Enlarged eye

I am wondering if anyone has any experience of a rabbit with an enlarged bluish eye? I have a 6mth old french lop that has been really well and active. About 2 weeks ago I noticed she had a very enlarged eye that was cloudy with a bluish tinge. The vet examined her and said it could be glaucoma and gave her trusopt drops and fucithalmic ointment to apply both twice daily. She gave her a shot of metacam as she said it would be uncomfortable. The eye seemed to decrease in size slightly but the bluish colour is unchanged. She had her check up today and the vet is not happy with the size and has suggested carrying on with this combination for another 10 days plus metacam daily now to reduce inflammation. She does not seem to have much knowledge and no equipment to measure pressure or do ultrasound. She suggested maybe an x-ray but said that may not show anything and may need anaesthetic. I asked if there were any specialists i could be referred to but she said the only place would be the RVC and it could be several hundred pounds for examination and tests. Does anyone have any advice on this condition or any recommendations of specialist vets in Essex/ I live 5 miles from Basildon. Any ideas or advice would be welcome.X

William Lewis here :

http://www.orchidvets.co.uk/veterinary-staff/

Can you post a photo of the eye ? I am wondering if it might be EC related. EC can be transmitted from a Doe to her kits during pregnancy. This can cause the lens of the eyes to rupture causing cataracts and possibly glaucoma and uveitis.

I asked her about Ec but she had not heard EC caused eye problems. So she went and got a book and showed me some pictures of eye problems caused by EC and said my rabbits eye looked different. I will try and post pic now. Thanks Jane

Hi :wave:

My rabbit has been receiving specialist treatment for Glaucoma for 18 months now - he has a very blue tinge to his eye which is typical of the condition but it can be more complicated so worth checking diagnosis with a very bunny savy vet or specialist - if you PM me I can give you the eye specialist my bunny is with and im sure she would be happy to chat with your vet.

There can be underlying conditions which cause Glaucoma - in my bunny he has free floating eye cysts - has your vet suggested using any false tears in between eye drops as that can help with lubrication.

Also have they said what the eye pressure reading is - normal reading are very variable - my bunnies pressures have been up to 30 but I'm advised by my opthalmic specialist and other vets that providing there are no other considerations such as abscess or tumour then they can cope very well as my bunny has done for some 18 months. Yes his sight has deteriorated but he manages really well and we have made compensations by keeping everything in its usual place and in his twilight years now he still enjoys his evenings outside for a few supervised hours playtime and the he is free range indoors.

Key IMO is regular eye pressure checks to keep abrest of the condition and to know your bunny really well so you can spot any changes in behaviour or habits. My bun is also on a low Dailey dose of metacam more for his joints really but i to think it keeps him comfortable as glaucoma is tricky as the pressure can spike higher and then drop again within the space of a few days.

Hope this helps and feel free to PM me if you think my buns specialist would be of help to your vet.

:wave: me again lol

Also I spoke with the Rabbit Welfare Association when my bunny was first diagnosed and Richard Saunders has some good contacts in bunny opthalmics - my opthalmic specialist is based in the West Midlands so it may be too far distance wise for you - cost wise about the same as the RVC - have you got insurance to help?

If he is prescribed long term meds such as trusopt or Azopt - well worth checking internet prescriptions as I know pay £37.00 for three bottles as direct with the vet specialist they were £25 each:roll:

Normally for bunny referrals in Essex I too would suggest William Lewis, but for looking specifically at eyes, you can't get any better than Martin Lawton in Harold Hill near Romford. He's an exotic AND ophthalmology specialist so bunny eyes are right up his street - and I think even though William is an exotics expert, he would probably refer complex eye problems to Lawton too!

I've had a referral to Lawton before with one of my bunnies and an eye problem and honestly, it's like seeing the master of deduction at work. He has all the ophthalmology equipment at hand that you could possibly need, and he works completely methodically and will spend as long as it takes trying to work out what is going on. Your vet should be able to do a referral pretty quickly, he doesn't work every day so as long as they know you're getting a referral, they can get you booked in and then your vet can send across the paperwork before the consultation. I was there a couple of years ago and from memory the first consultation (which was about an hour) was about £110.

If I were you, that's definitely what I would do.

http://www.vets.uk.net

Enlarged Eye

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Here are a couple of pictures of her eye

Yep the bluish tinge as per responses above looks typical of glaucoma but does need specialist examination to try to establish underlying possible cause and best course of treatment.

There is very little research in glaucoma so sometimes if no under lying symptom is found such as EC, tumour etc it may be a case of keeping the bunny comfortable and monitoring but IMO you really need a savy opthalmic vet examination to help you determine best meds and options and have a more detailed eye examination, which isn't bad for the bunny a good opthalmic vet will examine the retina, cornea, look at the back of the eye and health of the eye generally and test pressures. My bunny has this ongoing check and takes it all in his stride:thumb:

fillygal said:

Yep the bluish tinge as per responses above looks typical of glaucoma but does need specialist examination to try to establish underlying possible cause and best course of treatment.

There is very little research in glaucoma so sometimes if no under lying symptom is found such as EC, tumour etc it may be a case of keeping the bunny comfortable and monitoring but IMO you really need a savy opthalmic vet examination to help you determine best meds and options and have a more detailed eye examination, which isn't bad for the bunny a good opthalmic vet will examine the retina, cornea, look at the back of the eye and health of the eye generally and test pressures. My bunny has this ongoing check and takes it all in his stride:thumb:

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I have two bunnies with glaucoma and would echo everything said. I go to a specialist exotic vet in Cambridge nd there is also a specialist opthamologist at the Animal Health Trust in Newmarket (Claudia). There can be a risk that the eye will 'burst' with the pressure and so it does need measuring and monitoring frequently and one of mine is probably going to have to have the eye out..

bluelop said:

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Here are a couple of pictures of her eye

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Magnification of the images in comparison to my bunny it looks as though the globe is larger so IMO I would definitely get an opthalmic vet referral for your bunny - the one mentioned close to you in Essex sounds a good option.

It would be best to get referral ASAP to ensure she is not in discomfort,

Let us know how you get on.

Thank you so much for your replies. They were so helpful. I have kept rabbits as pets for many years and this is the first time I have come across this, so worrying. How often do you use trusopt? That is good to know about buying on line as I was charged £31.92 for one bottle.
I contacted the vet today and found out he he is usually there mon , wed and Friday so I can have a think about getting a referral and taking her there. Thanks again for your replies will let you know what he thinks when he sees her. Does he have to admit her to do any tests needed? Any ideas on costing for these tests. They said the consultation alone was£125. X

As to whether she would need to be admitted for tests, I guess it depends on exactly what he need to do, Heather had all her tests done during the consultation. I was there for the best part of an hour, he starts off by just asking you loads and loads of questions and understands everything about how your bunnies are kept, what they eat, when you first noticed something up, whether anything had happened immediately before it etc etc. Only once he's gone through all of that will he look at bunny. He has loads of different bits of equipment for looking at the surface and deep into eyes to see what is going on, and he can do the eye pressure as part of the examination too. In my experience he'll do everything he can as part of the initial examination but will obviously discuss whether he thinks any further diagnostics would be needed. I seem to recall that my total bill for the consult was about £170 so that included the consultation fee (which included all the normal tests) plus a small charge for any disposable bits used during the consultation (e.g. Different strips/drops of dye) and two sets of eye drops. It does seem a lot but I probably saved myself about half a dozen further trips back and forth to my normal vet through just the one consultation and diagnosis in one go.

Heather's was a medical rather than surgical case, so I did go back occasionally for a re-check with his whizzy equipment, and from memory that was about £60 or so for a follow-up.

If you're going to book an appointment, bear in mind there are parking restrictions outside the surgery for one hour in the morning - think the details are on their website - so I would try and avoid that time (or just before that time where you might run over into it) if you can. You can park on the forecourt pavement but it's hit and miss as to whether you can get a space.

Good luck, I hope you're able to get a diagnosis for your little one as soon as possible x x

Thanks for the rough guide. Yes you are right I have spent approx £130 so far and feel I have got nowhere so it will be lovely to see someone who knows what's going on. X

Aww great that you have some fab support and help here so hope this helps you x know they are such a worry x when my lad was diagnosed I was a nervous wreck never having dealt with eye problems but I think you do get used to dealing with the condition and learn to read the signs.

Good luck and huge vibes for your bun x I think as you say it will be good to get expert advice so you can move forward.

Re Trusopt x my bun is on Azopt which I think is similar but not absolutely sure x once examined the vet
Specialist can advise re dosage - my bun started on just one drop each eye and is now on
Four per eye per day but it really does depend on the eye pressure which can go higher
And then drop again which is why monitoring helps.

All cases are very individual so try not to worry and take one step at a time,some of the initial things
I worried about never happened and18 months on tonight he has been enjoying the autumn sunshine
So it's all been well worth it.

Keep us posted and sending bunny hugs

Is the pressure related to the size of the eye? Did your rabbits eye stay enlarged or vary in size. My vet prescribed two drops twice daily but had no equipment for measuring the pressure so I guess the dosage was a guess. Were both eyes affected then ? Has his health been affected?

bluelop said:

Is the pressure related to the size of the eye? Did your rabbits eye stay enlarged or vary in size. My vet prescribed two drops twice daily but had no equipment for measuring the pressure so I guess the dosage was a guess. Were both eyes affected then ? Has his health been affected?

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You really need an opthalmic vet to check the pressure and do a thorough examination, just in my opinion and experience with my own rabbit and specialist checks you need to know the pressure to know what dosage of drops to give - in my bunnies Glaucoma but remembering every case is individual the pressure is related to the eye size. For example, he had a specialist check yesterday the one eye had a pressure of 32 and the other 19 - the eye showing pressure of 32 is slightly larger than the other eye. His retina and general eye condition is good.

Have you booked your appointment yet? - my specialist mentioned yesterday one of the reasons for doing checks on pressure is that as the eye stretches it can cause ulceration to the cornea which can be very painful so wise to check all ok.

My rabbit is watched like a hawk lol - he is a house bunny - I have made adjustments for his sight loss and ensure he gets vet checks and his medication is adjusted by his vet dependent on his examinations and in talking to me re his general health. I think without team work with my vet his health would be compromised - I wud rather know what his eye pressure readings are so I can do what ever is necessary to keep him comfortable and pain free.

Hope this helps.

Just to update you, I took bluebell to see Mr Lawton and after his thorough examination he does not think its Glaucoma. As the swelling is only at the front of the eye and the pressures were low he ruled that out.
He thinks she has Kerataoglobus, a condition affecting her cornea.He does not think she is in pain and has prescribed some steroid eye drops to try for a month. If they have no affect reducing the swelling she will not
continue with them. At this stage she has definitely not got to lose her eye thankfully. She is absolutely healthy and active so hopefully she will soon adjust to the loss in sight in that eye. She is only 7months old so now I know she is
not in pain I can start to bond her with my recently neutered buck so she has a companion to take care of her. Thanks for all your advice.X

bluelop said:

Just to update you, I took bluebell to see Mr Lawton and after his thorough examination he does not think its Glaucoma. As the swelling is only at the front of the eye and the pressures were low he ruled that out.
He thinks she has Kerataoglobus, a condition affecting her cornea.He does not think she is in pain and has prescribed some steroid eye drops to try for a month. If they have no affect reducing the swelling she will not
continue with them. At this stage she has definitely not got to lose her eye thankfully. She is absolutely healthy and active so hopefully she will soon adjust to the loss in sight in that eye. She is only 7months old so now I know she is
not in pain I can start to bond her with my recently neutered buck so she has a companion to take care of her. Thanks for all your advice.X

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What a relief to know what's going on with her eye!

Good luck with the bonding x

Great update. Hope the bonding goes well.

Great news - it's amazing watching him work out his diagnostics, isnt it. It must be a big relief that it's not glaucoma and that she isn't in pain. Fingers crossed the eye drops help, do please keep us updated on how she's doing.