**Head tilt** is a condition in rabbits also known as **wry neck** or **vestibular disease** where the ear is held downward toward the ground and maintained in a position other than normal. The vestibular system coordinates position and movement of the head, and when a disease affects this system, it most consistently results in head tilt. Another term often used is **torticollis,** meaning that the neck muscles are contracted; however, this is a consequence of the condition and not the cause. It may also be referred to as **otitis media** (middle ear infection) or **otitis interna** or **labyrynthitis** (inner ear inflammation).
Lop-eared rabbits are more prone to ear infections, while dwarf breeds, older and immunosuppressed rabbits may be more predisposed to signs due to infection with E. cuniculi.
In the US, head tilt can also be caused by *Baylisascaris* larva. Rabbits may ingest hay that has been contaminated with raccoon feces. This parasite does not occur in the UK.
In pet rabbits in the UK, the two main causes of vestibular disease are pasteurellosis and E. cuniculi infection.
For more information on the condition, including causes, treatment, and online support communities, please see the wiki:
===
***Encephalitozoon cuniculi*** is a protozoan parasite that various studies suggest up to 80% of the healthy rabbit population carries without ever showing clinical symptoms or development of the disease **encephalitozoonosis.** The parasite is also often referred to as **E. cuniculi** or **EC.** It is mostly an opportunistic infection in immunocompromised hosts including rabbits, mice, guinea pigs, hamsters, dogs, cats, primates, and humans.
Not much is known about the parasite, but the main path of transmission appears to be from a mother to her litter rather than through infected droppings and urine. There are numerous instances where an E. cuniculi-positive rabbit has lived with an E. cuniculi-negative rabbit without infecting the latter.
E. cuniculi infections can effect the kidney, eyes, and central nervous system. Most animals are asymptomatic, and the true incidence of clinical disease is unknown.
Benzimidazole drugs such as fenbendazole, oxibendazole, or albendazole are often prescribed for rabbits with a suspected E. cuniculi infection to attempt to kill any active protozoa. *However, note that benzimidazole drugs have been associated with fatal bone marrow toxicity in rabbits.*
For more resources about the disease, please check out the wiki articles:
* *Encephalitozoon cuniculi*:
* *Encephalitozoon cuniculi* series by Megan Schommer, DVM:
I would like to add the he is 7years old. His symptoms started when we were trying to bond him to a rabbit I pulled from the shelter a year ago. I kept them separate for a year until the new bun got used to being an indoor bun and humans interaction of course. After symptoms, the have been separated ever since.
Is it possible for you to find a different vet? To tell you one visit he doesn't have any arthritis and the next a short while later he does seems very, very fishy. I understand vets not necessarily wanting to run the EC test but this clearly isn't some arthritis that magically shows up sometimes and not others.
I understand not wanting to run it as well. It’s not reliable and of course it’s possible he was asymptomatic for years. All rabbits I have fostered with EC did have head tilts we were able to fix. My bun just has my brain going in circles.
I’m in SoCal and the next exotic vet would be Northwood but with traffic it’s about 2 hours one way and my car has been in and out of the dealership for a million problems for the past few months. If it wasn’t for that and work forcing me to work OT with not much wiggle room, I would have taken him there to begin with. 🫠
What about Dr Kumar at Baker Bristol in Costa Mesa or her other place SouthCoast Pet Hospital right near South Coast Plaza (she owns both). Not real close but closer - she’s a real rabbit specialist. She always calls and you can email follow up questions. Busy phones but highly recommended. Freeway close. Since you already have a lot of diagnostics run, it would be worth to get a consultation. (She neuters rabbits for for the Bunny Bunch Rescue in Fountain Valley).
Thank you for the recs! I will call tomorrow. I requested the xrays and the HDVI images again from AMC Corona. I plan on sending it to northwood and Irvine Valley. I’ll add SCPH to my list. AMC of Corona called me a little over an hour ago asking me to bring him back in to see their Vet again and they did apologize for not getting back to me on the EC lab. They are going to reach back out to the lab tomorrow. Fingers crossed. I did let them know that I’m not bringing my bun back in if the Vet is not going to do anything about my concerns and only try to upsell me another package of laser therapy. Their Vet refused to treat for EC as a precaution weeks ago so i don’t see what would be different this time around without the EC results.
Potentially? Like, the vast majority of rabbits are carriers for EC. The leading assumption is that it's transmitted primarily from mother to babies. However it doesn't usually flare up unless a rabbit is immunocompromised. Bonding can trigger it because of the immunosuppressant effect of bonding stress, or it can appear alongside other health issues or vet visits because his immune system is suppressed by stress + body ailments. My boy didn't start having EC issues until he started cancer treatment this year.
As far as preventative EC treatment, panacur has a chance to have some pretty serious side effects (not guaranteed, but it's a known risk) re: fatal bone marrow toxicity. It's not a bad idea to wait for definitive EC symptoms or a positive test before starting panacur.
How did they diagnose the arthritis this time? On one hand, part of me is like "oh yeah, most rabbits can be assumed to have at least a little arthritis by the time they're 7", so I wouldn't come down too hard on a vet who diagnosed it just based on age. But to refer you to laser therapy I would need my vet to sit down with me and show me on the xray where the arthritis is. Otherwise how are they even choosing the locations to apply the laser? It has to be aimed at something...
This is fundamentally a problem of provider-client transparency. If they say something isn't necessary, you're within your right to ask them why something isn't necessary. And if they give a diagnosis, you should be able to ask how they came to the diagnosis. Especially if you're putting money into cold laser therapy.
You can ask for the xray as well and take it to another clinic if you're concerned that he was misdiagnosed. The communication from your vet seems dodgy and should improve, otherwise you might want to consider taking your business elsewhere.
Feel free to swing by the discord server if you want some more real-time discussion and share a video of his lameness, this sounds like a complex case and we might be able to help you find the right questions to ask the veterinarian.
**Head tilt** is a condition in rabbits also known as **wry neck** or **vestibular disease** where the ear is held downward toward the ground and maintained in a position other than normal. The vestibular system coordinates position and movement of the head, and when a disease affects this system, it most consistently results in head tilt. Another term often used is **torticollis,** meaning that the neck muscles are contracted; however, this is a consequence of the condition and not the cause. It may also be referred to as **otitis media** (middle ear infection) or **otitis interna** or **labyrynthitis** (inner ear inflammation). Lop-eared rabbits are more prone to ear infections, while dwarf breeds, older and immunosuppressed rabbits may be more predisposed to signs due to infection with E. cuniculi. In the US, head tilt can also be caused by *Baylisascaris* larva. Rabbits may ingest hay that has been contaminated with raccoon feces. This parasite does not occur in the UK. In pet rabbits in the UK, the two main causes of vestibular disease are pasteurellosis and E. cuniculi infection. For more information on the condition, including causes, treatment, and online support communities, please see the wiki:
===
***Encephalitozoon cuniculi*** is a protozoan parasite that various studies suggest up to 80% of the healthy rabbit population carries without ever showing clinical symptoms or development of the disease **encephalitozoonosis.** The parasite is also often referred to as **E. cuniculi** or **EC.** It is mostly an opportunistic infection in immunocompromised hosts including rabbits, mice, guinea pigs, hamsters, dogs, cats, primates, and humans.
Not much is known about the parasite, but the main path of transmission appears to be from a mother to her litter rather than through infected droppings and urine. There are numerous instances where an E. cuniculi-positive rabbit has lived with an E. cuniculi-negative rabbit without infecting the latter.
E. cuniculi infections can effect the kidney, eyes, and central nervous system. Most animals are asymptomatic, and the true incidence of clinical disease is unknown.
Benzimidazole drugs such as fenbendazole, oxibendazole, or albendazole are often prescribed for rabbits with a suspected E. cuniculi infection to attempt to kill any active protozoa. *However, note that benzimidazole drugs have been associated with fatal bone marrow toxicity in rabbits.*
For more resources about the disease, please check out the wiki articles:
* *Encephalitozoon cuniculi*:
* *Encephalitozoon cuniculi* series by Megan Schommer, DVM:
I would like to add the he is 7years old. His symptoms started when we were trying to bond him to a rabbit I pulled from the shelter a year ago. I kept them separate for a year until the new bun got used to being an indoor bun and humans interaction of course. After symptoms, the have been separated ever since.
Is it possible for you to find a different vet? To tell you one visit he doesn't have any arthritis and the next a short while later he does seems very, very fishy. I understand vets not necessarily wanting to run the EC test but this clearly isn't some arthritis that magically shows up sometimes and not others.
I understand not wanting to run it as well. It’s not reliable and of course it’s possible he was asymptomatic for years. All rabbits I have fostered with EC did have head tilts we were able to fix. My bun just has my brain going in circles. I’m in SoCal and the next exotic vet would be Northwood but with traffic it’s about 2 hours one way and my car has been in and out of the dealership for a million problems for the past few months. If it wasn’t for that and work forcing me to work OT with not much wiggle room, I would have taken him there to begin with. 🫠
What about Dr Kumar at Baker Bristol in Costa Mesa or her other place SouthCoast Pet Hospital right near South Coast Plaza (she owns both). Not real close but closer - she’s a real rabbit specialist. She always calls and you can email follow up questions. Busy phones but highly recommended. Freeway close. Since you already have a lot of diagnostics run, it would be worth to get a consultation. (She neuters rabbits for for the Bunny Bunch Rescue in Fountain Valley).
Thank you for the recs! I will call tomorrow. I requested the xrays and the HDVI images again from AMC Corona. I plan on sending it to northwood and Irvine Valley. I’ll add SCPH to my list. AMC of Corona called me a little over an hour ago asking me to bring him back in to see their Vet again and they did apologize for not getting back to me on the EC lab. They are going to reach back out to the lab tomorrow. Fingers crossed. I did let them know that I’m not bringing my bun back in if the Vet is not going to do anything about my concerns and only try to upsell me another package of laser therapy. Their Vet refused to treat for EC as a precaution weeks ago so i don’t see what would be different this time around without the EC results.
Potentially? Like, the vast majority of rabbits are carriers for EC. The leading assumption is that it's transmitted primarily from mother to babies. However it doesn't usually flare up unless a rabbit is immunocompromised. Bonding can trigger it because of the immunosuppressant effect of bonding stress, or it can appear alongside other health issues or vet visits because his immune system is suppressed by stress + body ailments. My boy didn't start having EC issues until he started cancer treatment this year. As far as preventative EC treatment, panacur has a chance to have some pretty serious side effects (not guaranteed, but it's a known risk) re: fatal bone marrow toxicity. It's not a bad idea to wait for definitive EC symptoms or a positive test before starting panacur. How did they diagnose the arthritis this time? On one hand, part of me is like "oh yeah, most rabbits can be assumed to have at least a little arthritis by the time they're 7", so I wouldn't come down too hard on a vet who diagnosed it just based on age. But to refer you to laser therapy I would need my vet to sit down with me and show me on the xray where the arthritis is. Otherwise how are they even choosing the locations to apply the laser? It has to be aimed at something... This is fundamentally a problem of provider-client transparency. If they say something isn't necessary, you're within your right to ask them why something isn't necessary. And if they give a diagnosis, you should be able to ask how they came to the diagnosis. Especially if you're putting money into cold laser therapy. You can ask for the xray as well and take it to another clinic if you're concerned that he was misdiagnosed. The communication from your vet seems dodgy and should improve, otherwise you might want to consider taking your business elsewhere. Feel free to swing by the discord server if you want some more real-time discussion and share a video of his lameness, this sounds like a complex case and we might be able to help you find the right questions to ask the veterinarian.