Blind Bunny?

[Bad Habit]

Well, I emailed her, saying I'd be most comfortable if she took one or the other, not both. I also told her that if she took both, she would get no health guarantee on the blind boy, and only a 2 day guarantee on the smoke pearl. I also advised that if she is insistent about the blind boy, I would take him into the vet for an exam, at her cost. The vet does NOT charge an office visit fee if the pet is put down, and the office visit fee(if he isn't put down) is 35$. I did not intend to charge her for the blind boy, but we hadn't discussed that yet. I do intend to have her(and a witness) sign a piece of paper stating that she wanted the blind boy, that I have no responsibility for any future vet bills, or illness that he might have/cause, and that she was fully informed of the health risks involved with that kit. This was something else I covered in the email.

We'll see if that maybe changes her mind.

As far as it goes, still no change on the little kit. I have an appointment for him at the vet on Monday, as I have some stuff scheduled to sell this weekend, so I can make at least partial payment. He's eating well, drinking well, pooping and peeing normal, and has adjusted well to his new cage. Whatever's going on with him, he's a little trooper. As soon as he hears the cage door open, he's right there, in my face, wanting to sniff and be touched

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Looks like the appointment on Monday will be for a euth. His bottom teeth are incorrect. I know they were fine before, but within the last day or two, the bottom teeth have developed a gap. I assume that means malocclusion? The teeth line up correctly for now, but I assume the problem will only get worse... Unless it was from him pulling on the cage because he's lonely.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

A gap between the two bottom teeth? As long as he still has the correct "scissors bite" between upper and lower teeth, he should be fine.

 

[Bad Habit]

I'm just on my way to walk the dog, but I'll snap a photo when I get back.

As much as I love my vet, and trust her to the utmost, I think you guys have more rabbit knowledge than she does.

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Forgot to take a picture, but had him into the vet today. She says that he's not completely blind, and what's clouding his eyes is actually scar tissue. She thinks that he probably had an infection when he was small - nest box eye most likely, or his eyes were forced open before they were ready. Said we could do cultures, but they'd probably end up inconclusive. Absolutely no change in his eyes or behaviour at all. Gave me a certificate of "good health", and hardly charged me anything for the visit. The final tab was under 20$.

I'm to keep him separate though, to ensure he's getting all the food he needs, as he is definitely visually impaired.

The buyer and I agreed she would pay the vet bill and for a rabbit care package, in lieu of actual payment for the rabbit. She understands that I am providing no health guarantee, as I wanted to keep him until he was 8wks old. She will sign something that states she is aware she is receiving a free rabbit with health issues, etc, she is fine with that and understands my need to cover my own behind. I told her that I didn't mean it as any insult to her at all, but I just wanted to make sure that no one could say I had sold a rabbit with known issues to an uninformed buyer.

It seems to be working out. I just hope I don't get burned in the long run.

 

[MaggieJ]

Glad it is working out and that the vet does not think it is pasteurella. It could be from nest box eye, but usually nest box eye is pretty obvious while it is happening. I don't see how it can come back to bite you though with the documentation you are using. By the way... you have a very nice vet. Most charge at least $50 for an office visit, plus whatever for treatment.

 

[ZRabbits]

So glad to hear. I don't think you will get burned in the long run. It's good to hear that all the ugly diagnosis turned out to be something liveable. Don't think it will be a problem for you. You have been totally up front and you have someone "in the know" backing you up, the Vet. Plus now you know there is nothing truly bad in your line. For future litters. It just is one of those things that happen.

So glad the little guy is going to someone who really wants him. You couldn't ask for anything more.

And your Vet truly sounds like mine. There are those out there who have integrity. Specialty doesn't mean dollar signs all the time.

Karen

 

[Bad Habit]

Glad it is working out and that the vet does not think it is pasteurella. It could be from nest box eye, but usually nest box eye is pretty obvious while it is happening. I don't see how it can come back to bite you though with the documentation you are using. By the way... you have a very nice vet. Most charge at least $50 for an office visit, plus whatever for treatment.

I went in expecting to pay $35 minimum, as that's our office visit fee, but she apparently has a rate for wellness exams for breeders. I actually think I remember my brother saying something about that when his dog had puppies a few years back.

She looked at his eyes and teeth, watched his behaviour for a few, and that was really about it. She does want me to bring him back on Friday so she can check for sure he's had no change, and bring him in asap if there is a change, but she feels if something were wrong with him, it would have progressed since Wednesday.

Just because she's signing the paper, though, doesn't mean she won't still badmouth me. She lives a distance away from me, so if she is just verbally discrediting me, I'd never know. The paper is more so that she can't take him to the vet and then try to send me the bill.

I thought that nest box eye was very evident as well, but I do remember at least one baby having red rimmed eyes for a couple days right after they opened, but no pus or obvious signs of infection. I prefer to think it was an odd case of nest box eye than one of the girls pulling a baby's eyes open before it was ready.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

She says that he's not completely blind, and what's clouding his eyes is actually scar tissue. She thinks that he probably had an infection when he was small - nest box eye most likely, or his eyes were forced open before they were ready.

It is a moot point since you have found a home for him, and he appears healthy in other respects, but it doesn't look like scar tissue to me. The surface of his eyes appear smooth and healthy looking. It looks like the cloudiness is in the pupil itself, and changes as the pupil dilates... I suppose the lens itself could be scarred, but normally with severe nestbox eye (kitten or rabbit) you see scarring on the surface of the eye, not within it.

Conveniently for you, but embarrassing for me, I had a recent case of severe nestbox eye that I didn't treat aggressively enough. I am currently treating it with Gentamicin Sulfate, and it has greatly improved. The affected eye still does not open as fully as the non affected eye, despite the fact that there has been no discharge for a week or so.

This is the bad eye- notice the hazy discoloration in the far right (not the bright white reflection of light):



This is the healthy eye:

 

[Bad Habit]

The cloudiness is within the eye itself, not on the surface, however it does not change as the pupil dilates. In low light situations, it the pupil widens, but the marks stay in the same place. At night, he's got a ring of proper looking pupil around the scarring on both sides.

It's really quite confusing to me, because it is very clearly in both eyes, and I don't know how common any of the possible causes are to affect both eyes. If I get even an inkling that this boy is sick or suffering, I can and will cancel the sale, but he's acting just like every other baby rabbit I've had so far.

 

[OneAcreFarm]

This looks like your rabbit....I wonder if he is suffering from Juvenile Cataracts?

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Eye_diseas ... juv_en.htm

 

[Piper]

are you letting him go, with intact equipment?

 

[Bad Habit]

are you letting him go, with intact equipment?

Yes. The new owner plans on neutering once their testicles drop. At this point they are far too young to be neutered, and I don't have the extra 300$+ to get it done anyway. I did tell the woman taking them that he should never be bred, and that if she DID get the urge to breed, to keep the smoke pearl intact and breed him. She maintains that she does not want to breed, though.