I believe those are just bacteria shapes not actual names of the bacteria. Cocci and Rod that is.

I can’t help with what types of bacteria she would have in her ears nor where you could get a list. It’s possible the culture did not identify anything – I would double check with the vet.

Just to be safe, I would continue to use the antibiotic given for the full dosage especially since you don’t know what the bacteria is and you mentioned it seemed to help her because she wasn’t scratching (if I’m understanding your post currently).

If she’s not on meds and not scratching her ears then I might be inclined not to put her on any meds again unless she starts scratching again.

Is that your current concerns and is there a reason why you would have those concerns – was it something the vet mentioned or just something you suppose it could be? Is she scratching her ears now?

Posted By Taurus on 10/07/2011 01:02 PM 

I felt somethin fishy going on here. I reviewed all the notes that I wrote to vet and she wrote back to me. I just found out that vet DID culture test in july (Culture is a test that identify the bacteria) and I totally forgot about it. I’m still kinda confuse with that part. If vet don’t know what kind of bacteria that Belle have in her ears then why gave me antibotic meds and hoping it will go away? 

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 Ooops…I just posted this in admin mode. I am going to soon delete this and repost in BB mode.

Regarding the previous test, maybe the vet decided to send a new culture to a different lab??? I think i would talk to the vet about your finding.  The truth might be that the vet just forgot and didn’t pay attention the paperwork. IF that is the case, the vet may not charge you for the second testing as it was their mistake. 

As to why vets prescribe meds for an ear infection or any infection without knowing the bacteria —  Normally, a common bacteria can cause infections, and so they will treat with the basic antibiotics first and hope that it works before asking a patient to pay for more tests and possibly more expensive meds.    So the thought is to try the basics first and if it is resistant then go further–otherwise every visit for an ear infection could be too expensive for the majority.   Though for the few where a culture is needed, it would have been cheaper to just do the culture the first time.    And that can feel very frustrating I’m sure. 

The cocci and rod refers only to the shape of the bacteria. How did the vet determine the shape? Was that what the culture was? Sometimes when they do a simple culture, the bacteria can’t be identified for sure. So they simply say unknown coccus bacteria or unknown bacillus (rod) bacteria. It makes sense that the vet would just try a broad spectrum anti-biotic, since they kill a wide variety of bacteria (both gram-positive and gram-negative). They just hope that that does the trick because that is a cheaper route. Anyway, I doubt it is E.coli. I haven’t heard of E.coli causing an ear infection. Most E.coli is harmless, I used K-12 when I worked in a lab and it wasn’t going to hurt you. Virulent strains cause gastric problems and urinary tract infections.

So your bun isn’t scratching anymore? If you continue to have a problem, you might want to ask the vet about yeast. That can cause an ear infection and an anti-fungal would work better for treatment.

I would touch base with the vet for a progress report and update on how she is as of now, and ask if the vet has any additional information she has learned from the previous tests.

However, you may want to wait until tomorrow, Tuesday, since today is Columbus Day and not all places are open, either vet or labs or both. Sarita and BB have given good advice I feel confident you can follow now as well.

A CT won’t give her cancer.

The rates of people getting cancer from CT scans are overestimated, according to studies.

I would just get it done to rule out every possible thing.

A few things..

The vet sounds to have done a few culture and sensitivity tests. They then adjusted the antibiotics. This tells you that they are using a fine tuned and not broad spectrum antibiotic. If it’s imperative you know what the bacteria is-ask directly. But from the email and tests-the vet has identified the bacteria and is treating it. I don’t see any reason to continue persisting to ask what the test results were since treatment was adjusted accordingly.

From the last email-this sounds like your vet thinks this is a serious ear infection. I think you need to write a clearer email asking which direction he would recommend and why. I would be VERY clear that you are not seeing scratching anymore. Perhaps he is looking at these aggressive methods (going into the bulla surgically is quite intrusive, my dog had this surgery) because he thinks this problem is ongoing.

What I’m seeing is you are asking the vet repeatedly for the name of the bacteria, and perhaps he’s getting the impression this is a big ear infection majorly impacting the rabbit. But from your post you sound like there is nothing wrong now.
 

So write back: Make it clear what you are asking- “I am just wondering what type of bacteria was identified on the C&S tests you ran-this is for my own information”
Give clear info “Romeo is not scratching his ears anymore. Can you clarify why you are suggesting further testing and treatment?” etc
hope this helps!