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e cuniculi advise needed please

Floppybun

New Kit
Hi,
I've just joined the forum, looking for advise for one of my rabbits who has been diagnosed with e cuniculi. It started with her face looking a little lopsided and blood tests were high in e cuniculi.
Here is my problem. Before the blood test results were back the vet gave me a 9 day supply of panacur for my two rabbits however when the ninth day came the blood results still weren't back. Now that it's confirmed I need to go back to administering the panacur but over a week has gone by since they had their last dose so should I start again with the 28 day dose? I'm thinking that it might not be successful otherwise because of the break - surely it needs to be a continuous dose.
Is there any other advice about getting rid of the parasites? I read somewhere that there is a certain cleaning routine to follow? And that regular disinfectant kills it? However the buns have access to a run on grass so there's probably going to be parasites in the grass now isn't there?
I'm also wondering if it really is the e cuniculi causing her face lop-sidedness. Every other picture I've seen of rabbits with e cuniculi looks completely different to her. in fact googling images of buns with ear infections brings up rabbits that look more like her. Also she showed no improvement with the 9 day dose of panacur. Is it worth asking vet to continue investigating ears/teeth and maybe prescribe some antibiotics whilst we are investigating?
Finally, has anyone ever heard of a human having e cuniculi? I've read that they can catch it but that it's rare.
Thank you if you've read all that, apologies for all the questions and thanks in advance for any replies :)
 
Welcome to RU floppybun. I'm sorry you rabbit is unwell.

I think I'd restart the panacur for 28 days & treat all your rabbits. Deep cleaning I believe should be on days 21 & 28 of treatment.

You're completely right that it is it really difficult to work out if ear infections or EC are the cause of head tilt & similar problems. Good vets tend to take a multi pronged approach & prescribe antibiotics (to cover possible infection), metacam for pain & to reduce swelling (the latter is important for EC) & panacur.

Panacur is sensible as her bloods show a high load. Are you confident with your vet - I'm a bit worried they don't seem to have addressed many of the things you raised. We can help you find a bunny savvy vet if need be.

I have house buns so not much idea about how you'd clean grass. Toileting areas are the most important as EC spores are shed in urine

When my bun had EC there was very little improvement for 6 weeks or so. Both ear infections & recovery from EC can be a long haul I'm afraid
 
Humans are at minimal risk of EC - a few instances reported worldwide, some with vague links to rabbit contact. For healthy people I'd not worry at all, those with very low immune system (HIV positive, undergoing chemo) might need extra precautions
 
Hi
Personally I would want to do 28 consecutive days off Panacur.
EC usually rears it's ugly head in times of illness/stress so it's possible that there is an ear infection present too. The symptoms are almost exactly the same but the only way of properly diagnosing an inner ear infection is by XRAY or CT scan and not by physical examination. I'd definitely recommend speaking to your vet about adding in an antibiotic, Baytril is often prescribed but it is known to be weak against anaerobic bacteria so try to push for something different. See what your vet says!
I do agree in regards of the lop sided face, I've certainly seen it a lot in rabbits with ear infects, my own included!
Is your bunny on Metacam? Metacam helps with any inflammation or pain that she might be in so in my eyes it's an essential part of treatment for head tilt.
If you are on facebook then there is a great group for you to join, www.facebook.com/groups/helpforheadtilthoppers

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm
xxx
 
And yes, like Joey and Boo has already said, treatment for head tilt usually takes a little time. It's unlikely that you would see improvements after just 9 days. It's important to get a full treatment plan and cover all bases :)
 
H you so much for the replies.
To be honest I have really struggled to find a rabbit savvy vet. I live in South Wales, does anyone know where I might find one there?
Yes I'll definitely do another 28 days of the panacur then. And do a deep clean of hutch on days 21 and 28.
I'll push for x rays / ct scans as well. I'm guessing they have to go under general anaesthetic for these?
She's having trouble cleaning her bum bless her because of her facial problems, it's really hard to clean because it's all dried by the time I've got to it so I'm spraying in the fly stroke spray, I hope that's enough to prevent it. I'm having a go at cleaning her but there's always a bit I can't quite get and I think bathing her might make her distressed.
 
The treatment would be the same regardless of an xray/ct scan so a lot of people choose to just treat for both. Personally I do the CT because I hate not knowing but I'm covered insurance wise, CT's don't come cheap.
I don't know if any of these are near you. If you start a thread in rabbit chat with the title 'Rabbit savvy vet needed in...' and add your location then someone may be able to help you :)
https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ve...by-rabbit-owners/copy_of_county-or-city/wales
 
cross posted with RR. If you want a more specific area than S.Wales do let me know & I'll update the thread
 
Re. Deep cleaning, when I asked my vet at the time (Molly Vaga, rabbits consultant and expert) she was very sceptical about how effective it would actually be, although it made me feel better doing it. She felt it would be neigh on impossible to reach every nook and cranny!

I think I would keep everything super clean generally (will also discourage flies) and do a 'deep' clean but don't worry too much about it.

Good luck with it all :)
 
Thank you so much for the advice and thanks for starting the thread asking for a vet Joey.
Funnily enough, I contacted a local rabbit rescue a couple of weeks ago to ask which vet they use and she's just got back to me today and also recommended valley vets so I think I will give them a call :)
 
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