Help – my bunny has an ear infection and respiratory illness

[Kilet Mignon]

Hello everyone, I am new to this page and have been reading different posts to help me with my bunny, Oliver, and was hoping for some more guidance. I’ve been a wreck so anything you have to add is so appreciated.

My 1.5 year old mini rex, Oliver, is a very sweet but anxious bun. He hates being handled and will honk/whine/hide and do basically anything to avoid being picked up. His nails were getting way too long and I took him to a local vet (not rabbit savvy, but it was convenient) and they trimmed them. It went well, but he was pretty traumatized after going. He started to seem less anxious and more himself, but then one day he stopped wanting his pellets (which he loves), not eating greens, hiding etc. and just overall not himself. I’ve had rabbits before and figured it was GI Stasis so I gave him some baby gas x and hand fed him some cilantro and kale. He would eat it in small portions if I hand fed him but wasn’t going to his bowl. His pooping went down drastically but he was able to produce a few droppings.

I made an emergency vet appt at a rabbit savvy vet (unfortunately the closest is 1 hour 15 minutes away) and we found out he actually has a middle ear infection and an upper respiratory illness which likely led him to eat less, thus leading to less poop. He was prescribed Ditrim (seems to be an antibiotic for the ear and upper respiratory illness) 2x a day and then critical care to get his gut moving again. They gave him fluids to hydrate him. We go back in a few days for a follow up.

He seemed okay when we brought him home, but force feeding him has been SO hard. He truly HATEs being handled, more than any bun I’ve seen, and I do everything I can to make him comfortable. My girlfriend helps me tremendously with this, but it’s still difficult. Every time we do it, it seems to further traumatize him and I worry he won’t ever get back to his old self. I am so worried he isn’t going to recover.

Questions I have for anyone who may know or have experience:
1. Has anyone ever had a bunny with ear / upper respiratory infection and how was that/what was the treatment/ did it go okay? I’m worried the infections aren’t easily fixed.
2. When feeding critical care or meds, do you ever get the substance all over their fur? I read it’s okay if it gets on them so then they’ll at least lick it off. I try not to, but he’s so resistant
3. Do you think this experience will traumatize him which will lead him to continue not eating? Or maybe if I successfully treat it, he will feel better and thus eat more again?
4. I went to give him some cilantro (which I’ve done last few days) but he won’t eat it. Is he getting worse, or perhaps the critical care is doing the trick for now and he isn’t hungry / he is still anxious from everything today?
5. He was grinding his teeth when I tried to give him food. I know that might mean he’s in pain, but he was only doing it when I brought the food toward his face. Perhaps he is just annoyed at me, or maybe in more serious pain?
6. Is there anything else you can think of that I can do to help him/aid in his treatment/comfort level?

I have been crying on and off since I first noticed him behaving differently. I lost my old rabbit due to old age and other issues and still feel guilty for it, though she had a nice life. I don’t want my new, young bun to suffer and I feel like a horrible bun mom even though I know it’s just my nerves and my pain seeing him hurting talking. I REALLY appreciate any feedback, even if it’s just kind words. Thank you so much.

[Bam]

We have had plenty of rabbits here that have been successfully treated for URI and ear infections. Treatment can be long though, several weeks on antibiotics may be needed. If you don’t see any improvement at all after a week-10 days, you may need to change to another antibiotic or combine two kinds of antibiotics.

It is pretty much par for the course to get critical care all over the bun, yourself and often also on furniture.

A bun should hate being force fed until he gets used to the routine, which can take quite some time and as a rule never happens, because you only rarely need to force feed for more than a month or so. Surprisingly buns tend to become more bonded to their owner after a bout of illness that requires force feeding and medication – even though they absolutely hate it while the ordeal is ongoing.

It is absolutely vital that you keep feeding him. It is worse for a bun to be without food in its stomach than for it to be temporarily traumatised by syringe feeding. I had a bun who bit me hard, and one time even screamed, when I picked him up for a syringe feeding. My vet was adamant that I keep feeding him despite his obvious distress. My bun truly hated me while it was going on. Weirdly enough, it seemed to bond him strongly to me, and after those weeks he took to sleeping at the foot end of my bed every night.

Do you have meloxicam (metacam, loxicom) for him? It is a painkiller and anti inflammatory that often makes rabbits feel a lot better when they have an infection.

Do you have a good feeding syringe? I recommend a 10-20 ml syringe. Some come with a flexible tip that can be attached to the hard plastic tip, that is also great aid.

[DanaNM]

I agree with everything Bam said! You can do it!

He will hate you during, but just know that you are helping him. He will likely become more strongly bonded to you after the ordeal is over. I’ve experienced this with my bunnies as well.

I would def call the vet and ask for pain meds if you aren’t already giving them. They can work wonders with helping a rabbit feel good enough to eat. Usually they taste sweet so the bun will take them willingly.

. . . 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.  

[DanaNM]

Also, not sure how much guidance the vet gave you, but this video is one of the best I’ve found for how to syringe feed:

I like to have the bun on a table, but some prefer their lap instead.

Last thought, have you tried offering the CC on a spoon or a plate? You can even mix a small amount of canned pumpkin or banana in it to encourage the bun to eat it on their own. The Apple-banana CC flavor is most popular with my buns, a few love it and will eat it on their own.

. . . 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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