Rabbit help needed ASAP...... Update 1/27

He has tilty head...that's what I call it anyway we saw a bunch of rabbits get this at the cllinic I worked at. It is usually caused by an ear infection or any kind of swelling on the inner membrane. It is sometimes fixable but I have known many buns who live the rest of their life with a slight head tilt. DO NOT GIVE YOUR BUNNY ANYTHING BEFORE TALKING TO AN EXOTIC VET. For example injectable penicillin are okay but oral penicillin can be lethal. Usually we used baytril. Either way do nothing until you speak to a vet. They have very sensitive systems.
 
I breed rabbits and I have to say it sounds like wry neck to me and there really isnt much you can do. chances are any vet you take him to will tell you he is sick and give the WRONG stuff to him. you can give ivermec to him orally.. DO NOT inject this as it will kill him. and if you decide to go to a vet.... MOST dont know anything about rabbits and they will offer you a broad spectrum antibiodic that will likely kill your bunny..... rabbits have extremely sensitive digestive tracks.. antibiotic kill the natural flora that resided in there... they get diarrhea and die!!!! anyway it sounds like your bunny has wry neck..... it is sometimes caused by a parasite and ivermex can get rid of this (will take about 2 weeks to notice any difference-if ever) and it is some time caused by pasturella bacteria (which also called snuffles) the bacteria version of wry neck is fatal in most cases.... when the rabbit does recover from the bacteria version they should NEVER be allowed to be around another rabbit again (they will be carriers and can spread the disease and kill a whole herd). you should never go to another persons house that has rabbits and pet thier rabbit because you can carry it to thier herd.

also this may sound silly but what color is your rabbit? red eyed whites do this really wierd thing called scanning... they rock back and forth when you look at them (looks like they are drunck-or trying to hypnotize you so something I think REW's look crazy and refuse to have any)

I am sorry that your bunny is sick but its highly unlikely that if he has wry neck he will survive.... Has he been sneezing at all lately? you can look at his front paws if he has he will have matted insides there....if he has been sneezing that is wry neck from pasturella (snuffles)

good luck and maybe he just has something tickling his ear or something silly like that.... please keep us informed and I hope he is ok!!!
 
yes an exotic vet is the way to go, but make sure they have delt with rabbits... and I have seen baytril kill rabbits in the wrong dose.... to high it kills normal flora and they get diarrhea and die too low it s a waste.

oh and pasturella is not curable in rabbits so if your vet says it is he doesnt know what he is talking about.
 
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Right which is why she should speak with a knowledgeable vet first. Any vet can get a hold of a vet that knows rabbits there are specialist in every state. I was fortunate enough to work with one for 5 years.
 
Also since you know rabbits you know that they like to die ANYTHING you give them or do to them can kill them. I have never seen a bunny killed by Baytril but again I worked with a specialized veterinarian.
 
Baytril cannot be prescribed for food producing animals. it is approved for use in animals that are not normally used as a food item or produce a food item (dogs cats horses and parrots).
http://www.bayerdvm.com/products/baytril/baytril100.cfm

http://www.emea.europa.eu/pdfs/vet/mrls/082002en.pdf

I may be wrong about, but I dotn think so.

oh yeah rabbits usually dont show signs they are sick till its to late. but most time vets will take the money from you any way and not be honest and tell you there is nothing they can do. I have been fortunate enuff to find a great vet that does not do that.... and I have friend in high places!!!! I have graduated the school of hard knocks.....I learned the hard way and lost MANY a rabbit to vets!!! I just wish they had been honest with me!
 
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This sounds like wry neck and it CAN be mostly cured in an unorthodox sort of way.

Back when we were raising Flemish Giants we had a couple that developed this. Everything we read said they were going to die and after having raised rats with similar problems, we came to terms with the fact that the first Flemish who developed it was going to get worse and die.

Being, well, a giant, we decided to let him loose in our backyard so he could at least spend his last few days munching on grass. Then we figured we'd dispatch him once he became too sick to move.

Within a few days he was almost back to normal. Within a couple of weeks his head had straightened out and he was fine. If you picked him up he'd "roll" and one of his ears usually half-lopped on the side his head used to tilt, but otherwise he was fine.

We never put him back in a cage. He'd sleep in the barn at night and roam our yard during the day. When we were out in the yard he'd run circles around our feet and act like a big dog. We had him out there for at least two years, maybe three, before he passed away.

Our second case of wry neck was also in a Flemish Giant and we immediately plunked him on the ground, too. He was in the yard for around a year before the neighbor's new dog managed to get him. His head still tilted a little to the side, but he was able to live a normal life.

We didn't medicate either of the rabbits. This was around ten years ago when the treatment for wry neck was to put them out of their misery. I came to the conclusion that cramped conditions was either one of the causes of wry neck, or wide open spaces was a sort of cure. If you can pull off something like this (even a large "rabbit tractor" that is nice and tall) then you may be able to at least make him comfortable. If you can litter box train him then he can become an indoor pet, either for you or someone else. I don't recommend breeding him in case wry neck is genetic (even partially genetic).

Good luck with him.
 
Thats wry neck. I would say follow the advice from the breeders on this forum. And if he doesn't improve you may have to euthanize him.

If this is a meat rabbit, do not use baytril on him. As someone else pointed out, its not approved, nor safe for human consumption. However it would be OK if he is just a pet.

I would go ahead and continue with the ivernmec. Follow the instructions on barbis site. There are alot of breeder and pet owners that have sucessfully treated wry neck with that advice. Personally, I cull any animals that shows signs of it. Because some never fully recover.
 
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Her rabbit is a pet and not intended for food so I guess it's not really an issue then.....

I suppose the vet that I worked for had no idea what he was talking about sorry.
Next time I'll call a breeder instead of a doctor.
Not all vets are ignorant and telling this woman not to seek medical advice is irresponsible.
 
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I NEVER said not to seek medical attention. what I said was to make sure that who ever you go to has experience with RABBITS!!!!

And Baytril is not to be used in animals that COULD be used as a food item... she may not intend to eat that rabbit but rabbits are on the list of animals that are often times eaten. if the vet were to give it to the rabbit. it got out. and some or shot it and ate it. it could make them sick. I have a pet chicken I will never eat her(unless the encomony failed and I needed to eat something). but she should not be given baytril...

Oh and the fda just changed this rule october 1st so your vet probably did know what he was talking about back when you worked for him....

I sure hope you guys dont think that I was "attacking" vets I have a really great vet who wont take my money unless there is an issue with a pet( example for this vet: I asked if one of my dogs needed to have her teeth cleaned. he said well I could do it but her teath are very well maintained and what ever you have been doing is working. if I do it you will have to have it done again and again. its best to wait till it is needed for her.)
.... but I have seen many a vet who will take money for a sick pet KNOWING it wont make it....just last year I took my dog to a unfamiliar vet (she had violent diarrhea-couldnt even get into poo position) the vet did xrays, tons of blood work, kept her for several days I ended up paying 800 dollars to find out my dog was SICK (NO DUH)......they said they had no idea what it was but that her liver enzymes were elevated.......so I bring her home and nurse her back to health a week later one of my other dogs starts to do the SAME THING.... except this one did it in the house... while cleaning up I noticed coffee beans..... what happened was my little boy (3) decided he wanted to get into the chocolate covered coffee beans but he didnt like the beans so he ate the cholate and gave the bean to the dog.

I trust my vet to do what is best for my pets. but I dont trust them all... that was all I was saying!
 

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