Head Tilt - UPDATE

Below is what has been going on with my rabbit Willow who developed head tilt.
I treated her and Toby with Panacur for 9 days. Then I have been treating WIllow everyday for 28 days (which will finish next week) and Toby once a week for the 4 weeks.
Willow's head tilt has gone. It went about the end of th 9day treatment and she has been fine throughout the treatment.
The vet did say I could have her blood tested after these 4 weeks if I thought it needed to be done but WIllow was seen by the vet last week and the Vet was very pleased with her and said she looked so much better.
I hope that this is the end of the treatment and Willow will be well from now on. I'm worried that her headtilt will come back when I stop giving her medicine but think that is just me being silly.
Where do I go from here in terms of keeping her well? Is it a case of giving them both Panacur preventively throughout the year as it is now suggested?
I am just so pleased she is better and looking like herself again.




My one year old female mini lop has head tilt. I noticed something different about her last weekend but thought I was imagining it. Took her to the vets on Monday and it was confirmed. She is on Panicur for 9 days and antibiotics via mouth. My male Lionhead Toby is also having the panicur. Thing is Willow is fine in herself, being naughty as usual, eating, drinking,playing etc but has this head tilt. The vet could see very little dirt down her ears to cause it by ear infection and I suppose has given me this medication to cover everything. I am going back this coming week. Willow looks a bit better, it wasn't very severe and the vet said I'd caught it early but I am worrying so much. I've read up stuff, and I've read too much stuff, stuff I wish I hadn't read. I'm worried about her and really do hope she is getting better and that it is an ear problem. I should be going away for a week from the 26th but unsure if to go as she may need more medication and I can't leave that responsibility for anybody else and I am just worried what to do for best. She isn't shaking her ears around as if they are bothering her. It would be better if I knew what was really causing it, I trust my vet but I worry so much.update

oh no hope ur bun is ok. had a bun benji who had head tilt. she was pts i'm afraid. jus hope things r ok for you.

fi x

Are they treating for EC with the Panacur? If so that course is way too short.

Would agree with Sooz. EC can cause held tilt and the usual course is 28 days (it's a parasite and I think 28 days is needed to eradicate the cycle).
The good news is that it can be treated effectively if caught in time. A bunny of a friend of mine had head tilt caused by EC and I was very surprised and happy to see her weeks later with her head back to normal

Good luck

We lost a rabbit this week to complications caused by EC that had gone untreated for years. I would ask your vets for a longer course to be sure that its gone for good, its just not worth the risk.

i have a bun with head tilt at the moment and have been told to treat it for 9 days by my vet also treatin with baytril

I will ask vet about a longer course of treatment tomorrow. Don't know if she has EC, the vet thinks she may have.

If you want to be sure they can run tests to check for the presence of EC. It can also be caused by an inner ear infection which affects balance- This is why Baytril may be used in conjunction with Panacur.

if it is ear inf is there any sort of lotion that can be used in the ear or is it just baytril to be used?

Pink_Princess_Linzi said:

if it is ear inf is there any sort of lotion that can be used in the ear or is it just baytril to be used?

Click to expand...

Putting any 'drops' into the ear Canal should NEVER be done without specific Veterinary advice. It is essential to ensure that the eardrum is NOT perforated as if drops are put into an ear with a perforated eardrum the Bun would be in BIG trouble.

Janex

UPDATE

Took both bunnys to vets on Monday. Willow is looking a lot better today with nearly none or no headtilt at all. I questioned vet about blood test and longer course of treatment. She did some ringing around for me and looked it up and when I went in today to find out, she suggested I give Willow another 4 weeks Panacur and Toby one dose every week for 4 weeks, when they finish this 9day course they are on now. SHe mentioned the blood test and said we should see after a couple of weeks how WIllow is first and told me that even a negative result may not mean she has the parasite and that it can be present in the environment for 4years. I really do not understand - where does this parasite come from? I clean and look after my rabbits very well indeed so why has this happened? And when will things get back to normal. I just want things to get back to normal. Willow is being very naughty when it comes to taking her medicine and will not open her mouth.
Thing is, like I said- she is absolutly fine in herself, no change what so ever, other than she had this slight head tilt, which has now got better. I'm not convinced she has EC but I'd rather her be treated to cover it.
I've read too much stuff on the subject and read too many distressing stories which isn't helping me.

Ec is probably carried by loads of bunnies with no symptoms (according to one study over 50%) the parasite is excreted in the faeces as spores which can survive up to a month (all the research I have read suggests a month not 4 years).

A negative test means negative - the rabbit has not been exposed so has no antibodies to the parasite (assuming they use the ELISA test), but a positive one is not necessarily positive - it may just be they have been exposed and have antibodies (like after a vaccination for humans, we may then have antibodies against mumps but it doesn't mean we actually have mumps all the time). You need two tests taken a couple of weeks apart if the level of antibodies increases (rising titre) there is an active infection.

As for the how they got infected:
Scenario one - you went for a nice walk in the country where there are wild rabbits, when you get home you pop into the garden to check on your rabbits still wearing your wellies. The next day you move their run to a new patch of grass which happens to be where you have walked yesterday. It is entirely possible that your wellies carried some spores home and they are now sat on the grass so your rabbits eats them with the grass and gets infected. They happen to be susceptable so get symptoms.

Scenario two - a local cat returns from hunting wild rabbits and on his way home passes through your garden depositing spores.

Scenario three - you buy a lovely fresh bale of farm hay from the recent harvest, the field had been home to several wild rabbits.

Scenario four - you adopt a rabbit from a rescue you happens to be a carrier but isn't affected, they share a litter tray and thereby infect your current rabbit who is susceptible.

There is no way this infection is your fault for not being "clean enough"!

Head tilt can be caused by inner ear infections too though and usualy right themselves after a course of antibiotics so covering both bases is best.


Caz

Most rabbits contract EC at birth from an infected MOTHER! That is why I feel it is so important that all baby bun sare wormed with Panacur now along with their first injections.

The sooner it is treated the better the prognosis.