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Head tilt and fear the worst

lawz82

lawz82

New Kit
So April 5th saw one of my rabbits get slight head tilt, so i promptly got some panacur and treated her for 9 days, when there was no improvement i continued for 28 days. In the mean time i took her to vets, as her head tilt was not only slight but when i picked her up she slumped in arms and her head twisted right so that her right eye was pretty much flush to her shoulder. The vet checked her over and said alls fine except for a tiny bit of wax in ears that looked like honeycomb, so could be an infection and gave me baytril for 7 days to use with panacur.
She didn't get worse but not better either, and Tuesday morning this week her head tilt had got worse again along with eye rolling and flicking,and to point her right eye is horizontal with floor and when i pick her up her body goes into a C shape with her head again tucked right round.
So Wednesday i took her to my vet again, who again gave her a thorough check and said wax still in ears which shouldn't give this reaction and as i treated for EC its unlikely to be that, but as treated there isn't much point to do blood tests as she wouldn't get a true result and would have to be done again in a months time - which to be honest we both agreed thats time Lulu doesn't have.
So he's now switched her to Septrim 0.7 twice daily, metacam 0.35 once daily, and probiotics for 10 days.
I really fear she's in the last chance saloon, she's insured so if she needs treatment lie get it for her, but by looking at her i feel she's too far gone which is heartbreaking.
I nearly told vet to put her to sleep on weds, but my head was telling me to try the meds and see, as if i didn't try i wouldn't know if they'd help or not.
Lulu lives with her sister and are both approaching 5 years of age and inseparable and both weigh approx. 2kg. Lulu has lost 100g since her first vet visit in April.
I have rolled towels up in hutch she she can lay and lean and adapted food and water so she can get them, and I'm also topping her up with critical care and water, and massage her neck and shoulders. she runs about ok until she does a binky hop? then falls over, her balance only seems to be impaired when she jumps or is knocked by her sister.
any advice would be much appreciated, as I'm starting to regret waiting 10 days
 
lawz82 said:
So April 5th saw one of my rabbits get slight head tilt, so i promptly got some panacur and treated her for 9 days, when there was no improvement i continued for 28 days. In the mean time i took her to vets, as her head tilt was not only slight but when i picked her up she slumped in arms and her head twisted right so that her right eye was pretty much flush to her shoulder. The vet checked her over and said alls fine except for a tiny bit of wax in ears that looked like honeycomb, so could be an infection and gave me baytril for 7 days to use with panacur.
She didn't get worse but not better either, and Tuesday morning this week her head tilt had got worse again along with eye rolling and flicking,and to point her right eye is horizontal with floor and when i pick her up her body goes into a C shape with her head again tucked right round.
So Wednesday i took her to my vet again, who again gave her a thorough check and said wax still in ears which shouldn't give this reaction and as i treated for EC its unlikely to be that, but as treated there isn't much point to do blood tests as she wouldn't get a true result and would have to be done again in a months time - which to be honest we both agreed thats time Lulu doesn't have.
So he's now switched her to Septrim 0.7 twice daily, metacam 0.35 once daily, and probiotics for 10 days.
I really fear she's in the last chance saloon, she's insured so if she needs treatment lie get it for her, but by looking at her i feel she's too far gone which is heartbreaking.
I nearly told vet to put her to sleep on weds, but my head was telling me to try the meds and see, as if i didn't try i wouldn't know if they'd help or not.
Lulu lives with her sister and are both approaching 5 years of age and inseparable and both weigh approx. 2kg. Lulu has lost 100g since her first vet visit in April.
I have rolled towels up in hutch she she can lay and lean and adapted food and water so she can get them, and I'm also topping her up with critical care and water, and massage her neck and shoulders. she runs about ok until she does a binky hop? then falls over, her balance only seems to be impaired when she jumps or is knocked by her sister.
any advice would be much appreciated, as I'm starting to regret waiting 10 days
Click to expand...

I am sorry that your Rabbit is poorly. Regardless of whether head tilt is caused by EC or a bacterial ear infection it can take many weeks of treatment before any significant improvement occurs. Obviously some Rabbits become so acutely ill (endless rolling/seizures/not eating etc) that persevering with treatment may not be an option. But many Rabbits are able to fight on. If it is an ear infection then usually Baytril alone is not effective. Septrin can sometimes be more beneficial, but more often than not a more 'heavy duty' antibiotic is needed. For example an injectable penicillin such as Depocillin. Treament usually needs to be ongoing for weeks. A non steroidal anti-inflammatory such as Metacam is also required as it is inflammation which causes the clinical symptoms (the tilt). So it's good to read that your Vet has prescribed Metacam too. Sometimes a Vet may feel that it is necessary to administer a corticosteroid injection rather than prescribing a NSAID, but corticosteroid use in Rabbits is something that needs to be very carefully considered as far as risks V benefits goes. Rabbits are very sensitive to the potential side effects of corticosteroids. The side effects include suppression of the immune system, gastric ulceration and liver damage. But sometimes the risk of giving the corticosteroid is one that has to be taken.

If your Vet is reluctant to go down the route of much more aggressive treatment then perhaps you could request a referral to a Specialist Vet. As well as various different antibiotics there are other treatment options too and a Specialist Vet may be more clued up about it all.

These links may be informative

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/head_tilt.htm

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm

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

https://www.facebook.com/groups/162111977306100/
 
Last edited:
Jack's-Jane said:
I am sorry that your Rabbit is poorly. Regardless of whether head tilt is caused by EC or a bacterial ear infection it can take many weeks of treatment before any significant improvement occurs. Obviously some Rabbits become so acutely ill (endless rolling/seizures/not eating etc) that persevering with treatment may not be an option. But many Rabbits are able to fight on. If it is an ear infection then usually Baytril alone is not effective. Septrin can sometimes be more beneficial, but more often than not a more 'heavy duty' antibiotic is needed. For example an injectable penicillin such as Depocillin.

If you Vet is reluctant to go down that route then perhaps you could request a referral to a Specialist Vet. As well as various different antibiotics there are other treatment options too and a Specialist Vet may be more clued up about it all.

These links may be informative

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/head_tilt.htm

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm

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

https://www.facebook.com/groups/162111977306100/
Click to expand...

Thank you.
she seemed to stabilise without getting better or worse while on panacur but wk after i stopped she's now really bad, so have checked if she can have panacur with septrim and metacam and they have said yes, so am going to try her on more panacur and see where that takes us.
she isn't eating a great deal and I'm guessing thats to do with dizziness and nausea, but she's eating and drinking to keep the gut moving thats a good sign. Hopefully metacam will help too with it being an anti inflammatory pain killer.
I guess its just a waiting game now and pray for best, our vet is an exotic vet who i also take my guinea pigs to so i trust them.
I just feel from a personal view that given her current state of falling over etc that i don't think id want to persevere with more tests, I'm just thinking of her quality of life.
Granted she might get better, but I'm struggling to see her how she is while waiting for medicines to hopefully take hold and i pray that 10 days will be enough time to show an improvement, as while I'm 33 and they're my babies, i live with dad and he's not liking seeing her like it, and i know he will take her if i don't, but he trusts me to make right call, so if i can buy her more time and give her another 28 days or more of panacure then i will unless she deteriorates between now and then
 
lawz82 said:
So April 5th saw one of my rabbits get slight head tilt, so i promptly got some panacur and treated her for 9 days, when there was no improvement i continued for 28 days. In the mean time i took her to vets, as her head tilt was not only slight but when i picked her up she slumped in arms and her head twisted right so that her right eye was pretty much flush to her shoulder. The vet checked her over and said alls fine except for a tiny bit of wax in ears that looked like honeycomb, so could be an infection and gave me baytril for 7 days to use with panacur.
She didn't get worse but not better either, and Tuesday morning this week her head tilt had got worse again along with eye rolling and flicking,and to point her right eye is horizontal with floor and when i pick her up her body goes into a C shape with her head again tucked right round.
So Wednesday i took her to my vet again, who again gave her a thorough check and said wax still in ears which shouldn't give this reaction and as i treated for EC its unlikely to be that, but as treated there isn't much point to do blood tests as she wouldn't get a true result and would have to be done again in a months time - which to be honest we both agreed thats time Lulu doesn't have.
So he's now switched her to Septrim 0.7 twice daily, metacam 0.35 once daily, and probiotics for 10 days.
I really fear she's in the last chance saloon, she's insured so if she needs treatment lie get it for her, but by looking at her i feel she's too far gone which is heartbreaking.
I nearly told vet to put her to sleep on weds, but my head was telling me to try the meds and see, as if i didn't try i wouldn't know if they'd help or not.
Lulu lives with her sister and are both approaching 5 years of age and inseparable and both weigh approx. 2kg. Lulu has lost 100g since her first vet visit in April.
I have rolled towels up in hutch she she can lay and lean and adapted food and water so she can get them, and I'm also topping her up with critical care and water, and massage her neck and shoulders. she runs about ok until she does a binky hop? then falls over, her balance only seems to be impaired when she jumps or is knocked by her sister.
any advice would be much appreciated, as I'm starting to regret waiting 10 days
Click to expand...

I am so sorry to read about your rabbit.

There's a thread started recently which may give you a bit more info on the condition:

http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?456598-My-poor-boy-is-dying&highlight=head+tilt

I have also posted a couple of useful links on there:

http://www.rabbit.org/health/tilt.html

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-8/head-tilt.html

One thing I would stress, and it's something I stressed in the thread I mention above, is that *metacam* is essential. Not only for pain relief (it's so difficult to tell when rabbits are in pain) but also to reduce inflammation. The parasite E.C. causes inflamed lesions in the brain tissue and this can help to minimise the damage.

I would also suggest that you ask your vet to consider injectable penicillins, as they cross the blood brain barrier better than other antibiotics.

Wishing you loads of luck xx
 
lawz82 said:
Thank you.
she seemed to stabilise without getting better or worse while on panacur but wk after i stopped she's now really bad, so have checked if she can have panacur with septrim and metacam and they have said yes, so am going to try her on more panacur and see where that takes us.
she isn't eating a great deal and I'm guessing thats to do with dizziness and nausea, but she's eating and drinking to keep the gut moving thats a good sign. Hopefully metacam will help too with it being an anti inflammatory pain killer.
I guess its just a waiting game now and pray for best, our vet is an exotic vet who i also take my guinea pigs to so i trust them.
I just feel from a personal view that given her current state of falling over etc that i don't think id want to persevere with more tests, I'm just thinking of her quality of life.
Granted she might get better, but I'm struggling to see her how she is while waiting for medicines to hopefully take hold and i pray that 10 days will be enough time to show an improvement, as while I'm 33 and they're my babies, i live with dad and he's not liking seeing her like it, and i know he will take her if i don't, but he trusts me to make right call, so if i can buy her more time and give her another 28 days or more of panacure then i will unless she deteriorates between now and then
Click to expand...

Your welcome. I am so glad that you have confidence in your Vet as that is a real benefit when we have a very sick Rabbit. I am not part of the Facebook Group for Head Tilt Rabbits,

https://www.facebook.com/groups/162111977306100/

but I know of one of the Admins and anything Rabbit related she is a part of is something I would consider to be reliable and useful. So if you are on FB I'd request to join the group. I know of someone who has done so in the last few days and has subsequently received a huge amount of help and support.

I really hope that your Rabbit will improve, it is clear that you are dedicated to doing whatever is in her best interests xx
 
lawz82 said:
Thank you.
she seemed to stabilise without getting better or worse while on panacur but wk after i stopped she's now really bad, so have checked if she can have panacur with septrim and metacam and they have said yes, so am going to try her on more panacur and see where that takes us.
she isn't eating a great deal and I'm guessing thats to do with dizziness and nausea, but she's eating and drinking to keep the gut moving thats a good sign. Hopefully metacam will help too with it being an anti inflammatory pain killer.
I guess its just a waiting game now and pray for best, our vet is an exotic vet who i also take my guinea pigs to so i trust them.
I just feel from a personal view that given her current state of falling over etc that i don't think id want to persevere with more tests, I'm just thinking of her quality of life.
Granted she might get better, but I'm struggling to see her how she is while waiting for medicines to hopefully take hold and i pray that 10 days will be enough time to show an improvement, as while I'm 33 and they're my babies, i live with dad and he's not liking seeing her like it, and i know he will take her if i don't, but he trusts me to make right call, so if i can buy her more time and give her another 28 days or more of panacure then i will unless she deteriorates between now and then
Click to expand...

I'm really pleased to hear she has Metacam and that you have a good vet :thumb: That's more than half the battle in my opinion!

I can quite understand how distressing this all looks, and only you can make the decision for her future .. No one will judge you whatever you decide to do.

I really hope she improves and the medication helps her quickly :D
 
My bun lily has had a couple of episodes of head tilt, firstly in Feb and diagnosed by blood test with EC but then again last month and was referred for a CT scan as head tilt can also be a symptom of middle ear disease. After CT scan it was confirmed she had this, in her outer ear she had a little bit of wax but nothing that would really signal the middle ear disease. She goes in for an op on Wednesday and although it's a big op as she's having both ear canals removed, I've got to keep hopefully but know there are huge risks and she may not come back to,us, but I think it's worth the risk as seeing her with significant tilt is distressi g for her and for us. Have you asked for a referral for a scan to see if there's anything internal at all - might be worthwhile.

Lily's first treatment, and second was with lapizole, a panache equivalent, metacam and sulfatrim antibiotics, took nearly 2 weeks to see improvements

Don't give up on your bun just yet, it's heartbreaking to see them like this but there should be options. Good luck xx
 
It can be heartbreaking to see a bunny in this condition. Over the years-decades, it has happened to several of my bunnies. It is normal for them to get worse when they are picked up-so this is a time to minimize moving them around except for treatment time. They will still enjoy gently pets and can recover even at this point with proper care. One of my bunnies progressed to an incurable state, but she continued to enjoy her eating and drinking so I allowed her to decide her fate.
 
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