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Mites have come back

Sweetie

Sweetie

Mama Doe
Hi All,

Elvis had mites a few months back, due the stress of us trying to bond him with a doe rescue bun. Bonding didnt work so we had to give the poor rescue bun back. Elvis had the injection treatment from the vets and all was good........but..........theyve come back!

I cant think of where they have come from! I know they can be bought on by stress or illness but hes had neither. We bought some hay from a local garden centre but i read on here somewhere that it is unlikely they would come through hay.

ANy ideas?????
 
How many injections did he have? Oli had the same thing with earmites. They came back about 2 months after injections as the vet only gave him 2 and I think he should have had 3. They might also have come back from his surroundings, as the eggs can live up to 2 weeks. You can get a mite and flea spray from the petshop, which you can spray your bun with. Also some kind of shampoo thing. Have you tried these?

My vet advised not to give Oli more injections when I took him back in because he said Ivermec is highly toxic and really not very good for them. So I have just carried on with ear drops once a week and this seems to keep them under control. Sylvia does not seem to be affected (although she does have a large lump of wax in her ear but refuses to let me put ear cleaning drops in there - she had a minor tantrum last night when I tried it :roll: )
 
ARC are under the impression that mites are not found in the hay / straw that we buy, do ready this article, however do also bear in mind that it is written by a company who are in the 'pet trade' as well http://www.russelrabbit.com/languages/sde/docs/mites.pdf#search='mites%20rabbits'

As a rescue we have always used hay which we buy in bales and if baled hay was of higher risk than hay bought in bags we should have a serious problem with mites, we probably only have one or two incidents of mites a year which isn't bad when you consider the stress animals suffer when being moved from home to home and when some are not in the best health condition prior to arrival with us.

It might be worth considering using one of the proprietory shampoos which can be used for mites and having a quick word with your vet to see if further Ivermectin treatment is appropriate, some vets are wary on giving further doses due to mites developeing immunity to it. Do ensure that your hutch and any equipment you use with your buns is thoroughly cleaned when you treat your bun.

Janice
 
When i took him for the third injection the vet said to check him over for a few weeks and if he needed a 4th injection then to take him back but its very very rare that another dosage is needed. I kept checking anyway and all was fine!

It seems to be in a different place this time though, it was mainly his head and the top of his back before buts its his lower back above his tail now. I keep trying to check but hes not best pleased with me doing that.

I never tried any of the sprays/shampoos. Do you recommend another visit to the vets, the sprays/shampoos or both?
 
I would ring your vet and explain what has happened and see what they suggest. If you do try and repair up your bunny with another friend, it may be worth considering giving some rescue remedy to them both.

Janice
 
After we had to give the rescue bun back, Elvis made it clear that he was to be the only house bun! :roll: So we wont be pairing him up with another bun unfortunately.

Im going to ring the vets at lunch time. Does anyone have any recommendations with regards to shampoo/spray to use? And - how to go about cleaning the environment Elvis lives in (other wise known as my whole flat!!!!)?
 
You can get an environmental flea spray from the vets. Other than that, lots of hoovering and wash everything he uses and fresh bedding etc. Good luck.
 
Ive just gone over some old posts about mites on here and found a post saying that if the dandfuff isnt 'walking' and the flaky skin is around the time of the molt then it may not be mites :? ???
 
Sweetie said:
Ive just gone over some old posts about mites on here and found a post saying that if the dandfuff isnt 'walking' and the flaky skin is around the time of the molt then it may not be mites :? ???
Click to expand...

Maybe you should check with the vet to make sure!
 
From what I remember of my readings mites are present on most bunnies it's just they don't occure in big enough numbers to cause a problem, when they're under the weather the numbers increase and they need treating.

It's possible there were a few left over or in his bed and they were enough to repopulate.

Tam
 
Ive just spoken to the vets and they said that it would be fine for him to have another course of injections if I wanted to take him in, otherwise just to try a shampoo and see if that works.

Judging by the fact that he only had injections around March/April time im more inclined to go with trying a shampoo first. What do you all think? Can you recommend a good spray or shampoo?
 
I wouldn't recommend bathing a bun unless its a last resort. Its very difficcult to soak a bunny from head to toe (avoiding the eyes) then sit (hold them) still for a few minutes whilst it marinades and then wash it off again.

As far as I know the shampoo isn't any more effective than jabs.

Tam
 
Tamsin said:
I wouldn't recommend bathing a bun unless its a last resort. Its very difficcult to soak a bunny from head to toe (avoiding the eyes) then sit (hold them) still for a few minutes whilst it marinades and then wash it off again.

As far as I know the shampoo isn't any more effective than jabs.

Tam
Click to expand...

oh, I never thought about that Tams......good point. I dont want to stress him out as he has never had any form of shampooing or bath before. A trip to the vets it is then! He needs a M.O.T. any way, he has to have his teeth checked regularly so it`ll be a good chance to get him checked over properly.
 
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