Ear Abscess after cat bite

Question
QUESTION: Discovered bunny had two puncture wounds from cat bite after ear became abscessed. Vet prescribed albon. Wound was not lanced/drained. Skin sloughed off and the puss came out. Vet says bunny might lose ear and prescribed more albon. Is this the normal progression of a cat bite wound on a rabbit's ear? Complete loss? Thank you.

ANSWER: Dear Jean,

Please get your bunny to a more experienced rabbit vet.  (Albon?!  Good grief.  It's safe, but also pretty much useless for just about anything.)

Please find a good rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

who will prescribe appropriate antibiotics for this, such as ciprofloxacin and/or bicillin injections every 48 hours.  Cat bites and scratches are extremely dangerous for a rabbit, and your bunny is actually lucky to be alive, as such injuries often result in fatal systemic infections with Pasteurella, Bartonella and other very nasty bacteria.

Please get that bunny to a vet who is more savvy about rabbits before he *does* lose the ear--or worse, which would be a completely unnecessary tragedy.

I hope this helps.

Dana

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

QUESTION: Dear Dr. Dana,

I have a fresh bottle of bicillin in the refrigerator. Should I start bunny on that straight away? His weight is 1.996 kg and that would be .25 cc of bicillin every other day?


Answer
Dear Jean,

I don't like to recommend that anyone use antibiotics on a bunny without consulting a good rabbit vet, so I'll still recommend that.  I really hope you can find one in your area, since the vet you're seeing now seems pretty clueless.  Remember the listings:

www.rabbit.org/vets

And I'm sure you already know that the bicillin must be administered via injection (which is I think the only way it comes, actually), not orally, or it can be extremely dangerous.

Since we're not absolutely sure what bacteria are inhabiting that abscess, a culture and sensitivity would still be a wise course of action.  But if you are concerned about preventing further spread of the abscess, or stopping potential toxemia, then many vets will prescribe that you begin antibiotic therapy before the results of a C&S come back.

I am not suggesting that you do this on your own without a vet.  If we had a rabbit that size, our vets would very likely prescribe 0.3cc bicillin injected every 48 hours.  I hope this is consistent with what your vet will prescribe.

I hope this helps.

Dana