Rabbit Eye Infection/Issue?

[BunnyJenn]

I am hoping to figure out what this is before taking drastic measures. I have one vet baffled, another giving a diagnosis of "E. cuniculi" (which makes no sense to me). Before I sacrifice a rabbit to a full autopsy, I am hoping that someone here can give me some idea of what this might be.

All my rabbits are showing the same symptom. So it is contagious. It is also looking like my guinea pigs have caught it from them. Rabbits appear otherwise in perfect health, no snuffles. The only symptom seems to be a white film that forms over the eye, in some it is more opaque and goopy looking. It is not on the surface of the eye (like conjunctivitis) but just below the surface (cornea perhaps?). It is not a cataract in the lens, and the 'film' does not move around.

Breed is Holland Lop if that makes any difference.

I can't find anything online or in my Merck manual. Have any of you seen or heard of anything like this?

 

[JBun]

I doubt it's e. cuniculi, especially since it's spreading to your other rabbits. EC is contagious, but it's highly unlikely for several rabbits to show the exact same symptoms, especially eye related ones. It's seems like it would be a bacterial infection of some sort. Has your vet had you treat with antibiotics or done any testing? Are you sure about your GP starting to show symptoms and are your rabbits related(for possible genetic issues if your GP's are ok)?

It sounds like you either need to find a better rabbit vet or possibly go see a specialist in ophthalmology.
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f28/finding-vet-13366/
http://rabbit.org/vet-listings/

 

[BunnyJenn]

So far we haven't done any testing - since it seems to be inside the eye, a proper sample would require dissecting the eye (which means, at best, a one-eyed rabbit, and a euthanized rabbit at worst) so I don't want to go that route unless a diagnosis can't be gotten any other way.

I am working on finding a better vet - I have two leads, one who works with many exotics and has his own lab, the other is the veterinary university, who also deal with exotics and difficult or strange cases. But again, if I can have at least some idea of what I am looking at before going to them, then I am that much further ahead. Plus both would require a day off work (and we live paycheque to paycheque as it is) and a day of driving.

It does seem to me like it is bacterial. Possibly a parasite (like EC), but most likely bacterial. A virus just... doesn't usually behave this way, infecting the host and just living there. I suspect it is transferred nose to nose - since the only contact between rabbits is through the cage bars, and for a few when they were bred this spring. Two were living in cages next to guinea pigs, which is how the GP's could have gotten it. The GP's are showing a similar sort of symptom, but it is different, more of a film over the entire eye rather than a filmy patch.

I have had one rabbit on Tetracycline for the last week, with no change. But she also is refusing to drink her water with the TC in it, so she may not be getting a proper dose. *head-desk*. I haven't been able to try any eye drop type antibiotics, there is currently a shortage of them due to a problem with the supplier so I can't get anything without a prescription, and my regular vet doesn't know rabbits (see first paragraph ).

 

[JBun]

Sorry, I meant the type of tests they would do to check for something like a corneal abrasion, like with an eye stain. I would imagine there are other non invasive diagnostics that could be done by an experienced veterinary ophthalmologist. I just mention a specialist because another RO member a while back, had a similar cloudiness in their rabbits eye that their normal rabbit vet couldn't diagnose, so they saw an eye specialist that diagnosed it as some sort of eye condition that cats can get. I've been trying to find the thread, but can't seem to locate it. If I do manage to dig it up, I'll make sure to post it.

Getting an antibiotic eye drop would definitely be a good place to start. Could your vet not prescribe something like tobramycin eye drops? Or at least consult with an experienced rabbit vet to know what to prescribe.

The cloudiness isn't an unfamiliar symptom. I would normally suspect something like a corneal ulcer or cataracts, possibly EC, but it's the highly contagious element that is a bit more baffling, as I have never heard of a corneal eye disease being so contagious.