EMERGENCY! Please Help Him!

Please help me, I'm so scared. I don't know what to do!

For the summer I'm caring for my teacher's bunny. I swear to God I don't know what's happening. I checked on him yesterday and he was fine! Eating and drinking and getting his pets. About 15 minutes ago, I was about to go to bed when I decided to give everyone some extra food for the night. That's when I noticed that Little Charlie hadn't touched his food from earlier that day. I immediately opened hus cage and I almost screamed! His eye was GLUED shut and his other eye had lots of build up. There was some around his nose too! He was just sitting in one spot and he had to sniff me before he calmed down! It's 4:37am. I can't contact her until 8! I took him to the bathroom and with a warm wet cloth I gently began dabbing at his eyes and nose. I got his nose cleared up as best as I could but he's still snorting a little! His eye is open when it was squinted shut. But his other eye is still GUED shut! I'm so worried there was so much gunk around it. I've cleared so much away but it just won't open! I'm worried and scared and I don't know what to do!

Also. I was so panicked I didn't think about taking before pictures! I'm so sorry! This is all my fault,if I had just paid more attention earlier today maybe this wouldn't be happening!? But he was fine yesterday, I don't understand!

Hey - stay calm. This isn't your fault, and you're responsibly looking after him now.

I'm not sure what it could be myself, but I'd concentrate on trying to get him in to see a vet ASAP.

There's only one rabbit savvy vet in my area, really close by. But she's a normal vet and they won't be open until 8 or 9! I'm scared that if I go to sleep his nose will clog up and he'll suffocate! Is there anything I can do until then? I have him on my desk with me so I can say he's having normal bowel movements!

My first thought is allergies. He's in a new environment. Do you have different bedding/litter to what he's used to, what about hay, are you using a different type of hay. Is there anything in the air around where his cage is, air fresheners, scented anything etc that could be causing a reaction.

Are his eyelids swollen, or is it simply discharge? You don't want to know my second thought

I believe they are also swollen. I managed to clear most of the blockage out of his bad eye. The surrounding area is all red and he can only open his eye a little. I don't believe it could be an allergy. Same bedding and he's been with me since late May. Also my other two buns don't seem at all affected.

I don't know if this could be related, but something happened to his claw? It tore and was bleeding. I cleaned it up,but flour over it then I put him in his cage. Could that tie into this? I'm so sorry, I didn't know!

Wasn't aware he'd been with you that long. I was hoping it was simply an allergy to the new environment.

In regards to the nail, I doubt the problem with the nail caused it, however it's possible that he's managed to rub some flour into his eye which has caused the irritation. Wiping the eyes and gently flushing them with lukewarm water (maybe saline?) could help.

Otherwise, are his ears swollen/droopy as well, what about genitals are they swollen?

I'm sorry. My only other male bunny is neutered and much larger than he is. I don't know what I should look for. I gave him an ice cube(I read an article here earlier today that said they like that) and some hay. He's been eating hay and licking the ice cube but he hasn't touched his pellets? I took pictures if his eye now and his genitals.

That's alright, thanks for the photos, genitals don't look swollen, which is good. It's good that he's still eating, he might even eat more if you hand feed it to him. Sometimes sick bunnies won't go and eat, but if you feed it to them they'll take it. If you're worried about him not eating pellets, you could syringe him some critical care mix, or crush up pellets to make a paste, that can also help with fluid intake, which is also good that he's licking the ice.

I would continue wiping down the eyes if it helps him. Hopefully it's just a reaction to getting some flour in his eyes and irritated or a simple case of conjunctivitis. The reason I was asking about swelling of the ears and genitals is because I was trying to eliminate myxomatosis. Which he may be vaccinated for anyway? In any case, I think it's probably best to keep him isolated from your other two if possible and wash hands and tools etc between handling/feeding just in case. It's probably not myxo, but I personally don't think it's worth the risk of spreading any sort of contagious thing.

Could you explain what myxo is? He probably hasn't. I don't know the whole story but here it is.

My ag teacher Ms. Slover got a bunny named Brownie from her student. Her Aunt didn't want him anymore saying he was too mean. From what I understand he's always lived in isolation in his hutch outside. Ms. Slover got him in...I would like to say October/November? From then on he was a class pet but he was so unapproachable no one really paid much attention to him. He got overlooked compared to the adorable squeaking guinea pigs and the funny turtles. I love rabbits so I began spending time with him. With her permission he'd occassionally joined me for lunch with my friends. I don't think he's had any vaccination and I doubt he's every seen a vet office.

I'll syringe feed him. I'll also move his cage. Are my cats in danger? also is it too risky to leave him and go to bed? I'm worried his nose will clog up until he can't breath. It's already 5;30 perhaps I'm just better off waiting with him for 2 1/2 hours? I will definitely be calling Ms. Slover. I'm a little nervous too but I know that it's the right thing to do. I'll also see if my Dad will be willing to go to the vet if I make the appointment.

As far as I'm aware, myxo is relatively uncommon in the states, and less so if you have an indoor rabbit. It's generally passed on through biting insects or contact with infected rabbits. Symptoms can start showing up from 3 days down the track, swollen eyes, nose, ears, genitals with milky discharge from eyes and nose, increased temperature, lethargy, difficulty eating and breathing. I believe that the vaccination can be used to help treat the virus, but here in Aus where we can't get the vaccination, euthanasia is recommended because there's no other way to treat it except to make the rabbit comfortable and hope for the best.

That being said, there's so many other things it could be, so I'm not trying to scare you with it, it was simply a possibility that I had thought I'd better throw out there. Your cats shouldn't be in danger from anything he may have. You can probably go to bed, apart from wiping down his eyes there's not too much to be done I don't think. You could set an alarm for halfway between now and when you can ring your teacher and the vet to check on him if you like. Better that you call her before the vet to let her know what's going on, and then again after you've seen the vet to let her know the diagnosis and possibly discuss any treatment. Animals get sick sometimes, it's not your fault. You've done a great job looking after him and trying to figure out what's wrong. Hopefully, it's just an irritation from that flour

As an additional note, he's super cute

Thank-you. Ever since he arrived at the school I've come to love him just as much as Lois and Clark! I don't know what I'd do if he got seriously ill! I know it sounds ridiculous since he's not even my own bunny but I've been there and have seen him make so much progress personality-wise. I'm mostly worried about losing my teachers trust since he got sick under my care. She's a vet-tech so I'm sure she'll understand but i can't help but be paranoid. My Dad just momentarily woke up and told me to go to bed so I suppose I shall. Azerane thank you so much! You're such a helpful person. I don't feel panicked anymore. He seems a little better so I think I'll just take a small nap then call my teacher. Again thank-you!

No problem at all, I completely understand that it's scary to have a pet suddenly ill. Wishing the little guy all the best. About to go to bed myself so unfortunately won't be able to catch up with this thread until morning or possibly after work. Hope it goes well and it's just a minor irritation

UPDATE: I have called Ms. Slover, I was so worked up and nervous but she was very understanding of the situation. Since she's also a vet tech at the emergency vet clinic she's going to come by the house this evening to take him with her. His good eye has remained clear and he's been wiping his nose so there's not a lot of build up on his nose which is good. Hi bad eye has remained closed (or squinted at best) and I've been periodically cleaning it with a clean warm rag. When I returned him to his cage he immediately began eating hay and licking ice cubes. He even nibbled here and there on his pellets!

another thing is I think Clark has noticed something is wrong with his friend! Over the past few months the two have bonded a lot and today Clark has been stressed out! He is NOT an aggressive rabbit but when I set him on my bed he nipped at my hand before hopping off and returning to the side of his friends cage! He's been laying there since and won't leave for more than a few moments. I feel so bad for him! I didn't think he'd be able to tell something was wrong with his friend?

I'm glad your teacher was understanding, and that Charlie is coping okay - eating and drinking are good signs, and I'm glad he's able to clear his own nose.

It's sweet that Clark is worried about Charlie's health!

I am not sure but it could be an URI. Usually it doesn't start this violently. I wish him and you good luck

UPDATE: This is most likely completely unrelated but I decided better safe than sorry. Little Charlie has some small bumpy scabs between his ears and the back of his head. You can't see them and they aren't major. I'm sure it's just from scratching his ears too much(I'll tell Ms. Slover to check for ear mites just in case) but I decided to get your guys opinion on the fact just in case.

UPDATE: Ms. Slover just picked him up to take him to the emergency vet clinic she works at. They're going to check his eyes ears and teeths for a start and she'll let me know what's going on with him. I hope he'll be okay! Fingers crossed!:in tears:

UPDATElast one for awhile) Little Charlie was diagnosed with the snuffles. He's had a shot of antibiotics and some vaccinations. He'll be spending the next 2-3 weeks at the clinic but other than that he is not in any danger! So there's the good news!

...now the not so good news...

Apparently the sniffles is highly contagious. So Clark and(to a lesser extent) Lois are at risk of becoming infected. So withing the next few days Ms. Slover will be dropping antibiotics for our animals and teach me how to administer it. In the meantime I will be keeping a close eye on Lois and Clark.

Can cats get the snuffles? I'm not sure but just in case I've been keeping two of my cats(they're almost always in my room) quarantined from the others.

Best of luck with them all. I'm sure Little Charlie will recover well with the right treatment. It's good that you're getting some preventative meds for your bunnies too.

Thanks for the updates. It is my understanding that the pastuerella bacteria that causes snuffles can not be passed onto cats.