Help!! Head Tilt? Stroke?

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CharlieHarleyPoppy

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May 19, 2015
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Location
Des Moines, Iowa
I just woke up and one of my bunnies keeps tilting his head to the side a twitching. He can't walk straight and won't even acknowledge me. I can't take him to the vet until after work but does anyone know what's going on? Should I keep my buns separated?

Please, anything will help!
 
Could be an ear infection maybe?
It's good you're going to vet! Is the bun eating or drinking??
 
Any other symptoms? Seeming to be incontinent? Loss of coordination?
 
Most common causes of head tilt in rabbits are an inner ear infection and the protozoal parasite e. cuniculi, though head trauma is also a possibility. If there is no obvious indicator of it being due to an ear infection, your vet should give medications to cover both possibilities, which would be panacur(fenbendazole) for the e. cuniculi, an antibiotic(usually baytril) for the ear infection, and metacam as an anti inflammatory and pain reliever. Some vets may also prescribe meclizine for dizziness.
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/tilt.html
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm
http://www.gwexotics.com/wccms-resources/a/5/0/e/77554b90-a660-11e0-a685-0050568626ea.pdf

You will need to get your bun to the vet right away as both illness are very serious and the longer you wait, the worse symptoms can become. It's also important to see a vet that is very experienced with rabbits. Vets that aren't very knowledgeable in rabbits may not prescribe the correct medications, or may prescribe a steroid, which you DO NOT want to be given to your rabbit unless your rabbits symptoms are VERY severe and using a steroid would be a last resort. Steroids can depress a rabbits immune system, which could set up an environment for the parasite or infection to proliferate and become much worse, which is why it should only be used as a last resort.
http://rabbit.org/vet-listings/
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Corticost/Cortico.htm

Supportive care is also important. You may need to provide a special set up for your bun with bumper pads. You may also need to provide hand feedings if your bun isn't eating well on his own. Your vet will provide you with a food mix for rabbits called Oxbow Critical Care.
http://mohrs.org/index.php?id=palliative-care
http://mohrs.org/index.php?id=head-tilt
http://www.specialbunny.org/head-tilt-ec/
http://www.specialbunny.org/special-needs-housing/
 
Thank you for the replies. Harley's vet called and said everything checks out normal and that he has had waves of not having coordination. He wants to just give it time? He said that if he gives him an antibiotic that isn't need and cause a super bug.

I figured panacur might be a safe option regardless so I am going to ask about that.

I will update.
 
Head tilt is a very serious illness and shouldn't just be left without treatment to see how it progresses, and very rarely will it spontaneously go away without the correct treatment, especially if it is due to a bacterial ear infection. It is always a symptom of a serious illness. It can even be fatal. I myself have lost a rabbit to head tilt and another one to the e. cuniculi parasite, which can cause head tilt. If not treated correctly, most times it will progressively get worse, til your rabbits head twists so much that your rabbit will start to uncontrollably roll.

If your rabbit does have an ear infection causing this, not giving antibiotics will mean that it will continue to get worse and can even spread. Yes in some cases antibiotics can upset a rabbits gut, especially if the wrong antibiotic is given to a rabbit orally. Usually this is why baytril is the first antibiotic a vet will try with rabbits. Because it is usually well tolerated and causes the least amount of digestive upset. But if this is an ear infection, antibiotics are absolutely needed to have any chance of clearing it up. If the vet wants to verify an inner ear infection, sometimes a head xray will show this.

If your vet isn't confident about knowing how to diagnose head tilt correctly, or when to prescribe the correct antibiotics to rabbits when warranted, you need to find a better vet and one that actually knows what they are doing where rabbits are concerned. Cat and dog vets don't know enough about rabbits. Rabbits are completely different and need a vet that specializes in them, which would be an exotics vet. Personally, if I went to a vet that didn't take this very seriously and treat accordingly, I would be looking for a new vet and would never take my rabbits to that previous vet again.

If you aren't sure what antibiotics are safe for rabbits, these lists show which ones are and aren't. Certain antibiotics are very dangerous to give to rabbits orally, so it is essential to see a vet that knows what they are doing and is an experienced rabbit exotics vet.
http://www.medirabbit.com/Unsafe_medication/dangerous_antibiotics.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Antibiotics/Safe_antibiotics.htm

Read the links I shared. Google 'heat tilt in rabbits'. You will see just how serious this can be. It is one of the dreaded and worst rabbit illnesses there is. It can be extremely difficult to treat and the longer it is left, the harder it can become to stop irreversible cell damage from occurring, or even to save the rabbit. This illness requires prompt treatment, and the sooner it is treated, the better chance you will have of saving your rabbit and preventing permanent damage from occurring. Panacur, antibiotic(baytril), and metacam are the standard treatment for rabbit knowledgeable exotics vets to give when they can't pinpoint the cause of the head tilt.
 
Totally agree with JBun! Sometimes people mean well but you have to be the advocate for your bun since it can't be for itself. -please don't be offended by that but I know it's hard when you're trusting the professionals and they aren't necessarily doing all they can!
 
Alright, time for an update!

When I went to go pick Harley up, they definitely recommended that we got him on anitbiotics (thankfully!) and there has been some very flow, but definitely noticeable progress!

Harley's tics and nystagmus have completely stopped along with the walking in circles. He still has a head tilt but who knows if that will ever fully go away.

He hasn't eaten or drank a lot so I have been giving him water by hand a few times a day and have made sure that he is at least eating some timothy hay along with an array of veggies (he is only really eating celery and some spinach, he turns everything else away).

He did hop out of that cage yesterday which almost caused me to start crying with happiness! The only thing is, his coordination is completely shot and he looks like he just stumbled home from the bar. Again, this could take time to recoop from as well but I am just thrilled that he has made it this far!

Thank you everyone for you advice. I hope he will make a full-recovery or something close to it!
 

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