Sneezing w/ No Discharge

[Hip Hop]

My rabbit Hip Hop has been shedding lately and whenever I groom her, loads of hair comes on the grooming device. She’s been sneezing 2-3 sometimes a day, sometimes once a day, or sometimes she won’t even sneeze. Whenever she grooms, I’d wait a few seconds to see if she’d sneeze, and if she did, it would be a short brief ‘dry’ sneeze. Never more than 2 times at a time. She would also sneeze occasionally after stretching, yawning, eating, or drinking. This has been ongoing for 2-3 weeks. She never gets discharge, and when she does, it’s a slightly wet to dry nose. Is she just sneezing because she is shedding, allergies, or is she in respiratory distress? (She’s been eating, drinking, playing, and pooping normally.) •

To conclude, is my rabbit just a sneezer or is there an underlying problem I should be worried about?

Additional Information:

• Hip Hop is 7-8 months years old, Lionhead mix
• No other symptoms of upper respiratory infections (runny nose, runny eyes, sudden change in food habits, etc.)
• Just yesterday I called the vet to see her opinion on it and she said to monitor Hip Hop closely and watch for any signs of behavioral changers, increase of symptoms, and discharge

If the outcome is fur getting in her nose while grooming, how can I prevent that?

If the outcome is allergies, how can I eliminate any possible allergens?

If the outcome is an upper respiratory infection (which I hope not), how can I help her recover?

Be sure to leave any tips, comments, and/or experiences. – An Overly Concerned Rabbit Owner

[Sir Ollie]

Not sure if this is helpful since I can’t really answer most of your questions, but my bun does sneeze some as well and I’ve noticed it after he grooms. In his case though he also has a bit of a runny eye, but my vet also wasn’t overly concerned about it since he is otherwise behaving normally. She thought it could possibly be allergies or the fact that his immune system was still developing (he was about 5 months at the time the vet said this, he’s 6 months now).
Is the sneezing new with your bun or has it been present since you got her? I’m my case he has been sneezing since we brought him home (10 weeks old) but never with any discharge and usually only once or twice in a row, so I wonder if maybe he’s just a sneezer. He does seem to sneeze less now than he used to though. Hope this helps a little and that someone else can answer more of your questions

[Hip Hop]

Hi Sir Ollie, we got Hip Hop a few months ago, and she just started sneezing when she started molting (which as about 2 weeks ago).

[Wick & Fable]

A sneeze or two a day is not very indicative of a URI in my opinion. The likelihood, with that frequency, of it being a nasal irritant like hay, fur, dust, etc. is much more likely; however, if you find the sneezes are getting worse over time, then this is more URI-like.

Sneezing is a bodily mechanism to help clear the nasal cavities, so letting your rabbit sneeze it out is not a bad solution in general — things are going to get up there, and if your rabbit doesn’t seem to be doing more than 3 sneezes a day, that’s a positive sign.

To rid of allergens, dusting and vacuuming helps, as well as an air filter. For fur irritation, generally grooming the face would be good! Hay dust can also cause it, or litter dust, so shaking that out/minimizing that may help.

It’s great that you’re being so observant of your rabbit’s behaviors, especially those health-related items, like eating, drinking, and pooping.

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.

[Hip Hop]

Thank you, Wick. It’s such a relief now that you said that. Hip Hop hasn’t been sneezing as much these past few days, so that’s a good sign. May I ask for future reference how many sneezes a day and what color discharge is indicative of an upper respiratory infection? (Pasturella, etc. etc.)

[Wick & Fable]

Any colored discharge will generally warrant a vet visit. Clear is normal, but any color such as white, yellow, green are signs of an infection of some sort.

In terms of frequency…. I can’t really give you a cut-off. My Wick would have a sneeze attack (10-12 sneezes in a row) every 15 minutes continuously, so that was definitely an extremely high frequency.

I’d say think about when you’d consider you’re sick when you start sneezing. What’s the frequency like, and things of that nature.

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.

[Hip Hop]

Sorry if I am boreing you with this topic of sneezing and URIs, but I was wondering if URIs had a different ‘wet’ sneeze than nasal irritation or allergies. Was there a different sound and/or motion when it comes to URI sneezes or is it typically the same type of sneeze as the ‘dry’ brief sneezes that usually last about half a second (the second type of sneeze is what my rabbit does 1-2 times a day after grooming/nasal irritation)? Furthermore, will stopping the use of dryer sheets when doing laundry help with the sneezing? (Even though my rabbit is showing signs of lesser and lesser sneezing after vacuuming and eliminating any house dust, hay dust, and fur around my rabbit’s living environment.) Thank you in advance.

[Wick & Fable]

Sorry I never got back to you! Like human sneezes, I feel like you can hear the gross snot move for rabbit runny nose sneezes as well. But it’s such a short noise, so sometimes it’s hard to tell!

If the dryer sheet carries a strong odor, it may be a nasal irritant and help!

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.

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