How long until upper respiratory infection clears up?

[Royce&Abby]

One of my buns, Royce, was sneezing like crazy last Saturday and I noticed some discharge from his nose.  It was too late to take him to the vet so we went first thing on Sunday.  My regular vet wasn’t in so I had to go to a different vet an hour away.

Turns out that Royce has an upper respiratory infection and is currently on Baytril twice a day.  He has a follow up appointment this Sunday, but I can’t help but freak out all week.  His sneezing has decreased a lot.  He still sneezes more than usual but he’s not having sneezing fits anymore so I guess the Baytril is somewhat working.  I was just wondering how long will it likely be until this infection clears up completely?  The vet advised to separate Royce from Abby to ensure that she doesn’t catch it from him.  They are still in the same room because i don’t have the space to put here anywhere else…but they are both really upset that they can’t be together and it’s really heart breaking to see.

 

[Monkeybun]

It depends on how bad the infection is, really. I don’t suspect it will be much longer if the baytril works, just make sure to keep using it til the vet says its ok to stop.

PS: wave at my city for me, I do miss Vancouver

[Sarita]

I wouldn’t break my rabbits up, but that’s just me.

My advice is if this doesn’t work and it can take a few weeks – get a culture and sensitivity test done.

[Beka27]

Chances are that anything one has, the other would have already gotten it, so I also do not see the real need to separate them. This can actually cause more harm than good if they have a solid bond and then the other is suddenly not around for comfort.

[Royce&Abby]

thanks for all of the replies.  I think that I’ll reattach their cages when I get home from work today.  Last night Abby was trying so hard to squeeze her face through the bars to get to Royce.  I didn’t like the idea of separating them either but I did it because the vet advised it was a good idea.

One the one hand, I don’t want Abby to get sick, but on the other hand, I think that Royce will likely recover quicker if he’s not depressed about the separation.  Apparently the stress of being separated can make them worse?

Abby’s nose looks a little questionable…the tiniest bit.  My bf says that it’s just be being over protective and paranoid.  I can’t remember what her nose looked like before.  I think that I should put the rabbits back together and then bring Abby to Royce’s follow up appointment on Sunday to get her checked out just in case.

[Sarita]

Maybe it’s from squeezing her little nose through the bars :~)

Keep us updated on Royce’s condition.

[Beka27]

Aw, that’s so sweet… I bet they do miss each other so much… Keep us posted on how his check-up goes.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I wouldn’t break my rabbits up, but that’s just me.

Agreed-bonding is difficult and likely both have the infection, but only one is affected. So I’d keep them together.

Many rabbits carry sickness but just don’t get sick-unless they get stressed. One of my buns likely has E. cuniculi, but he’s still with his buddy. It’s very likely they both (or all four of mine) have it-but just aren’t ill.

I’d think after one week on the antibiotic you should start seeing an improvement. But it depends on how long it will take to completely clear up Hang in there

[Royce&Abby]

I should have never listened to the vet that told me to separate them!!! Putting Royce and Abby back together was a gong show! Of course Royce wanted to re-establish his dominance and Abby didn’t like that so she ripped some of his fur out.  Then Royce didn’t want her in his side of the cage.  So I blocked I closed the cage door so they would be close but couldn’t get to each other (I have a dog crate with a “yard” and usually the cage door is permanently open so they can access the yard 24/7 – so I had one in the crate and one in the yard)

I took them both to the vet because I was paranoid that Abby was also sick (turns out she is fine).  The vet said that Royce’s temperature was normal and that his lungs were clear and his sinuses were clear.  His nose was still wet but she said that since he’s on a full course of anti-biotics and that the discharge was clear that it would be best to finish up the anti-biotics and see how it goes.  She also said that too much antibiotics will cause problems with his gut flora.  His sneezing has significantly reduced but he still sneezes here and there.  I was a little stand off-ish when she said we’ll give it a couple weeks and see if it will clear up on it’s own.  Doesn’t she know that rabbits hide their illness until it’s too bad to cover up?!?!? She’s  not my usual vet tho. The one that I normally take them to was unavailable for the initial appointment so I had to go to another vet that sees rabbits.  My plan is to wait until after Christmas and see if Royce’s situation has changed.  His is doing better right now.  If he starts going down hill I’m getting him to my regular vet asap.  I was contemplating taking Royce to see the regular vet right away but I think that stressing him out by taking him on another 45 minute car ride is going to do more harm than good. 

Royce and Abby are re-bonded but I still have my eye on them just in case.

[bunnytowne]

Just that little time of seperation was too much oh nooo.    I am glad it is going better between them.    Also if one goes to the vet some people advise taking them both so the new smells won’t get them into fighting or dissagreements.  That way if they both go they will both have the same smells on them that came from the vets office

[Royce&Abby]

Apparently I spoke too soon.  I just got home from work a little while ago and I found chunks of Royce’s hair ALL OVER the rabbit area.  I’ve checked over both rabbits and didn’t find any wounds from the fur pulling.  The corners of both of Royce’s eyes are scratched.  It’s hard to say whether it was Abby or it was him scratching himself.  I am devastated and I don’t know what to do?  Has anyone else experienced something like this?  Referring to the post above, maybe Royce smells different because of the antibiotics that he was on? 

Royce and Abby are separated now (as described above).  I’m so angry with myself for separating them in the first place…

[jerseygirl]

Are you certain they fought? The car ride to the vet was a good thing. When they have a tiff, you can do car rides to mend the bond. If you are concerned though about stressing him and they are not looking for one another, maybe you should just keep them separate for now. Once you’re confident Royce is ok, then you might have to do bonding sessions with them – sorry! 

If you prefer to get them back together now, even try putting them in a box and carrying it around your house, then monitor them together in a communal living space – perhaps petting them side by side and calming them down.  It’s good also to transfer scents between them, so swap hands while petting them.  Sometime one rabbit will just pick up on foreign smells just from the clinic.  I’m not sure the meds themselves would be causing any issue.

[RabbitPam]

I’m thinking you can kill two birds with one stone by making an appointment with your regular vet who is 45 minutes away, and taking them both to her. That way, they will have a bonding car ride, she can check them out for any injuries from the fur fights, see if Royce is in good shape on the baytril, and be sure Abby is fine. It sounds like Royce is responding to the meds and is better. The car ride home will also be a bonding ride, plus your vet might have a suggestion or two for them once they’re home. He may smell funny to Abby while he’s on the meds. I know that’s possibly expensive for you, but I’d feel better with your regular vet than continuing with the vet who has helped Royce at their bonding expense.

[Royce&Abby]

It’s weird because I thought that the ride to the vet last weekend would have helped. Thanks for all the advice. I’m definitely going to take my rabbits to my regular vet. I’m so upset about this bonding issue…I should have never listened to the new vet telling me to split them up.

I’m pretty positive that it was a fight. Royce’s fur was EVERYWHERE in chunks. They’ve been split up since I got home last night. They can still see eachother through the bars. Abby was licking Royce through the bars last night so I opened the door and about a minute of being nose-to-nose, Abby went over and smelled his bum. Royce is very touchy about anyone touching his bum. Even when I pet him and I get close to his tail, he grunts and stomps. I think that he thought she was going to mount him or something. He turned to her and either nudged or nipped her (I couldn’t tell) and then she bit him and it escalated from there. Royce has already mounted her and she just accepted it but they are still acting a little weird. Abby is kind of stand-off-ish around him. I think this grooming Royce through the bars thing will do some good. I’ve also took Abby’s plush soccer ball and put it on Royce’s side. He was laying beside it so I guess that’s a good sign too. I’ll give it back to her in a couple days once it smells more like Royce…

When should the rabbits switch sides of the cages? today or tomorrow?

[BinkyBunny]

I’m figuring you have already done the cage switch by now. When you let them meet, is it in a rather neutral territory? You could also try regular stress bonding ONCE your bunnies are completely free of infection. (though the car ride home for the vets is a good idea)
You don’t want the stress of of STRESS bonding right now to hinder the healing. Such a bummer – I know you now have to go at this backwards unfortunately. You could also try some stunt doubles – get two stuffed toys and make each smells like the other, and let them get used to a very “passive” stunt double in their cage. If they learn to trust the scented double, it may help them learn to relax around each other without the bars between them.

Keep us updated

[JASmith]

I have a question in a similar vein to this thread so I think this is the best place for it.  

I have a couple Holland lops, about 4 months old who are bonded. One of them, Winnie, developed an upper respirator infection and is on an antibiotic. The vet suggested that we keep them apart for at least a week. So we separated them (they were being separated most of the time already because they have not been altered yet) and began treatment.  

Now, Winnie has been grinding her teeth in the “I am in pain” way since she has been on the antibiotic. This is despite her overall normal behavior otherwise. So, we don’t know what is causing her grinding. Has anyone had instances of antibiotics causing upset stomachs in their pets? Could her pain simply be part of her illness? Would you suggest separating them or keeping them together while Winnie recovers?

[LBJ10]

JASmith – This is a VERY old thread. The forum asks people not to dig up old threads. A forum leader will probably lock this one. If you have a question that needs to be addressed quickly, then start a new thread so people don’t get confused by all of the text above your question.

[JASmith]

Oh wow. I did not see the date on this thread. I will post it to a new thread.  Thanks for the help.

[Sarita]

Thank you LBJ10 – yes JASmith – please post an entirely new thread – going to lock this thread.

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