Sneezing Fits

Question
Hello,

I have a 6 month baby girl bunny. I am not exactly sure what kind of breed she is but she is small. Maybe 2-3 pounds. For the past month and a half she has been having these sneezing fits. I first noticed when I changed her litter to aspen. At first I thought that it had to be it since it was a sudden change. But it never stopped. It started in the middle of the night I heard this bizarre noise coming from her and these fits. I have never heard a rabbit make noises so I started to panic. In the morning I called the vet and made an appointment. I noticed before the fits, she made a funny, undescribable noise. It almost sounded like daffy duck laughing?
So I took her and explained this to the doctor. He checked her out, he said her ears, teeth and fur looked good and healthy. He said it could be a respiratory infection so he gave me some pink medicine to give her twice a day for one week. What I noticed was that the fits continued while on the medicine but once she was done with it, she stopped. So I thought she was better. But a few days later, she started again. I took her back to the vet.
The doctor told me this was unusual being that she hasnt lost her appetite, didnt appear to have a runny nose or eyes (not more than any animal has) and her behavior hasnt changed. He told me to monitor it for another week or two and if it hasnt changed, he will do a culture.
Well the sneezing went on and off, a couple days at a time. Well I was just worried to see her and watch the poor thing go thru this fits and put her little paws to her nose and then wipe it. The fits usually like 5-7 seconds. I hated seeing her like this so I took her back.
The doctor performed a culture, even though he said her nose or nasal cavaty was so tiny. He checked her mouth and he said everything looked fine. The results came back a few days later, and there was no bad bacteria.
The doctor said he doesnt really know what it could be. He said there are two options left : I could get an xray of her head, although he isnt sure what it will show, or a newer much more expensive procedure, and MRI.
I dont know what the problem could be. She acts totally normal, she eats plenty, infact she is a brat early in the morning and doesnt let me sleep!! She rattles the cage so much!!!
My mother thinks my rabbit is fine. She thinks the more you fuss and worry, the more problems there are. She thinks I should handle it the old fashion way by eliminating certain things such as her diet, litter, etc. to see if something I am giving her is the problem.
Please, if there is anything you think I could do or if this sounds familiar, I would be so grateful...and so will Baby!!!

Lynda


Answer
Dear Lynda,

Is this vet very experienced with rabbits?  I'm not sure what he meant by "no bad bacteria," but if he's not familiar with rabbits he might think that any bacterium that's not Pasteurella isn't a problem in rabbits.

This is not true.

MANY species of bacteria can be opportunistic pathogens in rabbits, and they can be treated with the appropriate antibiotics.  If the bunny's nose is very tiny, then a special culturette designed for very small animals, such as ferrets, will be needed to collect a deep nasal sample.  If he didn't go deep enough, the results will not be accurate.

Please read:

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

so you will understand what's involved with a culture and sensitivity test.  It's also very important the the antibiotic be given at a high enough dose, and for a long enough period.  Some vets who see mostly dogs and cats may prescribe a dose that is too low for successful treatment of an infection in a rabbit.

I really would insist on a followup culture, either from this vet (if you feel he's experienced enough with rabbits) or another you can find here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Also please read:

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

A remote possibility would be a foreign object up the nose (a tiny strand of hay, for example), which we have seen on occasion.

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

Dana