• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.
  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

Rebonding after Encephalitozoon Cuniculi

ChallinL

New Kit
Hello this is the first time I've posted on this forum. One of our rabbits has been really poorly with suspected EC and I've found reading about similar problems on this forum incredibly helpful, especially when he was so ill that he couldn't get up and kept rolling over and I was beginning to wonder whether I was being cruel not having him put to sleep.
He is so much better now that he's almost back to his old self, just with a slight head tilt so he looks mildly curious all the time! I brought him indoors when I first realised how poorly he but left his bunny friend outside in their hutch because he had started to mount our poorly bun (tiger), and I also wanted to make sure that I knew how much tiger was eating, drinking, pooing and weeing. We took tiger back to the vet to check that all was okay and I asked about putting him back outside and rebonding him. She advised that as he had been so poorly it would be better for him to be a house bunny and this is fine with us, but we are not sure whether to try and rebond him with our other bunny and have them both indoors. The vet said that rebonding them could take a long time but I forgot to ask whether it would increase the likelihood of tiger getting EC again.I wondered whether anyone here had any advice/experience they could share?
 
Last edited:
Welcome:wave:

I'm so glad Tiger made it through, I can certainly empathise with the self doubt, nursing a bunny through EC/ Head tilt is one of the most difficult things I've had to do (but I'm pleased I did).

I'm not really of the opinion they will take a long time to rebond though of course it is possible. When I've bonded my EC tilty buns (I've had 2) I've been extra vigilant for stress & had all bunnies on panacur. This was under the guidance of my trusted rabbit specialist at the time (Frances Harcourt Brown)
 
Last edited:
Hello and welcome. I am pleased to hear your bunny is much better now, so well done for that. It sounds like you have 2 male bunnies, are they neutered? Regarding getting the 2 together again, you would have to re-introduce them in a neutral area and see how it goes. How old are? 2 boys can get along happily but sometimes it doesn't work out. Were they happy before Tiger became ill?
 
Thanks all for your replies. Yes they are both boys, 4 years old and both neutered. They generally got along well, although when Tiger became ill, Buddy took full advantage of the chance to be in charge and kept mounting him! My question really is about whether Tiger would be at more risk of becoming ill again, as they would obviously be sharing litter trays, food and water if they were back together? I did treat Buddy with panacur whilst Tiger was ill, but thankfully he has been perfectly fine throughout.

If I can't successfully rebond them, I was thinking about seeing whether a rescue centre would be able to find a new friend for Buddy so he won't be on his own outside.
 
There is no way of knowing whether Tiger will become ill again. Sometimes stress can bring on EC but only you can make the decision as to keeping him indoors.
 
Back
Top