My 8-week-old bunny's eye is weeping and losing fur. What's wrong?

Hi, and thanks for your question. That is likely to be due to a mild to moderate conjunctivitis and eyelid inflammation, probably secondary to an infection. A check up would be needed as appropriate treatment would include antibiotics and anti-inflammatory eye drops. Corneal injuries must be ruled out as well. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Miffy may have blocked tear ducts He could also have chronic conjunctivitis that requires a different eye drops with antibiotic. Please, take Miffy to your local vet and discuss flushing the tear ducts (this is fairly easy to do but many rabbits need mild sedation for this procedure) or start him on different eye drops. Your vet may want to send off a swab from the eyes to external laboratory to find out what type of antibiotic would be best to use.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is my pleasure to answer your question as well as possible. I will do my best to give you the clearest and most current information I can. If you need to follow up with further questions or need a more in-depth discussion, please do not hesitate to request a consultation and we can help you further. Cute bunny, and congratulations on your new family member. Yes, it is pretty common for bunnies to get eye infections but there are a number of different reasons for them. The most common of those include a blocked tear duct that would normal drain extra tears from the eye into the nose, an abrasion or scratch, or an E. Cuniculi infection. A blocked tear duct can be caused by something as simple as a dusty brand of hay to something as complex as a chronic tooth issue. In a bunny as young as yours the chronic condition is less likely. Unfortunately, the only good way to tell if there is a blockage is for a vet to stain the eye and see if the colored stain drains into the nose as it should. If it is blocked, the vet can flush it out. They could also get a very superficial look at the teeth to see if they appear normal. The vet would be likely to give you some medication to help the irritated skin in front of the eye heal faster as well, for now please keep that area as clean and dry as possible.

You can take a warm damp cloth and hold it over the eye to loosen the discharge, then gently wipe it away. Do this as as often as needed. Please don’t put anything in the eye unless you get an exam with your veterinarian. They will examine the eye and once they have a diagnosis then they can prescribe eye ointment if needed. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your rabbit.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Blocked tear ducts in rabbits are usually due to a problem with the teeth, either an infected tooth root or a tooth not growing properly. Other causes include infections in the eye or in the region of the tear duct, as well as obesity or inflammation as contributing factors. If your rabbit has seeping eyes, especially if it is just one eye, then getting some x-rays done of your bunny's head to see if a tooth needs to be removed is a good idea. Best of luck with Dylan!

Thanks for reaching out about Fluffy and including a photo. Ocular secretions can become thicker and not drain through the lacrimal duct, when certain conditions arise. This could be an infection, dental disease (affecting drainage), stress and other problems. Continue to wipe the eye area with a moistened clear wash cloth. If worsens, a veterinary visit is recommended to assess and provide a diagnostic/treatment plan. Remember, having your rabbit spayed is very important as rabbits have a high incidence of uterine neoplasia. Good luck.

It looks as Buttercup is suffering from an eye infection, it is relatively common in rabbits. you will need to take him to the vet the first chance you get, the vet will check the eyes, if it is indeed a simple eye infection your vet will prescribe an antibiotic eye drops that will probably solve the problem in no time.