I think 3 of my bunnies have Snuffles

[kweenkylie]

Three of my bunnies have had conjunctivitis for a while and ive been cleaning their eyes out every couple of hours but now the last day or so theyve been sneezing and weezing. Now i have to go to the vet and HOPE they will do a payment plan for me as I dont currently have a job and did not plan for this to happen.

What is the best antibiotic to get for this? I live in Australia and we've had really odd weather changes in Melbourne lately could this be the cause of it?

and on top of this my baby junior (hes 10 months old - one from my first litter) was stolen last friday night and no one knows or saw anything so i have no hope of him coming back

thanks for the help!!!

Kylie

 

[sbaxter]

Can`t help but wanted to say sorry your bun was taken x what a nightmare

 

[Maureen Las]

You would need to get a culture first to determine the antibiotics that would be most useful for the specific bacteria grown/

What you don't want is sulfa, trimethoprim sulfa, baytril ..only because it is usually over used and not very effective .
Sulfa drugs are old school drugs , often prescribed for rabbits but tend to upset the GI tract.
What you may want is zithromax(azithromycin.) which can be given by mouth.
injectable bicillin (can be bought at afarm store) or Convenia ( injectable.)

 

[tonyshuman]

Angieluv has it down. Snuffles is actually a pretty outdated term for an upper respiratory infection. Here's our Library link on URIs
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=16807&forum_id=10

The one on Pasturella may also be helpful, as that is usually the bacteria that causes an upper respiratory infection, although not always.

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12007&forum_id=10

Also a good medically-oriented article on URIs
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Bacterial/URI.pdf

One other thing to consider is if there is an accumulation of ammonia from urine or pine oils from aromatic wood bedding (pine, cedar). They can irritate the eyes and upper respiratory tract.

 

[kweenkylie]

Update, took them to the vet today...as i don't get paid until next week I asked if I could get it put on an account and not one out of the atleast 10 vets we went to would do it! For god sake I thought they were supposed to help animals not let them suffer!

Is there anything I can do for them without going to a vet? Its hot here atm too so theyre trying to pant to cool off and cant do it very successfully. I have been giving them warmish cool baths to keep them clean and cool and been cleaning their eyes with salty warm water and trying to clean their noses as best I can without them flipping their lids!

is there anything else i can do for them?

 

[tonyshuman]

There are some charities that will help you get them vet care, such as IMOM. There's also a credit card for vet care called Care Credit.

Unfortunately, it's really best to do antibiotic treatment under the care of a doctor. Since you're in Aus, there are also fewer options in terms of buying antibiotics at the farm supply store yourself as well.

 

[kweenkylie]

Thanks,

Is the fact that theyre eating and drinking alot a good thing? I know when i feel sick i dont like eating or drinking

any more help? thanks guys

 

[tonyshuman]

It's good, but once a bunny stops eating and drinking it's probably too far gone to be saved when it is because of an infection. I really think these guys need to see a vet ASAP. If you can't afford it, a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) shelter will give them the medical care they need. They may make you surrender the animals to them, but if you can't afford to treat them, it may be the best option for the animals.

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

I wish you the best of luck with the babes!

Ask for Zithromax for them! It's the best antibiotic right now for this type of infection, Randy always recommends it!

Let us know what transpires.

 

[kweenkylie]

I will do that as soon as I can get to a vet...what is the recommended dosage of zithromax for them usually?

 

[tonyshuman]

http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rx/drugcalc.html

I caution against just picking an antibiotic to use. Although there has been a lot of success recently with zithromax (asithromyacin), it's really best to do a culture and sensitivity test. This allows the vet to know exactly what the bacterium/a is/are that are causing the infection, and determines which antibiotics they are susceptible to. Remember that bunnies cannot have cephalosporins or penicillin-related drugs orally--they must be injected.

If your vet isn't very familiar with rabbits, it may be good to print out this sheet, as it has dosing info and tells you which antibiotics are safe orally or only injected.
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Antibiotics/Safe_antibiotics.htm

That list does not have Convenia on it, I think, but there has been a lot of success with that drug in rabbits so I'd mention it to the vet as well. It's given in an injection and they're spaced 5 days apart--the usual dose for dogs and cats is 7 days apart but rabbits seem to metabolize it more quickly. I don't know what the exact dose of Convenia is.