How To Treat Horrible Eye Infection??(Please Help!)

My friend's rabbit has an eye infection, a really bad one. Now, without revealing personal information, I can give limited details... However she did not have care and control of her rabbits for a period of time, and only received them back yesterday, to find that her doe's eye looked like this. Vet is not currently an option. The doe is eating/drinking/acting normal. I suggested a few things, but because she does not currently have internet installed, I promised my friend I would look into this and try and get more suggestions for her, to help her clear this up.

Please help!

I've never personally dealt with anything quite this bad, and am worried that my suggestions are going to fall into the "too little, too late" category. I suggested warm tea bags(though I don't know what kind??), and she is going to check her local pharmacy for contact lens solution and polysporin eye drops(which I am not sure are available in the US). I did suggest a warm compress with a lint free cloth or pad, and gently trying to wipe away any goo/gunk possible.

Oh, Experts of RT, heed my cry and please help me help my friend. It would break her heart to lose this doe after the personal difficulties she's had recently!!

Tobramycin is what I've used in the past. One drop twice a day in the affected eye.

Here's a link for more info; http://www.rabbit.org/health/antibiotics.html , (bottom of page)

As far as the tea bags go, any kind of black tea (like orange pekoe, for example) or chamomile tea can be used. In this case, I'd consider the tea a stop gap measure until she can get something better.

I've used Terramycin eye ointment that I ordered on eBay (pet supply category) with reasonable results, but I don't think it is available locally, at least not without a vet prescribing it. Drops, such as Homer suggested, might be easier to apply.

Moisten the gook with a cotton ball dipped in warm tea water or contact lense solution which is slightly antibiotic

Trim the fur in a 1 inch ring around the eye or try plucking the fur so it cannot touch the eye or get caught in the puss

Tea is acidic and this is what kills the bacteria but over a long time it can also damage the eye so I would recommend contact lense solution or another optic solution meant for daily use to keep cleaning the puss away before applying any antibiotic or the ointment.

It is important not to be too rough and cause abrasions on the eyeball or skin around the eye so let the liquid soak for a minute or two before trying to rub or pluck away the puss.

Use the polysporin eye ointment in the metal tube - not the drops, put a centimetre strip on a Q-tip to apply it so she doesn't contaminate the tube, at first she should re-apply it every 4 hours. The greasy ointment will help prevent the puss from glueing the eye shut and letting it build up puss behind the eyelids which in turn will put pressure on the eye or cause it to invade the eyeball.

It is very important to keep the eye open as air will also kill the bacteria as they are anaerobic

What Dood said

Warm tea bag compress to get it open and draining, there will be lots of puss in there, it will be icky. The eye ointment will help keep the lid from sticking together again, very important.

Edited to add, this needs to be addressed immediately, the only chance the doe has is if the eye is drained, kept clean and open.

I've never used this, but I've heard good things about Vetericyn:

http://store.vetericyn.com/index.php/ey ... -3-oz.html

I've used Terramycin with decent results (can be ordered from vet supply shops online), but I've also had good resolution with warm compresses and keeping the eye clean with the infection resolving on its own once the eye is open and pus can drain/be cleaned up. I agree that it needs to be addressed quickly.

Best of luck!

Lauren

Thanks all. I've passed this link onto her. I know that both she and her husband are busy with work, caring for their child and their pets, but I know that getting this rabbit well is very important to them. As soon as she updates me, I'll update you guys. I'm hoping to touch base with her today and see how the poor girl is doing.

I had some nasty eye infections like that in kits that I inevitably put down...but I've always used salt water or saline water to flush bad eyes and loosen it up so it can open. I even used it on my dog when a random rabbit bit him on the eyeball, and used it on cavy pups that rubbed their faces in the dirt while nursing...not sure if it ever did any good, but with no other options, it surely beat doing nothing. :shrug:

I have some Vetericyn on hand that I'd use on wounds and cuts. Dunno where it came from, but I'm not complaining! The stuff worked miracles in fighting back the nasty pasturella abscess outbreaks. e__e

This is directly from my friend :

So the rabbit's eye it's looking a little better. Been doing warm compresses on the eye with chamomile tea bags to loosen the gunk, then cleaning and rinsing with sterile saline solution. Of course the infection is still there so starting today we're giving her a shot of oxytetracycline a day for 4 days or until it has cleared up. The injectable form actually works for 3 days which is why we can safely stop soon as it is better. If it's going to work, we should see significant improvement by Monday morning. If it doesn't work, then Monday we switch to Pen G.

Poor bun!

Since she is now on antibiotics, I would recommend giving her probiotic paste. I use Bene-Bac by Manna Pro.

Great thread. Bookmarking it for myself.

Going to order terramycin on Ebay now.

-- Fri May 20, 2016 7:03 pm --

MaggieJ":3kwt96an said:

As far as the tea bags go, any kind of black tea (like orange pekoe, for example) or chamomile tea can be used. In this case, I'd consider the tea a stop gap measure until she can get something better.

I've used Terramycin eye ointment that I ordered on eBay (pet supply category) with reasonable results, but I don't think it is available locally, at least not without a vet prescribing it. Drops, such as Homer suggested, might be easier to apply.

Click to expand...

Can't get the Terramycin eye ointment on Ebay anymore.

HendricksHearth":1au7ai2o said:

I've never used this, but I've heard good things about Vetericyn:

http://store.vetericyn.com/index.php/ey ... -3-oz.html

I've used Terramycin with decent results (can be ordered from vet supply shops online), but I've also had good resolution with warm compresses and keeping the eye clean with the infection resolving on its own once the eye is open and pus can drain/be cleaned up. I agree that it needs to be addressed quickly.

Best of luck!

Lauren

Click to expand...

I have had mixed results using vetericyn on rabbits-- and never used it in or near the eye...

and recipe for
"Michael's poor people emergency eye drops",
-- boil 2 tablespoons of barberry root bark [cut and sifted not powder] in a cup of water for 30 minutes [adding more water before it boils dry] strain resulting 1/2 to 1 cup of liquid through coffee filter, apply one or two drops to irritated eye,[2x/day] being sure to get it under the lids] = broad spectrum antibiotic and effective against pinkeye....

jimmywalt":1l2l99qj said:

...


Can't get the Terramycin eye ointment on Ebay anymore.

Click to expand...

You can order it here: http://www.kammalop.com/ Very nice people.

HendricksHearth":2i93d7li said:

I've never used this, but I've heard good things about Vetericyn:

http://store.vetericyn.com/index.php/ey ... -3-oz.html

I've used Terramycin with decent results (can be ordered from vet supply shops online), but I've also had good resolution with warm compresses and keeping the eye clean with the infection resolving on its own once the eye is open and pus can drain/be cleaned up. I agree that it needs to be addressed quickly.

Best of luck!

Lauren

Click to expand...

I found the Vetericyn Animal Ophthalmic Gel for Eyes 3 oz on Ebay. I'm wondering if this will work for a 5 week old kit that has a white film over his eye? Around his eye lid you can see he has been itching/rubbing it because most the fur is gone. Will the product help heal this or just kill the bacteria? What else should I be looking for ? Thank you.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vetericyn-A...706440?hash=item43dfcf30c8:g:hMwAAOSwBvNTrLI1
$6.09 + $3.95 Shipping