Sneezing not responding to treatment

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MeganMex

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I was gifted a surprise rabbit in early june which had been bought cheap from a random lady by some friends. When I received her she was sneezing and had nasal discharge. I took her to the vet the next day and since then she has been on several different treatments: broad spectrum antibiotics, then pasteurella specific anitbiotics and now antihistamine to rule out allergies. She has not responded to any of the treatments and still has the same symptoms. Other than sneezing and discharge she eats and poops well and has lots of energy, and vets have confirmed she is a normal healthy rabbit. Before I spend a lot of money on various tests I would love to know if anyone has had a similar experience or theories on what the problem could be.

Thank you in advance,
Megan​
 
In my experience with combating an upper respiratory infection, my vet was very straightforward in saying it would be a trial and error process to figure out what medication would work. She was in a rural area, so it was a big hassle/cost to do a culture/sensitivity test, and she was concerned about wasting time/money if the culture/tests became contaminated or were inconclusive.

My rabbit went through the following, and had these results (time estimates are approximates):

1) 2 weeks on Bactrim - no change throughout the entire 2 weeks
2) 1 month on Baytril - slight improvement, but the improvement plateau'd and he never got completely "cured"
3) 1 week of injected penicillin + Baytril - drastic improvement!
4) 1 day of only injected penicillin - sneezing came back; reinstated dual Baytril + injected penicillin
5) 2 weeks of injected penicillin & Baytril - no more symptoms afterwards.
​
I think the biggest issue is usually 1) not having the appropriate medication for the infection and 2) not staying on the medication long enough. What medications have been tried and how long were they implemented for?
 
You were in the exact same situation as me then... She started with vibracin (doxycylcine) for 4 weeks, then moved on to sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim which she has been on for 3 weeks and needs one or two more to complete the course. She has simultaneously been taking an antihistamine (since friday) used for birds as there are apparently none specifically made for rabbits. I will definitely suggest your treatments to my vet! I am so desperate for the stress to be over!
 
If the antihistamine is to rule out allergies and it's been taken with no difference, I wonder if that's something you need to keep giving? The less medication, the better for you and your rabbit. When there's multiple medications going on, it can get difficult to pinpoint whether reactions are due to a specific medication or the interaction between medications.
 
i had the same problem when i first got my second bun from the breeder back in 2017. he had three types of antibiotics but none of them worked. then I searched online and it said echinacea help. you might want to do some research on that, and more importantly, your bun needs to gain some weight to fight off the disease.
 
Did the echinacea help yours at all?

My chunky bun has no problem gaining weight, she was 300g when I got her and is now 1kg! She is still young and was definitely underweight which is probably why she got sick in the first place but considering that she is otherwise a very healthy rabbit it baffles me that she isn’t getting better.

They have taken discharge samples on a couple of occasions, first there were visible bacteria of a specific type (and was given the particular antibiotic for it) and the second time there were none which is why we are trying antihistamine.

Thank you all for the suggestions, I will update you once we have figured out this mystery!
 
I hope one of the bacteria cultured was not MRSA. It is not easy to eradicate and might resurface after antibiotics "clear" it. Some humans need months of IV antibiotics to rid themselves of it. I have one bun with it in the lacrimal duct in one eye. He gets an eye discharge on and off. The other night he had a fit of sneezing that went for a while. It is a bug that humans can transmit to their animals, and, once infected the animal can then infect their humans. I think he got it from their previous owner who spent a lot of time in and out of hospitals.
I wonder if your bun might have inhaled something that is still irritating her. Keep us posted.
 
My rabbit for the last few years sneezes and had a weepy eye and it occurs every summer . Took him to a specialist £1000 had culture X-rays bloods etc done couldn’t figure out what it was as culture can come back negative and will need doing again. I took him to a different vet where he was prescribed sulfratrim for a month and clears it up . So spent all the money out for nothing really . Good luck with your bunny also make sure they check his teeth and don’t use sawdust and also freeze his hay so it’s not dusty that’s what I was advised so mines on cat litter pellets and his hay and herbs go in the freezer
 
My bunny started out just sneezing but it turned into pneumonia. They tried everything but the one antibiotic that really started to get him back to normal was Azithromycin.
 
Can I get some help or advise please . So my rabbit is snooty again and been on sultratrim for 5 weeks as vets think he has snuffles which we managed to clear up last year after a month . But this time it doesn’t seem to be getting better very quick . He’s now been on meds for 5 weeks . He’s eating pooing and weeing. He looks sad . I don’t no what else to do . Took him vets for check up and they said carry on what we’re doojg see u in 2 weeks. Please help if anyone can
 
Lynsey harry said:
Can I get some help or advise please . So my rabbit is snooty again and been on sultratrim for 5 weeks as vets think he has snuffles which we managed to clear up last year after a month . But this time it doesn’t seem to be getting better very quick . He’s now been on meds for 5 weeks . He’s eating pooing and weeing. He looks sad . I don’t no what else to do . Took him vets for check up and they said carry on what we’re doojg see u in 2 weeks. Please help if anyone can
Click to expand...

It could very well be that antibiotic is no longer effective against the bacteria involved since you are no longer seeing any reduction of symptoms with it's use, plus sulfatrim isn't always the most effective antibiotic against URI's in rabbits. I would request changing to a different antibiotic like baytril, azithromycin(possible risk of GI upset), etc. If you want to pay to have a culture and sensitivity test done, that's also an option(if you haven't already). There is also going to a different vet to get a second opinion or even going to see a specialist.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Bacterial/URI.htm

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ve...s-that-have-been-recommended-by-rabbit-owners
https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/
 
JBun said:
It could very well be that antibiotic is no longer effective against the bacteria involved since you are no longer seeing any reduction of symptoms with it's use, plus sulfatrim isn't always the most effective antibiotic against URI's in rabbits. I would request changing to a different antibiotic like baytril, azithromycin(possible risk of GI upset), etc. If you want to pay to have a culture and sensitivity test done, that's also an option(if you haven't already). There is also going to a different vet to get a second opinion or even going to see a specialist.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Respiratory/Bacterial/URI.htm

https://www.harcourt-brown.co.uk/ve...s-that-have-been-recommended-by-rabbit-owners
https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/
Click to expand...

Thank you . The vets have given my baytril to give along side sulfatrim to see if that helps. The only thing I can do now is change vets get a second opinion I’m not ready to give up on him . He had culture done last year and didn’t really give me any answers
 
I don't know what baytril dosing your vet is using, but I feel the once daily dosing at a higher dose is more effective, instead of the lower dose twice a day, as baytril works on peak plasma levels. So may be something to ask your vet about.

If the baytril doesn't seem to be helping enough, combining with a different antibiotic besides sulfatrim might work better. Or azithromycin seems to be a very effective abx with rabbit URI's, though it does seem to have a slightly higher risk of leading to GI upset, so something to keep in mind.
 
JBun said:
I don't know what baytril dosing your vet is using, but I feel the once daily dosing at a higher dose is more effective, instead of the lower dose twice a day, as baytril works on peak plasma levels. So may be something to ask your vet about.

If the baytril doesn't seem to be helping enough, combining with a different antibiotic besides sulfatrim might work better. Or azithromycin seems to be a very effective abx with rabbit URI's, though it does seem to have a slightly higher risk of leading to GI upset, so something to keep in mind.
Click to expand...
Vets have said to use baytril 0.6 mls twice a day and sulfatrim 0.5 ml twice a day . I’m concerned about using the two together . But I’m guessing it should be ok as the vet has said it would be .
 
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