Chewie’s got a cough

[Q8bunny]

Chewie’s been having little coughing fits on and off for about a week now. I kept an eye on him but he has had no eye, ear, or nose discharge, and he’s as cheeky and munchy as usual. In other words, he’s been a picture of bunny health and good cheer.

Until Thursday, when I heard him cough two or three times in one evening. So off to the vet we went ASAP and the appointment was today.

Dr. Jill suspects the usual culprit: pasteurella. His airways and lungs sounded clean, but one of his lungs has diminished sound compared to the other. She said that had she only listened to the quieter lung she would have never suspected he was poorly. Unfortunately there’s no way to confirm infection without a scraping and culture and she’s reluctant to administer general anesthetic to do so since the stress would weaken his immune system even more. Ditto for xrays.

Now he’s on Baytril for two weeks and then she’ll reassess. And I, of course, am freaking out.

I have no Benebac – by the time it arrives, if I order it, it’ll be time for his follow-up appointment. I will look for echinacea of some sort to assist his immune system. But I’m still really worried about his tummy. He has never had GI issues of any kind and I hate to mess him up now.

Anyone tried anything other than Benebac? Pediatric probiotic maybe? I know bunnies are not humans, but still…

Any advice would be appreciated. Worried sick here. I want my baby to be okay again.

[Bam]

I have given my buns lactobacillus plantarum v.299 during episodes of gas/gut slowdown – a probiotic for humans. Medirabbit says it’s safe to give probiotics – the worst thing that can happen is that the bacteria die from the stomach acid before they do any good. Veterinaries used to recommend yoghurt, because it has beneficial bacteria, but nowadays you can find probiotics that doesn’t come with dairy, and that’s a better option for buns.

I don’t know if the lactobacillus-supplement has made a difference, of course. I always give simethicone and tummy rubs too for gas. But since Medirabbit says it can’t harm, I’ve given it.

[Q8bunny]

Thanks, Bam.

Last night was his first dose of Baytril. It was NOT pretty, and I don’t blame Chewie for flicking his heels at me in disgust after I squirted the med into his mouth. I tasted it, and it’s nasty bitter stuff – even with the syringe tip dipped in orange blossom honey to lure the bunneh. lol

He hardly touched his salad (I ended up eating it myself with some fish) but stuffed himself full of hay and drank water.

Since he’ll be dosed in the evenings, in addition to his morning pebbles he’s now also getting an echinacea tablet in his breakfast bowl. Also, prior to breakfast, I gave him a tablespoon of Activia liquid yogurt mixed with a knob of ripe banana for flavour. From what I’ve read, Baytril is relatively mild on a bunny’s gut, but I still want some probiotic in his tummy.

I very much doubt he’ll go for the syringe dipped in honey tonight (the little furball is too smart for his own good sometimes), so I’ll try mixing the Baytril with a tablespoon of orange juice and a touch of the orange blossom honey and hope he laps it up that way.

*fingers crossed*

[Q8bunny]

UPDATE: I mixed one tablespoon of fresh squeezed orange juice with one quarter teaspoon of orange blossom honey, and then mixed in the 1.5ml of nasty Baytril, and Chewie sipped the whole thing.

I think tonight, though, I will try to syringe feed him the magic potion – he seemed to be swallowing a awful lot of air last night.

[Bam]

Regarding probiotics, just yesterday I found an article on suitable types for buns. The only one scientifically proven to be both beneficial and harmless to buns is saccaromyces cerevisiae, i e brewers yeast. A type wildely used with cats and dogs do seem promising for use in bunnies though, enterococcus faecium. Maybe that’d be easier to get hold of than probiotics for bunnies? You should just make sure it’s not mixed with sth that would be inappropriate for bunnies (like meat).

Here’s the whole article:
http://www.vettimes.co.uk/article/beneficial-bacteria-in-pet-rabbits/

[Q8bunny]

Thanks, bam. I saved it for when I next visit Canadia.

[Author]

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