Sneezy Flemmish

[ariusshadow]

My Flemmish has been sneezing quite a bit lately. I'm noticing that her nose is a little wetter than normal, but I'm not finding discharge... yet. It's worrisome, but I'm wondering if there's anything I can give to her to maybe cure it without a vet?


Description (Breed, color, weight): Flemmish, agouti, Ph.. 10 lbs? Not really certain..

Age: 7 months

Sex: Female

Concise Summary of the Rabbit's Condition:



ADDITIONAL INFORMATION / CHECK LIST: (Please fill in relevant info).

Fecal and Urinary Output

- are the bunny's poops and pees normal? She seems to have a little more calcium output in her urine lately.
- when did they last use their litterbox? Not sure
- any unusual behavior? straining to pee? unusual litter habits? She seems to have urinated out of the box in her cage. This is strange for her. And not even a 'miss' because of where it was... I chalked it up to marking, as there's an intact buck's cage on top of hers. x.x;
- what litter and/or bedding do you use? Bedding? None. Litter? Compressed wood pellets.

Medical History

- spayed/neutered? No
- has s/he been to the vet or been sick before? No
- is s/he on any medications? No

Diet

- what specifically does your bunny eat? Lately, just the pellets. (Life got in the way of salads a bit lately. All on my end. )
- when and what did s/he eat last? Pellets.. Yesterday morning. About to feed her again. (Feedings are mornings here)
- any changes in the way s/he eats? (ie: not eating a particular food, odd chewing motions, etc) None that I've noticed/


Other

- movement - any unusual movements? Is s/he hopping normally? Yes
- is the rabbit molting? No
- any weight loss? Nope. Still a fatty fatkins.
- any sign of drooling? wet face? Just under her nose is a little wet.
- runny eyes? Nope. Been checking this prolifically since the sneezing started.
- wet nose? coughing? sneezing? It's hard to tell really.. I'm assuming it's a sneeze. But I suppose it could be a cough.. Maybe it's somewhere in between...
- is s/he breathing normally? A little heavier since it's fairly warm up here. But nothing truly alarming.

Additional

- any plants, chocolate or other substances within reach? Heavens, no.
- has the rabbit been outdoors? No
- any other pets? if so, have they been ill? 2 other buns and 2 rats. No one's sick here but her, so far, at least. I hope it doesn't spread...

I've heard of a lot of people using Bene Bac for things. I think I was advised to use it when Luna had her bout of soft stool, but I opted for pedialyte (as food stamps will pay for that). What is Bene Bac? And how would you get it (vet, store, ect)? Even if it's not beneficial to the problem at hand, by the sounds of it, it wold be a good thing to just have around all the time. =\

 

[ariusshadow]

I understand that with some instances, I shouldn't ask like I did. But I'm trying to get around a vet strictly because we're going on vacation the same week we're moving to a new place. Too much going on to afford a vet if there's a tell-tale way to help the problem. Obviously, if vet care is required, it will happen. But home remedies would be appreciated suggestions.

 

[Maureen Las]

There is no reason that you cannot ask this question on this forum ; wealways give our opinion but you can always ask questions.
The reason it is important to see the vet is because there may be more than one thing going on at a time. Urinating out of the box could also be a symptom of a bladder infection or else she just doesn't feel well. Different antibiotics are prescribed for different problems.

This also sounds to me like the beginning of a URI :?; I have also been told not to worry when the discharge is clear but I have had my buns treated who were sneezing with clear discharge and they responded to treatment. (indicating to me that the infection was bacterial in nature)

If you cannot go to a vet you can purchase bicillin in the refrigerated section of a tractor supply and/or Farm/fleet store ( must be kept refrigerated) and administer subqutaneous injections. You also need a solution like lactated ringers solutionto dilute the penicillin, plus the appropriate size needles and sterile equpment.
if you arein a busy time in your life it may be worth your while to make one vet visit and get oral antibiotics as learning how to give bicillin injections takes time ( and some skill)in itself.

It is also very important that you provide timothy or grass hay for her as she will not be able to wear down her teeth on a pellet diet and it eventually will also affect her GI tract. ; hay keeps everything moving through

Benebac is a probiotic that restores beneficial microorganisms to the GI tract which can be disrupted when a rabbit is stressed or on an antibiotic

You can also use Probios (for horses) which comes in a tube and can be purchased from farm fleet / tractor supply etc. Horses have similar disgestive problems as rabbits .
Benebac can be bought in powder and or gel form at Petco and Petsmart ; I don't know about other pet stores but it is probably available there.

you can order order it online

 

[kirbyultra]

I believe Ari does feed hay to her buns (I remember seeing the plastic bin of hay in your blog) but I don't remember if any specific rabbit was not being fed hay for any reason.

Just wanted to throw out there that, excluding the odd pee behavior, that rabbits do have moist noses normally. Sopping wet is abnormal, but moist to the touch is not alarming. Discharge is alarming, but you're saying Jasper does not have any. And again, this is just throwing it out there as it HAS happened to me, and it has recently sort of happened to another member -- is the living area of the rabbit dusty? It doesn't even have to be visibly dusty, but if there's a slight buildup in the cage or in the corners where the buns like to play and hide of hay dust or household dust, they get it in their noses and they just can't sneeze it out so they sneeze in fits. It happens to humans too... Sometimes a good vacuuming and mop-up of the home goes a long way.

Benebac is a real nice thing to have on hand. I got a baggie of the powder form at Petco for $3.99. It's saved me trips to the vet i.e. coaxed my stasis-impending bunny out of a digestive rut.

 

[jamesedwardwaller]

ariusshadow wrote:

I understand that with some instances, I shouldn't ask like I did. But I'm trying to get around a vet strictly because we're going on vacation the same week we're moving to a new place. Too much going on to afford a vet if there's a tell-tale way to help the problem. Obviously, if vet care is required, it will happen. But home remedies would be appreciated suggestions.

there are a number of issues here,,first--without a nasal culture,-one cannot isolate,,treat the problem,,certain-bacteria,pathogens are odd-harmful-creatures/.i must recommend a visit to an exotic specialist,a.s.a.p---exam,nasal culture,facial radiograph,,then you will have a finer picture to look at--for teatment..sincerely james waller:wink

 

[TinysMom]

angieluv wrote:

There is no reason that you cannot ask this question on this forum ; wealways give our opinion but you can always ask questions.
The reason it is important to see the vet is because there may be more than one thing going on at a time. Urinating out of the box could also be a symptom of a bladder infection or else she just doesn't feel well. Different antibiotics are prescribed for different problems.

I want to point out one thing about our forum....

Whenever you ask a question - you're going to get several experiences and opinions from our forum mods- many of whom will go off and research an answer someplace else. Depending upon the situation - they will at times consult with each other to see if there is any other place they can get information, etc. I know one of our infirmary mods (Pipp) is preparing to buy a very expense book on rabbit health....so we'll have that as a resource.

When you go to a single person's website - you get their opinion/experience only. Here - we have - I forget how many moderators - and let me tell you - we do NOT choose our infirmary mods lightly.

Just wanted to clear that up for everyone....

 

[Pipp]

james waller wrote:

there are a number of issues here,,first--without a nasal culture,-one cannot isolate,,treat the problem,,certain-bacteria,pathogens are odd-harmful-creatures/.i must recommend a visit to an exotic specialist,a.s.a.p---exam,nasal culture,facial radiograph,,then you will have a finer picture to look at--for teatment..sincerely james waller:wink

A culture is always nice to get to the root of the bacteria right away, but its not as affordable as just prescribing an antibiotic and hoping it works. A lot of antibiotics will work on a lot of infections.

My less mercenary vet, like most around here, will always recommend starting on an antibiotic right away and only bothering with a culture if the first line doesn't work. Visit is $40, prescription is $15.

The rescues I work with all do that.

The vet who is more interested in billing recommends a culture but he also starts the rabbit on antibiotics right away. When the results come in, he phones and says 'continue with the antibiotic already prescribed'. He has yet to switch antibiotics in the half dozen or so instances to date. Visit $45, antibiotics $18, culture $160!.

Even though this practice may not do much when it comes to over-prescribing antibiotics, I simply can't justify the cost and will only do a culture if the antibiotics don't start to work after three days to seven days (depending on the problem).

ETA: If the initial treatment doesn't work, another antibiotic is tried and doesn't work or a culture is done and shows something else might be going on, then the decision has to be made about radiographs.

X-rays are also expensive, but they can catch a lot of problems. Unfortunately it may take a lot of different views of the head as well as chest x-rays to find conclusive evidence of a tooth root problem or other dental issues (common), abscesses, tumours or whatever.

Diagnostics may not always tell what the problem is, but eliminating issues is also good.


sas :twocents

 

[ariusshadow]

I do feed all three hay, daily, and forgot to mention it above. They get Timothy hay (not store bought - I get a bail) in constant supply.

it sounds like Bene-Bac would be a good investment, and a possibility as a good start. If I try Bene-Bac, granted our PetSmart carries it, I'll see how the sneezing goes.

As for nasal discharge and such, it's not really discharge. But from tons of bun kisses and petting sessions, I do recognize that it's wetter than what's normal for her. Which may mean nothing at all. But it's mildly alarming along with the sneezing.

Thanks all for the responses. I'm sorry I was slow to respond. Moving has me pretty bogged.

 

[kirbyultra]

The benebac response was purely to answer your question -- though someone in the infirmary correct me if I'm wrong: It is a probiotic meant for GI health boost/balance, and in this instance suspicion of URI or other possible infection leading to sneezing/discharge would not be helpful... Benebac would be good to buy for a rainy day. If you end up taking her to the vet and the vet gives her a particular type of oral antibiotic, supplementing benebac may help the digestive tract handle the antibiotic better, but would not directly benefit the infection at hand, IF it is an infection.... Hope that makes sense?

 

[tonyshuman]

Bene-Bac is a great probiotic that can usually be found at big box pet stores like PetSmart. It's in the dog/cat nutrition/drugs section. It wouldn't help much with a URI--its beneficial effect is only on the gut microbes. Now it is true that many bunnies with some other illness develop a gut issue because the stress or pain of the other illness makes them not eat as much. Also, a probiotic should always be used when a bun's on an oral antibiotic.

Sneezing and runny nose means that a vet visit is needed, and soon if you can. There are a myriad of things it could be, from a URI to tooth root problems. If you look in there, is there anything stuck in the nose? The only thing that will treat a URI is an antibiotic, and the only way to tell if it's tooth root issues is via dental x-ray.

There is one antibiotic option that you can purchase over the counter and administer. It's found at farm supply stores and is called Bicillin. It's injected sub-cutaneously (under the skin), and if you're familiar with doing that, it could be an option for you. I would not recommend doing bicillin injections without any prior injection experience or a vet or vet tech to demonstrate the technique for you. Are you comfortable giving sub-q's?

 

[Ecresi]

Our Petsmart does not carry Bene-Bac. They have Vitadrops instead. I'm not sure if the accident out of the litterbox would mean UTI.. Perhaps she just had an accident? Sneezing could be from anything. I've got her on a dose of the vitadrops just to see what it does. If things don't improve, I'll contact a vet. Thanks, all.

Edit: This is Ari. I was on my friend's computer and forgot she was logged in! :biggrin2:

 

[tonyshuman]

I don't know what vita drops do but they don't contain the right probiotics that will help the gut. You want something that contains several lactobacteria. Did you look in the dog/cat section? Bene-bac is made in a rabbit form, but the dog and cat form is easier to find. However, again, a probiotic isn't going to help with a URI, just with the GI issues.

 

[aurora369]

I know here, the temperature has jumped very quickly.

When rabbits get over heated, their mouths and noses get wet as they try to cool down. If it is quite warm, I would try cooling the rabbit using fans, frozen water bottles and dampening the ears.

I don't know if this would cause sneezing, but heat can cause dampness of the mouth and nose.

Just something else to try.

-Dawn

 

[ariusshadow]

Well, we don't really know what's causing the sneezing. She seems fine other that. Vitadrops were all Petsmart had. They do not carry Bene-Bac at all, in any form, for any animal. They said their entire chain doesn't. While at my mother's house, being in a different county, I'll try to find it in either Petco, or some of the smaller, non-chain stores. I'll be going to several while I'm there anyway. I'm only trying the vitadrops to see what will happen. Perhaps they will fix it, perhaps not. Only time will tell. She's now with Kitty, who will be caring for her while I'm gone. She'll be giving her the vitadrops, and me a constant update on how she's doing. She owns 3 buns herself. So she already knows what to look for. She's also got an RO account. (She's the one I forgot I was logged in on. ) I'm not counting on this med. But if it works, good for it. Kitty will be instructed to take Jasper to the vet if things don't bode well, and we will find a way to get the money for her to do so. But we'll see what the vitadrops do. Perhaps Jasper's got allergies? Could it be the season? I don't know if animals can get allergies like that...

Sorry about the rather stiff replies above. I've not had much time to sit and think. We've been barely home to feed the rabbits and rats the past week. And now we're going away. As it is, we leave in.. 4 hours. And I'm not packed. x.x; Thanks for everyone's concern and replies.