Echinacea/GSE?

[whispercalm]

I’ve come across some articles/blogs where people have use echinacea, GSE, and a few other natural remedies to help URI.

I have a few questions and wondering what experience others have had. I thought this might help Charlie. Poor little thing must have had discharge last night and wiped it on her face. Had to wash her face this morning for her. It seems to be her right side/nostril I’ve noticed for the discharge.

Anyway,  we are waiting and watching to see how she does now that home air ducts are cleaned per our vets advice.

I ordered dried echinacea from Small Pets Select and it arrive yesterday. It recommends giving 3 times a week and building up from a teaspoon to a tablespoon.

I’ve seen quite a few references to sprinkling a capsule of echinacea on food daily.

One lady had great success with using 1 capsule on food, 3 drops GSE in water and 10 drops apple cider vinegar. She treated for 30 days. She treated a new bunny her daughter bought from a fair that had URI issues. I thought this looked interesting.

I really would like to try to boost Charlie’s natural immune system. Any thoughts?

I also have a hepa room air cleaner machine arriving today.

 

 

 

[DanaNM]

I’m always a bit skeptical of home remedy type things, because you never really know if the bun just naturally fought off the infection on their own. I can’t really imagine apple cider vinegar doing anything…

I’m not familiar with GSE, but I did find a published paper on it having a benefit in wound healing in rabbits. If the echinacea is formulated for rabbits then I imagine it would be safe to use as directed, but I would definitely check with your vet as certain herbs can interfere with certain medications.

That said, I do like the herbal blends from Floppers Garden (if you can get them), as they are formulated for rabbits and provide additional variety in their diet. I’ve used the “old bones” mix for my senior buns and I felt they were more comfortable when they got it.

I think the best things for bun immune system would be adding variety in the diet, in the form of different hay types, greens, and herbs. Natural forage (weeds) can be very healthy for bunnies as they are more nutrient dense than the veggies we grow for our own consumption.

I’m also a fan of changing only one thing at a time. Since you just made the decision to change her treatment regimen and are getting the mold situation cleaned up, I would wait a bit to see if you see some improvement with those changes before trying anything else.

. . . 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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