Help! Tupper sick after vet visit yesterday!

[lovebunnyok]

I took Tupper to the vet yesterday, and they said he had Snuffles, and gave him a shot of antibiotics called Convenia. Now, this morning, he is not himself. He won't eat, hops around a little but went back into his cage himself and into his hidey area (it usually takes forever to get him in his cage!). Some of his treats I gave him last night are still in his cage! I called the clinic and they said that the vet wont be in till tomorrow. What should I do?? My baby is sick!!

 

[Maureen Las]

Actually Convenia is a new and good antibiotic for use in not just cats and dogs but also rabbits.
it will last for a longer period of time.

My question is whether your vet used Convenia out of knowledge or ignorance as it is primarily used for cats and dogs and not for rabbits but it's use in rabbits is new.

is your vet someone who knows a lot about the care of rabbits?

The reason I am asking this is that I am wondering whether he knew the correct dosage to give a rabbit?

The other issue is that possibly the antibiotic is killing off the bacteria which is causing your rabbit to not feel well. In that case You need to syringe feed fluids and food to keep his Gi system moving until he feels better. You should try to give him his favorite greens (if he as eaten them before)
if he is not drinking go out and get some pedialyte to use for syringing fluids. You can also water his pellets down into a slurry that you can use to feed to him in a syringe. ; you can also syringe pure canned pumkin without seasoning in it and various types of vegetable baby food.
If you have an exotics vet you may be able to get a powder called critical care from the vet office . This powder when mixed with a lot of water can be syringe fed to a sick rabbit and contains all the nutrients a rabbit needs.

it doesn't sound like your bunny is having an allergic reaction to the med so i would attempt to feed and hydrate him yourself today and then talk to your vet tomorrow if this continues.

How are the symptoms that he had that originally made you take him to the vet?

 

[lovebunnyok]

I really don't know. He has stopped sneezing, but he stays in his hidey area all the time now, and rarely comes out. I put his greens in like usual to see if he would eat some. He came out, sniffed at them, then went back into his area. I am going to the store now to get some pedialyte and some baby foods.

 

[Maureen Las]

That's good...........

also I asked you if you feel that your vet is really knowledgeable re. rabbits ?

Was this an intentional knowledgeable choice of meds or an accidental choice. ?

the reason I am asking this is to determine if the vet dosed properly

 

[lovebunnyok]

He told me it was a new antibiotic for bunnies, and that it shouldn't cause any side effects. I've called other vets in town and they said that he is the one I should use. It's actually a small animal care clinic, but they do handle dogs and cats as well. Tupper's weight is 3.4lbs, but i heard him say to the vet tech to use a dosage for a 4lb rabbit. I should have asked him why, but he seemed to know so much about bunnies that in my newness to the bunny world, I just trusted him. I certainly wont do THAT again!

I just got back from the store, and I am going to try and give him some pedialyte first, and see how he does with that.

Thank you for your help!

 

[lovebunnyok]

How much Pedialyte should I give him? I gave him a little, but he didn't seem to like the idea.

He peed on the couch, and usually I would be upset, but any sign of his body doing normal functions makes me happy right now.

 

[tonyshuman]

It sounds like your vet is up on the newer treatments, which is great. I am a tiny bit concerned because "snuffles" is not a technical term and is indicative of old-school vet treatment of rabbits, which wasn't always the best. So the vet knows new treatments, but uses old diagnoses, which is interesting.

I would give him as much pedialyte as he will let you syringe into him--probably no more than 50mL.

I want to strongly recommend a probiotic like Bene-Bac (made for small animals or dogs/cats) or Probios (made for horses). This will help keep his GI tract healthy, and without a healthy GI tract, bunnies can get VERY sick. Bene-Bac is available at most big box pet stores, like PetSmart or Petco, and Probios will be available at a farm supply/feed store, whichever of these stores is closest to you. They have the same ingredients.

Force-feeding him baby food is food. I also would try a slurry of pellets--let them sit in water for 15 min or so, and syringe them to him. Your vet may also have something called Critical Care, which is a powder you can soak in water and syringe feed to him.

Finally, an appetite stimulant and source of calories called Nutri-Cal is often recommended when a bunny won't eat. Make sure you get the malt flavor, as the other flavors I think are liver and fish for dogs and cats. This has a lot of vitamins and calories, and can stimulate appetite. Also available at most big box pet stores.

 

[lovebunnyok]

I got maybe 10 ML in him now. He wasn't going for the foods at all, but I am figuring if I start off small, and try again in 10 or 20 minutes, maybe he will take some more. I just wish the vet had told me that this could happen. I would have been more prepared, and gotten stuff yesterday. He was fine yesterday, even at bedtime! :?

 

[Maureen Las]

sometimes when bacteriastart dying off the rabbit will lose his appetite for a few days when first starting an antibiotic;;;; after a few days the rabbit stabilizes and starts eating ..
Ithink that you have a good vet...

 

[lovebunnyok]

Tupper is eating some hay. Is that a good sign?:?

 

[pla725]

Definitely! Try some Dandelion leaf as well.

 

[tonyshuman]

Hay is great! Some other gentle things for a bunny's tummy are dandelion as pla725 mentioned, romaine, and parsley. Hay is probably the best thing for him to be eating.

 

[ra7751]

Hi,

Just happened to pop in and saw this thread. Thought I would add my opinion on this since I have been using Convenia longer than the vets in the US ( for rabbits anyway). It is a third generation cephalosporin. It is labeled for use in dogs and cats (in the US) but there is some question from vets if it's as effective as claimed. I have used it quite a bit especially with penicillin resistant bacteria that are sensitive to this drug. Unlike dogs and cats, it seems this drug should be dosed at least once a week.....I have dosed every third day....but my situation is quite different in that I can respond immediately to any problem. I have used it with wild and domestic rabbits as well as squirrels....and one on my vet volunteers has also used it on guinea pigs.

I have experienced no concernable side effects with Convenia. I suspect your rabbit's lack of appetite is much more related to stress than anything else.....and when things like this happen, most people over react and that makes the problem worse. I have had rabbits not eat for over a week. Based on your post, relax and stop stressing your rabbit. All this stuff....Pedialyte,baby food, Nutri Cal (I am not a fan of "fat in a tube") and all the other stuff is just stress to your rabbit. Something I do with rescues is let them rest and destress. And that is what I suggest in this case based on my years of experience. As far as an appetite stimulant (if necessary)....I would suggest an injection of B Comp (a vitamin).

I am concerned about the terminolgy used by your vet. I would expect any doctor that has knowledge of using Convenia in a rabbit to be better versed on correct terminology. "Snuffles" is not a medical condition....it is a myth....or maybe better explained as an outdatedacronym. I hope your vetdoesn't consider "snuffles"a real concern. And just for your information, based on the weight of your rabbit and assuming an uncut and properly formulated drug, the proper dose of Convenia for your rabbit would be approximately .16cc administered SQ.

Randy