Ariella's Eye...

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MsBinky

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I feel stupid. I just noticed now that something is wrong with Ariella's eye. It's like completely glazed over with a bluish white coating. Ok, don't get mad at how I will describe this but at one point it looks like there is a tiny air bubble, you know like if you missed a spot when plastifying a book...

I took a look at the threads but I couldn't really understand much and things didn't look exactly like it. I am thinking it's a cataract but at her age??? And what about that bubble thing? Did she injure her eye? :( It's a lil red around but when she looks further, the back of her eye is quite black. I checked the other one and there is a bit of black but not as much. So it looks like the white of her eye turned black. But heh, I know nothing about eyes. Anyone have any ideas?

Some lousy pics here...

Normal eye:

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t128/DaFrenchFry/Pets/December31eye001.jpg

Bad eye:

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t128/DaFrenchFry/Pets/December31eye002.jpg

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t128/DaFrenchFry/Pets/December31eye003.jpg
 
I'm guessing but she is most likely blind in that eye. I'd be willing to bet 99.9% sure.

Actually this is Bo.....
 

That's what I was thinking... :( I guess I know why she was sent to me now if that turns out to be the case. Really strange how that happened. How come I didn't notice it before? :? I'm wondering who's more blind out of the two of us :?
 
It does look like a cataract. Look at the pics on Medirabbit, I don't have time to find the link right now. How old is she? They are sometimes linked to EC but not always. I'd talk to a vet about treating for EC just in case. The majority of rabbits test positive for EC whether or not they ever get symptomsso testing for it doesn't always show much. There might also be other underylying health problems, so to be on the safe side get her a check-up and a full blood panel.
 
Sorry to hear that Ariella is having eye problems.

Our Gingivere has what I believed to be cataracts on both eyes. She HAS tested positive for EC, but EC titers are not always indicators of active disease...just exposure. Since Gingi showed no other symptoms of EC, our vet sent us to a veterinary ophthamologist, and in the meantime we treated her with ointment should it have been bacterial in nature and metacam for any pain.

It turns out that the ophthamologist believes she has a type of genetic corneal "calcification" that is really more common in cats and dogs (at least he'd never seen them in a bunny - though a bunny expert he conferred with did agree that it was certainly the best diagnosis). His recommendation was to keep an eye on their growth/development. That was a year ago. I've noticed of late that she has more tearing and squints more than usual. Our plan is a visit to the specialist again this month. He feels he can shave the growths off...he just didn't want to subject her to surgery if she did not appear to be in discomfort. To me the tearing and squinting are definite signs of discomfort...

I don't know if your bunny might have something similar, but it's worth investigating if other diagnoses don't seem to fit.

Gingivere and I will be thinking of you and Ariella! Keep us posted!

-Mary Ellen
 
The best thing to do for her is see a vet. I won't try to treat eyes with out my vets input. Too much going on and too close to the brain.

You will need to get a stain done to make sure there is no ulcerationwithin the eye. We just successfully treated a rabbit with a similar looking eye from getting a poke from a piece of hay. It took drops (3x a day) of Sodium Chloride and a triple antibiotic ointment for 3 weeks and then, after much improvement, 10 days of a triple anitbiotic ointment with a hydrocortisone to clear it up. (You have to be careful NOT to use the hydrocortisone drops until you're sure there is no ulcer and the eye has started to heal).




 
Hi Sweetie...

Yes, it does look like cataracts, like Naturestee said...and like she said, it does look like the pictures from Medirabbit.com

Here is their section on eye problems, and here is their section on cataracts.

I agree that she should see a vet for eye problems. Too many potential causes and other problems that are related...wouldn't be good to treat an eye issue at home.
 

Hey

I had already checked those links. I thought it could have been a cataract at first but it's not only the lens that is clouded.

It could be a corneal ulcer. I have no clue.

We'll be taking her in but I can't hold my breath with these vets here. Hopefully I'll find one who knows something on the subject. After seeing this problem with Ariella I felt like telling the SPCA to come get all the rabbits and be done with them completely. I feel so stupid owning a rabbit and then not having knowledgeable (or even available) vets on hand when problems occur. I love my bunnies and I feel like I am failing miserably at looking after them. :(
 
You're doing a great job looking after your bunnies! You can't hold yourself responsible for a lack of rabbit-savvy vets in your area. They are note easy to come by anywhere. Even the veterinary ophthamologist that we've seen with Gingivere admits his lack of experience with rabbits.

You are doing a great job investigating many of the possible causes so that you can go to your vet's office armed with some knowledge. Even though our bunny vet is quite good, I do the same thing...and I ask A LOT of questions and make suggestions, too.

Let us know how things go for Ariella when you do get her to the vet.

We'll be thinking of you!

-Mary Ellen
 
MsBinky wrote:
I feel so stupid owning a rabbit and then not having knowledgeable (or even available) vets on hand when problems occur. I love my bunnies and I feel like I am failing miserably at looking after them. :(
Click to expand...

I understand how you are feeling...i struggled so much with Pippi and him having EC...the vets that i had taken Pippi to,didn't really know much about it....he had seen a few Dr's before he died....i wasn't getting the answers i wanted from one Dr so i went to another and so on...the last Dr that Pippi had seen was Dr Jonathon who knew a little but not much and i got the same answer from them all....there was no cure for EC.

But i really do understand....and i also feel that somehow Pippi was let down

I'm so sorryfor the way you are feeling....but i'm right there with you :hug:

Cheryl
 

Thanks. I just don't feel it right now.

The fact is I didn't want to rescue another bun. Not after the heartbreak with Wiggles and all my others who passed. They were all rescues and none lived long enough, including Wiggles. 5 years with her was way too little. The vet said things caught up with her but I don't really know if that's true either. However, I do get too emotionally attached when i rescue them and I told myself I would not, could not.

And then came Ariella. And here we are, something is wrong. I love Ashton to bits but he's not that heartbunny. I so miss my girl :( I'm so terrified of losing another. And now to realize that I put all the others at risk... I just can't cope with it right now :(

That vet better tell me she was born with it or something cause or else I might just freak. She is a very sweet bunny though. The thing is I wasn't 100% sure about keeping her, I still want my mini-rex so badly. But now, I can't rehome her if her eye is bad. I guess that's what happens when you don't think. Of course, I don't hate her, I do like her. But it's very difficult when you are looking for that special bunny.
 
MsBinky wrote:
I so miss my girl :( I'm so terrified of losing another. And now to realize that I put all the others at risk... I just can't cope with it right now :(
Click to expand...

"Risk" and "EC" are kind of an interesting combination. Please know that many, many bunnies are initially exposed to EC when they are exposed to their mother's urine while still suckling. EC is spread by spores shed in the urine - and once the parasites are no longer in the kidneys, the rabbit is no longer contagious. However, the shed spores are believed to be capable of remaining in the environment up to a month.

Probably by the time you see any outward evidence of EC in you bunny, he/she is long past the infectious stage. Others will have been already exposed...and you would not have known that the "carrier" was in the stages of active infection.

So, please don't beat yourself up over the fact that you feelyou put any other rabbits at risk. You could not have known. And remember that even if Ariella would present with a strong positive EC titer, that is only indicative of a rabbit that has been exposed and is showing an immune response to EC...it does not mean the rabbit has an active EC issue.

While Ariella's eye issue may be directly related to EC, it may also be unrelated. I think having your vet perform a titer would be wise. That way, you could rule out the possibility or consider treatment for the EC.

If it puts you more at ease, then you should separate Ariella from the others. I chose not to separate Gingivere from the other rabbits after her strong positive titer because I realized that if they had been with her during the time she was contagious they had already been exposed and I could not change that.

Should Ariella present with a positive EC result, one alternative could be to treat all of the rabbits for the parasites. (I believe that Randy does this with all rabbits who enter Sabrina's House.) Treatment would not be harmful even if the rabbits do not have EC, and though it might be costly...it would be far less expensive than drawing a titer on each one.

I continue to think of you and wish you well!

-Mary Ellen
 

Thank you Mary Ellen and the others as well :hug:

I don't like having sick buns :( Especially knowing how the vets are here. I am looking forward to taking her in. I don't know if it's my imagination, but it seems that eye is further out than the other :? Freaks me out. We don't even have a soecialist which is reachable here. It irritates the binkies out of me. I hope she'll be ok. I am willing to have the eye removed if it came to that point, but I need to know that the vet will be competent enough in that area. :?

I may have to ask my friends at the SPCA for some assistance in seeing the vet they see in case he may be more knowledgeable.
 
Bunnicula wrote:
Should Ariella present with a positive EC result, one alternative could be to treat all of the rabbits for the parasites. (I believe that Randy does this with all rabbits who enter Sabrina's House.) Treatment would not be harmful even if the rabbits do not have EC, and though it might be costly..
Click to expand...

This is what i did when i found out Pippi had EC....i treated all the bunnies...the meds(Fenbendazole) had cost me $100,but it was doing.

I don't think that i would automatically start thinking that Ariella has EC,there are other causes as well like diabetes and probably just other unknown causes as well.

But i know how worrying it gets when something is wrong with your bunny

Thinking of you

Cheryl
 
cheryl wrote:
I don't think that i would automatically start thinking that Ariella has EC,there are other causes as well like diabetes and probably just other unknown causes as well.

But i know how worrying it gets when something is wrong with your bunny

Thinking of you

Cheryl
Click to expand...

I heartily agree...that's why I shared Gingivere's eye story here. EC is such a perplexing ailment. And if you read enough about it, it's evident that the veterinary community is still working at developing a better understanding of the disease.
 
Bunnicula wrote:
And if you read enough about it, it's evident that the veterinary community is still working at developing a better understanding of the disease.
Click to expand...

Yep,i just wish the vets here would do more research on it,but i guess it's because we are only a small city here in Australiaand not many bunny owners would take their bunny to the vet to get it treated,it makes it hard for people like me who want what's best for my bunnies....maybe my Pippi would have had more of a chance.

Cheryl
 

Thanks everyone. I was really scared and discouraged at first to the point that i regretted bringing her home. Buuuuuut if I hadn't. she would have been culled or sold as snake food. :( So I am glad she is home.

The bad news is that I have to wait til Tuesday evening to find out what gives. The rabbit vet will be in then. Should I do anything meanwhile? It bugs me because it looks like her eye is bulgin, it appears larger than the other. I haven't touched it simply because I don't want to make anything worse. She doesn't appear to be in pain. She eats and plays, etc.

The good news is that it is a vet hospital and therefore fully equipped!!! This might sound very simple to you guys, but for me here it's wonderful news. The have everything required for the eyes as well. Therefore, unlike what my SPCA friend told me, if it is painful, instead of putting her to sleep we can look into having the eye removed. I surely hope it doesn't come to that, but at least I am much more calm and optimistic now. I got good reviews on that vet as well from others :biggrin2:
 
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