Ear mites

[ohiogoatgirl]

hey all! Been mighty busy and not on here much. got a question for you though!

I swear these darn ear mites just appear from another dimension :| Last time I got some apple flavored oral horse wormer and gave it to the affected rabbits about a pea size amount.

I don't have that right now and not able to pick any up at least for a while. I've only got three does right now and one has quickly developed quite a gunky mess in one ear. She is bred.

Right now I do have on hand Safegaurd (white wormer, oral paste) and sheep ivermectin (clear wormer, oral liquid, I have it for mites the sheep get in their wool). I'm not sure if either of these would be safe for the rabbits or would work against the ear mites.

Last time I dealt with ear mites putting oil in the ear to smother the mites didn't seem to be very effective. But I'm willing to give it another go too.

Thanks!

*ETA- after skimming some older posts it seems common to use the pour on ivermectin (like for cattle) so I'm hoping the sheep ivermectin will work. Maybe take longer or an extra dose? I actually have some little droppers I could dose them orally (lord help me :| ) or to dribble in the ear.

"Ivermectin Sheep Drench is a liquid, administered orally to sheep, consisting of an 0.08% solution of ivermectin."
"Manufacturer: Durvet (ivermectin topical solution) ANADA 200-340, Approved by FDA Contains 5 mg ivermectin/mL Parasiticide"

 

[michaels4gardens]

If it were me.... I would put some oil in the ear, and work it around well a few times, a few days apart, until the ear is clean.. then use the ivermectin a couple of days after she kindles... [ -I personally , prefer injectable ivermectin for "completely" getting rid of mites, but- you must inject [sub Q] everyone in your rabbitry on the same day.. I never have any more mites after doing this-- unless i bring in an infected rabbit again...]

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

I know ivermectin is safe for pregnant sheep so I took a chance and went ahead and gave her a tiny dose. If she took she'll be due the 20th. I'll be palpating this weekend to see if I can feel any in there.
Weird to stick a syringe in a rabbits mouth.. She did not appreciate it..
I keep forgetting to take up oil again to put in the ear so it's ending up several days between anyway. I'm hoping she won't but if she has em pretty bad still when she kindles should I dose orally again or wait? It'd be 21 days from the dose she got the other day.

-- Tue Jan 08, 2019 2:38 pm --

There is a little scabbing left healing in her ear but other than that you'd never know how bad it looked when I dosed her.

I don't think she took the breeding though. Unless she's holding em up in real high that I can't feel em out. <br /><br /> -- Sat Mar 09, 2019 1:32 am -- <br /><br /> She didn't end up bred.
She now has ear mites again. I need to get the cages resituated and I'm going to sanitize them all when I do it.

 

[SableSteel]

A bit of ivermection dropped straight into the ear worked for me (I think it was injectible ivermectin)

 

[michaels4gardens]

If it were me.... I would put some oil in the ear, and work it around well a few times, a few days apart, until the ear is clean.. then use the ivermectin a couple of days after she kindles... [ -I personally , prefer injectable ivermectin for "completely" getting rid of mites, but- you must inject [sub Q] everyone in your rabbitry on the same day.. I never have any more mites after doing this-- unless i bring in an infected rabbit again...]

rabbits that are susceptible to earmites, will get reinfected from rabbits with no symptoms, that live next to them. You must completely get rid of ear mites by treating every rabbit in your rabbitry,
- If you have had a reoccurring issue ... after you treat everyone with ivermectin the first round, ... you should then treat everyone again in 2 weeks...
If you have rabbits with a "nasty case", you should also use oil in the ear, to kill mites and remove the scabs that some mites could be living in... that way.. you will have "clean ears" when everyone gets their second dose...