foggy eye

Question
my adult dwarf rabbit, Chico, has lived in my back yard for almost a year now, after i left the lock off his hutch and he got out. i can catch him, i just believe he is better off in the yard and he cant escape, or get hurt, so no prob., right? any ways, i DO have cats and he wants attention, no, he is nor neutered, and the cats will bat him away when he is bugging him. my question pertains to the "sleep" crusted around his eye that i noticed this morning. is there a condition where rabbits commonly get eye infections, or did he get scratched, and is there something the vet can actually do for him. i got a warm wet rag, and got the "crustys" off around his eye and inside i noticed the membrane around the eye ball is very red, ands his eye is completely fogged over as if he had a blind eye. he cant see out of it. but what I'm curious about is that he had the same thing happen to both of his eyes, at the same time, not but 3 months prior to this incident. only his eyes weren't foggy like this one is. i will take him to the vet in a day or 2 if it worsens, i was just wondering if you had any knowledge of this or advise. thank you.   
               love, Heidi,the animal LOVER,Johanna

Answer
Dear Heidi (Johanna?),

First, I must warn you that it is very dangerous for your bunny to be around a cat that bats him and can scratch or bite him, even slightly.  Cats' mouths and claws are covered with potentially deadly bacteria (Pasteurella, Bartonella, etc.) to which rabbits are especially susceptible.  With even a small scratch, your bunny could be innoculated with bacteria that could kill him with systemic infection without warning.  So far, he's "lucky" that he's gotten away with only eye injuries.  But even those can cause the loss of vision or of the entire eye.

An injury like this should not be left untended by a vet.  If the rims of the iris are rimmed with red, then it's possible that the area is already starting to vascularize, which is part of the healing process.  But it would be wise to get proper medication from the vet (antibiotic and anti-fungal ophthalmic medications) to be sure no infection can start or get worse.  The cloudiness could be a corneal ulcer or just corneal edema (swelling with fluid), but it still should be checked by a good, experienced rabbit vet, and preferably by a veterinary ophthalmologist (your regular vet can refer you).

To find a good rabbit vet, check the list linked here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

And a last little note of caution:  I'm a strong believer in outside play time for bunnies, and I also believe they are often safer running free than trapped in a hutch.  However, a predator can strike quickly and without warning. A dwarf rabbit is at risk of attack by hawks, (daytime) cats, raccoons, foxes, owls, etc. (night and possibly day) when not supervised.  I would strongly suggest you get your bunny indoors at night at least, to be sure he doesn't fall prey to something--especially when his vision is compromised!

You can find good instructions for litterbox training and all aspects of House Bunny 101 here:

http://www.rabbit.org/care/new-bunny-index.html

Hope that helps.

Dana