White Scab on Bunnies Nose?

[Kayemily14]

Hello,

I just adopted a bunny named Lola back in December from an animal rescue. She is a holland lop. She has been doing really well at home, is very active and runs around. About a week ago, I noticed a white bump on her nose. It feels hard to the touch and is missing fur, but it is small in size. It doesn’t seem to bother her, daily activities have been the same and she lets me touch it. We’ve kept her inside, but before going to the vet I wanted to know if its possible its just a scab if she could’ve scratched herself on the side of the cage? She does stick her nose through the side of her cage and playpen sometimes. Any advice would be appreciated, if it doesn’t clear up by the end of the week I’m going to take her to the vet. I included some pictures below~ thank you!

White bump on left side of nose

[Wick & Fable]

If it gets bigger, potentially hasten going to the vet. Can you take a wet Q-tip and kind of rub the area to get a better view of it? The white could be a lot of caked-on flakes. Your description reminds me of what Wick gets occasionally as his fur grows back after shedding from his current ringworm infection.

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.

[Bam]

It doesn’t look too bad. You could try and scrape it with a q tip or broad end of a plastic tooth pick, to check if it’s caked up skin flakes, in which case it could be fur mites. It’s not in a typical location though and it looks very minor. Keep an eye on it. If it gets bigger, if you see loose dandruff, if she starts itching it, you see sepage, or a crust forming – in short, if it starts to look like sth is going in the wrong direction, you should book her a vet appointment.

It might be that she’s scraped off a bit of fur on the cage grids and it’s now growing back.

She’s extremely cute =)

[Kayemily14]

Thank you I used a Q-tip and lightly brushed over it and it appeared to come off in flakes/little pieces. She has another white spot on the other side of her nose, so I’m taking her to the vet to get it checked out. I’m confused as to how she could get mites if she is indoors, I read possibly inside the hay? I recently switched her over to Oxbow hay which seems more fresh cut so maybe it got in through there? Also, since we recently switched her hay I’m not sure if maybe its an allergy but I can’t tell. I’m sure the vet will have some answers!

[Bam]

Mites can come in on hay. But buns can also carry mites with them from when they were babies. The mites exist in low numbers and don’t make any trouble, the bun’s own immune defense keep them in check. Then something happens that challenges the bun’s immune defense, and the mites seize the opportunity to start multiplying. You get symptoms like white crusts, dandruff-like flakes and sometimes, but not always, the bun starts scratching itself.

The best treatment is Revolution (selamectin) or ivermectin. Both meds are prescription only unless you’re in Australia. They are highly effective and bunny safe.

And now the warning we always give whenever someone mentions mites or other skin parasites: Never use any compound containing Fipronil on buns. It’s deadly toxic to them. Many different fipronil-containing preparations are sold OTC for dogs and cats, so they’re readily available. They’re safe for dogs and cats, but must never be used on rabbits.

[Kayemily14]

Good to know, thank you both for your help! Luckily it was just scabs, probably brushed it on the bars in her pen.

[Author]

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