Need More Advice - The P Word?

[-HRanchito]

So all my adults have developed white eye crusties -- no irritation, but it's depressing.

My five 8 week old kits (http://rabbittalk.com/pasteurella-i-ve-never-done-this-before-t8227.html) are housed completely separately, and they haven't shown any symptoms of anything. Lovely eyes, no sneezing, no nothing.
Part of me feels like hitting the Lemmings nuke button. :rant:

Is there anything else that could possibly cause this all at once? Maybe wind? They don't look goopy like the two pictures I can find on google - just like a crust in the fur.

My new kits are at 2 weeks now, so I'm thinking I should probably take them out of mom's cage pretty soon and quarantine them. I really don't want to just cull all my adults. Maybe I can breed my way out of this? Like accelerating out of a skid? I picked up some DuraPen. Any chance it could help?

Looking for a brainstorm!

 

[skysthelimit]

Oh no...

My mind is in overdrive, but all I can come up with is wait and see. And wash your hands a lot.

 

[ladysown]

remove the kits from mom just prior to four weeks of age (so about 23 days old). Best if you can just remove mom from the cage, but if you are hoping to avoid contamination then move the kits. give them lots of hay and some oatmeal. Probiotic the ones the struggle (and don't keep the strugglers for breeding).

Pasturella IS treatable but it very expensive to do so and the only way to keep it in check is to do annual titers. Since titers can prove problematic (false positives) the cheapest alternative is a strict culling regime.

if ALL your adults are showing signs, cull out the worst and then isolate the rest from your healthy herd completely. use them strictly for meat production until you have your young growers up and producing for you.

 

[ottersatin]

PASTEURELLA [SNUFFLES]



Many breeders believe that all rabbits carry the Pasteurella multocidia organism in their respiratory tract. This is not true! Though some may indeed carry the infection, there are many which do not. {This is why I breed toward disease resistance. If any rabbit shows signs of infection they are culled] Pasteurella manifests itself in many forms. The most common is what is referred to as snuffles. This is a purulent discharge from the nose. Should you see matting on the inside front paws you can most assuredly blame Pasteurella.

.

Symptoms



The first signs of the disease are sneezing and discharge from the nose and or eyes. Not every sneeze is indicative of the presents of Pasteurella. A rabbit may sneeze when it gets water up it's nose while drinking, or it may have an allergy to something in the area. Hay dust, colognes etc. These sneezes will have a clear watery discharge or none at all. If there is persistant sneezing with matting of the inside of the front paws and a colored discharge from the nose or eyes it is safe to assume the rabbit has a Pasteurella infection.. This is an extremely contagious disease for which there is NO CURE! There are treatments which will mask the symptoms but the rabbit remains contagious. Any rabbit which you treat places your whole herd at risk of infection. The Pasteurella germ can be carried on your clothing and person. It is of extreme importance that you change your clothes and wash theroughly before going near any other rabbits. Isolate any sick rabbit immediately and care for the herd first and the isolated animal last. Disinfect it's cage and any other equipment the rabbit came in contact with.



TREATMENTS



Rabbits can be treated with a number of antibiotics but to this point none have been successful in bringing about a cure. The best treatment for Pasteurella is prevention. Through A.R.B.A. [American Rabbit Breeders Association] they are trying to develop a cure for snuffles, but it is still a long way off. For now, strict sanitation, good ventilation and culling will go a long way in helping to prevent the spread of this dreaded disease.



PREVENTION



Ventilation is important in snuffles control since both humidity an ammonia are involved in the spread and growth of this condition. Ammonia is present in rabbit urine, having it build up in the atmosphere has a bad effect on both humans and rabbits. If you can smell it while walking through your rabbitry, think how it is effecting your rabbits. By removing the urine and feces from the rabbitry you are decreasing the amount of ammonia in the surrounding area.
Ottersatin. ldtimer:

 

[-HRanchito]

soooo....definitely the P word?

 

[arachyd]

I would not jump to the conclusion it is snuffles. You said there are no signs of irritation or anything. If the rabbits don't appear sick they likely got something in their eyes.

 

[ladysown]

you could cull the worst offender and take a close look at the lungs...

 

[-HRanchito]

rechecked the pics on the autopsy thread, and of the one I culled and the one who died (but I was thinking about culling him over his paw mats), neither had spotty lungs. Not that I couldn't have missed something...