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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Head tilt- Quality of life

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    • scarletbegonias
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        My poor baby Henry (only 6 months- adopted him the last week of October 2012) came down with an ear infection on December 29th, 2012. He was already on antibiotics a couple weeks prior for the snuffles. We took him to the vet immediately, and he was put on Trimethoprime Sulfa, meclizine and active culture yogurt for probiotics. After a few days he seemed to be getting better- attempting to walk around, chewing on things, not falling/spinning as often. Last Friday he had a relapse. He was falling over uncontrollably, not attempting to walk and his bottom eye was closed shut. We took him to the vet that night and we were given eye ointment (his eye is starting to open again) and anti-inflammatory for pain. He’s still eating and drinking but he just stands in his cage (or if I take him out- wherever I place him) and sometimes will fall flat on his side. He won’t try to walk around or chew on anything. He still gives us kisses if we put our nose next to his and it is completely heartbreaking. He was extremely active before he got sick- kick flips, bolting around the house, chewing on our firewood. I feel like he must be miserable. I don’t want to put him down unless he is suffering and has no quality of life. At first I thought he’d fight through this because he was attempting to get around but after his relapse it’s been a very depressing sight. He shows no sign of wanting to move around. 

        Should we keep fighting? Or has his quality of life diminished? The vet says that she is skeptical because of his young age, and that he was already having health issues (the snuffles) but even then- he seemed to be a happy bunny. This is a whole different ball game. If any of you has gone through this I would very much appreciate your thoughts. Please help. 


      • LittlePuffyTail
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          I’m sorry to hear about Henry’s situation. I dealt with a mild episode of head tilt from suspected E.C.

          I think my first bit of advice for you, if it hasn’t already been done, is to do a culture. Since he was dealing with pasteurella-type symptoms (snuffles) a culture will show which antibiotic will be most helpful. You will have to cure the ear infection with oral antibiotics at this point.

          I don’t have a lot of experience with head tilt, but I do with ear infections. Bunnies can recover from head tilt if it’s treated aggressively and promptly, so don’t give up on him yet. Even if he doesn’t make a full recovery, there is the possibility of him regaining enough balance/normal head position to have a good quality of life.

          Is there another vet who could perhaps give you a second opinion?

          (((((Get Well Henry)))))


        • scarletbegonias
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            The vet didn’t do a culture but she said she saw no signs of ear mites, and there was no trauma to cause it. We are running out of money to spend on vet bills so I’m a little apprehensive to take him to another just to be told the same thing. He’s been 3 times in the last 2 months. The vet we have been going to said it’s up to us- but after another week if there has been no signs of improvement we could change antibiotics or put him down. I’m not sure what to do. He is showing no signs of improvement.

            I did forget to mention one thing- we had another male bunny that we got with Henry. We had to find him a new home on the thursday before Henry’s relapse because he was mounting henry making him fall down and he couldn’t get up & away. (Vito was still too young to neuter) Do you think Henry’s relapse could be because he misses Vito? We had to separate them anyway because Henry was rolling/falling a lot and Vito would walk on him/mount him all the time. I’m planning on getting a female dwarf sometime in the near future- do you think company for Henry would help?


          • MimzMum
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              Are you continuing the meclazine? Is he still receiving anti-inflammatory meds also? These are important should there be any central nervous system involvement causing his head tilt.
              My Mimzy got head tilt back in June. He recovered but it took months and his head has never stopped tilting at a ninety degree angle to his left. He didn’t like to do much moving around while he was sick as any time he did he would feel dizzy.
              How do you have him fixed for living quarters? I had to use a large storage box filled with towels and hay to keep Mimzy comfortable so that if he did any rolling he wouldn’t go far and hurt himself.
              Can you apply for Care Credit where you are? It’s a good idea to have some kind of insurance for exotic pet care and if you go to the site it’ll tell you if your vet accepts it.
              Head tilt is a long slog, but bunnies do recover with the proper care and go on to lead happy lives. As long as he continues to eat and eliminate it will just take tending him until he feels more steady on his own.
              I found lots of veggies are good (if your bunny can tolerate them without unbalancing his gut) especially if he is not drinking much. Pellets if he eats them can be soaked in water and syringed or lapped off the end of your finger. I would still try to get him to eat hay but you may find he’s not up for it, in which case you’ll need to supplement with something like Critical Care.

              How long was Henry around Vito? Had they formed a bond?


            • longhairmike
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                if you can beat the actual infection, he can still live a normal happy live even if the head tilt remains.
                Bilbo at TTAS has had permanent head-tilt for over 2 years now, and he runs around like nothing at all.
                they can learn to compensate for their new angle on life.


              • scarletbegonias
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                  He is still on all of the meds he was prescribed- and he is eating/drinking just fine so that sounds like really good news! I am so happy. The only behavior I am worried about is the fact that he doesn’t try to move around/seems uninterested in life. I feel like maybe this has to do with the fact that Vito is gone? They definitely had a bond. They would kiss each other/lay with each other. I feel so guilty for getting rid of Vito now, but I didn’t know what else to do. I thought he would hurt Henry. Maybe another bunny friend would help..

                  Thanks so much everyone.


                • MimzMum
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                    If he was bonded to Vito then he may think Vito has died and could be showing signs of grief. Also if this headtilt was caused by an infectious agent Vito may have been exposed to it and you may want to inform the new owner.
                    How old was Vito? You said he was too young to neuter?
                    It may be that constant care and attention will help Henry pull through this. Getting another bunny risks more upset at a time when Henry needs his energy to fight his illness, but it has to be up to you. I wouldn’t try to bond a bunny in the early stages of headtilt.

                    It’s good to hear he’s eating and drinking. As long as you are spending lots of time with him he shouldn’t be as lonely.
                    ((((((((((((Healing vibes for Henry)))))))))))))))


                  • MimzMum
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                      Reread your first post and wanted to mention that it’s expected for bunnies with headtilt to feel pretty poorly their first few weeks or months with the illness. For two whole weeks after Mimzy got sick I feared he’d never stand upright again, his rolling was so bad that anytime he took a step he’d crash into the side of his pen. I seriously thought he needed to be euthanized, but on the advice of my vet and with support from others who have gone through this with their bunnies we held on. And he’s still with me today.
                      They have their good days and bad. Some recover completely and others remain tilted. Either way Henry is now a ‘special needs’ bunny and will require a little extra care until he feels more himself again.
                      Meant to ask, has your vet given you ointment for his ‘down eye’? You need to keep it clean and medicated so it doesn’t get infected or foreign bodies in.
                      Please feel free to PM me if you have other questions.


                    • scarletbegonias
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                        Thank you so much for all of your responses everyone! Its been a few months and henry is fine! he still has a little tilt, but he runs around and does his little binky hops like no big deal!


                      • Bam
                        Moderator
                        16836 posts Send Private Message

                          This is now in the FAQ, so I’m locking it. If you have more questions regarding head tilt and ear-infections, please start a new thread!

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                      • The topic ‘Head tilt- Quality of life’ is closed to new replies.

                      Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Head tilt- Quality of life