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    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

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Leg paralysis, seizures, eye watering

Got an appointment for him for this Monday.

He is losing weight, and getting weaker.

I'm going to ask about other drug options. I've read that corticosteroids help some of these bunnies that are nearing their end of life. I'll see what she has to say about that. He is definitely not better today, than when he started the baytril and panacur.
 
TiminMB said:
Got an appointment for him for this Monday.

He is losing weight, and getting weaker.

I'm going to ask about other drug options. I've read that corticosteroids help some of these bunnies that are nearing their end of life. I'll see what she has to say about that. He is definitely not better today, than when he started the baytril and panacur.
Click to expand...


Sending loads of vibes x
 
TiminMB said:
Got an appointment for him for this Monday.

He is losing weight, and getting weaker.

I'm going to ask about other drug options. I've read that corticosteroids help some of these bunnies that are nearing their end of life. I'll see what she has to say about that. He is definitely not better today, than when he started the baytril and panacur.
Click to expand...

Is he currently on a daily non steroidal anti-inflammatory eg Meloxicam aswell as the Panacur and Baytril ? If not I would want to try that first, before risking a corticosteroid.

In certain specific circumstances I have had terminally ill Rabbits who were prescribed a Corticosteroid as part of their palliative care. They all benefitted from the treatment, it bought them all some additional good quality time. They were also prescribed Ranitidine alongside the corticosteroid to protect their GI tracts from ulceration, one of the possible side effects of corticosteroids.

Whilst the use of a corticosteroid in Rabbits is not usually recommended, there are certain circumstances where-by the Vet may feel that it is appropriate, taking into account all the possible negative effects.
 
Yes, he is on the highest dosage of meloxicam. He gets it twice a day. That stuff gets very expensive when you have to give it at high dosages. It clearly helps, but its no longer enough.
 
TiminMB said:
Yes, he is on the highest dosage of meloxicam. He gets it twice a day. That stuff gets very expensive when you have to give it at high dosages. It clearly helps, but its no longer enough.
Click to expand...


You can get a prescription from the vet (they charge for that) and buy it online which makes it far cheaper :)
 
TiminMB said:
Yes, he is on the highest dosage of meloxicam. He gets it twice a day. That stuff gets very expensive when you have to give it at high dosages. It clearly helps, but its no longer enough.
Click to expand...

If the Vet agrees to trying the Corticosteroid your Bunny will need to have been off all Metacam for at least 24 hours prior to starting the Corticosteroid.

I dont know if you have a similar system in Canada, but here in the UK it can often work out to be more economical to obtain a prescription for medication from the Vet ( the Vet may make a small charge for this) and then use the Prescription to buy the medication online, from a fully Licensed and reputable Company. Prescription drugs are almost always more expensive if bought directly from the Vet.

Here's an example

http://www.vetmeds.ca/
 
He is doing ok. When inside his cage, 90 percent of the time he appears normal. The odd time he has trouble getting up, so I reach in and give him some assistance. His eyes have started watering again. Not sure of the cause, or whether its related to being off the antibiotics now. He hasn't had a seizure in quite a while, I'd say a week. He has started this odd motion of shuffling back and forth or bouncing on his front paws. Almost Parkinson like motion. Then it just stops. Never seen him do that before.

When I let him out, and he begs and pulls at the cage door to get out when he sees me, he moves very poorly. Quite labored or painful, not sure which. He doesn't go far, then he lays down and rests. He stills goes in and out of his cage to use the bathroom. He is a tough old bunny. Still full of lots of interest in getting out, being groomed, getting treats. But his mobility is so poor. I often have to right him, after he falls over. Otherwise he flops around in a circle like a fish.

We see the vet tomorrow. He will likely appear quite normal to her, standing on the examining table. Its moving around that he finds a chore and exhausting.

Despite his appetite being excellent, and me feeding him a lot of treats, like apple, raisons, banana and sunflower seeds, he has lost weight. This has been going on now for a good 10 months. Before that, he seemed unusually stiff before leaving his cage, he would stretch before exiting, and the stretching got more and more, and then he began to fall over. I'm thinking that if it was cancer, it would have killed him by now.
 
TiminMB said:
He is doing ok. When inside his cage, 90 percent of the time he appears normal. The odd time he has trouble getting up, so I reach in and give him some assistance. His eyes have started watering again. Not sure of the cause, or whether its related to being off the antibiotics now. He hasn't had a seizure in quite a while, I'd say a week. He has started this odd motion of shuffling back and forth or bouncing on his front paws. Almost Parkinson like motion. Then it just stops. Never seen him do that before.

When I let him out, and he begs and pulls at the cage door to get out when he sees me, he moves very poorly. Quite labored or painful, not sure which. He doesn't go far, then he lays down and rests. He stills goes in and out of his cage to use the bathroom. He is a tough old bunny. Still full of lots of interest in getting out, being groomed, getting treats. But his mobility is so poor. I often have to right him, after he falls over. Otherwise he flops around in a circle like a fish.

We see the vet tomorrow. He will likely appear quite normal to her, standing on the examining table. Its moving around that he finds a chore and exhausting.

Despite his appetite being excellent, and me feeding him a lot of treats, like apple, raisons, banana and sunflower seeds, he has lost weight. This has been going on now for a good 10 months. Before that, he seemed unusually stiff before leaving his cage, he would stretch before exiting, and the stretching got more and more, and then he began to fall over. I'm thinking that if it was cancer, it would have killed him by now.
Click to expand...

Can you take a video of him at home when he is having difficulty moving about. You can then show the video to the Vet. Often adrenalin kicks in when a Bunny is at the Vets, this can make them appear 'better' than they actually are.

I hope the Vet can offer some useful suggestions regarding further treatment x
 
TiminMB said:
He is doing ok. When inside his cage, 90 percent of the time he appears normal. The odd time he has trouble getting up, so I reach in and give him some assistance. His eyes have started watering again. Not sure of the cause, or whether its related to being off the antibiotics now. He hasn't had a seizure in quite a while, I'd say a week. He has started this odd motion of shuffling back and forth or bouncing on his front paws. Almost Parkinson like motion. Then it just stops. Never seen him do that before.

When I let him out, and he begs and pulls at the cage door to get out when he sees me, he moves very poorly. Quite labored or painful, not sure which. He doesn't go far, then he lays down and rests. He stills goes in and out of his cage to use the bathroom. He is a tough old bunny. Still full of lots of interest in getting out, being groomed, getting treats. But his mobility is so poor. I often have to right him, after he falls over. Otherwise he flops around in a circle like a fish.

We see the vet tomorrow. He will likely appear quite normal to her, standing on the examining table. Its moving around that he finds a chore and exhausting.

Despite his appetite being excellent, and me feeding him a lot of treats, like apple, raisons, banana and sunflower seeds, he has lost weight. This has been going on now for a good 10 months. Before that, he seemed unusually stiff before leaving his cage, he would stretch before exiting, and the stretching got more and more, and then he began to fall over. I'm thinking that if it was cancer, it would have killed him by now.
Click to expand...


Yes this is often what happens and I find it useful to get a video of how things are at home, as that's what's more normal than being at the vets where it's all scary. I often email the video ahead of my visit.

Regards the feeding, if you haven't already, you can add in a pinch of porridge oats twice daily to try and get a bit of weight on him.

I hope your vet visit is productive when you go tomorrow.
 
I tried making a video before we left for the vet, but he just stood there and I got impatient and picked him up and left with him.

While on the examining table, I discovered he had a large amount of yellow gunk in one ear. I showed it to the vet and she removed a large quantity of dried material and wax. She took it to the microscope and concluded it was both bacteria and yeast. So we are waiting for some ear drops to come in. They didn't have any in stock.

He still weighs 7.2 pounds, so he hasn't really lost weight after all.

She wouldn't prescribe a corticosteroid. She said it wasn't good for rabbits, and I didn't want to challenge her on her opinion.

She instead prescribed a narcotic, bunorphine, or something like that. She says I have to put it in his mouth, but he isn't to take it with food and swallow it. I can give it to him once or twice a day. I forget to ask how long it would take, to take effect. I'm thinking a narcotic would take effect fairly rapidly. So that means I should have him out within half an hour of giving it to him.

Now here is a really crazy question. Has anyone tried marijauna for a rabbit in pain? I've heard that some people use it for chronic pain, arthritis, and seizures. Maybe he could eat a little bit? My wife has access to medical marijauna drops, 50:50 cannabidiol to TCH. Maybe a drop would help him?

Edit: Here is one article of many that I found on cbd for rabbits:

https://www.langaravoice.ca/rabbit-owners-hop-on-the-cannabis-train-cbd-used-to-treat-pet-pain/
 
Last edited:
TiminMB said:
I tried making a video before we left for the vet, but he just stood there and I got impatient and picked him up and left with him.

While on the examining table, I discovered he had a large amount of yellow gunk in one ear. I showed it to the vet and she removed a large quantity of dried material and wax. She took it to the microscope and concluded it was both bacteria and yeast. So we are waiting for some ear drops to come in. They didn't have any in stock.

He still weighs 7.2 pounds, so he hasn't really lost weight after all.

She wouldn't prescribe a corticosteroid. She said it wasn't good for rabbits, and I didn't want to challenge her on her opinion.

She instead prescribed a narcotic, bunorphine, or something like that. She says I have to put it in his mouth, but he isn't to take it with food and swallow it. I can give it to him once or twice a day. I forget to ask how long it would take, to take effect. I'm thinking a narcotic would take effect fairly rapidly. So that means I should have him out within half an hour of giving it to him.

Now here is a really crazy question. Has anyone tried marijauna for a rabbit in pain? I've heard that some people use it for chronic pain, arthritis, and seizures. Maybe he could eat a little bit? My wife has access to medical marijauna drops, 50:50 cannabidiol to TCH. Maybe a drop would help him?

Edit: Here is one article of many that I found on cbd for rabbits:

https://www.langaravoice.ca/rabbit-owners-hop-on-the-cannabis-train-cbd-used-to-treat-pet-pain/
Click to expand...


That sounds like Burpenorphine, an opiate pain reliever, used trans-mucosally (via the tissues in his mouth). It's often well tolerated and effective. I would see how that goes for starters.

I was pleased to see that he hadn't lost any weight :)
 
TiminMB said:
I tried making a video before we left for the vet, but he just stood there and I got impatient and picked him up and left with him.

While on the examining table, I discovered he had a large amount of yellow gunk in one ear. I showed it to the vet and she removed a large quantity of dried material and wax. She took it to the microscope and concluded it was both bacteria and yeast. So we are waiting for some ear drops to come in. They didn't have any in stock.

He still weighs 7.2 pounds, so he hasn't really lost weight after all.

She wouldn't prescribe a corticosteroid. She said it wasn't good for rabbits, and I didn't want to challenge her on her opinion.

She instead prescribed a narcotic, bunorphine, or something like that. She says I have to put it in his mouth, but he isn't to take it with food and swallow it. I can give it to him once or twice a day. I forget to ask how long it would take, to take effect. I'm thinking a narcotic would take effect fairly rapidly. So that means I should have him out within half an hour of giving it to him.

Now here is a really crazy question. Has anyone tried marijauna for a rabbit in pain? I've heard that some people use it for chronic pain, arthritis, and seizures. Maybe he could eat a little bit? My wife has access to medical marijauna drops, 50:50 cannabidiol to TCH. Maybe a drop would help him?

Edit: Here is one article of many that I found on cbd for rabbits:

https://www.langaravoice.ca/rabbit-owners-hop-on-the-cannabis-train-cbd-used-to-treat-pet-pain/
Click to expand...

Please dont give any to your Rabbit ! You may make things a lot worse for him. I dont know if the same Laws apply in Canada, but in the UK it would be illegal to administer the drug to an animal unless the person doing so is Veterinary Qualified to do so.

The pus in the ear canal may indicate that there is also infection in the middle ear. I hope the Vet was able to confirm that the tympanic membranes ( ear drums ) are still intact as if they are ruptured applying ear drops would be contraindicated.

The symptoms your Rabbit has been displaying do all fit with Otitis Media (middle ear infection). Some information about the condition here :

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

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

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

http://www.tokyovets.com/2017rabbitear3.pdf

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/me...bbit-surgery-course/2-eye-and-ear-surgery.pdf

Re the Corticosteroid, as your Rabbit is now suspected of having an active Bacterial infection then using a Corticosteroid is usually not appropriate. Corticosteroids can have a negative impact on the immune system and Rabbits are especially sensitive to this side effect. Obviously the last thing a Rabbit with an active bacterial infection needs is to have their immune system further challenged.

I hope things improve for your Rabbit soon, best wishes x
 
Now I am worried about the ear drops. Could my vet actually see his eardrum to make sure it hadn't burst? I'm going to call and confirm. This has me really worried.

Edit: I have called the vet and left her a message. I want to establish that she verified his eardrum was intact. There was so much gunk in there, where did it come from? I worry that it was from the middle ear given the large volume of dried pus.
 
Last edited:
TiminMB said:
Now I am worried about the ear drops. Could my vet actually see his eardrum to make sure it hadn't burst? I'm going to call and confirm. This has me really worried.

Edit: I have called the vet and left her a message. I want to establish that she verified his eardrum was intact. There was so much gunk in there, where did it come from? I worry that it was from the middle ear given the large volume of dried pus.
Click to expand...

Hopefully the Vet will soon return your call. A CT scan is the best way to ascertain the precise problem.
 
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