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Tear duct problems

P

Pixsmudge

Young Bun
Hi everyone,
I need a little advice on what to do for my poor bunny:(
Titch is a 5 year old dwarf lop who last November developed a runny right eye. 98% of the time its clear discharge sometimes he has blobs of white discharge. I took him to the vet who prescribed him some Isathal, when it didn't clear up he was prescribed a second tube. When the weeping eye continued, at the beginning of January he was booked in for a tear duct flush and the vet noted the tear duct was actually looking quite small.

He had 2-3 weeks peace after the flush then his eye started to run again :cry: It wept solidly for a week, stopped weeping for an entire week and then since then has continually wept on and off every day. The past few days he's had some white discharge again so I've been bathing the eye to help make sure he doesn't get a horrible infection. Tonight he shot out from under my bed and looked up at me and I was horrified to see the white discharge pooling in the corner of his eye again. So I grabbed him quick sharp and cleaned him but to my dismay found by pushing on the duct the white discharge was pouring out. I feel at the end of my tether that I can't seem to fix this for him. The vet mentioned the next step would be an x-ray of his head except I'm really nervous about him being under sedation again. I don't think I would want another flush either as the tear duct is distorted now from having a cannula put down it. I've also read repeated flushes can cause complications (duct explosions, scar tissue etc)

I have spoken to someone with over 30 years experience with rabbits and rabbit medicine who suggested the best thing would be to just clean it when it needs cleaning and obtain Isathal when needed. She warned me it could be life long. She also was nervous about putting him under for an x-ray as in her words 'it seems too much for a intermittent weepy eye'.

I would love to know whats going on because its driving me crazy but I don't want to risk his life for me to get answers, I can't justify peace of mind for his life.

I know there's enough people on here who have had similar issues or may have the experience/knowledge to help guide me towards doing something. I don't feel right now that I can help him and that obviously makes me very sad.
To X-ray or not to x-ray?
I'm prepared for this being life long I just don't want there to be a point in the future when I find out I could've done more for him now to prevent this from being a massive problem that endangers his health.

Thank you
 
Pixsmudge said:
Hi everyone,
I need a little advice on what to do for my poor bunny:(
Titch is a 5 year old dwarf lop who last November developed a runny right eye. 98% of the time its clear discharge sometimes he has blobs of white discharge. I took him to the vet who prescribed him some Isathal, when it didn't clear up he was prescribed a second tube. When the weeping eye continued, at the beginning of January he was booked in for a tear duct flush and the vet noted the tear duct was actually looking quite small.

He had 2-3 weeks peace after the flush then his eye started to run again :cry: It wept solidly for a week, stopped weeping for an entire week and then since then has continually wept on and off every day. The past few days he's had some white discharge again so I've been bathing the eye to help make sure he doesn't get a horrible infection. Tonight he shot out from under my bed and looked up at me and I was horrified to see the white discharge pooling in the corner of his eye again. So I grabbed him quick sharp and cleaned him but to my dismay found by pushing on the duct the white discharge was pouring out. I feel at the end of my tether that I can't seem to fix this for him. The vet mentioned the next step would be an x-ray of his head except I'm really nervous about him being under sedation again. I don't think I would want another flush either as the tear duct is distorted now from having a cannula put down it. I've also read repeated flushes can cause complications (duct explosions, scar tissue etc)

I have spoken to someone with over 30 years experience with rabbits and rabbit medicine who suggested the best thing would be to just clean it when it needs cleaning and obtain Isathal when needed. She warned me it could be life long. She also was nervous about putting him under for an x-ray as in her words 'it seems too much for a intermittent weepy eye'.

I would love to know whats going on because its driving me crazy but I don't want to risk his life for me to get answers, I can't justify peace of mind for his life.

I know there's enough people on here who have had similar issues or may have the experience/knowledge to help guide me towards doing something. I don't feel right now that I can help him and that obviously makes me very sad.
To X-ray or not to x-ray?
I'm prepared for this being life long I just don't want there to be a point in the future when I find out I could've done more for him now to prevent this from being a massive problem that endangers his health.

Thank you
Click to expand...

An xray would give some details as to whether the problem is related to elongated tooth roots

Elongated tooth roots can press on the nasolacrimal duct preventing it from draining and consequently a chronic runny eye/repeated eye infections can occur.

Tooth root elongation is a longterm condition that cannot be cured as such, but it can be managed on a day to day basis with regular bathing of the eye and giving topical and possibly systemic antibiotics when any active bacterial infection is present

If the rabbit has a bonded partner the partner is likely to help keep the weepy eye clean, but it is important to monitor that this type of grooming does not become excessive. if it does the fur around the eye can be groomed away and the delicate skin can become very sore

Having an Xray taken may not provide any additional information about treatment options, but should you decide to proceed with that option I'd ask the Vet to carry out a full Dental examination too to not only assess the tooth roots but also the crowns.

This link may be useful to read, the term 'Dacryocytisis' refers to the condition your Rabbit appears to have:

http://www.vettimes.co.uk/article/insight-into-rabbit-eye-diseases/
 
Pixsmudge said:
Hi everyone,
I need a little advice on what to do for my poor bunny:(
Titch is a 5 year old dwarf lop who last November developed a runny right eye. 98% of the time its clear discharge sometimes he has blobs of white discharge. I took him to the vet who prescribed him some Isathal, when it didn't clear up he was prescribed a second tube. When the weeping eye continued, at the beginning of January he was booked in for a tear duct flush and the vet noted the tear duct was actually looking quite small.

He had 2-3 weeks peace after the flush then his eye started to run again :cry: It wept solidly for a week, stopped weeping for an entire week and then since then has continually wept on and off every day. The past few days he's had some white discharge again so I've been bathing the eye to help make sure he doesn't get a horrible infection. Tonight he shot out from under my bed and looked up at me and I was horrified to see the white discharge pooling in the corner of his eye again. So I grabbed him quick sharp and cleaned him but to my dismay found by pushing on the duct the white discharge was pouring out. I feel at the end of my tether that I can't seem to fix this for him. The vet mentioned the next step would be an x-ray of his head except I'm really nervous about him being under sedation again. I don't think I would want another flush either as the tear duct is distorted now from having a cannula put down it. I've also read repeated flushes can cause complications (duct explosions, scar tissue etc)

I have spoken to someone with over 30 years experience with rabbits and rabbit medicine who suggested the best thing would be to just clean it when it needs cleaning and obtain Isathal when needed. She warned me it could be life long. She also was nervous about putting him under for an x-ray as in her words 'it seems too much for a intermittent weepy eye'.

I would love to know whats going on because its driving me crazy but I don't want to risk his life for me to get answers, I can't justify peace of mind for his life.

I know there's enough people on here who have had similar issues or may have the experience/knowledge to help guide me towards doing something. I don't feel right now that I can help him and that obviously makes me very sad.
To X-ray or not to x-ray?
I'm prepared for this being life long I just don't want there to be a point in the future when I find out I could've done more for him now to prevent this from being a massive problem that endangers his health.

Thank you
Click to expand...

I'm so sorry to hear about your rabbit. It's such a common problem, and often as your friend pointed out, lifelong.

However, managing the eye issue is an inconvenience but unless it flares up into a full blown eye infection, should not necessitate constant tear duct flushes. I gather from what you're saying that your vet needs to sedate to do the flush? My vet did tear duct flushes every six weeks consciously for my rabbit, and even showed me how to do it and I then did it at home myself for him.

I personally wouldn't X-ray, as it's likely to be elongated tooth roots, and there is no treatment for that. The tear ducts can be pressed upon by the teeth, and this causes scarring.

When you press on the tear duct - often a good idea to do this with a cotton pad soaked in warm water - and get the gunk out, you are doing a good thing :thumb: It may be that's what you have to do, and possibly every day. Certainly I would clean the eye gently twice a day with cotton wool soaked in cooled boiled water.

A companion rabbit usually cleans up the weepy eye, but if he's on his own then you'll have to be his mate :)

You are not creating a massive problem for him, you just need to manage the situation. It will fluctuate - sometimes worse and sometimes better.

Good luck xx
 
Hello.

I have a rabbit (Eric) who has permanently got weepy eyes. I have to bathe them twice a day with warm water to keep them clean. He is also on the same eye drops as you. I rescued my rabbit like this and I'm fully aware it's going to be a permanent thing. It does get seem to get good at some points and bad at others but it is definitely manageable.
Eric had a tear duct flush 2 weeks ago and it was successful on one side but didn't work on the other. They were quite bad after his op for at least a week. His ducts are permanently scarred and will always weep but my second rabbit tends to keep them clean and as long as you stay on top of it too, they can still lead reasonably normal lives. Eric loves to binky and loves his food so I know that he's a happy boy.

I would recommend getting further tests done to see what the cause of it is as eric had an infection in teeth which a year down the line has caused him having all front teeth out and permanently bad eyes. Had this have been caught sooner, he may have managed to avoid some of the issus he experiences now but this is just me! I am a worry wart!
Having said that, it looks like you have spoken to some rabbit experts and if they seem to think it's not needed then maybe listen to them. It is a common issue with smaller rabbits. Maybe for now just monitor it, keep it nice and clean and see how it goes. Watch out for any issues eating or swelling.

Have they checked your rabbits teeth and everything?

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk
 
Thank you all for your support and information. It's been so helpful to see how others have coped with this. I don't mind looking after an eye condition I just wish I could cure it for him, sadly can't always be the case as we all know. I really think with this sort of problem because we try not the sedate rabbits or put them under anesthetic until we really have to, opinion is quite divided. But much like it's been pointed out an x-ray may not change any treatment plans but it would hopefully indicate whats going on and could be an early warning sign of an impending problem. Poor Titch, I feel like I'm playing with his life with this decision. Needless to say I'm quite paranoid about my buns going under.

I've been expressing his eye since Saturday when I first started getting something out. His lower eyelid looked a bit swollen on Monday morning so when I came back home from being at hospital I checked his eye out & put gentle pressure on the corner of his eye and SO much gunk just exploded from the duct. I was so stunned that it had accumulated in barely a day. I cleaned him up and promptly got him an appointment at the vet so he could get more Isathal as a protection from secondary infection. I really worried from looking at him when he was on the floor that maybe I'd caused some soreness and swelling expressing the duct but the sheer amount of gunk that came out of him...eesh, truly shocking.

In the three months since his teeth were last checked he has developed a little spur on his lower right side molar which shouldn't be causing a problem but concerns me all the same because its crept up quickly and is so unexpected. I guess it always feels that way when they've always had perfect teeth. As it correlates with a tiny worsening of his eye since January it makes me suspicious and I think I'll have to bite the bullet and have his head x-rayed. If this is the start of a dental problem I want to know now rather than later. Of course whatever the issue is I want to know but its fuelling my fear at the moment if I don't do something now he could pay for it big time later. I'm pretty hard on myself when it comes to my buns so I could never forgive myself if that were to happen.
I just have to hope he forgives me quickly afterwards..usually after the vets he forgives me fairly soon but he's been a bit off with me since his surprise trip yesterday.

I'm also trying to figure out a way to get him eating more hay. Him and his partner Strawberry, who is a godsend with his eye, have timothy hay, oat hay and meadow hay but they've changed a lot since they lost a friend last year. Strawbs is a great hay eater but its always been a very social activity for Titch so since losing his buddy he's definitely lost enthusiasm for certain activities and unfortunately that includes foraging.

Thanks again for your help.
 
I have exactly the same issue with my rabbit Nancy. Indeed we have been to the vets earlier for yet another tearduct duct flush.

She has had various Eyedrops and around 6/7 flushes since July last year. Her first flush was under sedation when her teeth were checked but apart from a teeny tiny spur which was filed down all were ok.

When her eye started playing up again I saw a different vet at the practice who I was far happier with and who has done the flushes with her awake and a numbing drop put in her eye.

Does your rabbit sneeze too? Since December the eye flare ups have been accompanied by sneezing bouts. My vet took swabs from the eye muck and sent them off testing to see if it was an infection. The results were negative so we assume it is a tooth root issue. Especially as it is only on one side

Today we have been given a different drop- Maxitrol - which is steroid as well as antibiotic - to see whether we can go longer between flushes.

I am torn between whether to go for the skull xray to make 100% sure its tooth root or continue to just manage the situation. I really don't want her to have to be anaesthetised for the xray and wish the first vet had xrayed her when she did the flush. But to be fair we were thinking infection

Other than this she's in good health and eating with her usual hearty appetite.

Does your bunny have a partner? Will helps keep Nancys eye clean (whilst she's having drops I separate them for 15 mins so he can't groom her). Apparently the exotics specialist my vets refer to when necessary has said that a companion rabbit is useful in the management of this problem.
 
Last edited:
We have been dealing with the same thing with Spike since October. As he is 9 and a half and has a bit of a heart murmur, the vet doesn't feel it's worth the risk to sedate him for X-rays. He said to just keep an eye on his eating habits and to look for signs he is in pain. If that happens, we may have no choice. He was prescribed Ciloxin, which cleared it up at first, but lately doesn't seem to do much.

I basically just clean around his eye twice a day (which he LOVES), and keep an eye on him. I've definitely learned this is quite common since this happened.
 
Den said:
I have exactly the same issue with my rabbit Nancy. Indeed we have been to the vets earlier for yet another tearduct duct flush.

She has had various Eyedrops and around 6/7 flushes since July last year. Her first flush was under sedation when her teeth were checked but apart from a teeny tiny spur which was filed down all were ok.

When her eye started playing up again I saw a different vet at the practice who I was far happier with and who has done the flushes with her awake and a numbing drop put in her eye.

Does your rabbit sneeze too? Since December the eye flare ups have been accompanied by sneezing bouts. My vet took swabs from the eye muck and sent them off testing to see if it was an infection. The results were negative so we assume it is a tooth root issue. Especially as it is only on one side

Today we have been given a different drop- Maxitrol - which is steroid as well as antibiotic - to see whether we can go longer between flushes.

I am torn between whether to go for the skull xray to make 100% sure its tooth root or continue to just manage the situation. I really don't want her to have to be anaesthetised for the xray and wish the first vet had xrayed her when she did the flush. But to be fair we were thinking infection

Other than this she's in good health and eating with her usual hearty appetite.

Does your bunny have a partner? Will helps keep Nancys eye clean (whilst she's having drops I separate them for 15 mins so he can't groom her). Apparently the exotics specialist my vets refer to when necessary has said that a companion rabbit is useful in the management of this problem.
Click to expand...


I'm so sorry about what poor Nancy's going through, really going through the ringer. It all feels like a never ending cycle doesn't it? I just feel terrible with Titch I can't just fix the problem for him and be done with it. He's has a week of no discharge and not too much weeping really and it's all started up again:( Never ending.

He is 5 and in great condition, been checked out and the vets happy he's healthy. Tomorrow him and his partner Strawberry have their jabs so he'll be checked again and I'll probably book him in for an X-ray. I'm not happy about doing it but I've weighed up the pro's and con's and I think this is the right choice. It might not change how it's treated but I will know whats going on hopefully. If its the beginning of dental disease I want to know now rather than when its too late. Because he's in good health and a good age I want to do it now rather than leaving it until a later date (risk under anesthetic gets slightly greater as they get older). So I consider its safer now and I reckon he'll probably have to have one at some point in his lifetime so... its safer now to me. I'm pretty paranoid him being a lop and all of all the problems he could be having so I'd rather see and look out for him and put my mind at rest. He's been through anesthetic and sedation fine, as recently as January, so I'm trying not to think to deeply about everything that could happen. I'm trying my best and that's hopefully what counts. I think it does bother him sometimes, today he has seemed quite down so I start wondering more whats going on if his mood isn't good.
Strawberry is very attentive with cleaning his eye, a god send helping us manage it and the bright side is she doesn't seem obsessed with over grooming him. Often I'll ask her to groom it and she will suddenly do it for us which is lovely!
He has occasionally sneezed yes. One night he sneezed an awful lot which had me very worried but tbh its not very often now, less often after he had the flush done. I actually brought a large sample of Titch's eye muck to the vet and they didn't do anything, didn't seem interested in testing it. He seems to scratch at it quite a bit which doesn't really help the situation I'm sure.


In relation to Spike, not that my opinion matters there really but I would do the same as you're doing. I don't think I could risk it and if he seems really happy to have you clean it then that's great and amazingly helpful.

I think it greatly helps if you have a good vet that you trust really. My local Companion Care used to be great with really good caring vets that knew what they were doing with bunnies. They've all left now and I find the vets that have replaced them are younger and don't really specialize in rabbits. I don't trust them or the nurses there, so making a decision like this hasn't been easy at all. I have no choice but to use them though as I don't drive and I rely on someone else to help me. That someone (my dad) is not prepared to drive me further afield so I feel its pretty much the closest one or nothing.
 
My girl is 9 and she has had this problem for the past year. I did have X-rays which confirmed elongated tooth roots, but as others have said there isn't a lot you can do but manage the situation

I hope all goes well with the X-rays, I have to say it did put my mind at rest knowing for certain what the cause was :)
 
We had this problem with our French lop. Flushing the tear ducts made no difference to her so we just kept bathing them and trimming the fur to stop it becoming matted and crusty. We had a spray to help heal the sore skin when the tears burned her fur off but I can't remember atm what it was called!
 
Pixsmudge said:
Thank you all for your support and information. It's been so helpful to see how others have coped with this. I don't mind looking after an eye condition I just wish I could cure it for him, sadly can't always be the case as we all know. I really think with this sort of problem because we try not the sedate rabbits or put them under anesthetic until we really have to, opinion is quite divided. But much like it's been pointed out an x-ray may not change any treatment plans but it would hopefully indicate whats going on and could be an early warning sign of an impending problem. Poor Titch, I feel like I'm playing with his life with this decision. Needless to say I'm quite paranoid about my buns going under.

I've been expressing his eye since Saturday when I first started getting something out. His lower eyelid looked a bit swollen on Monday morning so when I came back home from being at hospital I checked his eye out & put gentle pressure on the corner of his eye and SO much gunk just exploded from the duct. I was so stunned that it had accumulated in barely a day. I cleaned him up and promptly got him an appointment at the vet so he could get more Isathal as a protection from secondary infection. I really worried from looking at him when he was on the floor that maybe I'd caused some soreness and swelling expressing the duct but the sheer amount of gunk that came out of him...eesh, truly shocking.

In the three months since his teeth were last checked he has developed a little spur on his lower right side molar which shouldn't be causing a problem but concerns me all the same because its crept up quickly and is so unexpected. I guess it always feels that way when they've always had perfect teeth. As it correlates with a tiny worsening of his eye since January it makes me suspicious and I think I'll have to bite the bullet and have his head x-rayed. If this is the start of a dental problem I want to know now rather than later. Of course whatever the issue is I want to know but its fuelling my fear at the moment if I don't do something now he could pay for it big time later. I'm pretty hard on myself when it comes to my buns so I could never forgive myself if that were to happen.
I just have to hope he forgives me quickly afterwards..usually after the vets he forgives me fairly soon but he's been a bit off with me since his surprise trip yesterday.

I'm also trying to figure out a way to get him eating more hay. Him and his partner Strawberry, who is a godsend with his eye, have timothy hay, oat hay and meadow hay but they've changed a lot since they lost a friend last year. Strawbs is a great hay eater but its always been a very social activity for Titch so since losing his buddy he's definitely lost enthusiasm for certain activities and unfortunately that includes foraging.

Thanks again for your help.
Click to expand...

Has your vet checked a sample of the 'gunk' you expressed from his tear duct? I had some very old bunnies who had clogged/blocked tear ducts in one eye when they were a dozen years old. One opened for good with a flush, for the other it was just temporary. With the closed/clogged duct the tears would flow onto the bunny's face, instead of down the duct, and they were just tears, no 'gunk'.
 
Pixsmudge said:
I'm so sorry about what poor Nancy's going through, really going through the ringer. It all feels like a never ending cycle doesn't it? I just feel terrible with Titch I can't just fix the problem for him and be done with it. He's has a week of no discharge and not too much weeping really and it's all started up again:( Never ending.

He is 5 and in great condition, been checked out and the vets happy he's healthy. Tomorrow him and his partner Strawberry have their jabs so he'll be checked again and I'll probably book him in for an X-ray. I'm not happy about doing it but I've weighed up the pro's and con's and I think this is the right choice. It might not change how it's treated but I will know whats going on hopefully. If its the beginning of dental disease I want to know now rather than when its too late. Because he's in good health and a good age I want to do it now rather than leaving it until a later date (risk under anesthetic gets slightly greater as they get older). So I consider its safer now and I reckon he'll probably have to have one at some point in his lifetime so... its safer now to me. I'm pretty paranoid him being a lop and all of all the problems he could be having so I'd rather see and look out for him and put my mind at rest. He's been through anesthetic and sedation fine, as recently as January, so I'm trying not to think to deeply about everything that could happen. I'm trying my best and that's hopefully what counts. I think it does bother him sometimes, today he has seemed quite down so I start wondering more whats going on if his mood isn't good.
Strawberry is very attentive with cleaning his eye, a god send helping us manage it and the bright side is she doesn't seem obsessed with over grooming him. Often I'll ask her to groom it and she will suddenly do it for us which is lovely!
He has occasionally sneezed yes. One night he sneezed an awful lot which had me very worried but tbh its not very often now, less often after he had the flush done. I actually brought a large sample of Titch's eye muck to the vet and they didn't do anything, didn't seem interested in testing it. He seems to scratch at it quite a bit which doesn't really help the situation I'm sure.


In relation to Spike, not that my opinion matters there really but I would do the same as you're doing. I don't think I could risk it and if he seems really happy to have you clean it then that's great and amazingly helpful.

I think it greatly helps if you have a good vet that you trust really. My local Companion Care used to be great with really good caring vets that knew what they were doing with bunnies. They've all left now and I find the vets that have replaced them are younger and don't really specialize in rabbits. I don't trust them or the nurses there, so making a decision like this hasn't been easy at all. I have no choice but to use them though as I don't drive and I rely on someone else to help me. That someone (my dad) is not prepared to drive me further afield so I feel its pretty much the closest one or nothing.
Click to expand...

I hope all goes well at the vet :thumb:

Sometimes you don't get a result from culturing the gunk that comes out of the eye, and for the expense, some vets don't do it. You could ask the vet to express some and try that way (catching it fresh as it were), if you want to try and get a culture and sensitivity test done.

Good luck xx
 
Just to clarify, my vet could look at a slide of the gunk under high power and tell if it had a lot of bacteria or not. If so, he would prescribe a broad spectrum antibiotic.
 
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