Ollie has Ringworm – Advice needed!

[lindseyh2]

Hi everyone! So this is Lindsey – I had an old account on the forums but just created a new one as well to be able to get some input on this issue.

My rabbit Ollie is just over 5 years old, and is a Netherland Dwarf. I discovered some white flaking on the outside of his ears last week, so I called our vet right away and luckily they are still seeing animals among this pandemic – but with very different procedures obviously. I thought it may be mites, but after the vet looked him over thoroughly, she ruled out mites because she only found the flakes on his ears, and also said it didn’t have the type of appearance she usually sees for mites in rabbits. She decided to take a bit of hair and grow a fungal culture, and gave me a topical ear rinse to apply twice a day to see if that could mitigate the issue until we knew officially what type of fungus it was from the culture.

It seems that the rinse has improved the appearance on his ears, but it isn’t completely gone as there is still white flakes there.

I just got a message from her confirming that it is ringworm, and am waiting for a call back with next steps in terms of medications & treatment. Has anyone dealt with this issue before? I think BB member (Wick??) may have had experience with this? I am wondering what I should be on the lookout for and maybe any experience anyone has in terms of different medications for Ollie.

Also – I realize I will have to deep clean the rabbit area where he is – any suggestions on how to do so that’s safe for him but also clears any possible fungal spores? Any advice is welcome!

I have another rabbit, Leo – who lives next to Ollie. They’re not bonded, but do live close to each other – I plan on trying to move his ex-pen this afternoon as I’m sure there’s more of a chance for him to also acquire the fungus if he’s nearby.

Thanks in advance for any help!! I will give updates on what my vet says.

[lindseyh2]

UPDATE:

I just got a call back from my vet – she wants to try one more topical medication, and if this doesn’t get rid of the ringworm in 14 days we’ll try an oral medication next. She prescribed miconazole cream, but the difficult thing is that they have none currently stocked in the pharmacy at the vet, so she suggested that I just buy some from the drugstore and apply a small amount to his ears once a day for 14 days.

Any thoughts on this? I am worried about him ingesting it, but the good thing is that it is on the outside of his ears, and he rarely cleans them – (he’s a nethie so his ears are quite small and he has a hard time bringing them down to clean)

I have moved Ollie’s ex pen and plan on cleaning the rabbit area later today. I’ve seen some sources say 1 parts bleach/10 parts water is okay to clean hard surfaces. Anyone want to chime in?

Vibes that this cream will resolve his ringworm issue!!!

[LBJ10]

Hi! Welcome back! Just so you know, the forum isn’t fully functioning yet. There may not be anyone here to answer your question. Wick is around, so I can give her a heads up.

I found this article on Medirabbit: http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Fungal/Fungal_en.htm

Here is what they had to say about cleaning:

“The environment of the rabbit should be cleaned carefully: vacuum cleaning, boiling of towels and cleaning of surfaces with 1:10 bleach water.”

[lindseyh2]

Hi LBJ10 – thank you for the response! It’s much appreciated! I realize the forums aren’t fully running yet, but I just wanted to post to see if I would get any responses or help nonetheless.

I haven’t had much luck so far finding the cream in a drugstore near my home, I am going to try to go to a larger grocery store when they open at 8am… if I have no luck there I have found some on chewy.com – but you need a prescription via your vet which would be fine, but there’s no option for small animals when you apply to buy it because it seems to be recommended mostly for cats and dogs. I did send my vet an email last night, so I am hoping to hear back from them sometime this morning to get some more clarity on what to buy. Things have been chaotic at the vet which is understandable amidst all that is going on and how they’ve had to change things there.

I did thoroughly clean the area yesterday with the 1:10 bleach/water and it seemed to work quite well and it didn’t seem to be too strong or overpowering so that is a good thing. I will try to look up some past topics to see if I can find the one I’m thinking of that Wick may have posted a while back. Thank you again!

[Bam]

Here is a thread where Wick writes about ringworm:

https://binkybunny.com/forums/topic/ringworm-help/

[lindseyh2]

Thank you for the help Bam!

After a struggle trying to find the correct cream in the drugstore I emailed my vet’s office asking for advice, and they responded the next morning to let me know they had just had an order of medical supplies come in, and the miconazole cream was included! So I was able to go to the vet and pick it up right away, I am so relieved! I really hope this will help improve and get rid of the ringworm on Ollie’s ears. I will post updates along the way of any big changes, but I know the forum is not fully up and running so many will not see these posts anyway.

Thanks so much again for all the help

[jerseygirl]

Fingers crossed the cream you get will help on the way to healing.

I noted you said the vet didnt think it was mites but did they try some ivermectin at all? Sarcoptic Mange mite can start around the edge of the ears.  I just wonder if he does have some sort of mite infestation and secondary fungal infection or vice versa?

 

[lindseyh2]

Hi Jerseygirl – I appreciate the input! My vet didn’t prescribe anything besides the miconazole cream, but did mention that if I wanted I could get another medication for mites to try if the issue doesn’t seem to clear up soon.

It seems to me that the fungal infection is clearing up pretty fast now, and we’re only on day 3/14 of the cream treatment – so I think that is likely what was causing the flakiness on his ears. I am happy to see that it’s clearing up! Ollie is also having quite a heavy molt at the moment, but I believe that the fur on his ears is coming back in pretty quickly as well.

I will see what the vet says when they call to see any updates next week – but will keep what you said in mind about possible mites. Thank you for the help! I am so glad that this forum was sort of back up and running right around the time I noticed this!! I’ve missed coming on to the BB site!

[Wick & Fable]

I think it’s wise that @jerseygirl brought up the idea of both conditions (mites and fungal infection) complementing each other. If one condition is stressing the rabbit’s system, it is more prone to contract the other condition because it is slightly weakened. For example, it was not until my Wick contracted ringworm (the post that you were referred to!) that his syphilis symptoms started rearing their head — it was most likely a result of his system unable to fight both at once.

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.

[lindseyh2]

Hi @Wick – thanks so much for the input! I was hoping you might see this thread as I know you have a lot of experience in this area with Wick. It makes sense that he would be more prone to contract other things because his immune system isn’t at full force at the moment, I plan on keeping a close eye on Ollie and looking him over thoroughly when I apply the cream to check for any other irregularities. Of course, I hope he will not contract anything else, but it is a bit of a comfort to know that if he does, the forums are here and I can get input from you all!

[jerseygirl]

That’s great the cream is helping so quickly. I hope that’s all he needs.

[lindseyh2]

So our vet’s office called to check on him a while ago, and I’m waiting for a call back from the doctor that will be sometime soon

I did some research and looked into what was said in Wick’s thread and the advice said above and I plan on asking the vet for medication for possible mites as well, as I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be too careful at this time, and it seems like he has been itching a bit more (whether it’s due to the cream, or something else I’m not sure of course.)

I am going to see if I can get an oral medication as I think ivermectin can be given that way – and then I wouldn’t have to worry about him scratching/grooming it off as much as he would with a topical. Thank so much for the comment with this @jerseygirl!

I will let you all know updates! Also, Ollie has been going through a pretty heavy bout of shedding at the moment, could this be related to a possible mite issue? It seems like one of his normal molts, but I just wanted to mention it. There is new fur coming in though, and no bald type patches except in the area where his ears meet his head/neck.

[lindseyh2]

An update!

I heard back from our Vet and she went ahead and put in a prescription for Revolution (selamectin) that I’m going to pick up tomorrow morning.  The plan is to keep applying the miconazole cream once/daily for the rest of the 14 day period but also start him on the oral Revolution as well. 🙂

[jerseygirl]

Revolution is topical but you wont need to worry about him grooming it off. Its placed back or neck or between shoulder blades and they cannot quite reach there.  I tend to put it on patch where there is little fur or cut I fur away because it seems to get soaked right into the fur. It still works if it does, I just like to try make sure there is skin contact. It’s pretty good stuff!

[lindseyh2]

@jerseygirl – Ah okay, that makes sense. Thank you for all the help, I really appreciate it and so does Ollie!

[lindseyh2]

Hi everyone – a bit of an update: It’s day 12/14 of the miconazole topical cream, and it seems that his ears have gotten pretty flaky again, and looks like when I first noticed it a few weeks ago. I did apply the Revolution on 4/28 as well.  I am going to call the Vet back today and go ahead a book a follow up appointment so they can see him again if they feel it’s necessary – but I would love to hear any opinions on if we should try an oral medication this time around? I’ve been doing some research on what would be best and I couldn’t really find too many solid answers.

Any help is appreciated! Like I said, it’s mostly flakiness and a bit of fur loss on the outside of his ears. He does seem to be itching it more now as well.

[jerseygirl]

Mmm.. maybe this page will give an idea of other things to try if current treatment does not resolve this.   ie lufenuron for ring worm / fungal infections, injectable ivermectin for mange.  You’d definitely need the vets advice when it’s suitable to introduce something else, if necessary.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/furloss.html#ringworm

 

[Lindsey]

Thanks for the wesbite link @jerseygirl! I did call and have booked an appointment with the vet again for Monday, I’ll do some more digging/research first though!

[Lindsey]

(May 24th Updates)

Hi everyone!

So we’re nearing the end of the month-long treatment with the oral antibiotic/antifungal medication with Ollie. I think the infection has gotten better, but I still am able to see some flaking, and he has lost some more fur between his ears on his neck area, which I think could be a good thing (?) considering that I am able to see new patches of fur growing in.

He has a follow-up appt with our Vet on June 5, I am eager to hear what she has to say, but I’m hoping to be able to continue on the oral medication since it has not affected him negatively at all, and he has learned to take it through the feeding syringe without me even having to pick him up.

I am wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this. Does it seem normal that it may take a long period of time for the infection to clear out of his system? I imagine that any progress is good progress, but I am worried that there is still flaking on his ears, although I’ve read that can happen for a bit even after the infection clears up? Sort of like a side-effect especially if he is on meds for it.

Any help/input is much appreciated!!! 😀

[Wick & Fable]

Thanks for the update! Ringworm, in rabbits or humans, is notoriously difficult to get rid of, so long treatment courses is not uncommon and reoccurrence is also common. I think continuing to use what works is a good tactic.

 

Any discussion of doing both topical and oral treatment?

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.

[Hazel]

I’m sorry you’re still dealing with this. I don’t know if this will be helpful at all, but one of my rabbits had flaking/baldness starting around his ears. He was (mis)diagnosed with ringworm at first and prescribed an antifungal cream. In the end a different vet diagnosed him with mites and gave oral Ivermectin a couple of times, which cleared it up very quickly.

[Lindsey]

@Wick – thank you for the input! I was thinking that maybe we could go the oral as well as topical route if the issue persists, he has a bit more skin exposed now so I would be able to apply a topical med more directly than I may have before! I will suggest that to the Vet and see what she thinks.

@Hazel, thank you for the encouraging words & the input, I have been wondering if he may have another issue as well as the ringworm, so this is for sure something to keep in mind. I’ve not ever used Ivermectin with him, but I’m pretty sure another member mentioned that medication earlier in the thread as well, so I will write the name down to take with me to the vet!

Thanks again to both of you. I will post an update after his vet appt next Friday.

[Lindsey]

6/7 updates:

hello again! so after the vet examined Ollie again she went ahead and prescribed some more of the Griseofulvin oral medicine, as the flakiness on his ears was still evident. To me, it looks like it is slowly getting better – and I am thankful the issue hasn’t spread to anywhere else on his body. He had some fur that was lost in the area between his ears / on his neck, but that looks to be all growing back in well now, so I am happy to see that too.

The vet is doing another fungal culture, which will tell us if the issue is still ringworm, or if it is another infection/fungus.

Fortunately, he has been eating, drinking, and acting normally throughout all of this! Another re-check at the vet in a month, but until then our routine is: 0.65 mL of Griseofulvin orally 2x a day, and he is still being given 1 tsp. of the probiotic powder on his wet veggies each morning.

 

[Lindsey]

6/24 updates: good news!

Ollie’s ears are looking MUCH better, there is hardly any flakiness and he doesn’t seem to be irritated by them/itching more than normal at all. I am so happy also as the vet called and said the most recent fungal culture came back negative for ringworm, yay for him! I’m going to finish out the round of the oral Griseofulvin until the end of this month, but after that I hope nothing will reappear! I will be keeping a close eye on it though of course! Thanks for all the input that I got along the way, the BB forums are always such a HUGE help! 😀

[Hazel]

Yay, so happy for you and Ollie!

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