Rabbit lump on cheek and oozing eye

Question
Hello!
I have an older french lop rabbit (not quite sure of age, we rescued him) that we guess is close to 6 years old. A couple of weeks ago we notice a large lump on his left cheek directly under his eye. It was very hard and not mobile. His eye was also runny. As of yesterday, the lump has become a little softer but now his eye is oozing thick white creamy mucus. He is still eating a drinking like normal.
I checked his incisors for malocclusion but there were no signs.I also tried to cut a small slice in the lump to see if anything would come out and nothing did. I am not sure if I cut deep enough but I did try!
Any ideas or help would be appreciated!
Thank you

Answer
Hi Julie,

Most likely this is an abscess due to molar root impaction. I would not suggest slicing or cutting this problem.  Not only can this be considered animal abuse in most areas (technically that is a surgical procedure without sedation or pain management)...this can introduce additional bacteria. If this is an abscess it needs to be aggressively treated by a rabbit savvy vet.  We have seen some of these infections get so advanced that it affects the basic structure of the jawbone itself which leads to other serious issues.  I would suspect a vet would do at least one, maybe two, x-rays.  We have also done some needle aspirations to attempt a culture of the infection.  I do not allow surgery on abscesses.  I am not a vet but I have seen very little positive effects from opening a somewhat contained infection.  I have developed a very effective drug treatment that has been perfect so far.  The problem in treating these infection in rabbits is reaching the source of the problem....and that is the core of the abscess and that is usually caused by the molar impaction I mentioned earlier (something like a human root canal).  The core is usually encapsulated in very thick pus and most drugs that vets commonly use aren't up to the task at hand.  The core also usually contains very stubborn anaerobic bacteria and those are a challenge even in the best of circumstances.  I have found a version of Penicillin (a specific combination of Procaine and Benzathine) along with Zithromax is an excellent treatment.  WARNING:IMPROPER DOSING OR USE OF THESE DRUGS WILL RESULT IN DEATH.  Very few vets are aware of this protocol but it is very effective.  Pain management is critical and should be aggressive.

Another possibility is a tear duct problem.  I have heard of tear ducts clogging up.  I have had rabbits for over 30 years (most of them "special needs") but I can't really say that happens.  But something related to the tear duct should at least be considered.

Another possibility....and this usually only occurs on rabbits that have access to the outside... is a warble.  The area in which you live also may play a part in this possibility.  The warble is the larvae of a large hairy fly.....it's basically a large maggot that is using the rabbit as a host.  The fly lays it's eggs on blades of grass.  If the rabbit gets scratched by something and the egg can get in the scratch, it will develop into a larvae.  Depending on the location it can cause some serious side effects.  We had a Florida White come in almost totally paralyzed due to a warble's location near her spine.  A warble will begin as a small lump and will quickly grow.  The body responds as it does to any infection and I have seen a lot of pus associated with these nasties.  In some of the larger ones, if you look carefully at the center of the mass you might see a red crusty area and may be able to see the "gill" of the larvae come up to breathe.  The larvae should be extracted by a qualified vet and might require a minor surgical procedure.  If the warble's body is compromised inside the host, it is toxic and can lead to death.

We have a Holland Lop that had a similar issue.  He too was a rescue and his tiny body was ravaged by infections.  We cleared them all except his left eye.  He also had a large lump in his cheek and an unbelievable amount of discharge from his eye.  It was an eye infection that was caused by a drug resistant strain of the bacteria Pasturella Multocida.  So it's possible that it is a stand alone eye infection.

These are just a couple of possibilities.  My suggestion is to have a qualified rabbit vet take a look and treat accordingly.  Please do not attempt to treat this yourself.