My rabbits heart is beating extremely fast

Question
QUESTION: Hello Dana,

I have a 10 year old netherland dwarf rabbit.  Over the past few days, I noticed my rabbits heart beating much faster than normal.  She twitches also once in a while. She is eating normal and reacting normally to me. I am just concerned with her heart.
Is this normal?  Is this a sign of being in heat?  The other day,I gave her a nectarine to eat with the skin and as well I gave her an apple with the skin to eat.  She is pooing quite normally.  I am wondering if the pesticides on the fruit may be causing this?

Your advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank You Dana.

Connie

ANSWER: Dear Connie

I'm not sure how you are able to tell that her heart is beating abnormally quickly, because the rabbit's normal resting heart rate is between 180-220 beats per minute.  That's far too fast for a human to easily count, and it would be even harder to tell if the rate had increased significantly.

What are the signs that her heart rate has increased?  Is it possible that you are actually seeing something other than heartbeat, such as respiration rate?

If you are concerned about your bunny's health, I would recommend taking her to your trusted rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets

to be sure all systems are in order, and that she has no cryptic health problems.

I hope this helps.

Dana

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QUESTION: Dana,

You have been such a great help.  I took my pet rabbit, Velveteena, to the vet and she was diagnosed with cancer in the lungs. An x-ray was done and a tumour was found in her lungs.  She is having a hard time breathing.  The vet advised me to put her to sleep that day as she thought she would not survive the night.  I took it badly as I did not expect this and my 10 year old rabbit has been such a great companion to me and my children over the last 10 years.  I decided to take her home yesterday and take a few more pictures with her and our family and let the children say a few last words to her.  

She survived the night and I am also giving her antibiotics.  She is eating some fruit and during the night she ate her kale, cherries and some strawberries.  Today I noticed her eating less. She had some carrotts and some nectarine.  

Is there anything else you recommend I should do?  Should I let her pass here at home or would you think it is best to have her put down from your experience?  

The vet mentioned there could be a slight chance that it is an absess, but judging by the feel of her adbomen and the colour of her tongue etc. , she does not think it is that.

Thanks for your help.

Connie

ANSWER: Dear Connie,

I think you were very wise and kind to not just euthanize her on the spot.

If she is eating and acting as if she's not feeling too sick, then I would certainly pursue the abscess possibility by asking about giving appropriate antibiotics and see if they help.  In rabbits, respiratory infections are often caused by bacteria sensitive to both the fluoroquinolones and to penicillin, and I would ask the vet about using both ciprofloxacin (or Baytril) *and* injections of dual-acting penicillin (Penicillin G Procaine plus benzathine) to give her the best chance of recovery.

Even if it's cancer, the antibiotics can help suppress opportunistic infections and give her a better quality of life.  Pain medications (e.g., metacam and/or tramadol) are also probably in order.

Did the vet say that she saw disseminated masses in the lungs, or one large, single mass?  If the latter, there is the possibility that your bunny has a thymoma--a non-invasive cancer of the thymus gland just cranial to the heart.  In some cases, this type of tumor can be treatable, and you can read articles (and share them with the vet) here:

http://search.atomz.com/search/?sp-a=00062824-sp00000000&sp-q=thymoma

If there are many small masses in the lungs, it could be either infection or cancer.  And now comes the bigger question:  Is your bunny spayed?  If not, then she might have a uterine adenocarcinoma which has metastasized to the lungs (one of the most common places where this type of cancer spreads).  You would likely have seen other signs first, though, such as bleeding from the vulva.  So I am just making you aware of this, in case it's a possibility.

Also, it never hurts to have a second opinion.  You can find an experienced rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

to see what another vet might say.

Finally, I am not a fan of euthanasia administered simply because a terminal illness is found.  If your bunny is still enjoying life, eating, being happy, it may not yet be her time.  When she is really not feeling well and there is no  hope of recovery, then she will tell you when she has had enough.  But why rob her of precious time near the end of her life if she is still enjoying herself and her family?

Just some thoughts.  If she is in pain, obviously suffering, and there is truly no hope of recovery, then that difficult decision might need to be made.  But I would certainly try the antibiotics *and* pain medications before that final decision is chosen if she doesn't seem to be at death's door.

I hope this helps.

Dana

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QUESTION: Hi Dana,

I spoke with our vet and I found out that the tumour is in the caudal lung field.  It is one single mass tumour.

My rabbit has not been spayed and she has not had any bleeding from the vulva.  

My vet also mentioned that if we decide to proceed with the injections of dual-acting penicillin, then once administered, we cannot stop.  

Your advice on how to proceed given this information is greatly appreciated.

Also, would I be able to donate to your cause/research?

Thank You so much.

Connie

Answer
Dear Connie,

Well, if it's a tumor, then antibiotics won't help.  But they might help with any secondary infections.  

If this is a uterine adenocarcinoma metastasized to the lungs, then spaying won't help at this point.  Determining what type of cancer (if it's cancer) she has would be very important in helping the vet decide what type of treatment to provide, if any might be helpful.

It might be time to consult a veterinary oncologist, and I hope your veterinarian can refer you to one who can help.

Dana