Hi, sadly my rabbit Kibeth has recently started having difficulties with her breathing - she was breathing very heavily, seemed lethargic, and kept hiding so of course we took her to the vet.
They put her on oxygen and did an x-ray which showed fluid in her lungs. They drained most of the fluid and kept her on oxygen and she started to perk up and her respiration rate starting going down, so we decided to take her home with some antibiotics to give her and monitor her closely here. Sadly, she quickly went downhill at home and her heartrate and respiration rate went up again, so back to the emergency vet.
They gave her a different type of antibiotic, more oxygen, steroids, and a bunch of other meds, but she was still breathing very heavily. She was still eating quite happily and didn't have any problems with stasis or anything. Meanwhile, they got the results back from the fluid they drained which showed no signs of bacterial or viral infection, so the vet decided to do an ultrasound. This showed up a mass of some kind in her chest, which they believe is cancer, which is causing fluid build up/pressure on her lungs and is pretty close to her heart.
At this point, they are recommending we put her to sleep, as they don't think surgery would be successful. So I'm trying to decide if we should try surgery or something like radiotherapy or let her go. She's only about 3 (age is an estimate as she's a rescue rabbit) and is otherwise very healthy - we've had her with us a year and this is the first time she's had any health issues. She seemed fine (maybe slightly tired/dopey when we stroked her sometimes, but she does tend to melt when you pet her, lol) until about a week ago. We'd even taken her to the vet a few days before she got ill for her boosters with nothing noticed by the vet and she was still eating and running around happily, then all of a sudden she went downhill so fast.
I hate the thought of her struggling to breath or suffering in any way, but she's so young and she's such a lovely rabbit that I'm wondering if it's worth trying treatment options for her. Has anyone had any similar experiences or any rabbits who've undergone surgery or radiotherapy for cancer? If it would only prolong things for a couple of months and she'll suffer, then I don't want to do it, but if there's a reasonable chance she can recover or get another happy year or two with treatment then it might be worth trying.
Also, does anyone know of any vets (I'm based in Manchester) who might be able to do this sort of surgery, radiotherapy, steroids or anything else that might help her? The vet she's at now is good with rabbits but I'm not sure if they offer those kinds of services.
Thanks for your help and advice.
They put her on oxygen and did an x-ray which showed fluid in her lungs. They drained most of the fluid and kept her on oxygen and she started to perk up and her respiration rate starting going down, so we decided to take her home with some antibiotics to give her and monitor her closely here. Sadly, she quickly went downhill at home and her heartrate and respiration rate went up again, so back to the emergency vet.
They gave her a different type of antibiotic, more oxygen, steroids, and a bunch of other meds, but she was still breathing very heavily. She was still eating quite happily and didn't have any problems with stasis or anything. Meanwhile, they got the results back from the fluid they drained which showed no signs of bacterial or viral infection, so the vet decided to do an ultrasound. This showed up a mass of some kind in her chest, which they believe is cancer, which is causing fluid build up/pressure on her lungs and is pretty close to her heart.
At this point, they are recommending we put her to sleep, as they don't think surgery would be successful. So I'm trying to decide if we should try surgery or something like radiotherapy or let her go. She's only about 3 (age is an estimate as she's a rescue rabbit) and is otherwise very healthy - we've had her with us a year and this is the first time she's had any health issues. She seemed fine (maybe slightly tired/dopey when we stroked her sometimes, but she does tend to melt when you pet her, lol) until about a week ago. We'd even taken her to the vet a few days before she got ill for her boosters with nothing noticed by the vet and she was still eating and running around happily, then all of a sudden she went downhill so fast.
I hate the thought of her struggling to breath or suffering in any way, but she's so young and she's such a lovely rabbit that I'm wondering if it's worth trying treatment options for her. Has anyone had any similar experiences or any rabbits who've undergone surgery or radiotherapy for cancer? If it would only prolong things for a couple of months and she'll suffer, then I don't want to do it, but if there's a reasonable chance she can recover or get another happy year or two with treatment then it might be worth trying.
Also, does anyone know of any vets (I'm based in Manchester) who might be able to do this sort of surgery, radiotherapy, steroids or anything else that might help her? The vet she's at now is good with rabbits but I'm not sure if they offer those kinds of services.
Thanks for your help and advice.