It depends on the rabbit – it’s age, and emotional and physical health – and how much E. Cuniculi is present. Most rabbits are exposed to E. Cuniculi in their mother’s urine, which is why many rabbits test positive for it. The great majority of rabbits won’t develop symptoms, though. It seems to be opportunistic, kind of like the herpes virus in humans. The body keeps it at bay until the immune system tanks due to some other infection or trauma or old age, and then herpes in humans or E. Cuniculi in rabbits becomes active.
To my knowledge, again like herpes in humans, E. Cuniculi never completely goes away. The infection lessens and/or becomes dormant after treatment, but it’s still lingering, waiting to activate.
Treat your bunny, because EC will cause death, and it’s not an easy death at that. I’ve never heard of a rabbit beating the infection on it’s own without treatment. Even if yours has, it’s a waiting game, because it will most likely come back.
There are differently kinds of E. Cuniculi in different parts of the U.S., and probably in different countries, too. Some strains are fast moving and virulent. Some are slow moving, and not as virulent. Unfortunately, you don’t know what strain your bunny has. So giving you a guesstimate on how long your bun can/will live with untreated E. Cuniculi is impossible.
You don’t have to treat the bunny every six months, though. Treat the bunny once, and then have your vet draw blood and run a test. If the E. Cuniculi doesn’t show up on the test and/or is almost negligible, then stop treating the bunny. If it’s still prevalent, treat the bunny again. Once the blood test comes back a-ok, then just have a blood test once a year to check E. Cuniculi levels, or if your rabbit starts showing symptoms again.
Granted, the blood test for E. Cuniculi isn’t cheap. It’s about $125. But the EC meds aren’t cheap either, and they are VERY hard on rabbits; the treatment itself can cause death. So, for your bunny’s comfort and longevity, treat until the blood test comes back clean, and then run the blood test once a year or if the rabbit becomes symptomatic.
I’ve nursed my bun through E. Cuniculi twice. I learned the hard way that the test is worth the money, and that the meds should be avoided unless absolutely necessary.
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