PASTUERELLA

Question
I HAVE A BLACK DOMESTIC.I FOUND HIM HOPPING DOWN THE ROAD.I TOOK HIM TO THE VET AS SOON AS I MADE A HOME FOR HIM..THE VET FOUND HE HAD EAR PROBLEMS...WE HAVE TREATED FOR 5 YEARS NOW...DIAGNOSIS....PASTEURELLA.....WENT AWAY AND BUNNY GOT STRESSED...BY THE TIME I GOT HOME HIS HEAD WAS CROOKED AND HE WAS SO THIN...I CRIED ALL THE WAY TO THE ASPCA HOSPITAL....THEY PUT HIM ON OXYGEN HYDRATED HIM FORCE FEED HIM ETC ETC ETC....THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS LATER...I AM STILL PRAYING HE WILL GET BETTER...I HAVE HIM ON CIPRO DROPS FOR HIS EARS AND ORAL SUSPENSION TO TRY TO FIGHT THE STUFF...ARE THERE ANY OTHER OPTIONS...THE BATTLE HAS BEEN LONG AND HARD...JAZZY IS TIRED AND SO AM I....GOT ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS?? BAYTRIL JUST MADE HIS EARS RED AND SORE AND I KNOW BUNNIES ARE VERY SENSITIVE,,,WHATS LEFT?? THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME...LINDA  

Answer
Dear Linda,

Don't despair!  Head tilt is not an uncommon problem, but it can be beaten!  Please read this personal account of my own experience with head tilt:

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

and this one could be helpful to the vet:

www.rabbit.org/health/tilt.html

The latter was written by a rabbit expert vet and has many different causes and treatments for things that can cause torticollis.

Chief among them is ear infection, and it's important to know exactly what species of bacteria is causing the infection *and* what rabbit-safe antibiotics will kill the bacteria. To this end, a culture and sensitivity test should be done, if it has not already been done:

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

In our own experience, cipro and other short-acting fluoroquinolones with a shorter "hang time" may not be as effective at reaching the problem  as some of the longer-acting antibiotics such as zeniquin (marbofloxacin; a longer-acting "cousin" of cipro) and/or bicillin injections.

A combination of zeniquin and bicillin could really help, if the cipro hasn't made much difference after several weeks.  You might want to ask the vet about this.

I hope this will help Jazzy.  Hang in there.  Even if she has a residual head tilt, she can be very happy and live a great life with a little help from you--as the first article above describes.

If you're not sure your present vet is very experienced with rabbits, you might want to check for another vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

who can give you a second opinion.

Good luck,  and please write back if you have more questions.

Dana