Personality change on antibiotics

[des]

Hi I have a 4.5 month old satin mix. He recently got a respiratory infection and was prescribed antibiotics for it.

His whole personality has changed though. I expected a change in eating habits and maybe a bit lethargic while taking them but I’m worried his personality isn’t gonna come back.

my bun isn’t scared of much and now he’s shaking constantly. I drive 10 minutes away about twice a week with him to my brothers house and he usually loves it the car ride isn’t his favorite but once we get there he’s running and jumping around and now all he’s been doing is going to a place to hide and lay down.. I’m just worried about him

 

Has anyone else experienced something like this with antibiotics? I just want my baby back 🙁

[Bam]

I’m not sure this is about the antibiotics, it could perhaps be the infection itself. Is he on any painkiller together with the antibiotics? How is his appetite?

[des]

The timing is just weird I guess.. it only happened once he actually started taking the antibiotics. He’s not on painkillers, just the antibiotics and he’s taking Azithromycin

[Wick & Fable]

I agree that unless the antibiotics are inducing a GI-disagreeing reaction, it is unlikely the antibiotics. The act of being forcefed antibiotics can be stressful/anxiety provoking, in addition to feeling ill over having an infection to begin with.

What antibiotic were you prescribed?

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.

[des]

he’s taking Azithromycin, but he’s also not being force fed them, I put them into a bowl and he just licks it right out.

they did say that it can cause an upset tummy, so I’ve been giving him digestive support tablets + bene bac, and some critical care mixed in with his antibiotics since he’s not eating as much hay as usual.

i know having an upset tummy can cause the lethargy but idk it’s the newly found anxiety that’s really worrying me. Plus it feels like the antibiotics aren’t working. there’s only 3 more days left and he’s still sneezing, his breathing has somehow gotten faster than before and his nose is whistling all the sudden. the only symptom that has gone away is the red eyes and the runny nose

[Bam]

I think you should contact your vet. If he’s breathing faster the infection could have reached his lungs. A concurrent ear infection should also be ruled out. There are connections between the nose-mouth and middle ears where bacteria can travel. An ear infection is very painful and the bun should get a painkiller. If its the lungs, you can get a bronchodilator (terbutaline) and/or your vet might also want you to nebulize him antibiotics.

I suspect his behavioral change is due to his illness. I’d stop the visits to your brother while he is recovering, he can’t enjoy them when he’s feeling unwell. Once he’s well again, his true personality will return.

[des]

Yes I have an appointment on Tuesday to check on him again because I just felt like something still wasn’t right.

do you know what testing they’ll do for him in order to figure out what’s wrong? To be very honest I only have like $700 right now and I know x-rays alone are like $300 I just want to be somewhat prepared because need be I can borrow money from someone until I get paid. but yeah I just want to be prepared if you happen to have any idea..

my guess was honestly heart disease but since he’s so young it kind of doesn’t make sense. the infection reaching his lungs would make more sense

[Bam]

Chest x-rays would be the surest way to check his lungs. Its difficult to hear chest sounds on a rabbit even with a stethoscope.

An ear infection can be suspected if the external ear canal seems irritated plus if the bun f ex scrratches its ears a lot and shakes his head. Skull x rays as a rule tequires anesthesia/sedation and its not without risk to put under a rabbit that has breathing problem.

I think you should call your vet before the weekend  since he seems like hes getting worse. They might want to change or make additions to his meds.

[des]

Okay, thank you so much. Unfortunately last time I cancelled my regular vet appointment because I ended up having to take him to the emergency vet for the antibiotics so my regular vet isn’t aware of what’s happening.

I did call and give them a run down on his symptoms and they said I should be okay to keep the current appointment I have but if he stops using the bathroom or eating then I need to take him to emergency again. Sadly my vet is super booked and that’s the closest I can get in.

Sounds like I’m definitely going to be wanting a chest X-ray because at the emergency they didn’t hear wheezing and said his ears looked okay..

thank you so much, I’m a first time bun mom and am very very nervous and don’t really know what to expect for these appointments.

[Author]

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