Thistle’s just got back from the Emergency Vets

When I got home a couple of hours ago, I had a gut feeling that something was wrong - Thistle was really disoriented and was hopping round in circles, not being able to move his left foot. He also kept tilting his head slightly and stumbling over, so grabbed Thistle in a carrier and rushed him over to the vets.

My vet has diagnosed Thistle with E Cuniculi, and he’s been subscribed 28 days of Panacur.

Has anyone else nursed their bun back from EC? The vet says that I’ve caught it very early, but he can’t guarantee a recovery. Any advice or prayers for Thisty are appropriated.

Flora and Thistle said:

When I got home a couple of hours ago, I had a gut feeling that something was wrong - Thistle was really disoriented and was hopping round in circles, not being able to move his left foot. He also kept tilting his head slightly and stumbling over, so grabbed Thistle in a carrier and rushed him over to the vets.

My vet has diagnosed Thistle with E Cuniculi, and he’s been subscribed 28 days of Panacur.

Has anyone else nursed their bun back from EC? The vet says that I’ve caught it very early, but he can’t guarantee a recovery. Any advice or prayers for Thisty are appropriated.

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I am sorry to hear that Thistle is unwell. Whilst EC certainly can cause the symptoms you describe so can a middle ear infection. Did your Vet rule the latter out ? In the absence of a definitive diagnosis then many Vets usually try to cover all bases, prescribing a 28 day course of Panacur, an antibiotic to cover for a possible ear infection and also a non steroidal anti-inflammatory eg Metacam. A NSAID is important as it is inflammation that causes the clinical symptoms.

I apologise for my brief reply, I have to go off line now. But these links may be useful to read

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-health/e-cuniculi/

https://www.dechra.co.uk/therapy-ar...cs-antifungals/disease-information/e-cuniculi

http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Parasitic/Encephalitozoonosis.htm

https://www.dovepress.com/encephali...-manageme-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-VMRR

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm

http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Bacterial/BacterialOtitisMediaInterna.htm

https://www.msdvetmanual.com/eye-an...-interna/overview-of-otitis-media-and-interna

http://www.disabledrabbits.com/head-tilt.html

If you are on Facebook then this Group would be very useful to join

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HelpforHeadTiltHoppers/

Sending get well soon vibes for Thistle x

Sending lots of vibes for Thistle xx

Did you get any other meds? Metacam is usually given for suspected EC as it will reduce the impact from the parasite. Panacur will work on reducing the parasitic loading, but not on the damage caused to the nervous system, which results in the typical neurological symptoms (head tilt, hind leg weakness, etc) - hence the use of an anti-inflammatory as well. Sometimes more than one round of treatment is needed.

Sometimes an antibiotic is given in case it is eg an inner ear infection causing balance problems, as a definitive diagnosis can be difficult.

Companion rabbits to a suspected EC rabbit would normally be treated with Panacur at the same time, and don't forget to do a deep clean of anything that may have come into contact with urine. The parasite is shed in the urine, and a deep clean (eg bleach or steam) on days 21 and 28 of the Panacur treatment will help to break the lifecycle of the EC parasite and prevent reinfection.

Early treatment does make a difference, although it is often a rollercoaster ride with the rabbit getting much worse and then improving - so keep going with any nursing or supportive care that is needed. I've had one with a very severe case and she recovered with only a slight head tilt within a year. She was initially unable to walk and her head was twisted right round to her shoulder. She needed a lot of intense care (feeding, drinking, kept warm and clean), but did gradually improve and went to live back outside, looking pretty normal to casual visitors.

Flora and Thistle said:

When I got home a couple of hours ago, I had a gut feeling that something was wrong - Thistle was really disoriented and was hopping round in circles, not being able to move his left foot. He also kept tilting his head slightly and stumbling over, so grabbed Thistle in a carrier and rushed him over to the vets.

My vet has diagnosed Thistle with E Cuniculi, and he’s been subscribed 28 days of Panacur.

Has anyone else nursed their bun back from EC? The vet says that I’ve caught it very early, but he can’t guarantee a recovery. Any advice or prayers for Thisty are appropriated.

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As I'm sure you know, there are several differential diagnoses for head tilt etc. Sometimes fluid moves in the inner ear, not always infection, and if that's the case it's a sort of 'labyrinthitis' which can clear up easily on it's own. An inner ear infection won't show through a look with an otoscope though.

You've got the Panacur? That might make a significant difference if it's caused by E.C.

You would also want to discuss with your vet when you can put him onto Metacam. Metacam is necessary to prevent the eruption of E.C. spores into organs such as the brain and kidneys which are particularly vulnerable, and where they would cause an inflammatory response. It might be a good idea to talk with your vet about having a full blood profile taken, because E.C. can cause issues in the kidneys. Your vet can then weigh up the pros and cons of prescribing Metacam, which it's believed can be particularly hard on the kidneys.

http://www.dechra.co.uk/therapy-are...cs-antifungals/disease-information/e-cuniculi


A couple of links about possible causes of head tilt:

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-8/head-tilt.html

http://www.rabbit.org/health/tilt.html



There's some info on this link about ear infections, but there are some graphic images:

http://www.exoticpetmedicine.com/article/S1557-5063(16)30173-2/pdf
(it also takes a while to load!)


What about joining this group to get some support?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HelpforHeadTiltHoppers/


There's also some good info here:

http://www.disabledrabbits.com/head-tilt.html

I also tried a gentle massage, as once the muscle has gone into spasm, you need to gently coax the head to a normal position again:

http://www.disabledrabbits.com/physical-therapy.html


There's also the alternative of acupuncture and also cold laser therapy to help with symptoms:

https://www.twickenhamvets.com/laser-therapy-amazing/

My vet does this, and the results can be very good

Sending vibes for Thistle and hugs for you xx

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

Mine didn't have EC but a bad infection which left him with nerve damage and wasn't fully cleared up prior to me taking him on, so it ended up worse than it should've been. I would echo what others have said, try not to get freaked out by any of the links, they are amazingly helpful but I know it's a scary thing to deal with. As Shimmer has said, it's a bit of a roller-coaster and can be a long journey. It sounds like you caught it really early so fingers crossed it will be easily treated. I would also echo MightyMax and look at the 'alternative therapies' like laser, acupuncture or physio a bit further down the line if Thistle is left with a permanent tilt. Physio and magnetic field therapy has done wonders for my boy. All the best to Thistle for a swift recovery!

Thank you all for your replies and links. Thistle luckily hasn’t developed a head tilt (touch wood) but I’m concerned about his eyes - he doesn’t seem to be able to see. When the vet checked him over, he did an eye test and tried to see if he would react to sudden hand movements - he didn’t respond at all, but the vet wasn’t sure if he was going into prey mode and ‘freezing’. Now that he’s back home I can definitely tell that he can’t see - could this be a side effect of EC?

The vet said that the main focus is to keep him eating (to prevent gut statis) until the Panacur kicks in. Thistle’s refusing to eat hay or his usual green veg and grass, but seems to have a taste for carrots and pellets, and he LOVES the taste of the Panacur :shock:

Flora and Thistle said:

Thank you all for your replies and links. Thistle luckily hasn’t developed a head tilt (touch wood) but I’m concerned about his eyes - he doesn’t seem to be able to see. When the vet checked him over, he did an eye test and tried to see if he would react to sudden hand movements - he didn’t respond at all, but the vet wasn’t sure if he was going into prey mode and ‘freezing’. Now that he’s back home I can definitely tell that he can’t see - could this be a side effect of EC?

The vet said that the main focus is to keep him eating (to prevent gut statis) until the Panacur kicks in. Thistle’s refusing to eat hay or his usual green veg and grass, but seems to have a taste for carrots and pellets, and he LOVES the taste of the Panacur :shock:

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In some cases EC can result in loss of vision, but this is usually gradual onset. Has the Vet also prescribed a NSAID eg Metacam ? As previously mentioned a NSAID is almost always essential in the treatment regime for EC It may be useful for him to have Ranitidine too, this has both prokinetic (GI tract motility improving) and anti GI tract ulcer ulcer properties. Personally I would want to ask the Vet for these meds if they have not already been prescribed.

Flora and Thistle said:

Thank you all for your replies and links. Thistle luckily hasn’t developed a head tilt (touch wood) but I’m concerned about his eyes - he doesn’t seem to be able to see. When the vet checked him over, he did an eye test and tried to see if he would react to sudden hand movements - he didn’t respond at all, but the vet wasn’t sure if he was going into prey mode and ‘freezing’. Now that he’s back home I can definitely tell that he can’t see - could this be a side effect of EC?

The vet said that the main focus is to keep him eating (to prevent gut statis) until the Panacur kicks in. Thistle’s refusing to eat hay or his usual green veg and grass, but seems to have a taste for carrots and pellets, and he LOVES the taste of the Panacur :shock:

Click to expand...

E.C. can cause something called phacoclastic uveitis but this usually develops quite gradually. I found when this was suspected I took my rabbit to a specialist ophthalmologist and the appointment was worth it's weight in gold to find out the exact cause and what was happening re sight etc.

However, testing eyesight in rabbits is notoriously difficult, as their 'menace' response is difficult to interpret. Some rabbits can keep their eyes open whilst being tested as though they can't see, but in reality they can. It's tricky!

I'm sorry that you can't feel that Thistle can see