• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    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.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

Depocillin and lack of appetite?

madcatwoman

madcatwoman

Mama Doe
Sorry everyone...

So Ozzie is on daily depocillin injections and I have managed 3 days in a row now. He officially started last Tuesday but I missed a couple of days in the middle.

He weighs 2.5k and is on 0.35 daily.

He also has loxicom daily

Today I am struggling to get him to eat, hes left his pellet mush. so today hes had a little bit of celery leaf, a bit of garden weed, maybe as big as your thumb nail. 2 thumb nail pieces of pear. I have made some critical care and hes had 4 syringes full.

He trys a bit sometimes then just stops.

I just wonder... on the days I didnt manage to jab him he ate more pellets mush. Could the jabs be too often?
 
I have given Depocillin quite a few times now and I have not noticed any decrease in appetite.

I hope that you can get Ozzie to eat a bit more. I think if I were you, I would phone your vet for advice tomorrow.
 
madcatwoman said:
Sorry everyone...

So Ozzie is on daily depocillin injections and I have managed 3 days in a row now. He officially started last Tuesday but I missed a couple of days in the middle.

He weighs 2.5k and is on 0.35 daily.

He also has loxicom daily

Today I am struggling to get him to eat, hes left his pellet mush. so today hes had a little bit of celery leaf, a bit of garden weed, maybe as big as your thumb nail. 2 thumb nail pieces of pear. I have made some critical care and hes had 4 syringes full.

He trys a bit sometimes then just stops.

I just wonder... on the days I didnt manage to jab him he ate more pellets mush. Could the jabs be too often?
Click to expand...

I would call the Vet ASAP today and do not give Ozzie any more Depocillin til you have done so

Is Ozzie's output normal, no soft poo/diarrhoea ?

Is he eating his cecotrophs ?
 
Jane, I gave him critical care till late last night. Theres maybe 4 very small poo. thats it. Hes licked at pear slivers this morning but not eaten any. Its as if he wants to eat but cant.

Hes doing alot of looking like he is chewing,so I am thinking dental again. Hes had a 3ml syringe of CC this morning and some infacol just to give it everything i have got. Off to the vets this morning. In himself hes ok, still keen to get away from me.

I just dont know what to do or say, we have battled since 5th March with his ulcer on his eye and the abscess and the dental. Ive done all the usual, rubbing his face and mouth with dandilions and mint and grass, he just flicks his head to get it away, makes no attempt at grabbing it.

There was one little poo pile last night that had a bit of mucus
 
Last edited:
I'm so sorry that Ozzie is still struggling, really hope you can get some answers at the vets. Thinking of you both, and sending vibes for your little bun xxxx
 
We are at the vets at 9.50. He's sat hunched up. He's had another 2 syringes of CC.

I could just sit and cry. Why have I done to him. 5 long weeks for him
 
You’ve done the very best you can for him, as always. I really hope that the vet can help xx
 
Loads of vibes for you. Its hard work looking after bunnies with abscesses. It does sound dental. I hope the vet can help
 
He's had an injection. Something with really long name that's an appetite stimulant.

He explained that the loxicom will be helping with pain. The penicillin with reducing the abscess but that he has the pressure of the abscess in his mouth and round his eye.

He also said it's a long road. Some rabbits are on Injections for life.
It's a damned if we do damned if we don't regarding medication.
He's lively, keeps moving round the room he just won't eat.

I have to keep on with the syringes and cross my fingers.

At some point I will have to go to work and I'm having furniture delivered at 4pm. Never a dull moment .
 
madcatwoman said:
He's had an injection. Something with really long name that's an appetite stimulant.

He explained that the loxicom will be helping with pain. The penicillin with reducing the abscess but that he has the pressure of the abscess in his mouth and round his eye.

He also said it's a long road. Some rabbits are on Injections for life.
It's a damned if we do damned if we don't regarding medication.
He's lively, keeps moving round the room he just won't eat.

I have to keep on with the syringes and cross my fingers.

At some point I will have to go to work and I'm having furniture delivered at 4pm. Never a dull moment .
Click to expand...

I really hope that he will show some signs of improvement soon. At least it sounds as though he is relatively bright within himself. Sending lots more vibes xx
 
Poor little bun, he's really going through the mill, but hopefully the meds will kick in and start to work. Topping up the eating vibes for him, and you are doing a great job xxx
 
Thanks everyone.
He's bright. He keeps going from one place to another, especially if he sees me!
I've put every food I can think of in front of him.
He sniffs and turns his head. I just keep syringing him.
He eventually grabbed a dandelion that j had been pestering him with chewed for ages then spat it all out chewed up.

I just don't know what to do. How long do I put him through all this that seemed to start fairly simple all those weeks ago. A dental and his eye will go back to normal or so I thought. Poor bunny boy
 
One of my rabbits has had the same problems as yours. He also had a bulging eye and it was found to be an abscess. I have been injecting him with depocillin since the January before last. We started out giving him three shots a week, and once the swelling reduced considerably, possibly at six months, I now inject him once a week. Under instruction from my old vet who is a good friend of my current vet, it has been advised that he continues with the depocillin for the rest of his life. I have also done this before with a previous rabbit and it was found that the penicillin caused problems with the kidneys, and she also got quite depressed having the injections so often. This is something I was very aware of this time, and so the first stage of injections wasn't as intense. Maybe it's worth having a discussion with your Vet.

I hope your little one starts picking up with his eating very soon. x
 
bunniemum said:
One of my rabbits has had the same problems as yours. He also had a bulging eye and it was found to be an abscess. I have been injecting him with depocillin since the January before last. We started out giving him three shots a week, and once the swelling reduced considerably, possibly at six months, I now inject him once a week. Under instruction from my old vet who is a good friend of my current vet, it has been advised that he continues with the depocillin for the rest of his life. I have also done this before with a previous rabbit and it was found that the penicillin caused problems with the kidneys, and she also got quite depressed having the injections so often. This is something I was very aware of this time, and so the first stage of injections wasn't as intense. Maybe it's worth having a discussion with your Vet.

I hope your little one starts picking up with his eating very soon. x
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for your reply. Hes on daily injections, I personally think he feels sick. I havent done it tonight. I just think its too much. doing it daily and it corresponds with him slowing down eating. Hes had his loxicom and I have just got 4 syringes of critical care down him. He has nodded all afternoon with his mate. He hasnt eaten a thing.

Did you have any appetite issues with it please?

When he first had his dental and eye bulge he was on an oral antibiotic for 10 days, then he went a good couple of weeks with no antibiotics. Then the vets had a chat about it and decided on the jabs. He ate on the oral ones, he ate less on nothing, and isnt eating on the injections.

I desparately dont want to let him go but I really dont know what to do for the best.
We have had the conversation at home about how long we carry on and if he suddenly goes downhill on a bank holiday weekend and how its impacting on everyone.
Because the oral antibiotics werent an issue then Im thinking maybe give him a rest from the jabs see if he eats then look at different antibiotics.

Or thats my thoughts this hour! Its my every waking moment, what to do with the rabbit.
 
Hello,

I'm so sorry this is happening to your bunny. It must be really stressful and awful for you.
I don't have experience with your particular issue, but just the stress / unpleasantness of the injection (even if he can't feel it, just the fact that the act is unusual) could explain your rabbit being of his food. Some rabbits are really easily thrown or will stop eating when they are upset (I rescued a doe 2 months ago, after her spay she wouldn't eat anything on her own for DAYS, sniffing things and being bright but just not eating anything - she began eating again when I stopped giving her her meds). In this case, trying to find another way of treating him or doing the injection only every other day might be preferable.
But, the way he acts (spitting food, especially), really kinda screams tooth ache. I suppose your vet checked that out. Is your bunny on pain meds? If he is not, it might be worth a try - even a slight pain will stop most rabbits from eating. I know a rabbit who went into stasis because he had a small bruise at the root of one tooth, so considering what your rabbit went through it might be painful to chew or swallow things.
In any case, I would keep Emeprid (Reglan) at home. It can be a real life-saver when you get a stasis case (always a Saturday around 10pm, in my experience :roll:).
I hope things get better.
 
Maya said:
Hello,

I'm so sorry this is happening to your bunny. It must be really stressful and awful for you.
I don't have experience with your particular issue, but just the stress / unpleasantness of the injection (even if he can't feel it, just the fact that the act is unusual) could explain your rabbit being of his food. Some rabbits are really easily thrown or will stop eating when they are upset (I rescued a doe 2 months ago, after her spay she wouldn't eat anything on her own for DAYS, sniffing things and being bright but just not eating anything - she began eating again when I stopped giving her her meds). In this case, trying to find another way of treating him or doing the injection only every other day might be preferable.
But, the way he acts (spitting food, especially), really kinda screams tooth ache. I suppose your vet checked that out. Is your bunny on pain meds? If he is not, it might be worth a try - even a slight pain will stop most rabbits from eating. I know a rabbit who went into stasis because he had a small bruise at the root of one tooth, so considering what your rabbit went through it might be painful to chew or swallow things.
In any case, I would keep Emeprid (Reglan) at home. It can be a real life-saver when you get a stasis case (always a Saturday around 10pm, in my experience :roll:).
I hope things get better.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for your reply. He has eaten a tiny bit of dill and chewed on a bit of pear and celery, nothing major but its a step forward. Hes laid amongst the huge picnic thats now around him.

I totally agree with the stress bit. Hes on loxicom orally once a day then remend eye drops 3 times a day and tears eye drops as often as I can get them in so roughly hourly when Im at home. He is so sick of seeing me! I also think he picks up on my stress when it gets to near injection time.

He did have oral antibiotics at first but they worked out at about 20.00 for a weeks course, the injections are that price per month. But I would pay the weekly to keep our rabbit. The vet explained that he is probably feeling the pressure of the abscess as apposed to pain from it as he is on daily pain relief

Hes currently laid on his mat he doesnt look totally comfy with himself but his head is up and his nose is twitching. Im going to keep syringing and cross my fingers.
 
Maya said:
Hello,

I'm so sorry this is happening to your bunny. It must be really stressful and awful for you.
I don't have experience with your particular issue, but just the stress / unpleasantness of the injection (even if he can't feel it, just the fact that the act is unusual) could explain your rabbit being of his food. Some rabbits are really easily thrown or will stop eating when they are upset (I rescued a doe 2 months ago, after her spay she wouldn't eat anything on her own for DAYS, sniffing things and being bright but just not eating anything - she began eating again when I stopped giving her her meds). In this case, trying to find another way of treating him or doing the injection only every other day might be preferable.
But, the way he acts (spitting food, especially), really kinda screams tooth ache. I suppose your vet checked that out. Is your bunny on pain meds? If he is not, it might be worth a try - even a slight pain will stop most rabbits from eating. I know a rabbit who went into stasis because he had a small bruise at the root of one tooth, so considering what your rabbit went through it might be painful to chew or swallow things.
In any case, I would keep Emeprid (Reglan) at home. It can be a real life-saver when you get a stasis case (always a Saturday around 10pm, in my experience :roll:).
I hope things get better.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for your reply. He has eaten a tiny bit of dill and chewed on a bit of pear and celery, nothing major but its a step forward. Hes laid amongst the huge picnic thats now around him.

I totally agree with the stress bit. Hes on loxicom orally once a day then remend eye drops 3 times a day and tears eye drops as often as I can get them in so roughly hourly when Im at home. He is so sick of seeing me! I also think he picks up on my stress when it gets to near injection time.

He did have oral antibiotics at first but they worked out at about 20.00 for a weeks course, the injections are that price per month. But I would pay the weekly to keep our rabbit. The vet explained that he is probably feeling the pressure of the abscess as apposed to pain from it as he is on daily pain relief

Hes currently laid on his mat he doesnt look totally comfy with himself but his head is up and his nose is twitching. Im going to keep syringing and cross my fingers.

Is the Emeprid on prescription? Ive not heard of it before. We just have infacol in our bunny 1st aid box
 
madcatwoman said:
Thank you so much for your reply. Hes on daily injections, I personally think he feels sick. I havent done it tonight. I just think its too much. doing it daily and it corresponds with him slowing down eating. Hes had his loxicom and I have just got 4 syringes of critical care down him. He has nodded all afternoon with his mate. He hasnt eaten a thing.

Did you have any appetite issues with it please?

When he first had his dental and eye bulge he was on an oral antibiotic for 10 days, then he went a good couple of weeks with no antibiotics. Then the vets had a chat about it and decided on the jabs. He ate on the oral ones, he ate less on nothing, and isnt eating on the injections.

I desparately dont want to let him go but I really dont know what to do for the best.
We have had the conversation at home about how long we carry on and if he suddenly goes downhill on a bank holiday weekend and how its impacting on everyone.
Because the oral antibiotics werent an issue then Im thinking maybe give him a rest from the jabs see if he eats then look at different antibiotics.

Or thats my thoughts this hour! Its my every waking moment, what to do with the rabbit.
Click to expand...

I do agree the he must be feeling pretty poorly and is probably getting a bit fed up being poked and prodded around. I haven't had any eating issues this time with my boy, but that's how my little girl was before, and also why I didn't do daily injections this time. I think the same as you that it's too much.

I would also be inclined to do as you are thinking, and still give him the loxicom, and leave the jabs a day or so to see if his eating picks up and then try again. I wouldn't give up on them all together though. I suggest you discuss with your Vet perhaps doing them every other day or third day, as I do believe they are the right way to go as I'm convinced they are what has kept my boy still with us for the past year and 3months.

I know it's very stressful, but don't be hard on yourself as you are doing the best you can under the circumstances.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

P
Bunny still off food and hay, drooling and teeth chattering
2 3
Replies
49
Views
895
twistedtiggerz69
twistedtiggerz69
B
Mouth Ulcers and Pus
2
Replies
22
Views
1K
InspectorMorse
InspectorMorse
M
Rabbit arthritis with rear leg paralysis.
Replies
3
Views
263
morton2000
M
Back
Top