Naxel in a nebulizer

Question
Hi dana,
long story short, my bunny has had chronic URI symptoms for a while now. She percolates and sneezes {no discharge} a lot. we ran the gammot of treatment and nothing works. The other day my vet said that he has been having a good result with bunnies who are not responding to other treatment by using a non-bunny friendly injectable antibiotic in the nebulizer. He made it clear that this is  not a good bunny anti bio, but he hasnt had any adverse effects using it in this form in his patients and the results have been excellent. I asked if it was 100% safe in this form and he said he couldnt tell me that. do you have any knowledge/experience with this drug in this form??. i desperately want to help my bunny feel better, but i am afraid to use anything that comes with such a disclaimer.
thanks,
jeanine

Answer
Dear Jeanine,

I have never used Naxcel in a nebulizer.  Cephalosporins are not the first choice for rabbits, but we have used them without harm.  They are certainly not as dangerous as the oral penicillins or lincosamines.

If your vet has had good results with this in rabbits, I would not be averse to giving it a try.  But if this is ONLY an upper respiratory condition, then consider the very real possibility that this is due to chronic dental problems, not just bacterial overgrowth in an otherwise healthy sinus.  Please see:

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

Nebulization might help alleviate symptoms, but if the cause is a blocked maxillary sinus (due to tooth base intrusion), then it will be only temporary.

I hope this helps.



Dana