8yr old , head tilt

[ilovebrandy]

Hi all

Brandy my bunny is going through a healing process. She has head tilt and tested positive for Ec& is being treated for both middle ear infection and parasite. She is on the following meds: baytril 2x a day, meloxicam 2x a day, meclizine every 24 hours and Albendazole every 24 hours.
She’s been on the baytril for over a month  , head tilt went away then came back. The four medications have been administered for 9 days now and she still cannot walk. Her right eye which is the side the tilt is on , is completely shut and doesn’t open. I have a check in on Monday with the vet. She mentioned penicillin injections. I’m not going to give up on my babe as I am home all day to support her, she eats drinks and tries to clean her self. She uses the bathroom in her place since she can’t move but I clean her areas multiple times per day. Any suggestions or recommendations? Please let me know. For her eye she is also given Ciprofloaxcin , both eyes every 12 hours

[LBJ10]

Albendazole doesn’t pass through the blood-brain barrier very well. The preferred drug for EC is fenbendazole. If you’re not seeing improvement with the Albendazole, then I would suggest talking to your vet about that.

[ilovebrandy]

Thank you very much for that piece of information. Is there hope for a n 8 year old to recover?

[Bam]

Yes, there is hope for an 8 years old to recover. EC often manufests in buns that are older. The infection can happen when the bun is very young, then the body’s own immune defense is strong enough to keep the symptoms at bay for many years. As we age our immune defense gets weaker, and opportunists like e c will grab their chance when they see it.

I second LBJ about the albendazole. It’s the same class of meds as fenbendazole, but its associated with more side effects. Fenbendazole is still the gold standard for e c although some vets in the USA use oxibendazole instead.

Meloxicam is usually added to the treatment bc ec causes tissue inflammation. Antibiotics are sometimes, but not always, also used together with fenbendazole and meloxicam.

The bendazoles are slow-acting, and it can tske quite some time before you see improvement. The body will also need time to heal after the full course of fenbendazole. It is important that the bun gets good, nutritions food so it has strenght to fight.

Patience is key. The outcome is always uncertain, but that’s the case with pretty much all rabbit illnesses.

[ilovebrandy]

Hi Bam,

Great seeing the vet today. is it normal for them to be laying on their side all of the time and their head tilted eye to be shut closed?

[ilovebrandy]

Hi Bam,

I saw the Vet today and she said she doesnt want to change the EC med yet. she prescribed penicillin every 48 hours & sub cu fluids every 48 hours as well. she mentioned we should have a CAT scan done which costs $2,000 dollars. is this the normal thing to do? I feel like thats a bit expensive.

[Bam]

It’s not standard procedure to do a CAT scan for suspected ec. I suppose the vet wants to see if its actually a middle ear infection and not ec? You should ask I think, both about why they want a CAT scan and if the result of the CAT scan would change the treatment she’s getting, and how.

How long have you been giving the albendazole?

 

 

[ilovebrandy]

the CAT can is to test for middle ear infection since her culture from her ear came back negative. she wants to do the CAT to see if Brandy might have a brain tumor or of they should remove pus, if any during sedation within the middle ear. albendazole i have been administering since May 28, 2024.

[DanaNM]

Personally… I would want a second opinion before doing expensive tests. Fenbendazole is a 28 day course, your bun has been on albendazole long enough that it should have helped by now.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[ilovebrandy]

hi there, you think 2 weeks albendazole is long enough? the bottle says 28 days for treatment

[DanaNM]

There are times when you need the full course to see improvement, but usually you do start to see some improvements within the first couple weeks. I know my bun did improve a lot by week 2.  It’s widely accepted that fenbendazole is the preferred treatment for EC, and EC causes permanent damage. I would not want to be wasting time with my bun on the wrong med and spending thousands on dollars on more diagnostics if it is in fact EC that’s just not being treated properly.

 

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[ilovebrandy]

Hi,

Is it ok to switch the EC med this quickly?

 

[ilovebrandy]

i asked the vet to prescribe the fenbendazole,again. by the way

[Em]

You don’t need a prescription for fenbendazole so if your vet will not give it to you you can buy it over the counter. Panacur is fenbendazole. Not too sure about where you are, but here most pet shops (pretty much all of them) sell panacur. You could probably also buy it online. You just need to know your rabbits weight and I’m sure someone could help you to figure out the dosage for treating suspected EC.

I find it strange that they won’t try another treatment before jumping into such an expensive procedure to be honest. Like, 2k is crazy especially when they haven’t tried another treatment first. I would understand if fenbendazole also failed that they’d advise a scan to check if there’s another underlying problem, but not as first line of defence.

[ilovebrandy]

Hi,

She responded saying that since she put her on the penicillin she wants to wait to see what the cause of improvement is.

for over the counter panacur-where do i purchase it, do i call CVS pharm and they fill it?

 

[Em]

I totally understand waiting to see if penicillin helps, but I don’t understand waiting further for the albendazole instead of swapping to fenbendazole.

in terms of where to buy it, I’m not familiar with shops in North America so unfortunately I can’t be of any assistance with that. But I buy it under the brand name Parazole (just another brand name for fenbendazole) at my local pet shop and any agricultural store typically carry it too. Vets here even dispense it without the need for prescription- once they seen your animal within the last 6 months, so your vet should also have no problem giving it to you if that’s your preferred treatment option.

hopefully you see improvement. My girl developed symptoms of EC (seizures) when she was 8 years old and has been seizure free since starting treatment in March. So even though your bun is older, if it is EC there is definitely still hope for improvement despite being older.

[ilovebrandy]

thank you very much, she hasnt been pooping since yesterdays visit to the vet.

[ilovebrandy]

how do i know when its time to let her go ?

i think she is experiencing negative side effects from the penicillin, she barely wants to eat only cheez its, blue berries , bananas, and thats pretty much it.

i have a visit w/ vet today to test for if shes indeed anemic and if she is not, they will prescribe fenbendazole. poor girl

[DanaNM]

I would stop the pencillin before jumping to euthanasia, personally. Are you syringe feeding her a recovery food (like critical care)? It’s really important to feed her if she won’t eat hay on her own. Cheez its and fruits are only going to make her feel worse.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[ilovebrandy]

i stopped the penicillin injections.

shes on day 3 of the panacur.

critical feeding 3 times per day, she is drinking water from a water bowl when placed in front of her.

[DanaNM]

Ok that’s good. I hope she starts feeling better soon. It’s great she will drink water on her own. You can also offer her hay tea, it’s great for poorly buns:

Hay tea – For anybunny who doesn’t drink enough, especially for ill or recovering rabbits

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[DanaNM]

I can understand wanting to see if the penicillin helps, especially since she did have that brief improvement with the baytril.

You can get fenbendazole online or from feed shops. It comes in large tubes meant for horses, goats, etc. (brand names are either Panacur or Safeguard). I can’t speak to switching meds but I know that fenbendazole is generally very well tolerated with minimal side effects (rarely there are some, but they are rare). My 13 year old handled it like a champ.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[ilovebrandy]

Aw that’s good to hear– ok i will try that before any expensive tests.do you know why they are administering the penicillin injections every other day versus everyday? I asked but the vet isnt in to respond to my question.

[ilovebrandy]

hi we paid for tests a few days ago that were sent out, results came back today, and the vet says her red blood cell count is low, NOW they want to do another test in house to make sure its actually correct and to stop the EC meds. what is going on?! seems like this never ends. she keeps mentioning euthanasia but i dont see how thats ok considering her lust for life despite not being able to walk very well .

they gave more meds for gut stasis yesterday.

[DanaNM]

I’m sorry, that’s really frustrating. I know that fenbendazole can cause bone marrow suppression, but I’m not sure if that’s the case for albendazole.

If she still has lust for life, then I’m also surprised that the vet would suggest euthanasia (especially when they were also pushing you to do an expensive scan!).

Penicillin can be hard on buns and is likely what triggered her gut slowdown. Considering you had a positive EC test and a negative ear culture, I would be pursuing treating the EC properly rather than treating an ear infection that may not even be there.

Another note, sometimes baytril is given when treating for EC along with other meds, as it seems to have some therapeutic effect. So just the fact that there was improvement with baytril (which was also given along with other meds!) doesn’t necessarily indicate an ear infection.

Is there another exotics vet in your area that could give you a second opinion?

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[ilovebrandy]

she has passed away. took her last breaths this morning, in peace , with me. thank you for your support.

[LBJ10]

I agree. Baytril can cause symptoms to improve when a bunny is suffering from EC. The symptoms return once the Baytril is stopped. They aren’t sure why, but it seems to have a therapeutic effect. But it does not treat EC or send it into remission like fenbendazole does. I do find it odd that your vet is suggesting euthanasia after they were pushing for expensive scans and tests.

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