One ear held down

[bunluvah]

Hi everyone!

I have a 6 or 7 year old, free-roamimg cottontail rabbit. Yesterday he wasn’t coming out of a hiding spot of his and when I did coax him out, I saw he was holding his left ear down and leaning his head slightly to that side. If I touched the ear, he would jump back and go into hiding again like it hurt him.

I checked the ear as much as I could without touching it; it’s got a couple small patches of crustiness, he had ear mites years before and it’s a similar look but much more toned down. He’s also holding his left paw up a little, still putting weight on it but being more gentle with it. He wasn’t eating so well yesterday but his appetite’s returned today and he’s not hiding away anymore. But I just looked over at him and his left eye is tearing up a bit.

What do you think it could be? It’s worrying me not knowing what’s wrong with his ear, I feel like it’s bothering him ☹️

[Bam]

Based on these symptoms I think a vet visit would be in order. It could be an ear infection, or it could be traumatic injury. An ear infection can impact balance. A bun could hit its head jumping or running around. I remember a case here on the forums where a bun missed a jump and hit its head and developed partial facial paralysis. The owner happened to see the bun fall, otherwise they wouldn’t have known the cause.

 

 

[bunluvah]

Thank you, Bam! I really hope it isn’t an injury but I’ll schedule a vet visit to be sure.

[Author]

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