Rallybunny
Warren Veteran
Taken from Tufty Fund......can anyone help??? I have put a link on Tufty for the lady who was asking, so she can see any answers you might have.
I need urgent advice for Oliver, ny 4 yr old Nethie male.
On Saturday afternoon I found Oliver in a state of collapse. I had been out so have no idea how long he had been like it, but he'd seemed fine first thing in the morning. I took him to the emergency vet who said that his teeth were very overgrown and that he was dehydrated. I left him there over the weekend being syringe fed and on a drip and on Sunday the vet rang to say he was much better, bright and alert, and struggling when they tried to syringe feed him which sounds about right for Oliver. So, apart from berrating myself for not picking up on his teeth being bad (I've had a total of 5 rabbbits with malocclusion and know the signs, I honestly didn't see anything) I was happy that things were going well.
On Monday morning they rang to say he was still doing well so they would go ahead and do the dental, and I carried on with work as usual. At lunch time I had a voicemail message to say that the dental was done and Oliver was recovering and to call to arrange collection which I duely did. Stilll with me so far?
At 4.30 I popped out from work to collect him and the nurse did the handover. I could see instantly that he wasn't right, but she said it was the anaesthetic and he was still drowsy. Instead of going home I went back to work because it's just down the road from the vets and I wanted to stay close for a while. Oliver seemed disorientated and could not lift his head. Having had 5 rabbbits with malocclusion and various other illnesses I am well used to caring for post anaesthetic rabbits and knew that this was not normal, so at 6pm I rang the vets back. The nurse who answered the phone spoke to the vet and said that the vet was just off to another practice but that Oliver probably had a sore neck from wearing a buster collar, but that if I was still worried later I could go back and see a different vet. I wasn't happy wiith this, a buster collar should not leave an animal unable to lift his head.
So, still worried at 8.45 I rushed him back in to see a vet before they handed over to their night service at 9pm. This was a different vet and she suggested that Oliver may have had a neurological reaction to the anaesthetic. She gave him a steroid injection and a painkilller injection and sent me home with instructions to keep syringe feeding him which I have been doing, and just to wait and see how he goes.
Today Oliver is no better. He still can't lift his head on his own and if he falls on his side he can't get up. His ears are leaning to one side but his head is not actually tilting, probably because he can't lift it so his nose is resting on the floor all the time. He seems most comfortable hunched up. He is hungry and will eat if I put his face into the bowl (mashed pellets) but he can't support himself, I have to hold him while he eats or his nose sinks into the mash.
I wiill ring the vets at 8am and see if I can take him in before work, but I just wondered if anyone has come across this before and if so, what the best course of treatment is.
Thanks for reading.
Jackie