Dispose of all bedding materials and provide fresh bedding every day until the mites have been gotten rid of completely. Scrub and disinfect the hutch and run. Make sure to clean it often while your rabbit has the infection. Ear mites are highly infectious to other rabbits and can spread by direct contact. Therefore, all the rabbits in the household should be treated, too.
Once this process start to happen, particularly stubborn debris can be softened by the addition of a few drops of mineral oil into the ear.
The medicine should get rid of ear mites as long as the rabbit does not reinfect himself from the environment. The options for treatment include spot drops containing ivermectin, which are applied to the skin over the rabbit’s shoulders. The active ingredient is absorbed into the bloodstream, where it acts to kill the ear mites. Three doses are given, each a fortnight apart. It is important to weigh the rabbit and accurately follow the dosing instructions so as not to overdose the rabbit. Xeno is licensed for use in rabbits and should be the first choice of treatment. Other products are effective but not licensed, which means they have not been through the same rigorous testing on rabbits that Xeno has. Alternately, your veterinarian may give your bunny three doses of ivermectin, two weeks apart, by injection or by mouth.
In some cases, the rabbit may experience toxicity, the symptoms of which include neurological symptoms, such as loss of coordination, seizures, coma, and death.
Painkillers from the non-steroidal family may be prescribed to ease discomfort while the mites are dying off.
Your rabbit may also shake his head or hold his ear over to one side. Your rabbit’s ears may have reddened or inflamed skin. Irritation from the feces and saliva of the mite causes extreme itchiness, and the rabbit scratches and traumatizes the ear.
Forcible removal tends to peel away the top layer of skin with the discharge leaving a large ulcer behind. Typically in the early stages of infection, close inspection may show scales of skin tightly stuck to the ear canal.
You should tell your vet about all the symptoms you have seen in your bunny. Make sure to be as detailed as possible and tell your vet about anything you think is odd about your rabbit’s behavior.
Then, your vet will smear the swab on a microscope slide and examine it under the microscope.
An otoscope is an instrument designed for looking in ears which has a light source and magnification.
