Okay, remind me one more time, please?

[MimzMum]

Mimzy will be seeing his doctor this Saturday, barring any further complications, to see if we can’t get this nasal drainage of his cleared up once and for all.

We’ve tried every oral antibiotic that she could think of for his branhamella.  No luck. My guess is, she’s going to want to start amoxicillin shots. I am scared to death. I know bunnies can die from this stuff if administered incorrectly (that would be me with my fumbly fingers) or just from allergic reactions to the stuff. Soo…

Reassurance please?  I wuvs my Mimz…today is his 2 year anniversary of his homecoming. I don’t want to lose him.

[katie, max & penny]

aw mimz, you wont lose him! i’m sure if it comes down to giving him shots, the vet will explain it very carefully and show you exactly how to do it.
as for the allergic reaction, ask your vet how common it is. i bet its like, a 1 in a million chance.

don’t worry yourself out before you even talk to your vet about it. i bet once you explain how nervous you are, he or she will be really patient and walk you through it.

[Sarita]

I’m not entirely sure what it is that your vet is prescribing since amoxicillin only comes in oral forms and amoxicillin is fatal to rabbits. You need to verify exactly what this is.

[MimzMum]

This is the same thing he’d been taking oral antibiotics on and off for since the beginning of this year, Sarita. It’s a bacterium called branhamella catahrralis and we’ve tried Baytril (?) and the one with the three letters, TNS or TMS or something like that, and nothing stopped the boogery nose and sneezing.
So the last time I talked to the doc, she said we’d have to go to injections next. In the lab, amoxicillin was the only thing that would kill the branhamella, so I think she’s going to recommend that Pen-G stuff next. I know it means a few rounds of injections, and I am not comfortable giving them, but since the hubby used to give insulin shots to his grandpa, I think he may be able to assist me with Mimzy’s treatment if we have to go this way.
The reason I mentioned the amoxi is that was what I remembered killed the bug in the lab, not that my vet had prescribed it. Sorry for the confusion.
I do have a few questions:
If this whole thing just turns out to be allergies, (in other words, if we use this treatment and nothing changes) will the Pen-G hurt him at all?
How often do the shots have to be given?
If he has a reaction, someone here said it would happen right away and the doc would have me wait in the office for a few minutes to watch him anyway…has a bun ever had a reaction outside the office during the day after injection and what can be done about it?
I have to make sure he eats even if the meds give him tummy trouble, I know that, but are there any other signs I should watch for? I did buy some Bene-Bac, would that help?
If the medicine is effective, will I see improvement right away since it’s intravenous, or would it still take awhile? He’s been sneezing and blowing goobers intermittently since about February.

Benedryl does help him current symptoms, but they only come back when it wears off…s I kind of doubt allergies are the cause and I want him to get better so he doesn’t develop abscesses or secondary infections. Plus it’s just heart breaking to hear him sneeze so much.

[Sarita]

Many of those questions are definitely questions you need to ask the vet.

I have given pen-g shots but many of those questions (which are excellent) I don’t have an answer to.

I can only speak from my experience with giving pen-g shots but it’s pretty limited. Usually the vet may start out giving the pen-g shots every other day and then every three days, then every four days, etc…but your vet may use a different protocol (and with good reason since every rabbit and every bacteria requires a dosage length). I do believe the most that is given is .35 cc’s at the maximum and it is based on weight (but again, that is in my experience).

I’m not sure if the pen-g will hurt him in the long run but I imagine that any benefit to this will outweigh the risk.

Will benebac help – there’s no scientific proof this helps but many people believe it does help and it certainly doesn’t hurt. Also I find that many rabbits love this stuff so it’s easy to give them.

[MimzMum]

Thank you, Sarita. I know I sound like a nervous Nellie, and I guess that’s what I am, but I just want to be sure I don’t cause my little furry baby more distress than is absolutely necessary to get him well.
I think I’ll print a copy of this thread so I can have the questions firmly set somewhere because I know I’m going to be in enough of a state to forget them otherwise.
To have your input means the world to me. Thank you so much.

[Author]

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