Swollen face - Help!

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siddsaysgimmie

siddsaysgimmie

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I usually keep my rabbits in my basement but they were loving play time outside so I have had a couple out there for a few days. While checking up on them, I notice a doe sitting in the corner. Her breakfast wasn't touched much, but her bowl was empty from last night's supper (this morning it was empty, I mean). I picked her up and looked her over and noticed that one side of her face (the right side of her lip, muzzle, and a bit under the jaw) is hard and swollen. It looks painful. This wasn't here last night. She is drinking and acting fairly normal but isn't eating her pellets. She did eat a tum and a strawberry (very carefully) though.

I'm extremely worried about her. Could a bee have stung her? Would this happen, if so? I haven't had any insect stings/bites on any of my animals before so I have no idea what to expect or do about it. Anything else it could be? My first thought was abscess but I can't see that happening so quickly and it doesn't look like a bump/lump, just like that part is all swollen.
 
Do your buns get hay? Maybe a piece of hay or something is stuck in her mouth.

Can you try wrapping her up burrito-style in a towel and checking her mouth?

*fingers crossed it resolves soon*
 
They do sometimes but right now I'm out, so no. The whole side of her face is swollen and really hard, from that side of the lip to the end of her whisker bed. The other side of the lip is unaffected.
 
I have a dog that swells up badly if he gets stung. I have given him benadryl to help with the swelling and itching. I know that for people/dogs/cats it is considered very safe, but I am not sure about rabbits.
 
I've read several places that say children's benadryl is ok for rabbits, but to make sure it doesn't contain artificial sweeteners.

I know that Aspartame and Saccharin are bad for dogs. I don't know about Sucralose.
 
siddsaysgimmie":2re4fmm4 said:
They do sometimes but right now I'm out, so no. The whole side of her face is swollen and really hard, from that side of the lip to the end of her whisker bed. The other side of the lip is unaffected.
Click to expand...

Can you post a picture of it?
 
My Wal-Mart brand benadryl has high fructose corn syrup and sorbitol in it. I wouldn't think either of them are awesome ingredients, but maybe just once won't hurt?
 
I'm going to give her Benadryl - it's twice the size as it was earlier. Anyone know the dosage? I am so heartbroken, she is trying to eat but can't. She's grinding her teeth and looks pitiful...
 
:( Wow... yes, at this point, what's Benadryl going to hurt? If you do nothing, you may end up having to put the poor bun down. Benadryl will give her a chance to avoid it.

Some willow twigs or a bit of a baby aspirin would help with pain.

__________ Fri Jun 21, 2013 10:31 pm __________

From http://www.fuzzylop.com/4_first_aid_kit.htm

Benadryl & Tylenol Cold (liquid)
Rabbits can only breath out of their nose.
Therefore a stuffy or runny nose is a real
problem for a bunny. I use half an eyedropper
full of human cold medicine for bunnies
that are congested or have a stuffed up nose.
Repeat every few hours.
Click to expand...

Cold medicine is a Benadryl/Tylenol combo, usually. If it is a 4 - 6 hour medication, it should have the same dose of Benadryl as a dose of just liquid Benadryl would, so the dose of just Benadryl should be the same. Obviously, you're not giving it for a runny nose, but you could start with this dose and see how it does.

Don't use a cold medicine. Tylenol is no longer considered safe for rabbits. That information is found here: http://www.morfz.com/rx/drugcalc.html. Use just liquid Benadryl.

For aspirin:
Start with 1 to 2 baby aspirin (81-162 mg) per day to treat arthritis pain (approximately 30-60 mg/kg), then increase the dose as needed to give the bunny adequate pain relief. If the bunny starts to experience stomach pain, stagger the aspirin 3-6 hours apart with the anti-ulcer drug sucralfate (Carafate): 1/4 tablet (250 mg) diluted with water in a feeding syringe orally every 8-12 hours. Sucralfate is a safe cytoprotective agent that coats ulcerated tissue and promotes healing.
Click to expand...

Also from http://www.morfz.com/rx/drugcalc.html.
 
If she got bitten by a spider, it could be infected. My son (I know...not a bunny) got bitten by a non-venomous spider, but it was still very infected in less than 24 hours. The doctor put him on high doses of antibiotics. Just another idea to consider.
 
:cry:

Mizemama's right, sometimes infections can show up that fast... like an abscessed tooth. Wow, that can happen fast.

Maybe you can pick up some PenG and syringes (the smallest ones) w/needles at a feed store, and give that a try?

It depends, though, on how important the doe is to you... and how hard you want to try to save her. :(
 
Still no improvement... wish I would have thought about antibiotics earlier, I just got home from the feed store. I thought that the swelling may have blocked something and ended up making the eyes leak, rather than infection since it doesn't look like an abscess... Hope I can get the pen G soon enough. The doe is very important to both me personally and my breeding program. :(
 
I really don't know... we're pretty much just grasping, I think. I'd probably keep trying the Benadryl and aspirin for now, even if you start antibiotics.
 
Well, I lost her... this is my first time in my 5 years raising these guys that anything over 6 weeks old passed away. Rest in peace, Couru... I'll miss your mischief.

 
Do you have scorpions or hornets, or even small, poisonous snakes? As fast as it happened, I would think it might have been something more than a spider bite.

I'm also leaning towards the possibility of an abcessed tooth or rampant infection in a jaw or somewhere you couldn't see.

In case you didn't know, teeth grinding is a sure sign of pain.
I'm sorry you lost her. I hope you can figure out what caused it.
 
No scorpions, snakes, or anything else that is especially dangerous... I'm in NS, Canada. There's not really anything that I can think of that's poisonous. We do have hornets though... probably wasps, too. I noticed a few hornets/wasps buzzing around that area earlier (I don't know the difference between them).
 
Certain spider bites can really cause dramatic swelling. And yes, you have some nasty ones even in Nova Scotia. Not saying that was the problem, but it might be. Spider bites can take ages to resolve. Sorry you lost her, but at least her suffering is over.
 

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