rabbit ear infection

Question
Dana-I was reading your response to a girl that asked a question about rabbit ear infections. I have a six yr. old rabbit that all of a sudden the one morning, she started circling and moving her head back and fourth to the right. My vet checked her ears and said that they needed to be cleaned out. She had a lot in there! Anyway, her ears were cleaned and then he put drops in her ears called TRESADERM. I'm supposed to do this twice daily, INCASE she did have an ear infection. He said that rabbits, unlike dogs or cats, you can't see all the way down in their ears and the reason she was circling and moving her head, is because it bothered her. He gave me a 10 day supply of the TRESADERM (incase she has an ear infection) and he's going to call me in two days plus I have to take her back to get her ears checked again and I will be getting her ears cleaned, when she gets her nails clipped on a regular basis. He said that the moving of the head and circling should go away in about a week. I love my vet, they are good at follwoing up. I'm just the type of person that likes to get a second opinion sometimes. What do you make of everything I just said?

1) Is TRESADERM a good treatment?
2) In my situation, will treatment take a month?
3) If she gets regular cleanings, will infection stay away? and how often should she get regular ear cleanings?
4) When will she stop circlig and moving her head back and fourth, in your opinion?

5) One more thing...she hasn't touched her pellets in two days, is that normal with an ear problem ( everything else, she is eating...greens, hay, etc. and she is drinking) and will she start to eat pellets again?

THANKS!
Bridget


One more thing, no IT'S NOT Wry Neck. He said that I would know it if I saw that plus we put her on the floor to watch her hop, circle and move neck. Her eyes are fine too.  

Answer
Dear Bridget,

First question of my own:  Is this circling just by herself, or does she circle around you?  Some rabbits circle as a means of playing, and if she's uttering soft little grunts as she does this, her behavior could be due to sexual urgings, and have nothing to do with an ear infection.  

I'll take your questions one by one:

1) Is TRESADERM a good treatment?

In rabbits, this is generally not considered a treatment of first choice.  Many vets will not even *consider* a drug containing corticosteroids in rabbits, as many individuals have extreme immune reactions to corticosteroids.  Tresaderm is high in these potentially dangerous drugs.

Truthfully, the treatment prescribed sounds more appropriate for a dog or cat--but not a rabbit.  I would recommend that you check this list:

www.rabbit.org/vets

to find a vet who is more familiar with rabbit medicine, and will not simply treat your rabbit as if he's a small cat.  You may love this vet, but he may not be the best choice for a rabbit patient.

2) In my situation, will treatment take a month?

This, I cannot predict.  But I would not use this treatment on any of my rabbits.  If there is matter in the ears, then there's a good chance it's due to ear mites.  These are easily and most safely treated with topical application (to the back of the shoulders) of Revolution (selamectin).  You can read more here:

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

A vet who is not familiar with rabbits may not recognize the brown crusts and waxy-looking residue typical of ear mites as such, and think it's just ear wax, since that's pretty much what it looks like in dogs and cats.  It's not.

3) If she gets regular cleanings, will infection stay away?

Not necessarily.  If there is really an ear infection, then the most effective way to treat it will be with the appropriate antibiotics, determined via culture and sensitivity testing:

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

and how often should she get regular ear cleanings?

When we've had rabbits with true ear infections, we have flushed at least once a day.  This is best done with an ear flushing machine--but those are ridiculously expensive.  We also have used Chlorhexiderm flush (warmed) instilled into the ears and then gently suctioned out with a pediatric ear bulb.  

But if this is due to mites, then the Revolution should do the trick within about 10 days.

4) When will she stop circlig and moving her head back and fourth, in your opinion?

Does she have a head tilt?  I can't really picture what you're describing.  But please read this excellent new article by Dr. Susan Brown:

www.rabbit.org/health/tilt.html

and my own experiences here:

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

Just because a dog vet says it isn't "wry neck" (which is a descriptive term--not a diagnosis), doesn't mean it's not related to that problem.  The article above explains that.  A rabbit who is circling due to balance problems should be treated pretty much the same way (diagnostically and medically) as one that has a head tilt.

5) One more thing...she hasn't touched her pellets in two days, is that normal with an ear problem ( everything else, she is eating...greens, hay, etc. and she is drinking) and will she start to eat pellets again?

Picky eating habits can be due to dental problems or other sources of stress (e.g., pain from an ear infection).  The new vet should do a deep oral exam to check for molar spurs:

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

and also prescribe pain medication for the bunny. We've found that tramadol coupled with metacam works incredibly well, and makes the bunny feel great!

So there's your second opinion:  I'd recommend that you get a second opinion from a rabbit-experienced vet.  

I hope this helps.

Dana