Sneezing bunny

[MinnieMare5]

My 12 week old female dutch rabbit has been sneezing A LOT lately. Other than that, she appears healthy and happy, and is eating and playing just fine. I give her timothy hay. Could the hay be what's causing it? She was on my leather couch with me tonight and she was sneezing in my lap, could it be my clothes? If it's the hay, should I stop giving her hay?

Thanks!



Deborah

 

[aurora369]

Is there any discharge? If there is discharge, what colour is it?

If it's sneezing with no discharge, she may just have a tickle in her nose. If there is discharge, it is very likely that she has an infection and will need a regiment of antibiotics. It's best to do a sensitivity culture to find out which antibiotic will work best.

Your bunny will ALWAYS need hay. If she turns out to be sensitive to the hay, try shaking off any dust outside before giving it to her. Sometimes hay can be quite dusty and it gets up their noses.

--Dawn

 

[MinnieMare5]

Dawn,



Thanks for your quick response. I do not see any discharge...does this mean I should just shake the hay out before giving it to her and not worry about the sneezing?

 

[aurora369]

I would try shaking out the hay to see if that helps.

Monitor her carefully. Try to see if there is a pattern to her sneezing. Is she sneezing after eating her hay or pellets or water or is random?

She may develop discharge if this is the very start of a infection. Check her daily if she continues to sneeze for any signs of discharge.

--Dawn

 

[pamnock]

Sneezing and clear nasal discharge can be early signs of bacterial infection. Allergies are not a common cause.

Pam

 

[MinnieMare5]

She's sneezing when I give her hay, so I believe it is from the hay.