Snuffles?

[SavannahLeigh]

Do you have -- perchance! -- a State Vet Lab office near you? In VA we can have several tests run with samples we take in for a nominal fee. So, often an infection can be detected & if you have asked for sensitivity, they can advise best antibiotic (if that can resolve the problem). they do coggins, many types of cultures & tests for diseases.

I am fortunate to have one only 20 miles from me. Here they will also do necropsy at the facility. For many farmers this is a place to narrow their scope of treatment. Oh, the vets send their own testing samples there, also. It is a State Lab designed to control and detect animal health issues.

Just a thought to decide if infected.

I don't think we do... Last time we took a goat to the vet to be examined for CL, it took WEEKS for the information to get back to us. We're in a very remote area

 

[SavannahLeigh]

In other news, the bunnies are better! None have discharge (Well, they have very clear, unnoticeable discharge) and only 2 have crackly lungs. I think I'll cull those 2 anyway as they are very runty and the others are twice their size.

Maybe it isn't snuffles then? I'm going to continue treating ALL of my rabbits with ACV and I will continue treating the sickies with VetRX, ACV, and plantain.

 

[SavannahLeigh]

Haha, well, I hold ya to that



It's been only a week to a week and a half.. I think it could be possible. Maybe they got some feed in their respiratory tract? I'm using one of those feeders you'd buy at TSC https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/ware-big-sifter-feeder?cm_vc=-10005 It's the only one I have at the moment for this particular cage.
My rabbitry airflow is EXCELLENT. I have the cages up on stilts, and a roof, but the sides are completely open. So there's plenty of air movement.

I think he was in an advanced stage, he had the head tilt and crazy amounts of discharge. He was lethargic, yes. These guys are very bouncy and crazy still.

I think they're getting better. I only have 2 with crackly lungs right now. What's with the lungs?

That was reassuring I do too, thanks.

I sure will!



That's what I've heard.

Maybe it's pneumonia?



I'll only cull as a last resort. I definitely do NOT want to cull, but I have some very valuable rabbits and I can't risk losing them to P or whatever too.

I forgot to mention that the feeder I use is NOT a filter feeder. So it doesn't have any way to sift.

 

[Bunnylady]

As with most bacteria, there are many strains of Pasteurella. Some are more virulent than others, so just how badly an animal is affected depends partly on which strain they encounter, and how strong their immune system is. To further complicate matters, not all cases of snuffles are caused by Pasteurella. Many years ago, there was an article in Domestic Rabbit about a study that several commercial breeders participated in. If they saw snuffles symptoms in a rabbit, they took it to the researchers so they could take samples and identify the organism responsible. In a significant percentage of cases, the causative organism turned out to be another bacterium - frequently, it was something that humans normally carry, like Staphylococcus aureus.

Probably the most aggravating thing about snuffles is how difficult it is to treat. Of course, really severe cases are self-limiting; the animal may die no matter what you do. Milder cases, though, can become chronic; there are a lot of blind pockets in a rabbit's nasal passages where bacteria can hide out. You can treat the animal, sometimes for weeks, and it may stop showing symptoms, but when it experiences some stress (which can even be something as normal as a change of seasons), the symptoms return.

there is.. but many are opposed, rather breeding those who are naturally immune...

I'm not sure it's possible to be immune, it's more like "naturally resistant." In science, they use the term "infective dose." Basically, that means the amount of a pathogen an animal has to get in their system to develop the disease. How large that dose is depends partly on how aggressive the organism is, and partly on how aggressively the animal's immune system attacks it. Part of the problem with the vaccine is that, like most vaccines, the resistance it provides isn't permanent (I think they want annual boosters on this one) and even some vaccinated animals can become ill. Animals with naturally tough immune systems aren't just resistant to this disease, they tend not to become ill from other causes, too - including the other strains of Pasteurella that the vaccine wasn't developed from.

 

[DutchBunny03]

Its awesome that some of them are better!!! Culling the ones still exhibiting the symptoms may be your best course of action.Even if they do recover, they will have much lower vitality due to their runtiness and the illness. Still keep a VERY close eye on the ones with clear discharge. Diseases can come back. Also, if possible, sterilize EVERYTHING your sick rabbits used. Feeders, watering equipment, cages, grooming tools, even wash the clothes you wore while taking care of them. And keep them in quarentine until the disease is COMPLETELY cleared up.