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Sneezing - no discharge

mismatchbunnies

Warren Scout
This could be a long post so hear me out.

I have two cage free house rabbits who live mainly in the kitchen in their set up (on a rug and some blankets - will become relevant later) but also spend time in my bedroom during the day when I’m home, as my female much prefers the carpet for grip and overall just seems more comfortable (less noise etc.) As we’ve been quarantined for like last 2 months, my bunnies have been spending more time in my room than usual as I’m home more (around 12 hours in each space) which they seem to enjoy.

However, for about a week or so, my female has been sneezing with no discharge when in my room (this can range from sneezing once (yesterday) to sneezing 4 times in a day with some being sneezing fits which happened a few days ago). Like I said, there is no white discharge which I know would indicate snuffles (my male bunny had this once) and the sneezing hasn’t become more frequent as I have been monitoring it closely. As I have said this all has happened whilst she has been in my room, and I have never seen her sneeze anywhere else (eg in the kitchen in her other set up), although I’m wondering if that’s because I’m not with her most of the time in there (ie overnight), however, my family has said that they have never seen her sneeze in there for the few hours they are in the kitchen in the morning (before I have brought her to my room for the day).

Therefore I’m wondering if she is allergic to something in my bedroom, but then this poses the question of why hasn’t she shown signs of this before now (she’s almost two). Could it be that she’s spending more time in there? Could it be a pollen/tree pollen allergy as I have been told levels are high right now, and I have been having the window open pretty much everyday with it being warmer recently?

I have dusted my whole room to try and eliminate that factor of a dust allergy, but of course there is always going to be dust in a carpeted room so could it be that? Not to mention the bunnies are both moulting at the moment so it might also be the extra loose fur which seems to be everywhere (even though I’m brushing them every other day at the moment). And the increase in sneezing does seem to coincide with if they haven’t been brushed very recently (ie the day I mentioned where she sneezed 4 times was the day I hadn’t brushed her for 3 days, as she finds being brushed very stressful and I’m trying to reduce her stress with her already being a stress-prone and anxious rabbit). But this could of course be coincidence.

Also, she seems to sneeze in particular when I move around or come over to her, which could possibly add to the theory it could be dust which floats around even more when there is movement. Although, this is not the case every time and some times it seems unprovoked.

I really don’t know what to think, and of course my fear is that it could be snuffles, but I feel as though there would be some progression in the sneezing increasing/appearance of white discharge in the last week if this was true? Not to mention, my male rabbit had this once and if it was then I feel as though he would be vulnerable to it also and have developed signs also.

I can’t figure it out and could use some advice/answers so any help appreciated.
 
It could be allergy related, I assume that you do not have any possible allergens in your room like air fresheners and that you dont use any cleaning products (eg aerosol polish etc) when dusting. Have you tried using a steam carpet cleaner ? This can help if allergens caused by dust/dust mites are causing problems. However, there are other possible issues that can include 'dry sneezes' as a symptom. These may include lower respiratory tract infections, heart problems, dental problems that involve tooth root elongation.

I am assuming that she is spayed ?

Have you noticed any increase in her respiratory rate and/or effort ?

Is she maintaining her weight-ie no unexplained weight loss ?

Is she as energetic as normal and if so is her exercise tolerance normal- ie she does not have abnormally prolonged periods of lying down with an increased respiratory rate after charging about ?

Is her eating/pooing/drinking and weeing normal ?
 
It could be allergy related, I assume that you do not have any possible allergens in your room like air fresheners and that you dont use any cleaning products (eg aerosol polish etc) when dusting. Have you tried using a steam carpet cleaner ? This can help if allergens caused by dust/dust mites are causing problems. However, there are other possible issues that can include 'dry sneezes' as a symptom. These may include lower respiratory tract infections, heart problems, dental problems that involve tooth root elongation.

I am assuming that she is spayed ?

Have you noticed any increase in her respiratory rate and/or effort ?

Is she maintaining her weight-ie no unexplained weight loss ?

Is she as energetic as normal and if so is her exercise tolerance normal- ie she does not have abnormally prolonged periods of lying down with an increased respiratory rate after charging about ?

Is her eating/pooing/drinking and weeing normal ?

Thanks for replying, and no I don’t have any air fresheners or cleaning products which could cause irritation. And no I haven’t used a steam carpet cleaner, I might look into this if things don’t improve.

Yes she is spayed.

I was aware of the possibility of lower respiratory issues and heart issues, but she is just as active and seems to be showing no increase in respiratory rate or issues. She was binkying and zooming just last night (as she usually does at night) and didn’t seem to show any struggle.

Whilst I can’t seem to get a very accurate measure of her weight (no pet scale) I am trying to get this at the moment and will try again today, but she hasn’t shown any signs of weight loss/decrease in appetite and her pooing/weeing and drinking is all seemingly normal.

Regarding her teeth, the last time we went to the vet in March, she did say she had a couple of spurs which were not causing irritation yet but will probably need doing in the future, but with covid my vet is only seeing emergencies at the moment and since she is not showing any decrease in appetite etc I doubt they would consider doing a dental right now. With the possibility elongated tooth roots, I’ve heard this is more common in older rabbits (I know not impossible in younger ones), but she is showing no other signs of pain (teeth grinding) or swelling etc which often accompanies this problem. Her hygiene is very good also and she has no food stains around her mouth/struggles grooming etc.
 
It is good that you are being very thorough. I have thought of a couple of things, do you hoover/vacuum the room when she is in it, or use any body sprays. I know beds create a bit of dust especially underneath, is this a possible cause? Perhaps she is like me, I sneeze a lot for no apparent reason, but why does Jane say it can be caused by heart problems? One last thing - are the pellets dusty? Oh just thought, you don't smoke near her? Or burn candles?
 
Thanks for replying, and no I don’t have any air fresheners or cleaning products which could cause irritation. And no I haven’t used a steam carpet cleaner, I might look into this if things don’t improve.

Yes she is spayed.

I was aware of the possibility of lower respiratory issues and heart issues, but she is just as active and seems to be showing no increase in respiratory rate or issues. She was binkying and zooming just last night (as she usually does at night) and didn’t seem to show any struggle.

Whilst I can’t seem to get a very accurate measure of her weight (no pet scale) I am trying to get this at the moment and will try again today, but she hasn’t shown any signs of weight loss/decrease in appetite and her pooing/weeing and drinking is all seemingly normal.

Regarding her teeth, the last time we went to the vet in March, she did say she had a couple of spurs which were not causing irritation yet but will probably need doing in the future, but with covid my vet is only seeing emergencies at the moment and since she is not showing any decrease in appetite etc I doubt they would consider doing a dental right now. With the possibility elongated tooth roots, I’ve heard this is more common in older rabbits (I know not impossible in younger ones), but she is showing no other signs of pain (teeth grinding) or swelling etc which often accompanies this problem. Her hygiene is very good also and she has no food stains around her mouth/struggles grooming etc.

I'd try the steam cleaning then. Some devices have various attachments that enable you to use it on beds, curtains, chairs etc :)
 
It is good that you are being very thorough. I have thought of a couple of things, do you hoover/vacuum the room when she is in it, or use any body sprays. I know beds create a bit of dust especially underneath, is this a possible cause? Perhaps she is like me, I sneeze a lot for no apparent reason, but why does Jane say it can be caused by heart problems? One last thing - are the pellets dusty? Oh just thought, you don't smoke near her? Or burn candles?

Yes I hoover daily as they are moulting a lot at the moment. And no I’m not using any body sprays currently other than deodorant (not spray either) which I have always used and I keep it away from them anyways. I actually vacuumed under my bed a couple of days ago as I thought this too. No the pellets are not dusty and I don’t smoke or burn candles. I’m stumped too!

It can be a sign of heart problems but like I said she has no other symptoms and she is young also.
 
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