Blocked Tear Duct?! HELP

[Princess*Smudge]

So this morning when I woke up Smudge had what looks like a bunch of “sleep” in one eye. A couple of months ago there was a couple days that I found some sleep in her eyes, but it was both eyes and only a few little crusties. By the time she had her vet check she was fine and had no more crusties so I thought nothing of it. This morning I woke up to one eye with alot of gunk. The eye was dry, but I don’t know if it was wet before. The “crusty gunk” is not coloured green or yellow or anything. I took a couple pictures before I wiped it clean with a warm cloth..

Does this look like it might be a tear duct problem? Or is it just normal sleep? Also if it is a tear duct problem what can happen because of a blocked tear duct? I know buns can get them but I don’t know what causes them or what problems they cause. I think I will make a vet appointment, just to be safe oh and of course… this has to happen at the begining of the weekend!

 

(oh and don’t worry I turned the flash off so I wouldn’t blind her lol)

 

And here is a close up:

 

Any help/advise would be great! I hope she’s okay. Oh and she’s eating fine, drinking and pooping all fine. I checked her teeth last week and everything seems to be in order although I can never really get a good look at the back…

[Swansea-Girl]

Hi Samantha

Not too sure if you have just seen my posts from today https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/forumid/2/tpage/1/view/topic/postid/69674/Default.aspx#69732

After my experience today I would definately recommend taking Smudge to the vets. In my topic I mention what has happened with Gizmo. I hope that you find it helpful. Gizmo’s eyes are not as crusty/dry as Smudge’s but they do look the same as in picture one but without the “sleepy crust”, by that I mean all wet in her fur.

On a lighter note my sister’s rabbit is called Smudge and she is a lop too but she is a slightly lighter brown.

Me & Gizmo are sending you and Smudge healing vibes.

Hope she feels better soon!

Ruth x

[Sarita]

Well, usually a blocked tear duct causing continuous watery eye or a constant tearing. Blocked tear ducts can cause skin irritation around the eye area due to the excessive tearing of the eye which is usually the biggest problem of blocked tear ducts.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi Samantha! It appears that it is just normal “sleep” and not a blocked tear duct. It is always good to check with a vet to make sure.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Yup any change she should be seen by a vet, but that looks like normal sleep and you could wipe it out!

[MooBunnay]

My bunnies get something that looks like this quite often, and I try to gently groom it off with a Q-tip or with my finger. One of my bunnies had a clogged tear duct, and generally eye issues come with some swelling around the eye, or some redness, and some discharge that can be identified because it makes the hair cling together and look matted around the eye. I would say that if I were in this situation, I would probably use a Q-tip or kleenex to get the sleep out, and then check each evening and morning to see if a significant amount more had accumulated – if it seems to be consistently more and more, or if her eye starts to look red or the fur is becoming matted – then I think a vet trip is in order.

[BinkyBunny]

It is normal for bunnies to have sleepy in their eyes. Most of the time they can get it themselves, but sometimes they don’t. The only thing that concerns me is is looks really white in these pictures. Is it white or does it just look like it in the picture? And is that all their is, or was there more? If so, put your nose up to her mouth, does her mouth smell foul at all?

[Beka27]

^^^and don’t get bitten!

if it continues or gets worse, i agree you should go to the vet.

[Princess*Smudge]

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the replies!

I cleaned it out with the corner of a washcloth with some warm water on it. It came out no problem, I also watched but there was no other wetness, redness or any swelling. I’ve been keeping an eye on it and this morning there was one tiny little piece of sleep on the other eye but it was much farther down as if it was a piece that got moved while she was grooming. Both eyes are still dry and looking good so I think it was just normal sleep. However I’m always going to keep a watch on it.

Also she has long fluffy hair and is going through a shed is it possible that the hair is irritating her a little more while she is shedding out and therefore she has been producing more ‘sleep’? I know I get alot more sleep in my eyes when my allergies are really bad and my eyes are trying to clean themselves more… anyways I was just wondering if this works for buns too?

Binkybunny- the picture makes it look ALOT whiter than it is. It is kinda beige coloured in reality pretty much the exact colour of the sleep I wake up with every morning. However just to be sure I smelled her mouth (hahah she REALLY enjoyed that let me tell you, I got the total bunny butt). Her mouth didn’t smell like anything other than hay…. and I’m pretty sure she thinks I’m crazier than before but it’s really good to know that you can tell if somethings wrong (I assume you meant you could smell infection?) by doing that!

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