follow up question to pasteurella

Question
Thankyou for your reply, it was as I thought myself. However I'm concerned since going back to the vet today with 1 of my buns. As I reiterate, my buns were on 3x pw of 1ml depocillin, and on this dose, pasteurella was kept at bay, then my vet wanted the dose dropped to 1 inj of 1ml pw. My bun that I took back today is showing discharge from the eyes after 1 wk of being on the low dose and my vet has upped it to 2 inj pw of the 1ml. She wants to see the others on friday, and the receptionist when after having a word with my vet, came back saying that the idea is to get ''all of my buns off meds''. I was shocked, particularly as the effect no meds has had on them in the past yr, incl abcess returning worse with 1, and my 3kg french lop, who is also on the 3x pw of 1ml is just holding, but with discharge still from 1 eye. All my other buns are about 2.5kg. After reading your reply to me on how dropping to a low dose is dangerous as selective bacteria may ensue and become resistant to the depocillin, I'm worried that with the lower doses prescribed, or as I'm being led to believe,a move to no dose at all, I fear it will be a death sentence to my buns. If, after all it seems that the 1ml 3xpw is enough, could this be combined into 2 inj instead of 3 (ie-1.5ml x2pw) as I would like to lessen inj pw for bunny comfort without compromising dose or effectivity?

Answer
Dear Helena,

If the signs of infection return when your bunny is given a lower dose of the penicillin, then it will almost certainly get even worse if he is taken off entirely.  What is the vet's rationale for taking them off?  Is it concern about their GI flora?  If you have seen no signs of trouble this far, it's not likely that it will develop now.

The vet might say that keeping them on the antibiotics long-term can also select for resistant bacteria, which is true.  But it will take a lot longer for this to happen, if at all.  It is far more likely that the bacterial population will explode (given current signs your bunnies show) if they are taken off the meds, and that--as you say--could be a death sentence.

I'd ask the vet *why* he wants to stop the meds.  If you don't get a satisfactory answer, you might seriously consider seeking a new vet who will keep your bunnies on medication protocols that will keep their infections in check, if their immune systems cannot.

I hope this helps.
Dana