Help! Bunny sick

[Maria]

Hi
I was wondering if someone could give me some advice. My bunny is 6 months old and she is currently being treated for e-cuniculi. I took her to the vets on Tuesday night as she was not being herself she seemed unsteady on her feet aswell. The vet thought it may be muscle related and gave her injection for pain relief. On Wednesday her symptoms became worse she could not get up and kept flopping back down, she was also off her food. I took her back to the vets and they are now treating her for e cuniculi, she has been prescribed pancur for 28 days. I haven’t seen an improvement yet she still cannot seem to get up or use her back legs but I think the medicine needs more time to take effect. I just wanted to know how long before I see an improvement. Has anyone had a similar experience with their bunny? Did the bunny go back to normal? I’m reading so many different things about e cuniculi which seem to be freaking me out because I’m scared she’s not going to get better. The vet didn’t seem to know a lot about the illness. Also is there anything else I can do to help her and aid her in getting her better? I have been syringe feeding her but today she seems to be eating her normal food.
I’m starting to think she had e cuniculi for a while but I didn’t notice for example she stopped standing up on her hind legs and jumping on my bed. She was very well litter trained and wouldn’t really have an accident but she recently started peeing and pooing everywhere. Apparently this is another symptom -I thought she was just marking her territory. she would also slip occasionally and become unsteady on her feet but I thought this was due to recently changing from carpet to glossy floorboards. The more I’m reading the more I’m thinking she was presenting symptoms which I failed to notice

[tobyluv]

Is the vet sure that she has e.cuniculi? They can perform tests to confirm it, but the tests sometimes give a false negative, so they are not 100% accurate. Does she have any other symptoms that may be associated with ec? I wondered if it is possible that she has an ear infection? Those can cause a rabbit to be unsteady and to fall over. I have not had any personal experience with ec, but I have had rabbits that had ear infections, who were very unsteady and would fall over. Hopefully, you will get some responses from people that have more knowledge or experience with ec. I do know that the treatment takes a while.

I hope that your bunny will be better soon.

[Maria]

Thank you for your reply.

The vet checked her ears and there was no sign of an infection. She said her symptoms seem to match up to ec she did not carry out a blood test though.

[Bam]

Panacur is very slow-acting, but bunny safe. Baytril is recommended to give in combo with the Panacur, it has some effect against the ex parasite. Metacam has anti-inflammatory properties and can be of value. If the bunny loses its appetite it could be due to nausea, and there are drugs that counteract nausea.

It’s important your bunny eats good, nutritious food (Critical Care if you need to syringe-feed her) and that you try to adapt her area to her balance issues. Some good tips can be found here:
http://www.disabledrabbits.com/

Weakness/paralysis of the hind legs is consistent with ec. As has been mentioned, testing is tricky and often produces false negatives. Since the medication is considered safe, it’s ok to treat on clinical findings.

[Maria]

Thank you for the advice. I think I will go back to the vet tomorrow and ask for metacam as I have seen it recommended on quite a lot of posts.
Silly question but my bunny is not taking to the syringe feeding very well can I give the pancur on a spoon as she doesn’t seem to mind that?

[Bam]

Yes, if she takes it from a spoon, that’s great. Syringe feeding is for buns that won’t take their meds/eat their food by any other means.

[Nibbles]

I mixed pancur with a little bit of apple sauce or mashed banana when treating my bun. It was the only way to get her the med without a struggle. I hope your bunny improves soon!

[Maria]

Thanks for the advice I think I will try mashing it up with banana. She seems to be eating her food and hay and drinking as normal. Still cleaning herself, pooing and peeling as normal etc. Sometimes she can walk without falling over but most of time she flops over.

[Maria]

The vet only prescribed panacur and nothing else. Should I go back and ask her to prescribe baytril and metacam? Why would she have not prescribed this in the first instance ?

[Bam]

Metacam is not good if the kidneys are affected by the parasite, and they seem to be, loss of good litterbox habits is a sign of that. Baytril could perhaps be of use though. As far as I know it’s not standard protocol for ec but it has some effect on the parasite plus it helps the immune defense (the ec parasite supresses the immune defense). So you could ask your vet if she’d be willing to add Baytril to the medication. It seems like she’s getting better though and she’s eating her food – that’s great!

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

No advice to add to the great advice given here already. Just want to wish you both all the best and send some {{healing vibes}}

[Maria]

Thanks for getting back to me, yes her letterbox habits are not great at the moment, she seems to be going wherever. She has definitely shown signs  of improvement today as she has been walking around without dragging her legs although she slips or loses balance now and again but not as much as before. She has also perked up abit. I will ask about Batyril as the vet is going to be calling me tomorrow. 

Thanks to all for the advice!! 

[Maria]

Thank you Ellie, she has shown some improvement today so hopefully she will continue to get better!! 

[LittlePuffyTail]

(((((Healing Vibes))))) Fingers crossed for a full recovery!

[Maria]

Thanks all..my bunny is doing a lot better she is running around like normal. She seems to have gone back to her usual self apart from the incontinence this seems to be an issue as she is pooping and peeing where ever. Her feet and back legs also seemed to be stained with urine. Should I wash her, I know you are not supposed to give rabbits a bath but should I try cleaning her with a wet cloth and some bunny shampoo? Is there anything I can do to help her with her incontinence? She is still on her 28 day course of panacur. Also does anyone know if this is a permanent issue or will it improve once my bunny has fully recovered and finished her course of medicine. I don’t know why she is still peeing everywhere as she can get to her litter tray without any issues now.

[Vienna Blue in France]

Thank goodness bunny is better – the litterbox habits (or lack of) may be related but she is also coming into teenage bunny years so may just be marking her area.

To retrain for littertray you’ll probably have to reduce her free roam space so she (is forced to) use her litter tray (as they are generally clean creatures).

When she does, then you can enlarge her area by a little bit (with an xpen or other barriers) so she gets into the habit of going back to her tray (not too far) to pee and poop. If she starts peeing outside her tray, you’ll have to reduce the space again for a longer period.

(This is what i’m having to do at the moment with a recently bonded pair whose habits have been confused and they are both claiming the area as their own)

Or maybe offer her another litter tray – many members here have multiple litter trays around the house.

[Wascally Wabbits]

SO glad bunny is better!

You can use a damp cloth to try to wipe her feet. If she gets really bad urine scald or poopy butt, you can also wash just her bottom (not her whole body) by putting some warm water in a shallow pan or a squarish sink and sit her in it. I have never used bunny shampoo before, but with water just gently use your fingers to scrub off poop and pee worked for me.

[Bam]

So glad she’s doing better! You can try to wipe her legs or do a butt bath like Wascally describes, just make sure you dry her after. Some buns even like it when you blow dry their wet behind on low heat. When she’s clean and dry you can put some fat barrier cream on her inner thighs to protect the skin there from excess wetness from pee.

It is much too soon to say if her incontinence will be permanent or for how long it will go on. You’ll first have to complete the course of Panacur, see how she’s doing then, and if she’s not fully recovered and your vet thinks she need it, you might need to keep her in Panacur a bit longer.
It sounds very hopeful, though. As Vienna says, some buns need multiple litter-boxes, or you could put some puppy pee pads out for her -she might like to lie on absorbant materials to help dry her up if she keeps getting pee on her.

We have one member, Vanessa, who puts a diaper on her EC bun during periods when he pees himself so much there’s a risk his skin gets compromised. It’s only for when you can keep an eye on the bun, though, you don’t want her to eat the diaper or get it caught in sth etc.

[Maria]

Thanks for the advice everyone..the course of panacur has finished and although she has her mobility back she is constantly leaking urine, this also happens when she is just hopping around. A few drops here and there sometimes puddles. She has started to get wet bottom so having to give her a butt bath. I will have to go back to the vets tomorrow and tell them about her urine issues. I don’t think this will improve as it seems to be happening more and more everyday. Is there anything that can be prescribed for incontinence?

Thanks again

[LBJ10]

Incontinence isn’t unusual with EC infections. It’s typically due to lesions and doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the kidneys. This can be permanent, but sometimes people will seem some improvement over time. Is she on any medications yet? I’m wondering if metacam would help some.

[Maria]

She was only prescribed panacur and she has finished her course. How can metacam help? Is this something I should ask the vet to prescribe?

[Bam]

Metacam is an anti-inflammatory pain med. The anti-inflammatory properties could be beneficial, but metacam should not be used if the bun’s kidney function is affected.

[LBJ10]

I would think they could run tests on the kidneys. Like I said, often times the incontinence is due to lesions on the spinal cord.

[Maria]

So the wet bottom seems to be getting worse. Does anyone know if you can shave rabbits down there her fur is quite long and fluffy at the bottom and she absolutely reeks it is such a repugnant odour it is getting hard to keep her inside because of the smell. I obviously wouldn’t do it myself probably take her to a groomer. Giving regular butt baths is not helping and it just stresses her out . I have also tried using wipes from pet store, not helping either. Also need to find a new vet as they are clueless arghhh. Can anyone advise anything please ??

[sarahthegemini]

You can definitely shave her!
I would get a vet to give her a sanitary shave tho rather than a groomers, Unless it’s a rabbit specific groomers – the smell of dogs would not help the situation.

[Maria]

Ok thanks I will call round vets tomorrow regarding shaving her .

[Maria]

Hi all,
I’ve been meaning to put an update on here. Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. My rabbit is back to full health now in terms of mobility and incontinence. After taking your advice I got her shaved a couple of times and would regularly apply sudocream on her legs and bottom about 3 times a day. This helped to reduce the urine scalding. I also gave her butt baths here and there which also helped keep her clean although she hated it. After a while I noticed that her bottom was becoming dryer and she was having less instances of having a wet bottom. I did then decide to get her spayed and she is now litter trained and has not really had any accidents and is no longer incontinent.
She has pretty much got full use of her hind legs and binkies around the garden the only thing she doesn’t do anymore is stand up on her hind legs. But all in all she is back to being herself!! thanks again for all the advice!!
???

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

What wonderful news, I’m absolutely delighted! Wishing you many happy binkies

[sarahthegemini]

What wonderful news!

[Bam]

Yay! Happy news! Thanks for the update!

[vanessa]

That is fantastic news! It’s not often that an EC bunny recovers like that, but it has been known to happen. Your little one is very fortunate. I’m glad to hear the outcome was positive.
EC can return though – the parasite is never really killed – that we know of. Now that you are aware of the symptoms, be on the lookout for flare-ups. It is a good idea to treat her twice a year with 9 days of Fenbendazole/panacur, to help keep the parasite suppressed. You can get it OTC.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Happy to hear the good news!!!

I also had a bunny return to health after EC! Yeah for tough bunnies!!!!

[Maria]

Agghh you won’t believe it but I have woken up two days in a row and my bunny has had a wet bottom???. This has happened months after she has been absolutely fine with her toileting habits. Could this mean her EC is back????
I haven’t noticed any other symptoms but the wet bottom was one of the first symptoms she got last time. I don’t understand how she could get EC again????? as she was given panacur after she way spayed as a precautionary measure recommended by the vet

[Bam]

Even if most of the EC microorganisms have been cleared by meds, some can manage to hide from the meds and then crop up again. I’d put her back on Panacur right away. 

A standard treatment for a  bun that has had symptomatic EC, is Panacur for 9 days every six months for the rest of the bun’s life. 

[Maria]

Thanks for your reply. Yes I gave her some this morning , should I continue this for 9 days?

[Bam]

Yes, 9 days at the minimum. But since she’s showing symptoms, I’d condsider going for the full 28 days. You could call the vet you used last time and ask.

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

Oh no, that’s so frustrating! Best start treatment right away, and ask your vet about it.

[Maria]

Hi all,

I started the panacur treatment on the 27th July, she seemed ok but now her back legs have become paralysed again, she is unable to get up at all or move around the vet has recommended that I put her to sleep I don’t know what to do I am so confused as she got better last time so I don’t want to give up on her. She is only eating small amounts of food and drinking little amount of water. Today she has started grinding her teeth quite loudly and her breathing is laboured, her ears and body do not seem to be warm like they usually are. The vet has only administered injections , they asked if i wanted her to remain at the vets but i thought she would be better at home in familiar surroundings as she hates the vets. Whilst we were at the vets I am sure she went into shock as her eyes were bulging out and she was panicking but when we got home she seemed to calm and her eyes went back to normal. I am taking her back later but I know the vet is going to say the same thing which is put her to sleep . Does anyone know anything else I can do or try..Feeling helpless

[Bam]

I’m so very sorry to hear this. When a bun has a really bad bout if EC, some vets will try corticosteroids. It can’t be given while the bun is on Metacam though and only very few doses should be given, like one or two, because rabbits are very sensitive to corticosteroids. Sometimes it does help bring the inflammation down though. It’s a very powerful drug, and only recommended if things get really bad. Maybe your vet would be willing to try it as a last resort? You’d still keep up the Panacur. In some places, today’s recommendations for Panacur against EC is 6 weeks minimum.

Corticosteroids is the only thing I can think of that might help her. Your vet might not feel it’s ethical to prolong treatment though. I wish vets made house calls to pts pets that panic at vet clinics.

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’m so sorry to hear this and, although I wish I could help, can only send some ((((Healing Vibes))))))).

[Maria]

My poor baby was put to sleep as she deteriorated very quickly and the vet said she was suffering with little chance of recovery :'( :'(

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

I’m so sorry to read this, sorry for your loss :'(
It’s a difficult decision to make, but her suffering has ended now. As a loving and caring owner, this was the best and only thing you could do for her in these circumstances.

[joea64]

Binky free, little one. I’m so sorry for your loss.

[sarahthegemini]

Such sad news Binky on little one xxx

[Author]

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