Sammy&Patch
Warren Scout
Looking for advice/ideas if anyone has any please. My bunny Hazel is about 5/6 years old (I got her from rescue and have had her 3 years). Last year around this time she had started sneezing and having a runny nose etc, yellow/white discharge. As a previous bunny had similar I was worried it was pasteurella, he was never diagnosed with that but I just thought it could have been. We did a test on Hazel but the lab messed up so we didn't pursue testing further. We did antibiotics for about a month but it didn't clear it up completely, it did help. However, as she was happy and eating the vet said to take her off them as we didn't want to cause her other problems and she has been off them since. She has always got a bit of yellowy white mucous every day or so and sneezes now and then but she's been fine in every other way and eats well, no problems like that.
A few weeks ago she was sneezing a lot more and having more discharge. I got a vet appointment but it wasn't my normal vet. This vet suggested trying again for the pasteurella test and holding off antibiotics until we heard back. She thought that would be a few days. She mentioned it could be allergies and suggested dampening the hay. She said that one side seemed a bit blocked. The hay is from HayBox and is dust extracted, she lives indoors and doesn't have sawdust or anything like that, nothing has changed in her environment so I would be surprised if it was just allergies but I don't know.
Hazel was getting worse, even more discharge and horrible sneezing fits where she just can't stop for like 20 or 30 seconds, it clearly upsets her. Also white discharge came out of her eye a couple of times in the sneezing fits. So I took her back and saw my normal vet but the results weren't in so she still wanted to wait for results before doing antibiotics. She noted one tear duct seemed blocked so she gave me metacalm for 5 days saying this might help if it is inflamed. It didn't seem to make a difference but she didn't get worse. That took me to last sunday, I phoned the vets on tuesday still not having heard back about results and to ask whether to continue. The receptionist asked if it had helped, I said I didn't think it did much so she said there was no point in continuing. She said she would get a nurse to chase the results for me. I came off the phone but then phoned back and said I didn't know what to do as that meant she was on no medication to help her (and I wasn't convinced the lab hadn't mucked up again so we could be waiting for no reason). She asked if she was eating ok which I said yes but she seems exhausted after a sneezing fit and sometimes goes to eat, sneezes, keeps trying to eat then runs off when she can't stop sneezing. She said she would get a vet to phone me back. That evening a different vet phoned me and said to carry on with the meticalm as it might help her feel better if nothing else. I mentioned to her about reading that some people use Bisolven, she said she would speak to my normal vet and mention it, she hadn't prescribed it for rabbits before herself but in theory it was a good idea.
On Friday I got a phone call from my normal vet, she said the results came back negative so that was good. (However I did read you can get a false negative so although I'm glad it didn't say positive, I think it could still be). I had mentioned doing an xray on my previous weekend in case it was teeth related. So the vet suggested we could do that and flush her tear ducts. But I am so scared of having her put under. I asked if we could do the xray without anaesteatic as she has been chest xrayed without before and a previous bunny had a head xray without too as well as another chest xray. So that's 3 times we've avoided anaesthetic. But unfortunately the vet doesn't think we'll be able to do it without as she needs to be on her side for this one. She might be right as my other bunny was very poorly and also well behaved, I think Hazel might be too lively and 'well' to just sit still. But she said we can try if I want. I realise the tear ducts needs to be while she's under anyway but I was hoping something could help and avoid needing to do it.
So we have agreed to do a week of Bisolven first (the vet doesn't think it will be enough but is happy to try it first). Then I have to phone her next friday and we'll decide what next. I think if this doesn't help I would prefer to give antibiotics a try first as they did help a bit last time. My reasoning is there is a risk of dying from aneasthetic but if we tried antibiotics for a couple of weeks and see if it helped, then any side effect is unlikely to have that high a risk (I assume). And if it didn't help we could always then move on to the xrays? That might be a bad idea, I really don't know so I thought I would see what any of you might do in the same situation or any advice.
To help her myself, I have tried her in the bathroom a couple of times for the steam, not sure if it helped but she is easily stressed so it's not ideal to stress her to do that. I also tried olbas oil on some kitchen roll and just holding near her for a bit, again I don't know if that helped or not. I am giving echinacea drops every day to hopefully help her immune system and I think I read apple leaves and twigs are good so I've been giving her a few of them and some brambles and dandelion leaves (all from the garden so no pesticides).
Thanks for reading
A few weeks ago she was sneezing a lot more and having more discharge. I got a vet appointment but it wasn't my normal vet. This vet suggested trying again for the pasteurella test and holding off antibiotics until we heard back. She thought that would be a few days. She mentioned it could be allergies and suggested dampening the hay. She said that one side seemed a bit blocked. The hay is from HayBox and is dust extracted, she lives indoors and doesn't have sawdust or anything like that, nothing has changed in her environment so I would be surprised if it was just allergies but I don't know.
Hazel was getting worse, even more discharge and horrible sneezing fits where she just can't stop for like 20 or 30 seconds, it clearly upsets her. Also white discharge came out of her eye a couple of times in the sneezing fits. So I took her back and saw my normal vet but the results weren't in so she still wanted to wait for results before doing antibiotics. She noted one tear duct seemed blocked so she gave me metacalm for 5 days saying this might help if it is inflamed. It didn't seem to make a difference but she didn't get worse. That took me to last sunday, I phoned the vets on tuesday still not having heard back about results and to ask whether to continue. The receptionist asked if it had helped, I said I didn't think it did much so she said there was no point in continuing. She said she would get a nurse to chase the results for me. I came off the phone but then phoned back and said I didn't know what to do as that meant she was on no medication to help her (and I wasn't convinced the lab hadn't mucked up again so we could be waiting for no reason). She asked if she was eating ok which I said yes but she seems exhausted after a sneezing fit and sometimes goes to eat, sneezes, keeps trying to eat then runs off when she can't stop sneezing. She said she would get a vet to phone me back. That evening a different vet phoned me and said to carry on with the meticalm as it might help her feel better if nothing else. I mentioned to her about reading that some people use Bisolven, she said she would speak to my normal vet and mention it, she hadn't prescribed it for rabbits before herself but in theory it was a good idea.
On Friday I got a phone call from my normal vet, she said the results came back negative so that was good. (However I did read you can get a false negative so although I'm glad it didn't say positive, I think it could still be). I had mentioned doing an xray on my previous weekend in case it was teeth related. So the vet suggested we could do that and flush her tear ducts. But I am so scared of having her put under. I asked if we could do the xray without anaesteatic as she has been chest xrayed without before and a previous bunny had a head xray without too as well as another chest xray. So that's 3 times we've avoided anaesthetic. But unfortunately the vet doesn't think we'll be able to do it without as she needs to be on her side for this one. She might be right as my other bunny was very poorly and also well behaved, I think Hazel might be too lively and 'well' to just sit still. But she said we can try if I want. I realise the tear ducts needs to be while she's under anyway but I was hoping something could help and avoid needing to do it.
So we have agreed to do a week of Bisolven first (the vet doesn't think it will be enough but is happy to try it first). Then I have to phone her next friday and we'll decide what next. I think if this doesn't help I would prefer to give antibiotics a try first as they did help a bit last time. My reasoning is there is a risk of dying from aneasthetic but if we tried antibiotics for a couple of weeks and see if it helped, then any side effect is unlikely to have that high a risk (I assume). And if it didn't help we could always then move on to the xrays? That might be a bad idea, I really don't know so I thought I would see what any of you might do in the same situation or any advice.
To help her myself, I have tried her in the bathroom a couple of times for the steam, not sure if it helped but she is easily stressed so it's not ideal to stress her to do that. I also tried olbas oil on some kitchen roll and just holding near her for a bit, again I don't know if that helped or not. I am giving echinacea drops every day to hopefully help her immune system and I think I read apple leaves and twigs are good so I've been giving her a few of them and some brambles and dandelion leaves (all from the garden so no pesticides).
Thanks for reading
