clear nasal discharge following a sneeze

[pookah]

I should probably explain a bit about Cashew’s history first:  When he first adopted, he had a nasty eye infection, having been badly neglected in his previous “home”.  He was at the vet within the first 48 hours of being home with us, and twice again that week, and several times in the next few months, and about 50% of it was eye issues.

His first vet visit was because he suddenly started sneezing up a storm.  (It would have been that same day, regardless, because of the eye infection, but he arrived home late Saturday, and it was in the middle of the night Monday morning that he started sneezing so much he bounded up like he was trying to escape it)

The fear was he could have a blocked nose, which as we know, is a very dangerous thing for bunnies.  (Like so many things )

As it happened, though, it was actually all to do with the eye infection.  The vet said the eye irritation was causing his eye to water and there was a bit of backflow into his sinuses, which irritated them and caused him to sneeze.

It’s been over a year now, and I think we’re at about the level of baseline standard issue bunny-parent worry 

He has a tendency to eye crusties, and sneezes maybe once a week, lol.  When I’ve called the vet they’ve told me to watch for any discharge from his nose or eye, especially if it’s white, and redness in his eyes.  If I’m diligent about cleaning his eyes, it doesn’t get too bad or get stuck in his fur.  But I think his latest batch of hay is a bit dustier than usual, so last night I used a little bit of ophthalmic saline solution to degunk the corners of his eyes.  At first he seemed to like it (he usually does), but then he winced a bit and I thought perhaps his eyes were slightly irritated and the saline bothered them.  His eyes aren’t red, just a bit gunkier than usual. 

So then this morning, he sneezed, just one little double-sneeze, but it sounded squeakier than usual.  Like a teeny high-pitched trumpet.  I checked his nose, and I couldn’t see anything, but there was just under his nose a bit of what seemed like water in consistency, but was very very slightly sticky.  (It was in fact a lot like his eyes when they water.)

I cleaned his nose just to be safe, with a damp cloth, and he seems fine.  We cleaned his room to try to get rid of all the hay dust that accumulates so quickly.  (We clean what feels like constantly, lol, but he likes to take hay with him into his hiding spots and bits of dust build up in things and around corners.)

My husband is calling the vet, but I imagine they’ll say what they said last time, and the time before: keep an eye on him, etc etc.

But it drives me crazy, because I’m always afraid this time it will actually be nasal congestion and we won’t know until the middle of the night when there’s no vets who will see him.  (This came up one of the times his eye was infected: it was terribly swollen, and when I called the 24-hour vets around, each had a different reason why they wouldn’t see him…)

So what I *really* want to know is, what first aid measures should I take if that ever were to happen?  Are there things I can have on hand that will help if ever his nose gets blocked or partially blocked and it obstructs his breathing?

And honestly if anyone else has experienced this kind of thing, watery eyes an occasional sneezing, it would be really great to hear from you!  Thanks so much!

[Wick & Fable]

I’ve posted Wick’s story here a lot on pretty much any topic regarding a sneezing rabbit, just because I think Wick’s story addresses and helps some rabbit owners and their concerns about rabbits who sneeze. To begin, I’ll say 1) Wick is a runt, so naturally he was much smaller and presumably less developed than other rabbits, 2) Wick’s vet is a very experienced rabbit vet who has dealt with many cases of upper respiratory infections (URIs), and 3) Wick’s infection was particularly pesty, and Wick’s vet said that too, it kind of puzzling my vet for a while with its persistence,

Short story: Wick came to me at 8wo and went to the vet in the first week for major sneezing. Discharge was clear and sneezing was rapidly increasing in frequency (at least 30 every hour). Wick was put on antibiotics which went through changes twice, and after 3mo, Wick is better and sneeze free.

If it is a nasal infection, most likely your rabbit can get through 24-48 hours, and even a week. The negative thing about waiting is the infection has a longer time to spread and manifest, making killing it more difficult. Sneezing is of course a sign that some air is getting through. For immediate measures, you can help your rabbit, as you have, by wiping the nose area gently with a damp clean towel and drying it a bit afterwards. With the potential of it being a bacterial infection, always use a clean towel with clean water, and never re-use the same towel, unless you’ve washed it.

URIs can only be treated by antibiotics, but obviously this comes with a price tag, so it’s always good to consider other possible variables. Some rabbits get things stuck up their nose, like hay, which cause irritation. Check and see if anything is in your rabbit’s nose which may be causing the discharge production. Another is environmental changes, such as hay-dust-density, dustiness and airflow of your home, a new scent of laundry detergent or general home scent, or a change in other foods. Wick’s sneezing did decrease by switching from Kaytee to Oxbow hay. While his sneezing’s root was a URI, he had an allergy to whatever pollen was floating around where Kaytee harvests their hay. Oxbow, being a different brand, harvests their hay elsewhere, and Wick finds that pollen and dust much more agreeable.

At Wick’s first vet appt., it was very obviously a URI because of the frequency and severity of his sneeze attacks. For occasional sneezes, I recommend observing other factors first.

When it comes to actual URI treatment some people and vets recommend getting a culture done to find out the specific bacteria, as opposed to throwing antibiotics until you find one that works. My vet and I agreed to actually do the latter, because my vet expressed confidence that they usually get it within the first 2 or 3 gos, and each go, it’s pretty obvious whether or not it works. At the time, I was just worried about my new pet so I was all onboard with what the expert said. It took the second medication, plus the addition of a third to get the right treatment down, and I don’t regret it!

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.

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