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Bunnys Eye & Bottom

22 10:56:55

Question
Hi Pam,

I was hoping that you could help me understand what is wrong with my bunny.  He has a pink swollen ball-like thing that sometimes sticks out of the corner of one of his eyes.  One minute it will be their and the next minute it is gone.  It is about half the size of a marble and looks like it is filled with something but his eye is not leaking and he is not crying.

The other problem he has is near his bottom.  He has an area about an inch wide by an inch long that seems to be growing weird.  Part of the area has hair that I at first thought was matted but is seems to be a growth problem and he also has a really hard flap of skin next to it.  It's not like a scab or anything and it doesn't stick out too far but you can definately feel it and see it as it probably sticks out about an 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch.

None of his problems appear to be bothering him and he is eating and acting just like his usual self.  He's always excited to see me and I've tried giving him bath's to see if maybe that would help clean out his eye or with the weird thing on his buttom but it didn't help at all.

Any advise you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

Best,
Melissa

Answer
Hi Melissa

I really think your rabbit needs to get examined by a vet.  He is obviously still healthy but they could be tumors, the start of infections or even just swollen scent glands.  Without seeing it I can't tell you for sure and don't want to give you the wrong advice.

As long as he is still eating and acting normal you don't need to rush him off to the nearest emergency animal hospital but please try to get an appointment with a regular vet.

If your rabbit got fly strike on his butt (which is just one possibility) the larvae could end up getting big enough to kill him.  It is far safer to have him examined and if they are tumors or infections they can do biopsies and cultures.  Even if you have to drive a few hours to find an exotic pet vet near you it is worth it in the long run.

Keep the eye clean with a sterile contact solution with boric acid.  You can consider terrymacin cream that is safe for the eyes and can be purchased at most tractor supply stores.  

Honestly I wouldn't risk it.  He is obviously your loving pet and whatever it is you want to get it fixed before it spreads or gets worse.

If you need help finding a rabbit savvy vet in your area check out the link below and find your state.  Like I said it may be a long drive but again it is worth it.

http://www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

So sorry I can't help you without seeing it.  There are just far to many possibilities and I don't really know much about your rabbit (age, general health etc).

I hope the little guy does ok and if he stops eating, gets lethargic, or gets diarrhea please rush him to the nearest animal hospital.

Thank you and good luck

Pam

I just found a site about lumps on the eyes.  I thought you should look at.

http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/eyes.shtml