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Convenia in Rabbits

22 9:42:51

Question
My 8-year-old rabbit went to the vet today with a respiratory infection. It is nearly impossible to give her oral meds, so the vet suggested giving her an injection of Convenia. Since the bunny is not in acute distress (still eating, drinking, pooping, etc.), I decided to hold off until Monday and do some research over the weekend. I did a search on this site but didn't find anything more recent than 2009. I saw on another site (a rabbit forum) that it has been used successfully for respiratory infections and abscesses. Do you have updated information on the use of Convenia in rabbits? Or are there other injectable antibiotics that would be better to use?

The infection is presumed to be pasteurella but hasn't been cultured, and I read that nasal cultures aren't that reliable anyway(?). She really doesn't have much nasal discharge. Should I ask for a culture first? Or is it protocol to try an antibiotic first and see if it works? Her main symptom is noisy congested-sounding breathing when she gets excited (not all the time). There is NO sneezing, coughing, difficulty breathing, or lethargy. She does have decreased appetite and smaller poops, though, which is the main reason I took her in. She is eating a few pellets but mostly greens, which I wet down to keep her hydrated even though she is still drinking on her own. She has timothy hay 24/7 but doesn't eat much of it.

She also has a lump on the side/underside of her belly near her back leg. The vet said it felt like it could be a tumor but wanted to try her on the antibiotics and recheck it in a week.

Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Answer
Dear Kim

I have never used Convenia, though I have heard of some using it with success.  It is a cephalosporin, which isn't a first choice type of antibiotic for rabbits.  But if other things have failed, it might be worth trying.  

It is apparently not without the potential for adverse reactions, however (as it true with almost any antibiotic).  This from our old pal, Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cefovecin

Convenia is effective against Pasteurella, but you probably want to be sure the infection you're treating really is due to Pasteurella, and not another common rabbit pathogen.  

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/culture.html

I hope it works, and that your bun will recover completely.

Dana