If the head tilt is extreme, a steroid may be prescribed in an attempt to reduce the inflammation. If the rabbit is not eating or drinking, the doctor may recommend that fluids be administered subcutaneously and food given orally by syringe.

I have 10+ years of experience in using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator, both for graphic design and for creating unique works of art as well. I hold a degree in graphic design, but nowadays I work as a freelance illustrator and a tutorial author. I specialize in creating realistic art, especially of animals, and I'm good at designing imaginary creatures in a realistic way. I'm a big fan of dragons and feline creatures! There are no simple tests to identify the cause of head tilt, which can make diagnosis difficult – so your vet will consider several possibilities. Some rabbits can live quite happily with a persisting head tilt – so long as they’re helped to eat and drink, and to keep their rear ends clean, which they would normally do themselves. ‘Unfortunately, if the residual symptoms are causing rabbits distress, or making it impossible for them to eat, we have to consider putting them to sleep as the kindest option,’ says Brian. Prevention can helpOne of the reasons I think it’s important to keep a close eye on your bunny is you notice those subtle changes in behaviour that you might not notice if you only spend an hour or so with them daily. Your rabbit may have ear mites Paired with arthritis it was hardly fair to add monthly ops, so euthanasia was a fairly simple decision (simple is NOT the same a easy btw). There are two effective ways to reduce the risk of head tilt: first, always make sure your rabbits’ hutch and run is kept clean. And second, keep a watchful eye on your bunnies, so that you’re able to spot any changes in their health and wellbeing. ‘Also, avoid overcrowding the hutch,’ advises Brian. ‘The more rabbits that are kept together, the harder it is to keep their environment clean, and the greater the risk of infection spreading between them.’

A "muscle spasm" could cause a temporary head tilt. This situation will resolve itself once the muscle is relaxed. As the story goes, "old mother" was selling hot pot at her shop in Shuangliu (home of Chengdu's airport today), but her son liked eating Chengdu rabbit head so much that his loving mother also made rabbit head food in her homemade sauce especially for him. The customers coming to her small hot pot restaurant heard of her homemade rabbit head dish and went crazy for it when they got a taste. From that point on, she shifted her business from hot pot to her special rabbit head delicacy, and its popularity soon took off throughout Chengdu and around China. These spicy rabbit heads can now be found as street food in Hong Kong. Ear mites are extremely contagious, but indoor bunnies are less likely to be at risk – but not immune, since the mites can travel inside on our clothes and shoes.All bedding needs to be disposed of – and throw away the bedding from the temporary accommodation after the 4-6 weeks is up. Everywhere the rabbit has been will need to be sprayed with insecticide. Mitchell, D, and E. Riggs. 1993. Sno-Wood Veterinary Hospital, Woodinville, WA. Personal communication.

Although middle and inner ear infections reportedly have a poor cure rate, I know many cases of success in getting rabbits through this illness. The "secret" is long term antibiotics, frequently a minimum of 30 days. However it may be necessary for a rabbit to be on antibiotics for 6 months or even for the remaining years of his life. This treatment in conjunction with a loving and supportive environment can provide the rabbit with a good quality of life even if the disease cannot be completely eradicated. Most rabbits will keep eating but may need to be hand fed with lots of sympathy with every bite of food. He may not want his pellets, but he will usually eat a variety of fresh green veggies, carrots and fruits if you hold them for him. It may help to switch from timothy to alfalfa hay to encourage him to eat lots of roughage. Smith, D. T., and L.T. Webster. 1925.Epidemiological studies on respiratory infections of the rabbit. VI Etiology of otitis media. J. Exp. Med. 41:275-283. Rabbit’s teeth grow constantly, and if they don’t get consistently ground down, then they can end up with dental problems. I’ve also had older rabbit that started developing spurs on their teeth from uneven wear, which can cause pin and inflammation. Please PAUSE the "How to Draw a Rabbit (Head Detail)" video after each step to draw at your own pace.Kunstyr, I., L. Lev, and S. Naumann. 1985. Head tilt in rabbits caused by pastuerellosis and encephalitozoonosis. Lab Anim. 19:208-213. Deeb, B.J. 1993. Update for veterinary practitioners on pasteurellosis in rabbits, JSEAM 2:112-113. Smith, D. T., and L.T. Webster. 1925. Epidemiological studies on respiratory infections of the rabbit. VI Etiology of otitis media. J. Exp. Med. 41:275-283 We opted to have our 11 year old bunny put to sleep when he started developing dental problems, because the treatment would have meant monthly operations which would have been extremely stressful for him. Usually regular trimmings or tooth extraction will put everything right, but George was drooling excessively which caused skin issues.