tuckers progress

Question
QUESTION: Hi Dana,
Happy Holidays! I hope this holiday season is joyful for you. Just wanted to followup re Tucker Bunny. His head tilt is gone (thank goodness!) however he still seems to lose his balance a little every once in a while. He is much brighter and chipper than a few weeks ago. However, he is still not able to hop in and out of his cage like he used to. We lift him out and keep him in a confined area to give him more room to exercise, but he isn't able navigate the ramp into his cage in order to use the litter box. He seems to be disoriented when a call him over to the ramp. His head is a bit wobbly, like he is trying to focus on the task,but it is hard for him.  After our followup visit, our bunny vet took him off the Panacur and Baytril, so he no longer takes meds. Do you think this was wise? He is eating pretty well, but still not as much as before the head tilt a few weeks ago.

ANSWER: Dear Jill,

It's possible that whatever was causing his head tilt is not completely resolved.  It may be permanent damage, if the cause was E. cuniculi, or it might be something that's still treatable.  I would ask the vet about continuing the Panacur, at least, to see if that resolves the condition in a few weeks.  If not, it might be time to switch to an antibiotic, if the vet thinks it might still be a bacterial infection.

I hope this helps.

Have a wonderful holiday!

Dana

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

QUESTION: Hi Dana,
Well, Tucker definitely seems better; better eating, drinking and frolicking etc., but we have a major problem with him getting back into his hutch and with urinating on the floor outside the hutch. He can hop out of his cage, but can't seem to navigate the ramp into it. We even made it wider so it would be easier. If we lure him in with food, he will do it, albeit with much trepidation. And the urinating is a real problem to deal with daily. Any hope that this will get better after the infection and is there anything i can do to help him to go in his cage and do his business there? Thanks! Jill  

Answer
Dear Jill,

One of our most severe head tilt rescues, Tilda, has recovered completely from her head tilt, but her litterbox habits are utterly appalling.  I'd say on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being worst), she's a -5.

I don't know if she was always this way, but I suspect it has to do with her head tilt and a subtle inability to navigate exactly where she is.  She's gotten a *tiny* bit better over the months, with lots of free-range exercise.  She now pees mostly in her box, which we've cut down on one side to make it easier for her to jump in.  But poops are everywhere but in the box.  It's maddening.

You might try cutting down one side of Tucker's box to see if that will help.

As for the ramp, that's a little more tricky.  But I've noticed that some bunnies who don't feel secure on high places (e.g., stairs) will feel much more secure if there's some kind of solid "railing" on the platform.  Maybe if you could rig up a 3" barrier on each side of the ramp, he might feel less vulnerable, and thinking he's going to fall off.

Hope that helps!

Dana