rabbit ear infections

Question
I think my rabbit has an ear infection. her ear has layers of dry scaley skin, grey in colour. she has been chewing or scratching it. the ear canel is completely blocked and I cannot get into a vet. can you please suggest a over the counter antibiotic for her
thanks
ashley

Answer
Hi Ashley,

you will need to write me back with more info.

First, is she an indoor rabbit?  Or has she been outside?

How long has this condition been affecting her?

Have you looked close in her ears to see if you can see any bugs or critters moving around?

Is there some reason why you cannot take her to the vet?  This is the proper place to take her, and as soon as you can.

My guess as I obviously cannot tell you with certainty is that she probably has an infestation of some kind of bug and possibly a secondary bacterial infection.

There are no over the counter antibiotics that can treat your rabbit.  Further, a vet needs to determine what kind of infection it is and what the best antibiotic for that specific bacteria.  Also, as she is probably suffering from mites, he'd have to determine the best medicines for whatever specific kind of mite she has.

You cannot put off going to the vet.  As a pet owner you have to be able to provide this level of care for your pet.  

What you can do to temporarily clean up her ears, are to apply some (a very light amount) mineral oil, using your finger, to the insides and outsides - where the damage is - of her ears, and with many qtips, gently use only the soft part of the qtips to remove the gunk that has built up inside her ears.  DO NOT push the gunk downwards into her ear.  If you are unsure you can't do this without doing that, or if you get to a certain point of cleaning and you are worried you might do that, stop.  Get as much out as you can, but don't go down very deep as that will create another problem.  You can let the mineral oil on the outside of the ear where there is damage for awhile, and see if you can remove any gunk there.

You can let her rest a couple hours and then put some preparation H on her damaged skin areas as this may help give her some relief and help the skin.

Please know this will not get rid of the mites or infection if she has an infection.  You must get her to a vet.

Lee

PS - I am referring to MINERAL OIL, not mineral SPIRITS, they are very different.  Mineral oil can be found in the health section of the grocery store or Walgreens.  NEVER use mineral spirits on your bunny.