sickess/disease

Question
-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
my rabbit has ears that are getting worse, the ears are crusty on the edges and have slits on them.  do u know what this means? theres no other place on the rabbit that has fur problems.  also her nose gets cut and it looks like its hanging off.  she is in the cage and when she comes out of the cage i make sure there is no animal around, so therefor she is doing this on her own.  what do these signs mean? How can it be fixed?
Answer -
I'll need some more information: Is this rabbit in a hutch outside or in a cage inside? Could you describe the nose problem more completely? Is there a crusty substance inside the ears? Do you see dried blood? I'll try to help you if you can give me some more clues.

Gina

My rabbit is staying in a cage inside, i let it outside once or twice a week to hop around.The nose, it looks like a cut and sometimes looks like it will fall off.  It always grows back but comes back again. It's not crusty inside the ears but it is alot at the bottom and around the edges, also there is no fur on the back of her ears. I dont see any dry blood
Answer -
The ear problems sound like they could be due to ear mites or fur mites. These can be pretty quickly cured with two injections of something called ivermectin, which you would get from a knowledgeable rabbit vet. If the vet confirms this is not a mite infestation, then hopefully he or she can diagnose the problem.

Regarding the nose, that is very odd. The only thing that comes to mind is that she is reinjuring it repeatedly. Check in her cage very carefully for any broken wires or other sharp edges that could be scratching the nose. Also check any areas outside the cage that she always goes to play in that might be injuring her.

Or, if she is having mites or other problems up in the ear area, perhaps they are irritating her nose area and she is scratching it herself. You might clip her toenails if they are long and even file them down a little so they aren't sharp.

------u had asked before about the dry blood and now i am seeing it on her nose and around her eyes. also shes lost alot of hair around her eyes and teh back of her neck.  i checked the web and i bought some mineral oil, which is supposed to help her heel quicker and kill off the mites. ive also bout ear mite drops.  ive been using both of these for several days and i havnt seen any improvement...shes been scratching alot and i can tell shes uncomfortable. should i take her to a vet?  how much would the shot cost?

Answer
The mites are very bad if they are causing her to lose hair on her neck and face. Topical treatments are notorious for not working well or quickly. She does very likely need the ivermectin shots. I don't know how much your vet will charge--frankly the medicine is cheap but vets do make a lot of their money to stay in business from selling medicine, not from office visits. You can call and ask, I am sure.

Usually only two shots are required, two weeks apart (the second shot taking care of mites that were in egg stage at the time of the first shot), but with a bad infestation you may need to monitor to ensure they don't come back, and if they do you may need another round of shots.

Another possibility is that a rabbit rescue group in your area may help you out. You can actually buy Ivermectin "over the counter" in feed stores, though because the bottles are large (meant for cows) it is expensive, only worth while to buy if one is intending on using it for dozens of rabbits, which is why some rescue groups will buy it. However, to preserve their good relations with the vet community they may or may not be willing to give you the shots if this is not a rabbit rescued by them. But it might be worth asking. They might also know a vet who will do the shots cheap.

To find a rescue group, look on the rabbit.org site for "Chapters". If there is not one near you, you can look for a nearby independent group using the HRS contacts page http://www.rabbit.org/links/index.html

Good luck. Mites are very uncomfortable and won't go away on their own.

Gina