Bunny falling over

[Marfran]

Hi everyone! Haven't been on for a while but have a concern with our lion head bunny Binyum. She started losing her balance and falling over both outside her cage in her bunny friendly room and in her cage. We took her to the vet but she didn't display balance issues. Her head isn't tipping and X-rays showed no trauma. The vet gave her a steroid shot, which lasts six weeks, it did help her but still not sure we resolved underlying issue. She is eating and drinking peeing and pooping fine. A follow-up with the vet gave us hope that all is well, the vet advised us to wait and see after med wears off if symptoms return. Hoping it was a one time occurance. Any thoughts? Worried this steroid may be hiding a more serious issue.

 

[squidpop]

I'm not sure but e. cuniculi (EC) can cause partial paralysis which can cause rabbits to go off balance. It is a protozoal infection and sometimes the protozoa can travel to the spinal column and cause damage and inflammation, the protozoa can land in different places on the spine and cause different degrees of paralysis. Anti-inflamatories help with symptoms but to kill off the protozoa people treat with fenbendazole which is the active ingredient in Panacur. So I would treat with Panacur for 28 days. Your vet can also do a titre test to see if your rabbit has been exposed. EC is a really common infection and in the UK when rabbits where tested in a study 80% tested positive. Some rabbits just carry it and show no symptoms. Panacur is really safe and some rabbit rescues are beginning to automatically treat all incoming rabbits with it just incase because its such a common problem.

Other people on here might have other ideas as to what would cause a rabbit to go off balance but EC is the first thing that came to my mind.

 

[JBun]

Did your vet check your bun for e. cuniculi or an ear infection? These would be the most common causes of loss of balance, besides something like dehydration or heat stress. Checking for EC and an ear infection would involve a blood titer for the EC and a visual exam of the ears. The xray of the head may also show if there is an inner ear infection. I feel it's quite risky of your vet to be giving a steroid injection with no confirmed case of trauma as the cause, as this lowers a rabbits immune response, so if there is some sort of EC or bacterial infection causing the loss of balance, the steroid could be very bad to be giving. There is a time and place for steroid use in rabbits, but that decision has to be very carefully evaluated as to whether the risk is worth the benefits.
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Corticost/Cortico.htm

When a definite cause isn't determined for a balance issue, usually the common causes are covered, which would be EC and ear infection. So that would involve the meds metacam, panacur, and an abx cover like baytril or septrin. Though because a steroid has been given, you would have to wait a certain amount of time before giving metacam.

Personally, I would be looking for a better rabbit vet if at all possible, then I would want my bun checked for an ear infection and have blood tests done.

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

 

[Marfran]

Thank you for the advice, will follow up with another vet for a second opinion on Binyum's issue. Relieved to get good advice on this site. Very appreciative!

 

[JBun]

Sure. I hope you are able to get the answers that you need.

I forgot to mention something like arthritis that can cause a rabbit to fall over, but if this was the case, you would likely be seeing other signs in your bun, such as stiffness and slowing down. If you see a new vet they should check for this if your other vet didn't.

 

[Marfran]

Just an update, going to vet at 3:45pm Binyum has a wet mouth and not eating and drinking as much. Last time she had her teeth filed in October, she needed two extractions as well. I'm wondering if there is a connection to her falling over and maybe teeth troubles? I will still ask for bloodwork to check for EC and maybe X-rays to check her inner ears for infection. Still hoping the steroid shot won't cause her trouble if she needs teeth filing.

 

[Marfran]

Binyum needs teeth filing and is booked in tomorrow. Vet doesn't think EC is what caused loss of balance due to not being exposed to other bunnies, but will do an inner ear check while she is under anaesthetic tomorrow. I gave her metacam and critical care, banana and apple flavour. She looks good, despite losing a bit of weight. Hoping she feels better after all this. She's our little girl.

 

[JBun]

EC isn't only contracted directly from other rabbits, and I would be concerned about how rabbit savvy a vet is that believes this. It can be picked up from hay contaminated by other critters, picked up from contaminated ground if a rabbit has been outdoors, they can also pick it up from their mother even before birth if she was a carrier, and rabbits can be asymptomatic carriers in which they already have been exposed to EC at some point in their lives but have no signs of illness until something occurs that causes the EC to proliferate and start affecting the rabbits organs.
'Most rabbits are exposed to this disease in utero or at birth' http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00dis/Parasitic/Encephalitozoonosis.htm

EC may not be the problem with your rabbit, but I certainly wouldn't want my own vet discounting it as a possibility for balance issues, just due to the fact that my rabbit hadn't been around other rabbits recently. It may still be worthwhile to get an EC blood titer done as well as a blood panel. If you don't get the EC titer done, some vets will go ahead and treat for EC with Panacur and metacam, just based on the symptoms presented when no other cause is found.

I hope the dental goes well for your bun and the cause of the balance issues is discovered.

 

[squidpop]

I agree with jbun. EC is so common that for my own rabbits, since I have gotten two new ones, I've been thinking about treating them with Panacur even though they aren't showing symptoms just incase. Or maybe I should just get them a titer test.

 

[HollandLopEllie]

What was the outcome of the falling over bunny?