pasturella

[existenziell]

So my bunny has the sniffles. It started on Friday, and I took him to the vet on Saturday. No symptoms then except for sneezing fits so we decided to wait it out and make sure it wasn't just a response to a new brand of bedding (we changed brands of paper pellet bedding). So then by Monday he sounded pretty awful, and I got antibiotics for him. I'm wondering when the antibiotics may start to alleviate his symptoms? 2 doses in (soon to be 3) and he still sounds terrible. I'm just worried because he seems to be getting worse, not better. Am I overreacting?

Add to this the complication that I also have a guinea pig. She doesn't have a runny nose or anything, but she has been sneezing frequently. I want to make sure she is okay, too, because I was reading that pasturella in guinea pigs tends to be more severe than in rabbits and the mortality rate (even with antibiotics) seems to be higher. They aren't bonded and don't live together, but live near each other.

Let me also say that I have no idea how my babies became afflicted with this. I take good care of them. I clean and wash their cages every 3-4 days, I wash the food bowls and water bottles, and they are on a diet of Oxbow pellets and timothy hay with a handful of veggies (usually spring mix).

SO my questions: When should I start to get worried if the antibiotics don't alleviate the symptoms? I mean, my bunny is pretty wheezy but doesn't have a lot of nasal discharge. He also doesn't feel like eating, so I've been giving him some spinach to try and at least keep his digestive track moving. I am planning to give him Oxbow critical care if he doesn't start eating again soon. Does anyone have experience with pasturella in guinea pigs? The resources out there seem pretty limited on the subject.

 

[JBun]

Unless a culture was done, there's no way to know for sure if your rabbit has pasteurella or a different bacteria. I know piggies can contract bordetella from a rabbit infected with it, but not sure about pasteurella or the other bacterias.

It's hard to know how long it will take to see improvement, as URI's in rabbits can be extremely difficult to clear up and often take several weeks(and sometimes months) on antibiotics to clear up. I would think that at least after the first week, that you should at least see a little improvement, or you may need to talk to the vet about changing antibiotics as that one may not be effective against the particular bacteria(s) your rabbit has. Also, if the antibiotic appears to be causing your rabbit to have a lack of appetite, you will need to immediately discuss with your vet changing onto a different antibiotic, as it may be affecting your rabbits GI flora, and that can be dangerous for a rabbit if it gets too unbalanced. It's also very important to monitor your rabbits eating/drinking, and ensure your bun is eating enough food each day to prevent GI stasis from occurring.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Bacterial/URI.htm

If your rabbit's condition worsens, you need to get in touch with the vet right away. If you aren't giving metacam already, you could ask your vet about it. I know metacam is often given for URI's to help reduce some of the inflammation, which can help their breathing. In more severe cases, nebulizing may be needed. If at any point your rabbit is mouth breathing or appears to have difficulty breathing, get to a vet immediately.

 

[existenziell]

Thanks, JBun! I recently moved from MI to OH and had a hard time getting a rabbit savvy vet in my area. I did manage to get one, although I was not impressed with the way he handled my baby. No culture was done, just a visual examination. He listened to his lungs, heart, and under his chin. Also took his temperature. The name of the medicine they gave me is Sulfatrim. Not sure if you're familiar with that. I was listening to his breathing and it doesn't seem to be too bad, though he makes this hacking sound every once in awhile that has me concerned.

I did some looking and there is an emergency exotics hospital in Akron that I may take him to if he doesn't improve, especially if he shows any signs of having difficulty breathing. He is eating some hay, so that's promising. I'm going to just keep an eye on him for now.

As far as a nebulizer goes, is that something I would get from my vet?

 

[missyscove]

Sulfatrim is a good antibiotic to try, but I agree, a culture is your best bet for selecting the best antibiotic. The guinea pig and the rabbit could have the same thing or two different things, so, unfortunately, it'd be best to have both of them looked at. They aren't housed together, are they? Stress can bring up things they may have been harboring so depending on how recent that move was, that may play a part. If they're in a new environment also consider things they might be sensitive to that have changed. Different climate, smells, etc.

Some vets might carry nebulizers, but I ordered mine off of ebay. They don't tolerate the mask very well so I used a plastic storage container for Cricket when I was nebulizing her. We were just using saline but you can use antibiotics. Humidifying the air in the room can help too. I have a youtube video of the process: [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V29dG5fU5J4[/ame]

 

[majorv]

Sulfatrim is pretty easy on their digestic systems so you shouldn't have to worry about gut problems from that.

 

[Kipcha]

I second the nebulizer, when Spyro was going through his worst times (We had a culture done and it was a combination of pasteurella, bordetella and another bacteria that they could not identify)we used it with baytril, it was the only thing that really helped at all. Unfortunately it only helped for a few months and we ultimately had to have him put to sleep, but he was also a rather severe case and there was more going on later on.

I also second getting a culture done to go after the specific bacteria that your bun is having trouble with.

How is your bunny doing now?

 

[hopalot]

Hi, I have experience with snuffles, and really a lot depends on the age of the bunny. Younger buns will generally recover if the antibiotic is administered as soon as you notice the problem. Baytril is the best broad spectrum med for this, and it knocks it out. If your guy is up there in age, the issue may be more stubborn.

My vets told me: 1) this thing never goes away, it goes into remission only to return again later. That happened to one of my buns. It turns into head-tilt as the bacteria travels deeper into other cavities if not dealt with. 2) Maintenance with Baytril for the older bunny where the aged body requires support. That means antibiotic for life. 3) Snuffles tends to rear its head in the Fall and Spring, when bodies are weaker in adjustments to seasons changing.

On two aged male rabbits of mine they ended up on maintenance doses of Baytril to contain bladder sludge infections and snuffles.

On a netherland dwarf girl her snuffles turned into head tilt twice because I didn't take it seriously enough. Learned the hard way.:headflick:

The bacteria is always resident in rabbits healthy or otherwise waiting for an opportune moment to strike some area of the body. Unfortunately, it's nature's population control mechanism. (I hate it!)