Seizures

[jezabel loves moxie]

when we adopted Bourbun, male dwarf DOB 23dec2012, we were told the past owners said he had seizures but they had not seen any, including the foster vet lady that took him home for 3 weeks. 

we got him on the 10th and since then I’ve noticed couple of times his cage was a mess.  so we were making sure to let him out as much as we could. from 6am to like 8am and from 5pm to 9 or 10pm.

our weeks are: m-f 7 or 8 to 4 or 5. we feed them at 6am and 6pm.

yesterday, he wouldn’t come out of his cage.  we thought he was tired.  moxie is tired around this time also.  she is a dutch DOB 13feb2015.  We were hoping to bond them.  originally, I was going to post this under bonding but now that we know he has a health issue make things more complicated. 

around 7 he started to run around his open cage, like he had seen a ghost or something.  then his head started to twitch and making clicking sounds.  

The seizures have not stop since then, I stopped counting after 5. This morning alone he had three. one at around 7, 7:40, 8:05.  My boyfriend stayed with Bourbun all night and they both didn’t’ sleep very much.  Bourbun has not eaten this morning.

We call the on call vet last night and told us to bring him this morning for lab work.  

This is so sad, he is so adorable and I want to help him.  

Please any advice.

[Benthebunny]

Keep him warm and wrapped in a blanket. Make sure there is nothing he can hurt himself on if he has a seizure. Keep his food with in reach without moving so he can stay in the blanket. If he has a pet carrier stuff some blankets in there and put him in. Poor little guy. I have a half dutch.

[jezabel loves moxie]

I will, thank you.

I think my whole world got sadder now.  it was brought up if the vet mentioned to put moxie on anti-parasitic as well.

not my moxie

if she gets sick also, it’s on me. 

[Benthebunny]

Dont be sad. Its good that your vet said to put moxie on it too. she might have her life saved. Dont worry too much. Your bunnies will be ok. 

[LBJ10]

Was he treated for EC before? I would have thought the foster home/shelter would have considered treatment if seizures had been reported, even if they didn’t observe any.

There are other causes, but treating for EC is a good first step.

[jezabel loves moxie]

Thank you. Do you think moxie knows there is something wrong with Bourbun even thought they are not bonded? She is being pretty chill compare to past few days.

[LBJ10]

I’m sure she can sense something isn’t right.

[jezabel loves moxie]

I’m not sure what’s an EC but I doubt it.
They Spoke about the seizure thing like the fine print of a document you signed when purchasing a membership to a gym.
We got the impression they didn’t really pay much attention to the little guy.
THe humane lady said: he is spade, has his shoots and the vet has record of all these, including a note about his seizures.
The little guy got spade about couple of months ago when the owners gave him to the humane society place… Is that neglectful also? He will be 4 in late December?

[LBJ10]

EC stands for e. cuniculi. You mentioned anti-parasitic medication.

[Bam]

Jezabel loves moxie, I wrote in your bonding-thread yesterday about e cuniculi. It’s a parasite that can affect the brain. You treat it with an anti-parasitic – Panacur (fenbendazole) and often antibiotics too. Sometimes additional pain-meds or meds against nausea or ant-seizure medicine as well.

Many rabbits carry this parasite, most never get sick. Treating Moxie is a precaution. Also clean out every space they’ve been in and wash everything washable, because the parasite is shed in the urine and cleaning helps prevent re-infestation. Moxie needs to be on the anti-parasitic for 28 days (same as Bourbun). Then you do a 9-day course after 6 months. That she doesn’t have any symptoms is of course great. With treatment the parasite, if she has it, can be eliminated before it ever harms her.

This might not be about this e cuniculi parasite, but you treat anyway because the medicine is bunny-safe.

[jezabel loves moxie]

Hi Bam,

We don’t know the results of his blood work. xrays were fine.  the blood was sent to washington since in Juneau there is no whatever to get the results for bunny blood.  we are hoping to get the results by monday the latest.  we are giving him all three meds you mentioned.  his seizures have not stopped. doc said it might take couple of days for the seizures to stop.  I told him about putting moxie on antiparasitc and he said that wouldn’t be needed.  

he is not eating. we have him in his carrier, with blankets and towels to keep him cozy.  It’s not getting better and I think he is going blind.  he was running in his playpen and crashing on it’s walls.  it’s just too sad. 

thank you for all the advice.  we are new to the bunny world, moxie is our first and we didn’t face any health issues with her.

[Benthebunny]

hes going blind! oh no, poor baby! make sure there is nothing he can hurt himself on, and take him to the vet as soon as you can. going blind *could* painful for a bunny! i hope he gets better! 

[LBJ10]

I didn’t see your other thread. It’s good that you’re treating for EC. Even if the bloodwork comes back negative, it could still be EC. There are often false negatives, but then bunny improves with treatment. Yes it can take some time for the meds to work. If he’s going blind, that is another indicator that this is EC. I’m sorry you have to go through this. I really would push to have Moxie treated as a precaution.

[Bam]

I agree with LBJ in everything. Treat Moxie too as a precaution. Panacur (fenbendazole) is bunny safe and can be given on suspicion. It’s prescription-free in most places, but I don’t know about alaska specifically. EC often doesn’t show up in a blood-test because you need to take the blood-test at the exact right time in the life-cycle of the parasite. If the meds help, there’s your diagnosis. Going blind can be temporary, a very big part of the brain is involved in vision and EC affects the brain, thus often vision.

I’m sorry you have to deal with this, it must be so heartbreaking. You are doing what you can for him, the meds are the right ones and they can take some time before you see improvement. Try to pad his area with soft pillows/rolled up blankies or towels so he doesn’t run into things head first and hurt himself.

(((((Bourbun)))))

These are my notes from a webbinar on EC I listened to earlier this year:

Treatment:
Albendazole if fenbendazole doesn’t give result.
Lufenuron suggested but not strongly tested
Dexamethasone: strong steroid that will suppress inflammation caused by ec. Reduce organ damage.
Supportive care.
Pad environment, support feed, prevent bed sores,
Baytril has some effectiveness against ec and that group of microsporidians
Anticonvulsants, anti-vertigo meds in some cases.

Corticosteroids should only ever be used in very grave cases, as a last resort.

[LBJ10]

Thanks again Bam for elaborating. I really need to not post when I’m on my phone. LOL

[jerseygirl]

{{{Bourbun}}}

[jezabel loves moxie]

Thank you all for the support and love. He died on the Thursday, August 18th at around 2ish. He had a horrible seizure and I put him in his carrier to keep him in a safe area. Once it ended I checked to see how he was and he looked out of it. After a little bit I touch his belly because I didn’t see it move so I took him to the vet and he was already dead

It’s horrible, the poor guy was suffering.

moxie is now on panacur and baytril. His blood work came back with a high count of red blood cells.

[LBJ10]

Oh no! I’m so sorry you lost little Bourbun. This is so sad. I’m glad to hear Moxie is receiving preventative treatment.

[lovebellabun]

I’m so sorry about your loss.

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