Help Jaw Abscess

Question
QUESTION: Dear Dana,
Hello!
My bunny is 7 1/2 years old, male.  After his 1st year of age had front teeth problems and I had to get him at the vet to clip (cut) his teeth almost every month.
Last April he developed a big jaw abscess!!!  We started baytrill as it is very difficult in Greece to find a vet familliar with rabbits to do a surgery.  At last I found one and he made a surgery and he removed the abscess and the lower tooth(my bunny had only one lower tooth).  Right after the surgery while he was trying to wake up Melito (bunny's name) stoped breathing and the doctor fortunately saved him. Melito had a very bad recovery from the anestesia but fortunately he recovered at last!  We kept on baytrill at about a month and washing his wound at about two weeks. After two months from the surgery the abscess grew again bigger.  We agreed with the doctor that because of his age and the problems he had after the surgery not to put him into this prossedure again.  We started baytrill again and the abscess grew so big that we had to feed him as he couldn't reach his food. One day the abscess blew up from the old cut of previous surgery.  We wash the wount again...Now after two month the abscess came back.  We gave him baytrill again for a week.  Naw the pus some times is running from a tinny hall under his chin (the old cut didn't open again). The vet tryed to put a syringh but wasn't very effective.
I red about bicillin therapy. Please give me some advice and directions. My bunny weight at about 2.5 kilos.
Please notice that he had previous urinary problems (stone and sand... and infection), we treat him with baytrill and buscopan injections)and gastrointestinal problems (we treated with baytrill and buscopan and primperan injections) he had stasis and broblems with diarhea (Diarhea has very often since he was 1 or 2 yaers old). His diet is mainly with fresh vegetables (because of his urinary problems),(carots, brocolli, cucamber...) and only a few pellets and he doesn't want to drink water at all. Also he doesn' want to eat hay at all.
Please I am waiting for your advice
Thank you
Evi

ANSWER: Dear Evi,

If you can get bicillin/duplocillin or whatever the drug is called in Greece, I think now would be the time to try it.  Our vets prescribe this at a dose of 50,000IU/kg once every 48 hours via injection only.  Oral penicillins are NOT safe for rabbits.  If you have only Penicillin-G Procaine (bicillin is this plus Benzathine), then it is usually given once every 24 hours.  

Pain medication is also important.  Please ask your vet about giving bun some metacam (0.1-0.3mg/kg once per day) and/or tramadol (2-6mg/kg every 8-12 hours).  The vet can decide the proper dose and treatment protocols.

For understanding the runny poop, please see:

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

It is likely that the pain of his abscess has a role in this.

I hope this helps.

Dana

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

QUESTION: Dear Dana,
Thank you very much for ansering!
One more question.  I can't find probiotics for rabbits in Greece. Are they nessesary if I follow the bicillin treatment?
I only found this vitamins mix which contains probiotic:  "Tithebarn grow more plus" I don't know if you know it.....but I cound write to you the ingredients of which it is made of.
Thanks again
Evi


Answer
Dear Evi,

As long as the bunny does not get *oral* penicillin (which could kill her--NEVER use oral penicillins for a rabbit!), probiotics should not be necessary.  Lactobacillus can help promote a healthy GI environment for her normal bacterial flora, but it's not really necessary with injections of penicillin.  We've never had GI problems with injectable pen.

I hope this helps.

Dana