Slightly Tilt Head and Nystagmus Eyes

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the fluffies

the fluffies

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
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Location
penang, , Malaysia
This is MAXIE, a 5 years old mixed dutch bunny, neutered. He is 1.67kg.

IMG_7299.jpg


We live in Northern of Malaysia where it is hard to find rabbit savvy. Our rabbit savvy vet is 400km from us.

Maxie was ok yesterday morning when i left him. I went home at night and checked on him at 9.30pm. He wasnt eating and drinking, so i separated him from his mate and gave him Simethicone. And due to tiredness, i accidentally fall asleep the whole night.

I woke up at 7am and when i checked on him, he was sitting quietly in his playpen. When i picked him up, i was so shock to see he was so lethargy and his head was tilted and his left side.

I fed him Benebac, Simethicone, Critical Care and a lot of water. But very little went to his system because he refused to swallow them. I put him is a cage. His head is slightly tilted. His left eye is moving downward, and his right eye is moving upward.

I rushed him to 2 different vets here. Both of them said he might have a head injury or neuro problem. The said, the physical examination didnt show any sign of him having ears infection.

He was very healthy, he never been sick, never had any infection. So it is very devastated to see him in this condition.

The 2nd vet we went today prescribed Maxie 8 pcs of quarter baytril tablets. Quarter tablet, twice a day (so total is 4 days course) just in case there is any internal infection.

I talked to the rabbit savvy vet that is located 400km from me. I want my rabbit to get a proper diagnose and treatment from her, but she thinks it is not a good idea to bring my rabbit there, esp in this condition.

Do u guys think my rabbit can be cured with Baytril only? And what is possibly happen to him? E.cuniculi? How to confirm this? Bloodtest?
 
It could be an inner ear infection, which the baytril may help with, or you may need a different antibiotic like azithromycin or chloramphenicol. But it's also possible the head tilt is being caused by e. cuniculi and that would need to be treated with fenbendazole 20 mg/kg once a day, for at least 28 days. A blood test can show if your rabbit has been exposed to e. cuniculi. Which ever is the cause, it would also be a good idea to be giving an anti inflammatory pain med like metacam, it is also a pretty necessary medication in helping in a rabbits recovery from these things. If you can get the pain under control, your rabbit may start eating again on it's own.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/Otit/otitis.htm
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/tilt.html
http://www.thebrc.org/health-poblems.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Safe_drugs_main.htm
 
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I agree with Jenny (above). It could be either an ear infection or E. Cuniculi. In my experience, Baytril doesn't help that much, though it's the med of choice for a lot of veterinarians to use with cases like this. So many bunnies have become resistant to it, that it is very possible you'll end up needing to try a different one. With some however it does work, so it's worth a shot. Plus, like mentioned previously, it'd be really good to get him on a pain med; If you've ever had an ear infection, wow they hurt, so meds can make a big difference there are well.
 
Hi guys,
I just wonder, is it possible to replace the Fenbendazole with Ivermectin? There is no Fenbendazole here. But we have Ivomac.
 
My rabbit had wry neck too, from the parasite they are all born with (cant remember the name of it) we had taken him to the vet and they prescribed medication for him and now he is all better! It took over a month and he had a 50/50 shot at surviving.
 
Unfortunately Ivermectin doesn't treat e. cuniculi. If the head tilt is due to ear mites, then it would be effective in treating the head tilt, but not if it is caused by EC. Fenbendazole is a pretty common antiparasitic used for livestock here in the states. The brand names here are Safeguard and Panacur. You may be able to find it at a livestock feed store or horse supply store, if you have these type of stores and you haven't already looked there. Did you also try asking the vet if they have it?
 
Private vets do not have Fenbendazole, but 1 of the vets i contacted try to get it from her friend who works with government veterinary. She thinks they use it on farm animals like cow and goat.
 
That sounds right. So it would be the 0.33ml once a day, for at least 28 days. Keep in mind that if your rabbit does have e. cuniculi, it can take some time before you see results, and sometimes there may be permanent damage done, and the head tilt won't completely go away, even when the progression of the EC is stopped. You'll want to make sure your rabbit stays hydrated and is getting enough food. Also you may end up needing ophthalmic ointment or drops, for the eyes, as they can sometimes start having problems because of the head being tilted.
 
He is no longer having nystagmus tonight. Is it a good sign? He drinks a lot by himself. But eat very little and he opt to munch on alfalfa leaves only.

One of his eyes is red and watery bcoz he lay down on that side. I use Nicol (Chloramphenicol) eye drop. Is it ok?

We are going to see the rabbit savvy vet (she is 400km away from us) 6 hours from now. I hope Maxie can handle the stress. I will try my best to keep him as comfortable as can.

I am not sure if that vet has any better antibiotic than baytril. If not mistaken, she has Zithromax.

Incase she prescribed Zithromax, is it safe if i give Maxie some Metoclopramide? since he eats very little, i am afraid Zithromax will upset his stomach.
 
Great sign that the nystagmus is gone! Since he's not eating much on his own, please read below how to check tummy for possible stasis and hand-feeding.

Almost 18 months ago, I left Sabine doing just fine. I got home and found her motionless on her side, advanced head tilt, nystagmus in her eyes, and the eye facing down severely bruised, swollen, and bloodshot. I called the vet and she had me rub a little corn syrup on her gums, in case her condition was as a result of low blood sugar. Nothing. I rushed her to the vet, where after a multitude of tests, neither a firm cause or prognosis could be determined. In the ensuing weeks, Sabine was on an extensive regiment of medications and supplements. From this thread, it sounds like antibiotics are being. Please consider the following. Most importantly, be sure to offset the negative side effects of antibiotics with a supplement like Oxbow critical care and/or Perfect Food Berry (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005P0RNPA/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). Twice a day, mix a little of both with baby food (Sabine likes fruit flavors like mango-banana), organic pumpkin, and sugar free cranberry juice. At first I had to syringe feed the mixture. Sit your bunny on your lap and lean him back no more than 45 degrees. Enter mouth from the side and put a little on his tongue. Keep her as upright as possible to avoid aspiration. Later, I smeared it on her favorite greens and she gobbled it up on her own. Second, feel your bunny's tummy. If it feels hard, there is high likelihood of gas. Give him simethicone and gently massage tummy. Third, if your bunny has mobility issues, adjust his habitat for habilitation. Sabine had to learn to cope with her "new-found" disability, including staying upright, eating and drinking. She stayed in a medium sized crate at first, using the sides of the crate to steady herself, then to a small towel lined habitat and playtime in a pen so she could move around more freely. She now lives in a huge blanket lined habitat with her two BFFs, two guinea pigs.
 
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hi.

i am now driving home from meeting our vet who is 400km away from us. She had a look on Maxie and prescribed him a 28days of Baytril+Metronidazole, and 5days of Prednisolone. She has no oral Metacam and she insisted on using Prednisolone. But she ask to stop if Maxie is getting worse after taking Prednisolone. She also refuse to let me try Fenbendazole on Maxie.

Please advice me based on u guys experience:
1) Does he really needs 28 days antibiotic? Not 14 days??
2) Since i couldnt find Metacam, should i give the Prednisolone?
3) I have Fenbendazole bought from the counter. Can i try this or shud i just listen to my vet?
 
since maxie is eating very little, can i give him reglan to stimulate his appetite? i have reglan 10mg tablet. can someone help me how to get the right dose for 1.67kg bunny? and since it is in tablet, how to get the right ml for my bunny after dilute with water?
 
Another question is,
Baytril+metro and fenbendazole shud be taken twice a day issit (every 12hrs)? and it must be taken together or at different hour? If Maxie needs to take his Reglan, it can be taken together with all meds, or at least a few hours before/after the meds?
 
oh i just noticed that baytril prescribed for Maxie is 'Baytril Flavor 50mg for cats/dogs'. I read somewhere it is liver flavor. But it is still safe for bunny, rite?
 
Hi
I have a bottle of Safeguard 10% liquid (fenbendazole ) here labeled 100 mg/ml . Since a ml =cc you would give 0.334 ml based on the dose calculator
In most cases problems like this these are inner infections which very often can not be detected on an exam so you should continue to pursue this quickly with your rabbit saavy vet.
if he is rolling or having balance issues this can be helped with an over the counter drug for motion sickness in humans called meclizine. Meclizine would be the generic name so you would need to read the back of the package. I don't know the exact dosage, however, I did read that Dana Kremepels say that dosing is not "exact' and that she would give 12.5 mg to a large rabbit and about half (6.25 mg) to a smaller one.
Might want to discuss dosages with members of the forum who have used this drug. I have never had the need . I hope this bunny improves :)
 
I think the eye drops may be ok. If there isn't an infection in the eye, I'm not sure why you would need antibiotic eye drops and not just lubricant eye drops though.

I'm not sure if 28 days of baytril and metronidazole is necessary if the symptoms of head tilt go away sooner than that, but sometimes being on antibiotics longer than 2 weeks, is needed to clear up the infection, if there is one. I guess it would just depend on how quickly you are seeing an improvement in your rabbit. The problem though, with being on antibiotics for so long, is that it can often cause appetite problems. Just make sure you are giving pet probiotics once a day, a couple hours after a dose of the antibiotics.

I would be very nervous about giving a rabbit steroids unless my rabbit was deathly ill and it was a last chance kind of thing, of saving my bun. Steroids could compromise your rabbits immune system. Can your local vet get metacam? It really is much better and safer to use with rabbits. There are other anti inflammatory medications, but metacam/meloxicam seems to be the safest to use with rabbits.

I would give the fenbendazole anyways. It's a relatively safe antiparasitic, and if your rabbit does have e. cuniculi, it is needed to help get rid of the parasite.

I'm not sure about the reglan. If you can help your rabbit eat by syringe feeding, that might be a better option. But if you decide to use it, you can look at this link to see the dosage used for rabbits. But if your rabbit has loose stools, you shouldn't be using it. http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/GI_stimulation/metoclopramide.htm

I think the meds can all be given at the same time. The antibiotics are probably a twice a day thing, and the fenbendazole is once a day. I'm not sure when reglan should be given though. The baytril flavor should be fine, your bun just probably won't like the flavor of it.

Here's some info on giving steroids to rabbits. You'll just have to decide if it is worth the risk to your bun.
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Corticost/Cortico.htm
 
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