99 percent certain that Mimzy is deaf – UPDATE Oct 1 Vet visit

[MimzMum]

I’ve been suspecting it for awhile now, how he never thumps at odd sounds anymore, how fireworks didn’t bother him this year (at least), and today, how he didn’t spook when my husband turned on an electric saw almost directly under my window this afternoon. (the other two were registering some serious WTF on their faces and I almost wet my pants)  He was just sitting there calmly washing himself, cool as a cucumber. I confirmed it by clapping my hands together loudly behind him. Nothing. Fiver however gave me a few disapproval thumps and I had to apologise to him.

The thing is, I KNOW Mimzy used to be able to hear. I have no idea exactly when he lost it. I feel terrible for him. Luckily he can still feel some vibrations, because I thumped the grooming comb on the bed a few times and he stood at attention.

At least he won’t be afraid of the vacuum anymore.

I’m wondering if it may be connected to his skin condition on his ears. It’s getting worse and we still have no diagnosis. I currently use (approved by the vet) some Heal X on the crusty spots to keep the skin from getting ulcerated, because when these things come off (with this awful tearing sound) they tend to bleed and sometimes it is painful for him. He’s been seen by 4 vets and tested each time, HE DOES NOT HAVE MITES. Neither is it a fungal infection, according to the labs. Now I am finding similar crusts on his back right behind his head. There may be others, but his fur-which he’s molting rather awkwardly at the moment, in little round areas hither and yon-is so thick I can hardly see the skin underneath except in already or normally thinned patches. There is some minor dandruff in some spots. I am wondering if it isn’t auto-immune and possibly related to his early onset arthritis.

What would have caused the hearing loss? Just old age? (He’s only 4 years.) And is there anything I can do, besides being sure he SEES me from now on for any communication, to make interaction between us-or the other bunnies-more successful?

I find it ironic that both he and I are having ear trouble right now. I still have to see a doctor next month for my vertigo/hearing problems.

I still wanted to bond him to the other two. I wonder if that would be why he was so combative with Pip in our recent attempts? Discomfort? Just not knowing when she was approaching him?

He scratches so much during the day that I’ve taken to giving him benadryl again just to provide some relief. Dropped the metacam just in case it was an allergic reaction, no difference. Have a call in to the vet, we’ve been trying to figure this out since before the last antibiotic fiasco. She was about ready to do a skin biopsy. The other two buns don’t have anything like this, even though Mimzy’s ears were becoming ragged at the ends months ago and he’s been in clsoe proximity to both of them.

I just want him to be more comfortable. I doubt now whether his flank nipping was ever caused by hip pain, as he doesn’t want me touching any of these scaly spots except to put on the Heal X. That he actually enjoys. So he may have this stuff in places I can’t see. He still has the odd breathing pattern that I wouldn’t call laboured, just kind of huffy-puffy. Another reason I dropped the metacam doses down. He does fine without it, no difference in gait.

So beyond palliative care, what else should I be doing?

 

 

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Have you considered food allergies? I’m just wondernig, they often present with skin issues AND ear infections-ear infections that can destroy hearing…so I’m hmmming. Forgive if you have ruled this out, I am so tired I cannot remember if you’d spoken about that before.
Definitely sounds like he may be deaf. Honestly not a big handicap having had Chuck, it never seemed to bother him. My parents dog Mandy is deaf and at first she acted alienated (wondering why we were no longer talking to her maybe!)-but she’s totally adjusted and always smiles when we sign to her. Aninmals adjust-so I wouldn’t fret over the loss. But perhaps it is a clue as to what is going on.

[MimzMum]

Thanks for replying K&K. Actually, I’ve long thought he may have allergies to something, just don’t know if it’s food or environment. Either way, it’s obvious he does not hear anything anymore, and so making sure he sees me when I enter a room and keeping in his field of vision are already making things better. It must be awfully lonely in there, inside himself, not hearing anything and, if he happens to be out of my sight, not knowing where mummy is. I kind of doubt he can see or tell the other buns are there either, since his sniffer isn’t 100%.

I almost feel like I’m dealing with a little bunny shaped Helen Keller.

What strikes me as odd is I’m still chatting away at him like a looney. Have to poke myself to remember he isn’t hearing me anymore. He will never hear me tell him how much I love him again…so touch is going to be all the more important to both of us. The whole thing makes me sad. When I realized this yesterday, I took him to me for an especially long cuddle session. He was ready for another today before I’d even finished cleaning out his habitat… jumped up on his pen door and about launched himself into my arms! lolz.

The Heal X has made a difference on the edges of his ears that were so badly chapped. I am also cleaning his night habitat with a different solution (we’ve used 50/50 vinegar and water for so long, I think he may be allergic to that at least) and now I use Nature’s Miracle. He seem more comfortable in there now and is even stretching his legs out more to snooze. Usually he’s curled into a little ball of misery next to his litter pan. Now he seems happy to be in other spots. The pen bottom is also warped from use, (heck it’s as old as he is!) so I have to fix him a new place to go beddy bye anyway and that’s in my plans.
I don’t know if the Nature’s Miracle is really agreeing with his sinuses (the scent is not strong or unpleasant, but anything causes his snot to run these days) as he’s been a bit more boogery today. I didn’t get his morning benadryl in, so that may be it.

His shoulders are very red from scratching though, and I only just discovered the other day that he is irritated there. So I’ll have to get some more of the cream in that spot. I just worry he’ll scratch at it to the point of self-mutilation and if it were to abscess that would be tragic.

My poor bub. I wanted a better life for him than this. I sometimes feel like I’ve failed him. But I know it’s most likely something genetic that I couldn’t have helped. It doesn’t make me feel any better as I’m quite the perfectionist and when it comes to my animals it’s doubly bad.

Thanks again for your answers and advice K&K. I really appreciate it. I know folks here must be getting weary of me posting about Mimzy’s troubles, but I don’t have anywhere else to take them. So thanks for being here.

[LizzieKnittyBun]

Oh gosh, you haven’t failed him! Just the fact that he wants to be near you so much is indicative of what a great job you’ve done with him. Just give him as much attention as he wants (which you’re doing) and I’m sure he’ll be just fine! Rabbits are often quiet animals anyway, and don’t chatter much with each other. Maybe this will be a calm, soothing life for him.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Don’t be so hard on yourself. Mimzy has a great life with you. He has a lot of health problems but that doesn’t mean he’s any less happy.

As I mentioned before, I’m pretty sure that Bindi is at least 50% deaf, could be much more than that. He doesn’t hear much that’s for sure. It really hasn’t affected his quality of life very much though. My boys are still doing pretty good with the bonding sessions so I wouldn’t worry too much about bonding and Mimzy’s inability to hear.

[Elrohwen]

I agree that you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself! Plenty of animals lose hearing or sight, but it really doesn’t bother them like it does with people – they’re very adaptable. One of my dogs growing up went deaf and he was still as happy as could be! He could feel the vibration when our garage door opened, so he knew we were home, but he couldn’t figure out where we were coming from and would sit facing the completely wrong direction with this happy goofy look on his face. When we came up behind him and he realized we were there, he’d start jumping around. Lol. I don’t think animals feel a sense of loss or loneliness when they lose a sense like that – especially when they’re pampered pets who don’t need to hear for their survival.

[Sarita]

I doubt that that skin condition caused deafness, that doesnt’ make any sense to me.

I had a friend who had a holland lop with scabs like you are describing and the vet couldn’t get a definitive diagnosis on any scrapings or biopsies and in the end determined it to be pseudomonas and it took her forever to clear it up. I think she did baytril for a very very long time, I’ll have to see if I can find the email about it somewhere…I know I posted about it too and I’ll see if I can find that.

[MimzMum]

Thanks everyone. You’ve all made some good points and it just occured to me that his deafness may be why he ‘looks’ so ‘sad’ all the time…he doesn’t hear so there’s just less to stimulate him. No wonder he sleeps so much!

Sarita, thank you! I’d be grateful for anything you can tell me. I do wonder if he’s got some autoimmune problem that could’ve caused the deafness, but it could’ve been trauma from a dental (his last ones were both rough) or just all the antibiotics he’s taken. He could just be aging. But this is how he is, so we work with it. I would love to clear up the skin though. He’s one itchy critter.
I did notice improvement in him with his last Baytril dose, but his vet doesn’t want to overuse it…hence why he was on the TMS last time (he is considered allergic to that now.)
The Heal X and benadryl seem to help, but I don’t know what I’ll do if he needs benadryl plus metacam. That’s a lot of depressant medication.

[jerseygirl]

Firstly; 

the other two were registering some serious WTF on their faces and I almost wet my pants

Lol. You make me laugh.

Noises can cause a bit of stress so just think, Mimzy didn’t have to deal with that! I agree with what others have mentioned. They really do adjust well when one of the senses is gone.

Regarding his ears skin, have you considered corticosteriods? Not a cream because he could ingest it but maybe an injection?

Or could the reaction to the TMS be a clue maybe? Reading that just made me think about K&K’s question about food allergy. Sulphur maybe?

My thoughts are going every which way, so forgive me for being disjointed…   You’ve said about his peeing on habitat floor. Are his ears ever wet or get close to the pee? In the past when you’ve posted about Mimzys resp. problems I’ve wondered if he was allergic to something in his own urine.

I doubt it’s weariness anyone is feeling when you post of Mimzy’s woes. More frustration that we can’t help other then listen. Wish we could find the answer for you. For Mimzy.

One last thing; I was reminded of a post by Tate when you mentioned still talking to Mimzy. She mentioned talking more to her rabbit Fievel and also making mental pictures in her mind to help her relationship with him. I think your talking to him is a good thing for yourself and I bet he picks up on the feeling behind your words. Remember, animals don’t know English. He doesn’t need to hear the phonetics of the word “love” to know he is Loved.  

[MimzMum]

Thanks again guys. El, I’m trying to imagine your dog facing the wrong way while you guys are driving up…lol. That’s a cute picture!
I didn’t realize that Bindi was also losing his hearing, LPT. Good grief, could you and I be any more similar?? 0_o It’s just getting SPOOKY now!
I know I sound depressed and depressing. Sorry about that. I tend to just throw what’s in my head out there. As long as I am working towards making him as happy as possible, I haven’t failed. I would fail if I did nothing at all or didn’t care.
I am glad that maybe deafness would be a good thing for Mimz. In a weird sort of way. I don’t mean to complain, I just miss the old times when he was more responsive to me and everything around him. But I know he’ll be okay. I guess it’s not so much that Mimz has to make the adjustment as I do.
(K&K, do you really think he could be ‘signed’ to? I wonder if I should try…it’d be like clicker training of a sort. Fun!)
And it really is working, just making sure I am certain he sees me well. It really perks him up and then he wants nose rubs and begins licking the side of his habitat. So perhaps all this time I’ve thought he was depressed and lethargic, he just didn’t realize I was there?
Both he and Fiver tend to eat, move about and snuggle into comfy positions more when I am there. Since removing her sleeping shelf as well (it was bowing under her weight, it really isn’t made for a bun her size) Pip cannot see me as well as the other two in her night hab, so she generally just ignores me when I go in the bunny room. (Hey, she’s a diva, she does that anyway.) But all I have to do is call her and first you see the ears, then the whole face is up and looking at me as if to say, “Cookie?”
As long as Mimz won’t be hurt by Pip, or feel like he has to overly assert himself, we’ll restart the bonding, again. (eep) I did have him out on the bed next to Fiver the other day and allowed them to sniff each other out a bit. It went really well. Then Mimzy wanted to go snuggle in Fiver’s habitat and that was the end of that. Fiver ran back in and I didn’t want a confrontation, so I closed the door. Mimzy just goes over to it and lays down next to it while Fiver tries to groom his ear that tends to stick through the bars. It was a “D’aww” moment.

I know, I need to set up a formal bonding area for all of them. The xpen now has to be washed because the hubby put a new window in the kitchen and there’s still sawdust and possibly tiny fragments of insulation under the heating vent near the pen. I knew I should’ve taken all that stuff out before he started, but I didn’t get to it in time. Darned men. When you want them to do something and you’ve got things arranged for it, they’ve got something else to do, when you move everything back the way it was, badaboom! Out come the power tools and the resulting mess!

Okay, got off track there. I had forgotten that about Tate and the mental imaging, Jerz, I will try that out, thank you!
I am glad that Mimz doesn’t have to worry about (LOUD) noises anymore…like the guys arguing (which happens with frequency these days). However he still spooks at seeing shadows and such. He foot thumped quite a bit last night and it took me a while to realize he may have seen the cat jump up on the bed and been scared of her.
I have wondered about allergies to his own urine and other things as well. It is a distinct possibility. I caught him weeing over the side of his pan today and realized I had it filled too high with stuff (Y/N, Carefresh, hay) trying to make it easier for him to jump in and out of, so perhaps a thinner layer of litter will do just fine.
Speaking of his agility, honestly since taking him off metacam except for really cold days or weather changes when he looks creaky, he is stretching more and looking better than he did with the metacam. He is on benadryl syrup twice a day to keep that nose clear and help with his itchy skin. It has made quite a difference.

Spoke with his vet today about his chapped patches of skin, we’re going to keep using the Heal X for a week, then check back in if they haven’t gone away and we’ll decide what to do from there. I don’t think she has steroids in mind, and she was surprised when I told her he wasn’t hearing anything like he used to. Not overly concerned though, just noted it in his chart along with the TMS allergy, and doesn’t relate it to the itchy skin. That helped me feel more sure he’s going to be just fine, and I feel like I’ve done what I can for him and also I do my best with his daily palliative. I don’t want to stress him by taking him back and forth if I don’t have to. I realize it only contributes to his malaise.
After two days without having to apply more of the cream, his ears are still soft and smooth as they’ve ever been. So I am thinking just environmental irritation. That would be just fine with me, that’s something I can do something about.
I am also not using vinegar in cleaning any of his stuff. He seem on the whole a lot less irritated especially while lying down. Maybe I wasn’t getting all the solution off the floor or his litter pan. That stuff makes MY nose wrinkle, I can only imagine how his wee bunny nose had to deal with it.

Okay, sorry…rambling…it is late and I need to go to bed.

I am sorry if my posts become tedious, repetitive or tend to leave everyone exhausted/frustrated. But really, I appreciate having other bunny lovers to bounce ideas off on, no pun intended. You have no idea how much you really do help me and my bunnies. Things I would never have thought of in a million years come from all of you here. You guys are a kind of family to me, and I really thank you all even if this is just where I tend to vent frustrations. I am glad when I am able to report good news, and always hope to do so eventually.

You all need a big hug from all of us here! ((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((BIGHUG))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Nighty-night! (honk-shu) ^_^

[LittlePuffyTail]

Returning the (((((((((((((((((Big Hug)))))))))))))))))))

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Remember-animals adapt-to anything. I would try signing since he has his sight For Chuck I would blow on him or stomp. Dave was actually who noticed he was deaf…he was just supposed to be blind, but nobunny sleeps through the vacuum and there was never any sign of hearing. Luckily he had adapted before I got him. Mandy had adjustment period, but obviously dogs are animals that evolved along with us (And undoubtedly were the reason we evolved static societies!!!) so they are canines but totally intune with our very primate vocalizations. And huskies and spitz’s in general seem most in tune with vocalizations, she definitely was for sure. So she was very not herself after her hearing went. She always smiles and wags for ‘signing’ now and I bless every command we paired with a hand signal over the years (dogs, while sooo in tune with us, respond MUCH better to body language/hand signals-and we always pair a body/hand signal with a vocal signal)!! What luck-all her tricks have hand signals. And I’d taught her on/off lights meant ‘come inside now’ lol so that is great too! She adapted, perhaps a slower adaptation because she was inclined to listen, or because we talked too much. I still talk to her-we all do. I never stopped talking to Chuck. My vet said that was just fine, and still talks to Mandy, and spoke to Chuck to his last breath. No harm, don’t feel silly Just in case they do hear a little

Sign would be fun to work on with him! I couldn’t with Chuck. Noot was blind not deaf so I have no experience signing with a rabbit. But obvious (re: big body) signs would work I’m sure. Waving to catch attention then a big motion-like hand to mouth for food etc. I think that would work great!!

*HUGS*

[LittlePuffyTail]

For Chuck I would blow on him or stomp.

I blow on Bindi to get his attention when he can’t hear me. He thinks it means he’s gonna get a treat (and he usually does).

[MimzMum]

Thanks K&K, we’re on the same wavelength, lolz! I’ve been using the ‘breathing’ technique on him for awhile now. He once scared me to death by lying too still in bun loaf position and I yelped at him and woke him abruptly, so now I just gently blow in his face. Of course, with my terrible morning breath, that probably is a rude awakening anyway…lol.
I just blow him kisses when he looks at me now to let him know I love him and use that mental imaging thing to bring to mind a picture of me snuggling him. I’ve gotten a few tooth purrs in return, but not consistently, so I don’t know how well it’s working. Really a nose rub speaks volumes. ^_^ I just spend much more time in touch therapy with him. I think it may be making the other two a wee bit jealous. 0_o
For instance…Pip was lying on her side last night in a way I’ve never seen her do, so I panicked and scrambled over to her to be sure she was okay…turns out I’d just seen her first real bunny flop and she was none too pleased that I’d disturbed her nap. ~_~
Needless to say, I felt a bit stupid. Again. *eyeroll*

Mimz has been getting a few too many treats lately. I need to not do that because I miss him being able to hear me. He may still have a few lower ranges, but I am totally glad he can’t hear the loud stuff anymore. And although he does need a bit more weight, I don’t want him to balloon out.

We have a worsening of a possibly related symptom, the chapped skin on his ears seems to be moving to his back and the hair that’s already thin there is now falling out and his skin is getting rough and reddened unless I really keep up the Heal X cream. He seemed to have one spot that was close to breaking open right behind his head. I don’t know if the skin condition had anything to do with his deafness (perhaps it is lesions that traveled inward?) but it is now causing him to scratch so much he’s going to rip that skin open. I am concerned he’ll abscess in that thin patch. He seems to really need his freeze bottle in his habitat despite how cold it already seems to be in the house. I don’t want him to get too chilled, but it seems to soothe him, so for now it stays.
I didn’t want to, but I’ve made an appointment with his vet for Saturday morning. She needs to see how it’s progressed (we’d already discussed it last week) to decide what we want to do from here. I’ll have her look in his ears and check the eardrums while we’re there.

I can’t keep giving him Benadryl every day. It’s upsetting his stomach and his poos are getting smaller, drier/stickier and misshapen. He is hardly eating hay at this point. He loves his greens, but those are beginning to mess with his cecals. Of course, without the benadryl he is itching worse. He’s going through a weird shed too (the ebbing daylight has set all three off) and any grooming I do is sometimes met with a quick head turn that might be a precursor to a nip. I am very gentle with him, but he really doesn’t want to be brushed at all. His skin must be all over uncomfortable.

It’s getting dried out in general here though. Humidity is dropping to the 30’s and 40’s percent values. Almost all the leaves are fallen or browned. The last of the forage is going fast.
My hands are beginning to break open every time I go outside to walk Jenna or when I wash my hands. I go through this every year, it’s maddening. I sometimes sneak some of the Heal X cream for my cuticles.
Snow/ice/general colder than a witches’ bum weather coming this next week. Ugh! (Hey Monkeybun, where’s our tickets to Oregon?)

[lashkay]

You know you have your bunnies’ support, and you know you have our support – to whatever extent we can help. Take that to sleep with you.
HUGS

[MimzMum]

At vets now. Taking a punch biopsy of his irritated skin. I got a few good pix of the bare patch but can’t post from phone.
It’s either a delayed reaction from the TMS, something allergic or parasitic (no sign of mites under microscope) or, ironically it may be sebaceous adenitis like poor longhairmikes Fubuki.
Biopsy in progress. Will post again when I know more.
Please…vibes for Mimzy. :'(

[Huckleberry]

<<< VIBES >>>> and <<>> for you!
I hope the biopsy goes well. Good luck, Mimzy!

[want2B-BestBunMum]

 Good luck Mimzy! Healing vibes from me & Ebunny…..

[MimzMum]

Sorry to take so long to update. Spent most of my afternoon snorgling Mimz because he had a rough day.
Biopsy went well, but he had a few stitches taken. They have to come out in about 2 weeks.
We won’t get results till next Thursday at the latest.
He also had xrays of his chest & a follow up sonogram. Doc is not sure but there may be something around the thymus area. It could be a lymph node, but she wants to wait on an aspiration until the punch biopsy comes back. No use putting him under unless we need to.
All in all, not the best day, but not the worst. This could all be an allergy if we’re lucky.
Poor mite dropped a nasty cecal while we were trimming his nails….PHEW! He was ready to go home after all that poking and prodding.

Pics (hopefully…using phone to post)
Original patch of irritated skin

 

Biopsy site

EDIT: I had to resize the pix. The whole area is easily the size of a 50 cent piece.

He got .2 ml metacam for when the lidocaine wore off. I was scared he’d keep tearing it up but he’s doing well so far.
Thanks for the vibes. He did really well considering how long we wound up being there.

 

EDIT AGAIN: Sorry, the pix aren’t showing up for me…don’t know why. Can anyone else see them? I’ll try to get them posted some other way maybe tomorrow, but it’s late here and my PC is messing with me. I can’t work on it any more tonight.

Thanks again for any and all vibes. We’re going to try to catch up on our sleep. Hugs to all!

[lashkay]

More vibes that he continues to do well!

[MimzMum]

Trying one more time:

Original patchy skin:

Biopsy site:

Ahh…we’ve changed formats on pix. I get it now. Hope this comes out okay.

[RabbitPam]

I see it the second time, so it’s working – pix that is.

Poor little guy. That looks sore, but clean. Sending vibes for swift healing.
{{{{{{{{{{{Mimzy}}}}}}}}}}}}

I hope this vet gets some things resolved with him. I feel like shipping up BT’s latest vet – the one that cured Cotton after 2 years.
Good luck!

[LittlePuffyTail]

Aww….that picture made me sad. Poor little guy. I just feel so bad for him, having to deal with all of these problems. Wish I could give him a big hug.

Wishing you both all the best. ((((Continued vibes)))))))

[MimzMum]

Brief update. He’s doing well despite the almost constant itching and scratching and the occasional odd breathing. The shaved area is not as red, there’s still the brownish area that must be a bruise but I’m keeping the skin supple with bag balm. The vet on call told me to use aloe, but I think bunnies can have reactions to that so we’ll stick with the balm for now.
I think just using the hot water on his pen may be helping. I can’t recall when I last heard him have a sneezing fit. He’ll still sneeze after a groom, but my guess is he’s inhaled fur or perhaps skin scales. Mild runny nose/opaque boogers, but I expect that for now.

I also wonder if even unscented YN litter is a trigger for him. But every litter has some scent/dust to it and his own urine can have a strong smell that sets him off. So even though I’m using less cleanser on his habitat, I’m spot cleaning more often to keep things as fresh ad possible.
Lolz…at last my OCD is worth something!

[MimzMum]

Biopsy results inconclusive. Massive white blood cell involvement in the skin area we had taken the sample from, but negative for cancer, tumors or infections.
Next step is GA and aspirate thymus to check for irregularities. At this point I am ready to just dissolve in a heap. Been crying angry tears since getting the vet’s call.
I can’t keep putting him through this garbage. Does anyone have any ideas? I’ve got to at least get the itching/scratching relieved.

Also considering thyroid problems, but need to ask Dr. H what she thinks and she isn’t in till Saturday. (on call vet phoned today)

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

***********HUGS**********
The next steps-GA and thymus-do you know if they are invasive? Perhaps they will give answers and not stress him out? I would use the invasiveness of the tests and the possible results to decide whether or not to go through with them. And your gut-how’s he feeling? If he the tests do find something, how treatable are those somethings? What are the possibilities/prognosis/treatment? Perhaps finding out what is wrong wouldn’t do anything if the treatment would be the same so starting the treatment without results is the path. All things to discuss with Dr. H when she phones Saturday. Until then have some tea and a nice soak in the tub, or some wine and a good book *****HUGS****

[MimzMum]

If he has the aspiration, he’d have to be anesthetized, a needle inserted to the thymus (close to the heart) and a small piece taken for another biopsy. This means a trip in to town again, probably another shaving and ultrasound charges, etc, time to recover, come back home and de-stress from the whole thing. I am not entirely sure what it is going to tell us either.
This last ultrasound didn’t reveal anything alarming to the vet (although something seemed a little larger than what it should be, but she said it may be a lymph node) I am not really suspecting a thymoma. Enlarged lymph nodes and increased white cells indicate some kind of infection, or possibly an allergy. I would think with cancer we’d see less white cells, not more. (at least in everything I’ve read)

I am wondering if it could be hypothyroidism? He is an older bunny and it would make sense. Or it could still be an allergic reaction to something he’s had in the last 6 months, according to the vet. He WAS itching terribly and very uncomfortable after the TMS, he’s never really been the same since, although the odd skin on his ears and the flaking scabbiness he’s had for a long time now. Not all his current symptoms were a result of the TMS. His stomach, eyes and possibly his skin were all affected though.

I think either way we’d be looking at steroids to suppress the immune system or possibly some other kind of antibiotic therapy. Btu I just can’t be sure.
The main problem right now is that he is itching almost constantly. His eyes are watering and also losing some fur around them from him kicking the crap out of them as he scratches his face. I have to get that under control or in my opinion he has little quality of life.
Still hear that odd breathing pattern. He was doing it this afternoon. I can’t tell if it’s somethign making breathing difficult or just a strange snore…hard to tell when he’s really asleep sometimes.
I may be imagining it, but it seems the hairless patch on his back has increased. I’ve been putting bag balm on the skin to keep it from drying out. Seems to be doing a good job of taking off what visible scaling I am finding there, but I am concerned he is losing more fur.
He hasn’t scratched the biopsy site that I have noticed. He’s left it pretty much entirely alone since she cleaned it off with whatever they prepped the site with. And I know bag balm is totally gentle, so I don’t see why that would be taking off hair.

Could his skin/fur just be dirty or carrying some kind of irritant that he can’t groom off? If so, would this be one of those times that he should be immersion bathed to help reduce the irritation? I just can’t see doing it really, what with temperatures going down the way they are. But I want to help him. It just tears me up to see him uncomfortable.

I also wonder if this could be a reaction to the almost continuous metacam he’s had since finding that bone spur in his hip. Maybe he’s sensitive to it?

It’s a stretch, but I also think about how we just don’t store vitamin D well up here with the limited daylight in the winter. Maybe he’s developed some kind of deficiency?

If anyone has any good ways to help keep a bun from itching, I’m all ears. (Have tried benadryl, but all that does is make his tummy upset and shrink his poos.)

*sigh* I’d like to take you up on that wine, K&K. I might just have the hubby go get a bottle and put a nipple on it. X_X

[LittlePuffyTail]

Just at thought, I really know nothing about this, but maybe there is an anti-fungal type of shampoo for cats that would be bunny safe?

Last Fall my horse had an awful bout of severely dry, flaky skin. It was so itchy that she rubbed most of her mane out on a tree and there were bloody scabs all over. No one knew what it was. I washed the affected areas with an anti-fungal/anti-bacterial shampoo and it made a huge difference. Once in a while, she gets dry skin again and I use the shampoo.

[MimzMum]

Do you have a name of this product? I’ll ask my vet about it.
Here’s another question for you guys: is it possible to clean a bunny’s pen TOO much? I’m just using hot water for almost a week now and Mimzy actually lays his head on his floor which he hasn’t done in months. I wonder if even vinegar can build up to irritating levels in the habitats of sensitive buns? (perhaps I’m not rinsing it well enough)
Even the Nature’s Miracle seemed to bother him after only a week of use. He seems to be easily bothered by any strong smell so I can’t use perfumed things at all.

The vet did say his ear tips reminded him of a dermatitis that dachsunds get, so since they drag on the floor, I might want to review what is on that floor. But how sanitary is a simple hot water wash? When should I use a cleanser to be sure I get germs? Twice a day is obviously too much.
I’ve also stopped using Swiffer cloths around him just in case. They don’t seem to bother the other two.

[Author]

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