White Spot on Rabbit’s Eye?

[pinknstink]

I will try to attach a photo of my rabbit’s eye. There is this tiny white spot on his eye that has been there for a few weeks. We thought it was a piece of fur or something but it has not moved or come off. Does anyone know what this might be? I don’t have any rabbit savvy vets in my area so I’m worried that they might wrongfully diagnose it. Thanks!

 

[Augustus&HazelGrace]

It could be a cataract. But hard to tell in these photos. Is he a red-eyed white? What is your location?

 

[pinknstink]

No he doesn’t have red eyes, I can try to post a better picture later and I am in Billings, Montana! I thought the spot was a little piece of lint or something like that but it hasn’t moved or come off.

 

[Morgan Mayon]

This is actually called CLOUDY EYES of rabbits.
As with humans and other animals, cloudy eye (cataracts) can become a problem for your rabbit as he grows older, and is a very serious condition that requires immediate veterinarian care.
Rabbits are often born with cloudy eye, in particular dwarf breeds. This condition can also develop due to light exposure, trauma, and for no apparent reason as your rabbit gets older. However, when a cataract develops it is usually because of bacterial infection. Additionally, the Encephalitozoon cuniculi (e. cuniculi) is a parasite that can cause cataracts.
Presently there are two treatment options available for rabbits with cloudy eye. One available treatment option is the use of prescribed medication, and the other treatment option is laser surgery. How your veterinarian will want to treat the condition ultimately depends on the root cause of it.

 

[JBun]

My guess would be it's an abscess, corneal ulcer, or e. cuniculi induced uveitis. It doesn't appear to be the start of a cataract to me. If it for sure isn't a piece of fur in the eye, or you can't determine if that's what it is, I would suggest getting your rabbit seen by an experienced rabbit vet right away. If it's an infection and left untreated, it could eventually destroy the eye, where the eye would then need to be removed.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Eye_diseases/Clinical/Eye_diseases.htm
https://rabbit.org/vet-listings/

 

[pinknstink]

I tried to get a better photo of his eye. The color hasn’t changed or anything, the only thing that has changed is that there is now the little white spot. I think I am going to try and get it checked out by a vet. It doesn’t seem to be growing or anything so I think that is good.

 

[JBun]

With the white spot and drainage and crusting of fur that there appears to be around the eye, I would suspect a corneal ulcer that is now infected. That is what the white spot likely is, infection, with drainage causing the wet and crusting of the fur around the eye. Though e. cuniculi could still be a possibility.

I'm afraid you do need to find a rabbit vet to check it out, as your rabbit will likely need to be put on antibiotic eye drops/ointment to clear up the infection, if that is what it turns out to be.

 

[pinknstink]

He does also have a weird bite (malocclusion) so my vet thought that the eye drainage was because of that. He has had this eye drainage for a long time and this white spot is quite recent, but these two things could definitely be connected since we don’t have a for sure reason as to why he has his eye drainage. I think I will try to take him to the vet just to make sure it isn’t anything serious. Speaking of vets, does anyone happen to know of a good rabbit vet around the Billings, Montana area? I have gone to a few vets in my area but they don’t seem too rabbit savvy.

 

[John Wick]

Just to entertain the possibility that the white spot is separate from the eye crust/drainage, I will say it's possible it may be a leftover mark from a hay poke or something and may not cause issue for the future, depending on the specific case. One of my rabbits actually has a small white dot in his eye. We're unsure how he got it, but it's been a non-issue for 2.5yrs (he's 3 now). As recommended above, a rabbit-savvy vet should be the one to determine the severity and best course of action!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BX1eoORFmy2/?igshid=zckv5isbe7re