Rabbit Sneeze--baytril question

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I'm a new rabbit mom and am thoroughly enjoying our new little girl. She's about 10 weeks and has been doing well, eating, drinking, and going to the bathroom regularly. In the last couple of days she has begun to "sneeze" more, but has no eye or nasal discharge. We took her to the vet yesterday, just to be sure everything was OK. He said everything was fine (including lungs), said the sneeze could be viral, but wanted to prescribe an antibiotic (baytril) and a probiotic "just in case."

I've been doing a lot of reading since she arrived, and have read that sneezing could be allergies, particularly since there is no eye or nose discharge. I'm worried about giving her antibiotics if it's not 100% clear that she needs them, since there's a big chance it will upset her digestive tract. Also, I am pretty sure the vet said one dose every 24 hours, but the prescription says .4 ML every 12 hours (I'm calling the vet to clarify here). This sounds like a lot, looking at the syringe (about 1/2 of the syring; has markings of .1., .2, .3, etc.).

Can you please talk about rabbit sneezes without eye or nasal discharge (she's also not lethargic, although has lost some zip since coming from the vet, which was traumatic, but I'll see if she's back to herself tomorrow). She's not sneezing while sleeping.

Also, does this prescription sound correct? I have no idea about dosing, but want to be absolutely sure that if we give her meds they are correct. She's about 850 MG (?), I believe.

Thank you in advance for any info you can provide. Sincerely,
Jen

ANSWER: Dear Jen,

I am NOT a big fan of giving antibiotics "in case" of illness. That's a great way to breed resistant bacteria.

On the other hand, *confirmed* allergies are really not very common in rabbits.  Sneezing is far more often caused by bacterial infection, and a bunny may not act very ill even if she has some bacteria up her nose.  Please read the following articles for more complete information:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/sneezing.html

and

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/culture.html

If you are not sure the vet you saw was very experienced with rabbits (No rabbit-savvy vet I know would say that sneezing in a rabbit "might be viral"!), then you can find another one here for a second opinion:

www.rabbit.org/vets

As far as the Baytril dosage is concerned, I can't calculate the dose she's getting without knowing the concentration of the suspension (preferably in mg/ml).  If you check the vial, it may tell you the concentration, or you can ask the vet.  The usual dose our vets prescribe for Baytril is 15-20mg/kg twice per day.  Unfortunately, more and more bacterial populations are turning up to be resistant to Baytril, so if it doesn't work, you may have to try something else.

I hope this helps get you started. Please write back if you have any other questions.

Dana

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

QUESTION: Hi, again,

Thank you so much! I really appreciate your speedy reply, and also your articles. I do have a couple of additional questions, if you don't mind.

The Baytril is 10 MG/ML liquid.

I have never given her (or any animal) medication by syringe, and am afraid I will hurt her, if it decided she needs the meds. I read somewhere in this site that we could put the antibiotic on her food, and that would be OK. Is that true, in your opinion, or should we try the oral/syringe route? And, if the latter, do you have any suggestions about how to best do it to keep her from aspirating?

I'm a new bunny mom, and may be overly anxious, but I just don't want to do anything that could harm her.

Also, I am looking into another vet, just to be sure, but unfortunately I don't think the ones on the list above are close. I'll keep trying.

Thank you again for all your help,
Jen  

Answer
Dear Jen,

I am not a vet, and so will not speak as one.  But I will say that if your vet has you giving 0.4ml of a 10mg/ml Baytril solution to a rabbit who weighs 0.85kg, then the dose she's getting is only 4.7mg/kg.  Our vets prescribe 15-20mg/kg.

It's NOT a good idea to give a low dose of antibiotics if a higher dose is not harmful to the host.  Low dosing can select resistant bacteria, and this may make the condition harder to treat in the future, if the bacterial population evolves in response to the mild dose of antibiotics.

I would certainly look into finding another vet for a second opinion about this:
'
www.rabbit.org/vets

I would not put the Baytril in her food, as it tastes very nasty, and she may not get her full dose (which is low, anyway!).  Just be careful with the syringe, and place the tip in *sideways* behind her incisors, squirting slowly and bit by bit, giving her a chance to swallow. That way you can give her a treat afterwards and not ruin the taste of her food.

Hope that helps!

Dana