Bunny Freak Out

[Honey&PeepersMom]

I am hoping someone might be able to help my daughter and me with a distrubing problem with our rabbit. My daughter has a three year old un-neutered male Dutch rabbit. She has had him since he was weened and he has always been the sweetest most loving rabbit you could ever want. A few months ago we took him to the vet with an eye infection and he completely flipped out. When the assistant took him, Little Bob started kicking and fighting both the vet and the assistant and making the most horrible screaming sound I have ever heard. It was obvious he was terrified. The vet had to grab him by his front and rear feet and pin him to the table to keep him from hurting himself/. We were all stunned. Little Bob had been to the vet before and never acted that way. The vet had no explantation. Little Bob was nervous and skittish the rest of the day. Three days later at my daughter’s apartment Little Bob was on her screened in porch and he suddenly did this again. He started screaming and ran for his pen. Again there was no explanation and for about an hour he was upset. He has been fine since then until a few days ago. Little Bob was playing in a pet play pen in my daughter’s living room and suddenly he started banging his head against the pen trying to get out my daughter was across the room and by the time she got to him he had jumped out of the pen. She picked him up and he screamed and attacked her. He left three horrible gashes down her arm before she could put him down again. He ran for his pen and she had to get first aid. She said it took him hours to calm down. Since then he has been fine. He has been very loving toward her almost like he is sorry he hurt her. She has other small animals and she is concerned about him injuring one of them. And I am concerned about her injury. She is a brittle diabetic and injuries like those do not heal well or quickly. The scratches are infected and she is on antibiotics now. We are hoping someone else who has experienced similar behavior might be able to give us some insight into what is happening with Little Bob. It would break my daughter’s heart to have to get rid of Bobby (he’s her baby) but he is so unpredictable it is frightening. Anyone with any suggestions please post a response.

[babybunsmum]

oh my, that’s terrible!  poor little bob… and your poor daughter!  i have not had that experience, but i have read that rabbits do that when in pain.  what was he at the vet’s for?  did they do anything more than a physical exam?  if it would have been limited to the vet visit it would’ve made sense it was due to maybe some new thing at the vet’s office (smell / sound?) that threatened him.   

since the behaviour is sudden & not normal AND has repeated, i would be inclined to take him back for a thorough checkup to see if there are any under-lying health problems.  sorry… not incredibly insightful response but thats all i can think of.  i hope some one else has some other ideas for you… i’m sure its very upsetting.

[Sarita]

Oh goodness. I think the vet might need to check him for any neurological problems. I realize that he flipped out at the vet prior but this does not sound in any way good – especially the screaming.

Makes me wonder too if perhaps he is having some kind of seizure.

[MarkBun]

If he does it again, have your daughter or you look at his eyes – see if they seem to be twitching or rolling around – that usually accompanies any sort of siezures or brain troubles. However, the fact that he seems to always be attempting to escape and get back to his pen doesn’t really sound like a siezure. A siezure is when the rabbit goes through uncontrollable spasms and he seems ‘clear headed and coordinated enough to fight out of the grasp and head for home.

My immediate thought is that he has some sort of internal injury – such as a cracked rib. That would explain the sudden flip outs when being held. Is he still eating and pooping? Is he still moving normally?I’m afraid to say that it might take a couple of x-rays to see if they can find a problem. 

Another possibility is that the eye infection as affected his vision in that eye and his sudden squeals of terror and fighting could be that he isn’t seeing who is picking him up.  His thumping of his head against the bars could be because he doesn’t see them?

I wouldn’t worry about him suddenly attacking another animal though – so far his displays have been to escape and run away – not to attack.

[Gravehearted]

oo my, that’s scary for everyone involved. Bunnies don’t scream unless they believe they’re in mortal peril or in serious pain, so this is a serious thing. What is happening is not normal rabbit behavior, and please keep in mind that we’re not vets.

I also hypothoesize  that there’s some underlying health issue going on like seizures that are scaring him. It’s hard to think about taking Bobby to the vet when he got so upset last time, but it sounds like something is seriously wrong.  I am not sure where your daughter lives, but many rabbits are not experienced enough to give rabbits the proper care.  This is a serious enough concern that I would take the time to carefully reseaching a vet before taking him in. Below is a list of vets who see rabbits.

http://www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

 

Sending lots of good wishes Bobby’s way, i hope he’ll be ok.

[Honey&PeepersMom]

Thanks to everyone for the responses. I have decided to take Bobby to a vet in Gainsville FL It is a vet school highly recommended. They can see him after the holidays and hopefully figure out what is going on. They also told me if we need them before they have an excellent emergency hospital I told them what I told you and what all your suggestions were. They agree we need to find the answer to the problem. I will post again when he goes to the vet. Thanks again to everyone.

[Scarlet_Rose]

I am so sorry to hear about everything with little Bobby.  I think that maybe the eye infection has reached his brain (it is not far) and might be causing this erratic behavior.  I am very glad that you have a wonderful resource nearby where this can be taken care of.  My very best to your loving daughter, this cannot be easy for her or you.

Since you are in FL, you might want to check out your local chapters of house rabbit organizations too.  Sometimes they can be a great help and a source for supplies.

http://www.floridarabbit.org/

http://www.orlandorabbit.org/

Englewood Animal Rescue Sanctuary

Gainesville Rabbit Rescue

Florida Panhandle Rabbit Rescue

First Coast Rabbit Rescue

A great online resource I have found for medical info;

http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rabrefs.html

Please let us know how the visit goes and I hope that all goes well.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Good luck with your bunny. I hope all goes well!

[DustBunneh'sMama]

I agree with Scarlet Rose. I would venture to guess the infection is in his brain. It’s not seizure behavior because like Markus said he’s taking purposeful action, but he’s acting like a horse I once had that ended up having a brain tumor. She would be fine one minute and then freaking out the next and that’s what it turned out to be. I would think a brain infection would cause a very similar situation.

I am so sorry for you and your daughter. Our bunnies are normally so sweet and loving, so I’m sure it’s quite a shock for her to be going through this. It sounds like you’re doing the right thing though. Best of luck to you, and please keep us posted. We’ll be sending healing vibes his way.

[Honey&PeepersMom]

Just an update. Little Bob had another episode last Thursday late. My daughter called me around 2 am in tears. He had banged himself against the wall he was bleeding from his nose and broke two claws. We got him calmed down. She wrapped him in a blanket and sat and rocked him then we cleaned him up. I called an animal hospital in Gainesville, FL the next day. They are seeing him tomorrow. I talked to a vet there and they say they will find us an answer. I sure hope so.

The vet told me to have her keep him in the room with her all the time so she can always watch him until we bring him in and he has been fine since Thursday. She’s exhausted because she is afraid to sleep because she’s afraid he will have another episode and she won’t hear him. The animal hosptial said we will probably have to leave him for diagnostic tests but at least maybe they can figure out what is wrong with the little guy. I will post again after the visit.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Oh my. I am so very sorry. You might want to pad the sides of his cage with towels and the bottom too. In case of another episode. Your daughter is doing a wonderful job for the little guy.

[Gravehearted]

ooo that’s so scary, poor Bob!! I really hope they are able to find out what is going on with him and help him so he stops having these episodes. It must be so scary for your daughter. I am sending lots of good thoughts Bob’s way…

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

OMG When I saw the title of this I thought it would be a cute bunny binky story!! How scary!!

It definitely sounds neurological. That’s terrible the first one happened at the vets office, as I would have attributed it to nervousness or whatever! Keep us posted on how this goes!! Sending lots of vibes!!!

[brianamonster]

I am so sorry to hear about your bun! I cannot even imagine how hard this must be to handle, seeing as how bunnies are very easy to become attached to. Please keep us updated, we’re all hoping for the best!!

[Honey&PeepersMom]

Hello everyone!

We took Little Bob to the vet and got really good news. The vet did a complete physical , blood work, etc. and he was promounced a perfectly healtly bunny. The vet is putting the episodes down to fear attacks. The vet wants my daughter to move him away from the other animals and limit his contact with them so we can see if they are causing him to freak out. Also she is keeping him close to to her and housing him in her room instead of in the room with her other animals.

If no more episodes happen we are not going to do anything more. If he has any more, we are going to put him on a mild sedative to help even him out. But thankfully there was not anything wrong with him. I really feared a tumor.

Thanks to everyone who sent happy vibes our way.

 

[MarkBun]

A rabbit with panic attacks? Well that would make sense although the screaming part is a bit strange. They rarely make that noise unless they feel they are about to die but I suppose if the panic was bad enough. Does the vet you took him to see a good number of rabbits or only like 2 or 3 a year? Not trying to throw doubt upon the diagnosis, just that some vets aren’t really aware of rabbits as they are considered an ‘exotic’ animal. I believe we had one story here where a vet couldn’t tell the difference between a domisticated rabbit and a wild one.

But, if you do have a lot of animals, especially predatorial ones, then yes, a lil bun could be quite upset. My first bun, Laser, was ‘introduced’ to my brother’s malamute dog and she took a running start and then attempted to leap THROUGH a wire fence pen in order to reach me.

Here’s hoping that Bob will be a happy, quiet bunny from now on.

[Honey&PeepersMom]

Yes the vet we went to is highly recommented by many sites I researched and they see 100s of rabbits. My usual vet (who admits he doesn’t see many rabbits also suggested this place). I feel confident that the vet knows what he is talking about. He was young but the facility has 50 vets and is the only school in the state I live in so that’s why we chose it. Bob is a strange case and he has always been a bit easy to frighten. The vet thinks he may be getting more jumpy with age.  He has been fine now for a little over a week. We are hoping he stays that way.

[Scarlet_Rose]

(((Bob))) I’m so, so glad he is O.K. Whew. Something to consider woud be a product called Bach’s Rescue Remedy, they are flower essences in an alcohol base.  When my two are about to see the vet I dose them with 4 drops or if they have a bout with stress I place about 4 drops in their water crock.  It’s worked wonders for them and my vet actually recommended it.

Here is the link:

Pets & Bach Flower Essences

I purchase mine from my local health food/vitamin store, you will not find it at GNC.

[Gravehearted]

well I am glad he got a full workup and what a relief that they believe it’s panic, rather than epilepsy or a tumor.
poor Bob!
It sounds like the rescue remedy would be worth trying for him. I hope he’ll be episode free with the changes your daughter has made with his living arrangements.

[babybunsmum]

yes… i think a friend of mine has had great success using bachs rescue remedy with a cat of hers prior to vet trips.  she recommended it to me at one time but i forget the specific details as it was some time ago.  hopefully keeping bob away from the other animals will help… poor guy!  what a terrifying way to find out he has an anxiety problem.  great relief it’s not seisures tho.

[Sarita]

That’s great news and I recommend the Rescue Remedy too! It won’t hurt to give it a try.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

That’s great to hear he is totally healthy!! Wonderful news!
Sad that he is frightened though….Let us know how it goes

[Frostyleo8]

Just read this thread!  How horrible for everyone, but I’m glad it’s not physically worse.  I just wanted to commend you and your daughter on hanging in there by his side through all of this, and not giving up like so many people would.  I’d also like to mention that when people have panic attacks, it literally feels like they’re going to die.  So, I can see how your bunny might feel as if his life is in peril, and scream in response.  Glad to learn about Bachs rescue too, as I might need it for one of my more skiddish bunnies! 

[BinkyBunny]

I’ve been following this thread.  Quite baffling. The whole thing seems so strange.  I was so surprised to hear that the vet found nothing wrong.  I figured it had to be be a broken bone or something.  So I hopefully techniques in keeping him calm will work.

Was there anything different at the vets that day that may have traumatized your bunny?  Sometimes certain sights, sounds, smells at the vets can be disturbing to pets since their senses are more acute their our own.    Was your bunny ever out of your sight  at the vets before this happened?   

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