Rabbit with swollen eye died 24 hours later

Question
QUESTION: I just lost my 8 years old mini-rex rabbit last Thursday. The night before he died i noticed his left eye was swollen and that there was some white discharge coming from it. It seemed to hurt him, as he wouldn't let me touch it, but he did not tooth purred. I planned to bring him to the vet the day after, but the next morning I noticed he was very lethargic, weak and not like usual. I held him close to me until he had a little seizure and took his last breath..it was 1 PM, almost 24 hours after I first noticed the swollen eye. Prior to that he was relatively healthy, the only problem he had was some clear discharge from the eyes and nose, which was caused by some poor quality hay, according to his vet. He had had these discharges for about 5 years.
I have no idea what happened to him, I would really appreciate if you could help me, I am worried this could be something that could be transmitted to my other buns.
I don't know if this could be related, but I also suddenly lost another rabbit last December. He was 3 years old and also died in a matter of 24 hours. The symptoms however were different. When I came to feed him in the evening I noticed he was very lethargic, so I stayed with him all night. I tried to give him his favorite treat, a raisin, he tried to eat it but couldn't, just as if his jaw was paralyzed. In the next 5 hours he became more and more paralyzed, and some clear odorless jelly came out or his anus. He then started to have many violent seizures, and finally passed at 2 AM.
I would really like to know what happened to them, It would help me to get over their passing and prevent any problems with my other 2 bunnies. Thank you so much for your help!

ANSWER: Dear Valerie,

I am very sorry about your loss.  The swollen eye could have been due to a retrobulbar abscess (infection behind the eye), and if it broke open this could cause fatal systemic infection.  But that's just a guess.

Sadly, there is absolutely no way to confidently ascertain a cause of death without a post-mortem exam, preferably including histopathology of major organ tissues.  The signs you describe are somewhat vague, and could have been due to a number of different things.

If you noticed any signs of unusual behavior before he died, then please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/sickbun.html

which might give some clues.  But unless you can provide a lot more specific information, this is the best I can offer.  

If the body has been kept very cold (not frozen), and it has been less than 24 hours since death, a necropsy may still be possible, if you feel that would give you closure and peace of mind.  You can find an experienced rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

to call and find out what your options might be.

I am very sorry for your loss.

Sincerely,

Dana

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for responding so quickly. Unfortunately, his body was buried the same day, so there is no way to know exactly what happened to him. I read your article on dental disorders and chronic runny eyes and nose and I think this could be a plausible cause. He did have some molar problems a couple of years ago and had to have his teeth trimmed. The vet told us that it was because he ate too much pellets, so we changed his diet completely, he was given lots of hay and veggies, and pellets were only a treat. He never had any other problems after that, besides his runny eyes and nose. He lived cage free and have always been a happy bun, he did not change his routine until the last day of his life, when the bump appeared under his eye..Do you think a dental disorder could be the cause of his death? I am aware that it is impossible to give an accurate diagnostic like this, I just want to be more informed so I will know what to do in the future if this happens to my other buns. By the way I think your site is a wonderful source of information for bunny guardians, I wish I found it before..
I apologize for my poor English, I am still learning. I hope you won't have too much trouble understanding my writing. :)
Thank you again!

Answer
Dear Valerie,

Your English is perfect!  I didn't realize you were not a native speaker.

It is possible that dental problems contributed to your bunny's passing, but they generally do not cause sudden death like this.  It's possible that a dental abscess somehow impinged on a highly vascular area, and bacteria crossed over into the bloodstream.  Systemic infection like this can kill very quickly, but it is not very common.  If it happens, the only sign might be lethargy and inappetence.  Sometimes an infection like this happens so fast that a bunny (or other animal) doesn't even have time to mount an immune reaction, so you possibly might not even see a fever.  So it's really critical to be very attuned to the slightest change in behavior with a rabbit, as they hide their signs of illness so well.

I am sorry about your loss.

Dana