Bunny Seizures?!

[kisforcrafty]

My (approximately) 1 year old mini lop had a seizure two nights ago. It was one of the most terrifying things I have ever witnessed in my life. This is the second one he's had and is by far the worst. (The first was in December)

I had gone to sleep around 10 pm only to be awoken an hour later by horrible thrashing and thuddingsounds coming from my living room. I ran out as fast as I could to find my baby, Señor MunchPickles, convulsing in the bottom of his cage. I opened his door to see if I could calm him down or something and saw his eyes rolling back and forth in his head and his back legs stiff. He kept trying to stand himself up with his front paws but only ended up turning himself around in a circlebecause his back legs were paralyzed. He recovered within a few minutes and moved himself to sit in the corner of his cage, dazed.

I immediately called theCornell ER and was told to bring him in for testing and observation. When I picked him up out of the cage, I put him down andhe was able towalk himself into his carrier. He seemed fine when we got there, and did not have another seizure while he was in the back. They tested his bloodelectrolyte levels, glucose and a few other superfcial tests. They did not do a full work up because it would have taken too long. They suggested that I make an appointment with the "exotic animal" section of the hospital in the future to see what is really wrong.

I'm posting here because I was looking to see if this has happened to any other bunny parents and what they have to suggest. I know that a vet will be the best bet, but I want to see what other people have to say first.

**He eats a 1/2 cup of pellets in the morning, unlimited hay during the day, a handful of leafy greens in the afternoon and a carrot. He getsa fresh bottle of water each morning, too. He does not get into anything except picking at the carpet to get my attention. (I can't keep a houseplant alive to save my life, so no worries there!)

I adopted him from a local pet store that works with the SPCA to adopt animals. His previous family had just dropped him off with no papers or history. His cage was nice & big and evenhad a couple of toys, so I'm not sure why they would give a cutie like him up!

 

[ZRabbits]

Have to agree, seizures are a terrifying experience to behold.

I have not experienced it with my buns but I think your Rabbit Savvy Vet might be able to pinpoint it. Maybe this bun was dropped off because they saw a seizure and rather than telling the SPCA there was a problem and think they wouldn't take the bun (which the SPCA would) dropped it off with no history.

Maybe stress could bring it on, or it could be a neurological condition which hopefully could be controlled by medication.

So sorry to hear about this. Hopefully you can get some answers you need to make this sweet bun comfortable and seizure free.

K

 

[pamnock]

Here's a good article on seizures http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Neurology/seizure.htm

 

[tonyshuman]

Agreed with above. It sounds like you and the vets had a very good approach to this. I would ask if your bunny is a blue eyed white bunny? Those bunnies and some other colorations seem to have a genetic predisposition for seizures. We had a forum member who had a blue-eyed white bunny that had seizures quite often. Definitely go through the list Pam posted, maybe with your vet, and see if you can determine if any of those things might be causing his seizures. Otherwise, it could just be bad genes. I'm sorry you and your bun (adorable name) have to go through this. Hopefully he has them due to a treatable cause.

 

[kisforcrafty]

Thanks! He's a tawny lop (like the sweetie in your pic!). I've gone through that list and I'm going to wait it out. Since it was so long between the first two, I'll sit on it and wait for any other odd behaviors. He seems fine and has been binkying all over the living room this week. I really appreciate your input! Thank you!

 

[kisforcrafty]

Thank you!! It was very helpful!