Bunnies can have allergies? What do I do?

[SpazJumps]

Hi everyone!

I usually bug the people over at the House Rabbit Network for advice about my pair, but I thought that it would be helpful if I asked questions over here too. Everybody seems so helpful and welcoming, and my main contacts over at HRN just had their first baby – so I feel bad about bugging them in their sleep-deprived, new baby-concerned states to ask newbie bunny questions all the time.

After seeing Panic’s post about her rabbit’s predicament, I thought I should post my rabbit eye problem. Over the weekend, one of my white bunny’s eyes started getting really teary. It looks like some of the hair is sort of missing in the corner of her eye, and it’s always moist around there. Her eye, however, is perfectly normal-looking – no redness or swelling. My trusty HRN rabbit expert says that it could be allergies.

My black one had conjunctivitis in February, and it definitely doesn’t look irritated like hers did, so I’m happy about that. But what do I do about my rabbit having allergies? She acts normal in all other respects – she’s just got this funny-looking eye. It doesn’t appear to be getting worse over the past couple of days. I’ve irrigated it with the most preservative-free, sensitive eye saline I could find just in case. I don’t know if there’s any gunky build-up – they’ve been grooming each other a lot lately, so I might just not be seeing it.

Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks.

 

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[Beka27]

buns can overgroom i know. so if the black bun is grooming her eye area, that could be why there is some fur missing. buns can have allergies. i have no experience with that tho, so i’ll leave that to the others.

[babybunsmum]

hmm… i’m possibly facing a similar situation.  my bun has already been thru 2 types of eye drops (ciloxan & gentocin) but her weepy eyes persist.  my vet also checked her for teeth problems during her last physical exam.  have you had a vet scope her teeth to check them out?  i’m wondering if my bun’s problem is allergy related and so i’m also interested in tips dealing with rabbit allergies.  my bun’s eyes always seem to be wet but once i noticed she came from her hay box with a big milky tear.  fortunately the skin around her eyes is not irritated. 

anyways…  the only things i know to do so far are: shake out as much hay dust as possible before setting it out for bun and give daily face washes with a warm wet face cloth.

[SpazJumps]

I haven’t taken her to the vet yet. I guess a trip is in order.

Oy, I knew I should’ve signed up for VPI sooner. I haven’t finished the approval/waiting period yet…

[Deleted User]

Most of the times rabbits do overgroom and this can lead to missing fur around the eyes. You might want to check with your vetrinarian about the moist eyes and I don’t suggest giving him/her eyedrops because that will add moisture to his/her eyes. I would leave it alone until you see serious eye problems that you know should be dealt with emmediatly such as conjuntivitis.

[RabbitPam]

I know that my bunny was diagnosed with a blocked duct, which caused his eye to run (clear, not milky) and he was given eye drops for that. It worked in just a couple of days. I’d say a visit to the vet is in order. (My vet used this instrument with a flat blue light to diagnose him, which was really cool to watch.)

I believe bunnies can have allergies also. If it seems linked to the hay, try a small amount of a completely different kind of hay to see if she likes it and tears with it also. You need to change food over gradually, but many people have said they mix hay for tasty variety, so I doubt it would be unwelcome if the hay is causing her discomfort. There’s Timothy, Oat, Orchard grass – maybe a little change will make a big difference. (Definitely shake out the dust.)

[babybunsmum]

hmm… yes… i should clarify that the eye drops for my bun were prescribed by my vet.  i was def not suggesting you get some to try without consulting a vet first, but mentioned them to explain that my bun’s condition was not helped by them, thus ruling out problems such as conjunctivitis. 

the long & short of it is… there are several possible causes for runny eyes (tooth problems, conjunctivitis, allergies to name a few) and so it’s really best to have a vet diagnose & suggest a course of treatment.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi and welcome SpazJumps! We actually have quite a few HRN people here too as well.

Let me assure you that my Daffodil has the same affliction and the same issues with her eyes (it looks exactly like your picture), she is also a REW (red eye white) with gray splotches. Anyhow, Bonsai her mate usually licks her eyes clean, however what I find that helps is to provide as dust free of hay as possible, vacuum the cage and floor at least twice a week, keep an air purifier close to the cage, and on occasion I will flush out her eye with saline to get rid of any particles like pollen, dust etc. that may have lodged in there, causing the problem. Be careful with deoderizers, scented candles, carpet treatments, perfume, etc. as they can also cause a flare-up. I hesitate to get meds for this from your vet and my vet hesiates to medicate uneccessarily as well, try flushing the eyes out with a bit of saline and it generally helps to clear things up as with being a little more diligent with dust and cleaning. Oh another thing, be sure the kind or type of litter you are using isn’t too dusty or scented either as that can also cause problems. Is your rabbit under the bed where there is a lot of dust? I know sometimes when I clean I forget about the places that bunnies can go but humans can’t, like under a bed or couch where allergens can collect.

[SpazJumps]

Thanks Scarlet_Rose. Is it just my white bunny, or does yours seem to never stop shedding too? Funny thing is, her humans have allergies too so we brush them often, dust & clean often, and we actually have two air filters near their cage (my boyfriend is a bit of a neat freak… one is better at sucking up stray hairs and the other is better at removing hay allergens & odors from the air). Her eye issue started when we got our spring warming trend here in Boston and all the plants started blooming. I wonder how long she’ll experience this? Too bad they don’t make a bunny Claritin.

They grew up on Sweet Meadow Timothy with no problems, and they didn’t have any problems when we briefly switched them over to Oxbow (which turned out to be bad for our allergies) – and they’ve been on Sweet Meadow with no problems until now. Al, the guy at Sweet Meadow, always tries to send me the not-so-dusty bales of hay. I tried Orchard Grass once, but they don’t seem to like it as much as other types of hay. Maybe it’s worth looking into the other types, like Meadow Hay and Oat Hay.

I’ll give it until the weekend. It doesn’t seem to be getting worse. Until then, I’ll keep flushing her eye and bringing her into the bathroom when I run the shower (I heard it helps her sinuses?).

You’ve all been lots of help! Thank you

[RabbitPam]

Hi, SpazJumps,

I just wanted to add that I am from MA too (only moved to FL 5 years ago.) I know why you’d think it was allergies – everything blooms fiercely as soon as the snow melts (it looks like yellow snow in some places with the pollen.) Scarlet Rose described how I should be taking care of myself, my allergies are so predictable. (My new co-worker’s perfume is killing me and I haven’t told her yet.) Her advice is very informed, so I’d try that first. The only Bostonians who don’t suffer right now are the ones that moved to Arizona! Let’s hope she gets better soon. I love your Yin/Yang picture BTW.

[melissact]

Buns can *definitely* have allergies. Mine sneezes very severely–about five to ten sneezes in a row–and has nasal discharge sometimes. The vet says it’s not anything wrong with him, just allergies. Poor little guy. I know he must be shocked, too, because he was born in the winter and all this pollen must be new to him. We keep the house pretty much closed off, with the AC on now that it’s getting warmer, and the air purifier on. In addition, when I come in from the outside, I like to change my clothes and wash my hands before petting him, so he is not exposed to pollen clinging to me.

[Scarlet_Rose]

You’re welcome SpazJumps! I spent several years in Boston going to college and I loved it! Daffodil seems to shed more but I reckon it is because longer white fur is easier to see than short black fur. Oh yes and a prime place for bunny fur – lint brush screen doors and wipe down your ceiling fan and regular fan blades too! Mini-blinds are also terrible dust collectors. I often use a tossable dusting cloth that traps the dust and not the wands that just throw it back in the air and the vacuum cleaner I have has extra filters as well.

[Deleted User]

doesn’t look like conjuntivitis

[tobyluv]

My house rabbits have never had allergies (that I know of) but I volunteer at a Rabbit Sanctuary and some of the rabbits there have had allergies.  The Sanctuary vet says to use children’s liquid Benadryl to treat it.

[Scarlet_Rose]

I would not administer anything to your rabbit without a consult and recommendation from your rabbits veterinarian. Do not self-treat or dose your rabbit without it as it can be dangerous.

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