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AliceBunny

AliceBunny

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 25, 2015
Messages
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Location
Montana
I recently stumbled across an add for someone giving away an 8 week bunny for meat because one of its eyes never opened and the rabbit is assumed to be blind. I am thinking about attempting to take this bunny in, and I know that it may end sadly, but I feel like I should at least try.

Does anyone have any advise to offer? Any ideas why the eye might not have opened? Infection in the eyes, or perhaps a birth defect? Can a rabbit live comfortably if it is unable to see? I sent an email saying that as long as the rabbit is currently eating and drinking I will take it.

I haven't posted here in a little while, but nearly a month ago I lost my beautiful Rex boy to a sudden and unexplained cause. I came home to find he had already passed and I've been heartbroken ever since. I feel horrible about it. Part of me feels like having the opportunity to help another rabbit, and possibly nurse it to health could really help me feel better. At least I could give the little bunny a nice warm and loving home for its final days.

Ps. Sorry for the typo in the title. I'm on my cellphone.
 
Unfortunately I don't know much about the issue your potential bunny has, however I have recently taken in a bunny with a disability. My bun who is now 14 weeks had paralysis in her back legs (most likely from some form of trauma) and also had splayed front legs however this didn't really show until recently. Over time she has regained the use of her back legs but both legs on her right side (front and back) remain splayed. All I can say is that I think because she is disabled and she relies on me more than normal bunnies would, that we bonded quicker and she has the most beautiful nature. You get a real nurturing feeling and it feels amazing when you watch them start to live as normally as they can. I find it very rewarding having my special bun and I wouldn't change her for a normal bun if you paid me 1 million dollars! I did do lots of research to make sure that her quality of life wouldn't be compromised before I took her in and that might be the only thing standing in your way with your one eyed bunny. Hope I didn't make the decision harder for you! Good luck!
 
why the eye never opened potential causes
1. nestbox eye that was never treated.
2. genetic defect
3. injury

Mostly likely... nestbox eye never treated.

What to do.
You could take rabbit to vet to see if eye can be opened. I DO NOT advise this. Nestbox eye that hasn't been treated results in injury to the eyeball and blindness. Leaving the eye alone doesn't hurt the rabbit. Blindness on one side probably won't even slow it down a whole lot once it gets used to its living environment.

How to handle
Be slow at letting it explore it's habitat. Give more cage time and direct supervision when not around. if you have other pets be alert to them approaching from the bad side until you know that pet and the rabbit are good with each other.

To be alert for:
If an old nestbox eye issue, it means that kit has already shown signs of a compromised immune system. So strengthening it's immune system will be a priority. Vitamin C helps with this. Also not messing around too much with it's living environment (keeping stressors low). Establishing a good but varied feeding routine. Rabbit MIGHT BE carrying other illnesses that are currently being kept in check.

overall.. get the bunny, it'll be fine and you'll feel good.
Clean out the old cage REALLY REALLY well before putting new bunny into it.
 
Thank you both for your replies! I heard back from the people giving him away and I'm going to pick him up today. They said they think it's a male but they're not sure. Once I get a better look at him I'll try to give some more information here. Thanks again! :)
 
I've read about half blind pet rabbits living happy lives.
Rabbits are amazingly good at memorizing their surroundings.
 
Likely an eye infection and it's possible it could be easily treated with antibiotic eye drops/ointment, though do not attempt this or open the eye without seeing a good rabbit vet first and being instructed to do so. It is possible though, that if the infection is too severe the bunny may need surgery to have the eye removed. No way of knowing until the bunny has been examined.
 
Thank you both. I'm getting him tonight, in about 4 hours. I'm actually unsure if his eye is still closed, or if it is now open but took too long to open and is now damaged. In my last communication it sounded like both eyes might be open but one eye is damaged. I'll just have to wait and see I suppose. Any recommendation on how long I should wait before scheduling first vet appointment? Should I give a few days of calm and quiet in the new home before bringing him out to a vet?
 
If it's an eye infection, I would want to have him seen as soon as possible, as the longer you wait the worse it will continue to get.
 
Okay, do you think there any way for me to get an idea if whether the eye is infected or not? Or should I just assume that it is an infection? I plan on bringing him into the vet no matter what, but it will be a difference in whether I schedule an appointment 1-2 weeks out or if I bring him into see an emergency vet.

Edit: I'll add that my preferred rabbit vet usually schedules 1-2 weeks out. There is one decent alternative though that will do emergency appointments.
 
If there is white goop around the eye, the fur around the eye is hard and crusty, the eye is sealed shut, and/or the eye itself has white clouding, then those indicate an eye infection. If when you see the rabbit, that there is something obviously wrong with the eye(s) like inflammation, discharge, clouding, the eye sealed shut, then I would presume there is an infection and get the rabbit to the vet preferably that same day, but at least within the next day or two. These links describe and show what to look for.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Eye_diseases/Differential/Runny_eyes.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Eye_diseases/Disorder/Ulcer/Ulc_en.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Eye_diseases/Discharge/eye_discharge.htm
 
If it's infected it could be red, swollen, or have discharge from it, or crusties around the eye where discharge has dried. If it's not infected it shouldn't have any of those things.

I'd also be making a vet visit pretty much straight away in either case.
 
Just an update, I have him now at home. His eye is open, but I do believe it is infected. It looks just the same as my dog's eye looked when he had conjunctivitis. It's just a little gunky and crusty in the fur which keeps him from opening the eye completely. Otherwise he does seem healthy which is great. He's a lot bigger than I was expecting, but I've never had a rabbit so young before and I'm not sure of his breed anyway. He's some type of lop or lop cross.

I don't think he's blind in that eye, I used a little light to try and get a better look at the eyeball itself and he didn't seem to like the light shining in his eye. He's been exploring his little makeshift cage a bit. Just as I am writing this he's started eating a little sliver of carrot and that was enough to tempt him to try s few pellets. I have hay in there and just about a tablespoon of pellets. The people he came from didn't give me any of his old food or hay so I hope he starts eating the hay soon. He did drink water which is good! He's actually drinking a lot of water right now so I worry he is dehydrated.

Tomorrow only the emergency vets are open because it's Sunday. One of them I know for sure doesn't treat rabbits, only cats and dogs. The other clinic has a vet on staff that treats rabbits but I will have to wait until the morning to call and see if she will be working tomorrow. My favorite rabbit vet closes his clinic on Sunday's so worst case scenario I think I will be able to get him into an emergency appointment Monday morning. But I will try my best to get an appointment for tomorrow!

image.jpg
 
It certainly doesn't look as bad as it sounded. Nothing that a course of antibiotic eye drops won't fix. It doesn't seem like it's an emergency to me, but I would definitely want to have him seen sometime next week, and just keep a really close eye on it and take him in sooner if it worsens or there is clouding in the eye itself. In the meantime, keeping the eye rinsed out with a plain sterile saline eye rinse might help.

He's a cute little guy.
 
Hi guys I have a bunny names Padme from star warz. I'm new here and just wanted to know how to post a question/discussion on here (not a reply) in case I need help with my bunny. Please help thank you! :)
 
JBun said:
It certainly doesn't look as bad as it sounded. Nothing that a course of antibiotic eye drops won't fix. It doesn't seem like it's an emergency to me, but I would definitely want to have him seen sometime next week, and just keep a really close eye on it and take him in sooner if it worsens or there is clouding in the eye itself. In the meantime, keeping the eye rinsed out with a plain sterile saline eye rinse might help.

He's a cute little guy.
Click to expand...

Thank you :) that's his good eye in the above photo. But I agree his bad eye doesn't seem as bad as they originally made it sound, but there's definitely something wrong with it. I called this morning and the exotics vet is not working at the emergency clinic today, so I will be calling my normal vet tomorrow morning. I'm still pretty sure his bad eye is infected. I need to get the crusty stuff off so I can see his actual eye a bit better. I can't tell if it is cloudy or not.

Thanks for all the help everyone! I'll try to add a photo of his bad eye.

image.jpg
 
I cleaned his eye a bit today with a cotton ball soaked in some saline. I just held it there for a minute and then used a q-tip that was damp with saline to gently wipe away any mucus from the eye. I took this picture where you can see how cloudy the eye is. I've got a vet appointment scheduled for him. Im assuming he has a bacterial infection. I'm not sure if he has vision in the eye or not but he seems to react to light/camera flash so I'm thinking he has at least some vision. His other eye looks healthy but has a little bit of mucus in the inner corner as well. He's been eating and drinking well, but sleeping quite a bit so I don't think he feels very well. Thanks again for everyone's help.

image.jpg
 
It's probably either an infection (pasteurella multocida) or an anormal pressure by the root of a tooth on the tear duct (probably not, considering how young your rabbit is, but it's a possibility). You will have an antibiotic, eyewash and the tear duct will have to be emptied of the pus (maybe under anesthesia, but it might be done manually if it's not too obstructed) in both cases. If a tooth is the problem, removing it will have to be considered. But well, the rabbit will live and cleaning it with saline is a good solution while waiting for the vet appointment. ^^
 
He is a beautiful little guy. I hope he feels better soon. I agree with everyone about it not looking as bad as it first sound, and reacting to light is a good sign, right? :3
 
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