what has caused them :wave:

eta: posted at same time as you so you've clarified some points :wave:

Bed bugs can live in settees also. Good luck with this proble.

The worst bites I've ever had were from Matthew Rabbit's mites. He likes to snuggle under my chin and the mites thought it was Christmas. Treat them for mites just in case.

Misread the title and thought it was 'Does my bun have mites or is it my girlfriend?'.

I agree with the other posts about having your girlfriend seen by a doctor and not using a lot of over the counter treatments on your bunny.
A co-workers son had bedbugs and they were hard to eradicate once they got into carpet, drapes, sofas, etc. My sister attends a program for disabled persons and they no longer let people give others used clothing or bedding.
Lastly, many years ago my brother in law worked at a nursing home. Someone at the nursing home had scabies mites.