Rabbit Mites - Thought I'd Share this with you!

[charlie&co]

I'd tried absolutely everything to rid Dante (my Rex) of his fur mites. He'd been to the vets and they'd taken skin scrapings and treated him with something called Ivomec, however, this didn't work and Dante's fur looked terrible. After numerous trips to the vet, desperation led me to use something that's meant to be for cats! :shock: I tried Bob Martin's Silent Flee Spray (£2.99 from Tesco). After following the instructions, and administering it every 3 days for 9 days, the flees have completely gone, and just 2 weeks later, Dante's coat is back to the plush beautiful coat he once had!

So basically, after spending nearly £250 at the vets on Dante and using various scrubs & baths they prescribed too! the flea spray at £2.99 actually did the trick!

I had the flea spray in the cupboard for my cats as a precautionary measure, and one day I was so fed up at not being able to rid Dante of his mites, I decided I would give the cat flea spray a try! Thank god I did!!! Dante is now back to his usual happy self! :thumb:

xxx

 

[kat_g]

you should NEVER EVER use cat flea treatment on rabbits!!!!

i know that fronline can KILL rabbits (although im not sure what drug is used in bob martins) and it would never be recommended to use a cat/dog flea treatment on rabbits. Plus, the doses given in cat and dog treatments are all different depending on the animal's weight.

There is a new treatment avilable for fur mites called xeno. I used it on my bunnies and it worked fine. It is an ivermectin product (same as ivomec) and it is a sspot on that you apply once, then a fornight later, then another 2 weeks later.

But please, do not ever use a cat or dog flea treatment on your rabbit again. Keep a very close check on your rabbit for the next week. What is the name of the drug in bob martins?

 

[charlie&co]

[There is a new treatment avilable for fur mites called xeno. I used it on my bunnies and it worked fine. It is an ivermectin product (same as ivomec) and it is a sspot on that you apply once, then a fornight later, then another 2 weeks later.[/QUOTE]

Thank you for your response, and obviously you are entitled to your opinion. I have owned rabbits for many years and felt that having visited the vet on numerous occasions with Dante, and the fact that Dante had been treated with various drugs, including Xeno, and I had also administered Rabbit Spot On, I was at the end of my tether for Dante! The flea spray worked for Dante, and I would happily use it again.

I did speak to my vet about it, and was surprised that it worked, however, he confirmed that Dante was back to full health and rid of the mites once and for all.

xxx

 

[kat_g]

i wasnt having a go - sorry if it sounded like that! im glad your bunny is ok, its just that i know how dangerous some drugs can be if used on bunnies.
Glad you got it cleared up too! i know it can be so frustrating with visit after visit and not getting anywhere.

 

[Jack's-Jane]

I would never use a flea control preparation containing PYRETHRINS ie Bob Martin Treatments on a Rabbit

Dana Krempels (Rabbit Expert) says that Pyrethrins are toxic and carcinogenic

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Rabbits-703/pyrethrins-flea-control.htm

Janex

 

[Jocelyn]

Yeah Bob Martins stuff is over the counter so I doubt it has anything in it that is as harsh as frontline - personally I've never found any of their products to work but I'm glad you found a cure for your bunnies mites!

 

[charlie&co]

I would never use a flea control preparation containing PYRETHRINS ie Bob Martin Treatments on a Rabbit

Dana Krempels (Rabbit Expert) says that Pyrethrins are toxic and carcinogenic

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Rabbits-703/pyrethrins-flea-control.htm

Janex

Again, thank you for your response, and you're entitled to your opinion. This method worked and my vet was pleased with the result, so that's good enough for me :thumb:

xxx

 

[Doncat5]

Johnson Insecticidal Spray for small animals works! Its specifically for birds and rabbits etc and kills lice, mites and fleas. Having been through the mite scenario several times in the last few weeks with foster buns, I found this 'pet shop' spray works almost as well as the Ivomec injections and it isnt expensive either. I also recommend you thoroughly clear out hutches/housing and spray with a specific hutch spray, this prevents reinfection. Make sure bun is well away and the cage has aired for at least half an hour though, before adding FRESH bedding or bunny.

I also agree that you should NEVER use dog or cat flea products on rabbits, even if they seem well at the time they can still suffer and die, and believe me its a slow horrible death..... my rabbit was treated by a vet with Frontline 10 years ago, he was horrendous and he eventually died.... I like to think that he didnt die in vain though, as his case was used as a warning to other vets, and published in the British Vet journal thingy.:?

 

[Jocelyn]

Johnson Insecticidal Spray for small animals works! Its specifically for birds and rabbits etc and kills lice, mites and fleas. Having been through the mite scenario several times in the last few weeks with foster buns, I found this 'pet shop' spray works almost as well as the Ivomec injections and it isnt expensive either. I also recommend you thoroughly clear out hutches/housing and spray with a specific hutch spray, this prevents reinfection. Make sure bun is well away and the cage has aired for at least half an hour though, before adding FRESH bedding or bunny.

I also agree that you should NEVER use dog or cat flea products on rabbits, even if they seem well at the time they can still suffer and die, and believe me its a slow horrible death..... my rabbit was treated by a vet with Frontline 10 years ago, he was horrendous and he eventually died.... I like to think that he didnt die in vain though, as his case was used as a warning to other vets, and published in the British Vet journal thingy.:?

I've used Johnson's stuff for treating lice on my rats and it didn't work as it wouldn't kill the eggs latched to the fur on their back. We ended up having to trim off all of the rats' back fur in the end to get rid of them [thankfully they were very docile rats!!!!] that was the only thing that would work! :-/

 

[charlie&co]

Johnson Insecticidal Spray for small animals works! Its specifically for birds and rabbits etc and kills lice, mites and fleas. Having been through the mite scenario several times in the last few weeks with foster buns, I found this 'pet shop' spray works almost as well as the Ivomec injections and it isnt expensive either. I also recommend you thoroughly clear out hutches/housing and spray with a specific hutch spray, this prevents reinfection. Make sure bun is well away and the cage has aired for at least half an hour though, before adding FRESH bedding or bunny.

I also agree that you should NEVER use dog or cat flea products on rabbits, even if they seem well at the time they can still suffer and die, and believe me its a slow horrible death..... my rabbit was treated by a vet with Frontline 10 years ago, he was horrendous and he eventually died.... I like to think that he didnt die in vain though, as his case was used as a warning to other vets, and published in the British Vet journal thingy.:?

Thank you very much for the advise on the Johnsons product. I know what people are saying with regards to using cat flea spray, however, my vet has OK'd it and Dante has been back to the vets since for a dental, and my vet is very happy with him. The mite problem has gone on for 12 months! :shock: I even changed vets because I was so concerned about him. The thing is, vets often give us treatments which are not licensed for rabbits. They are only licensed for cats & dogs, sadly, rabbits always seem to play second fiddle to cats & dogs. I own cats & a dog myself and love them all to bits. I just wish that more drugs were licenced for rabbits.

xxx

 

[elve]

Johnson Insecticidal Spray for small animals works! Its specifically for birds and rabbits etc and kills lice, mites and fleas. Having been through the mite scenario several times in the last few weeks with foster buns, I found this 'pet shop' spray works almost as well as the Ivomec injections and it isnt expensive either. I also recommend you thoroughly clear out hutches/housing and spray with a specific hutch spray, this prevents reinfection. Make sure bun is well away and the cage has aired for at least half an hour though, before adding FRESH bedding or bunny.

.:?

I used that spray on a couple of my guinea pigs and it worked brilliantly - but it does contain pyrethrins. However the way I look at it is many things are carcinogenic - your body fights carcinogens and a healthy immune system will deactivate carcinogens. Stress compromises the immune system, and visiting the vet causes stress - Florence piggy's mites only flared up after a trip to the vet for something else, presumably due to the stress she suffered.

Quite often things are licensed for cats but not for rabbits, just because the manufacturers know there's more demand from cat owners. Like rabbits, cats are very sensitive to toxins, whereas dogs are more hardy - I doubt the dog flea treatment would be safe for rabbits.

 

[kat_g]

Yeah Bob Martins stuff is over the counter so I doubt it has anything in it that is as harsh as frontline - personally I've never found any of their products to work but I'm glad you found a cure for your bunnies mites!

frontline is now available over the counter as they have re-licenced it. Frontline has it written on the back in capitols saying do not use on rabbits. It can kill them

 

[kat_g]

the only reason drug companies dont licence drugs for rabbits is cos its too expensive. They have to pay a lot of money to have drugs licensed as the drugs go through extensive testing. But the companies get their money back when selling to cat and dog owners as there are more of them than rabbit owners. We know drugs, such as metacam, are safe in rabbits cos its been used for ages and quite often if you ring a drug company, they will say that the drug is safe, even though it hasnt been licensed. Just because we use other drugs that are not licensed for bunnies, it doesnt mean that all drugs can be used in rabbits. As someone said before, their rabbit died from treatment with frontline. I was just trying to highlight the possible dangers of using drugs, not licensed for rabbits, without seeking veterinary advice.

 

[Doncat5]

I've used Johnson's stuff for treating lice on my rats and it didn't work as it wouldn't kill the eggs latched to the fur on their back. We ended up having to trim off all of the rats' back fur in the end to get rid of them [thankfully they were very docile rats!!!!] that was the only thing that would work! :-/

You do have to use it 3-4 days later (as advised on the can) to kill the freshly hatched ones, and I really think spraying the housing is a huge help, I use minimal bedding and chuck it every day for the best part of a week. So far so good, all the buns, whether injected with Ivomectin or spayed twice, have yet to show any more live mites. I know this is a bit sad but I examine them under a microscope to check theyre dead! They do still have them attached to the fur though as it takes a while for the dead ones to detach and fall off!

 

[Jocelyn]

You do have to use it 3-4 days later (as advised on the can) to kill the freshly hatched ones, and I really think spraying the housing is a huge help, I use minimal bedding and chuck it every day for the best part of a week. So far so good, all the buns, whether injected with Ivomectin or spayed twice, have yet to show any more live mites. I know this is a bit sad but I examine them under a microscope to check theyre dead! They do still have them attached to the fur though as it takes a while for the dead ones to detach and fall off!

Yeah I followed the instructions, they even had vet visits and injections etc but nothing seemed to get rid of the eggs on their backs.. Their bedding was minimal when they had them and it was changed/the cage disinfected regularly.. it was like they were lying dormant and kept hatching and kept laying eggs, or they had become immune to the treatment :-/ Never had anything like it before or since! These were lice and not mites though, I've always found mites are easier to treat than lice for some reason!

 

[Anita]

I had a new zealand white cross who suffered with mites at least once a year, like you say numerous trips to the vets and the only thing they could prescribe was an injection of something used in cattle! not licenced for Rabbits at all, I am going back now about 10 years. This worked wonders but the cost just got out of hand (and pocket!!). The next best thing I used on numerous occasions was an off the shelf puppy and kitten medicated shampoo which usually kills off the mites in one application. Henry was 8 when he died of pure old age so I know this shampoo did him no harm at all.

 

[kat_g]

you can get a household spray called acclaim, by Vetkem. Its used to treat fleas and lasts for 12 months. I phoned the company as i wondered if i could use it in the outside foster bunnies run and hutch. they said yes, it was safe to use. They told me to remove the bunnies, spray the hutch and all over the run, then wait 30 minutes/or until dry, then the bunnies could go back in. Obviously clean them out before spraying and replace all clean bedding. This worked fine when the bunnies had chyletiella.

 

[Doncat5]

Yeah I followed the instructions, they even had vet visits and injections etc but nothing seemed to get rid of the eggs on their backs.. Their bedding was minimal when they had them and it was changed/the cage disinfected regularly.. it was like they were lying dormant
and kept hatching and kept laying eggs, or they had become immune to the treatment :-/ Never had anything like it before or since! These were lice and not mites though, I've always found mites are easier to treat than lice for some reason!

Ahhhh I had a similar problem to this, in fact it was the bunny the vet eventually killed with the Frontline. The eggs wouldnt shift almost like they were glued on him, especially the back end..... Boomer (the bunny) was a stray I'd found under a car in the street, after he died I discovered he belonged to the kids down the road (got bored and let him go) and on further investigation their mum confirmed all 3 kids were riddled with head lice, they couldnt get rid of.... the vet then confirmed that it was those eggs that were glued to Boomers fur, which is why he had a problem identyfying and killing them... Killing my little boy in the process...

I'd only had him 2 weeks but seeing him die the way he did (slowly and having fits) was awful and it broke my heart, but its all down to Boomer that my interest in bunnies was reignited.

 

[Diddeen]

My Simba keeps getting fur mites too :roll: The other two dont seem to be affected like him at all. He's had several doses of the injections they give them but now my vet has given us the Xeno drops to try.. he's nearly had the whole lot.. 6 doses.. and although his skin looks alot better it is still a bit dry and flakey in places. Dont know what else to try :?

 

[kat_g]

doncat, thats just awful, the poor bunny. must have felt great to rescue him then to have him taken away like that was awful. But thats exactly why i said what i did at the beginning, about the dangers of applying and administering drugs for other animals to rabbits. Glad it got you back into bunnies though, at least that was a positive.