# Crusty rabbit nose



## Sun_moon (Nov 27, 2013)

We started to notice that our little rabbit Twilight's nose (the one we had rescued a month ago) had started to have some crust forming on it a couple of days ago. I had my brother clean it and he said that that was just the way the fur on his nose was. Well today I noticed that the crust had started to form again. Is this something that I should be super concerned about and take him to the vet right away? We're still trying to get him used to being held before we decide to bring him to a vet, so we don't want to rush him to one unless we really need to. Here's how's his nose looks:


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## JBun (Nov 27, 2013)

Is there discharge coming from the nose? Is he sneezing at all or have noisy breathing, and can you also see any crustiness on the inside of his front paws, as that is what rabbits will sometimes use to wipe a wet nose? In the picture it almost looks like the nose is swollen? Can you tell if it is swollen or not? A swollen nose could mean a few things, depending on what country you are in.

Yes, this is something to be concerned about, and will require vet care.


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## missyscove (Nov 28, 2013)

This is definitely something that needs to be seen by a vet. There are several things that can cause crusting like that including various skin conditions, but the first thing that popped into my mind is rabbit syphilis.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Bacterial/Syph_gen.html


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## ALINDSEY (Nov 30, 2013)

I'm sad to say that our bunny was diagnosed yesterday with rabbit syphilis. That's exactly what it looks like your bunny has. We also found out that once infected always infected and he should therefore never have contact with another rabbit. We have recently took in another rabbit and let them have contact through the cages. She, unfortunately, is now likely to be a carrier and should never have contact with another rabbit either.


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## JBun (Nov 30, 2013)

ALINDSEY said:


> I'm sad to say that our bunny was diagnosed yesterday with rabbit syphilis. That's exactly what it looks like your bunny has. We also found out that once infected always infected and he should therefore never have contact with another rabbit. We have recently took in another rabbit and let them have contact through the cages. She, unfortunately, is now likely to be a carrier and should never have contact with another rabbit either.


 
Did your vet tell you that your rabbit would always be a carrier? That actually shouldn't be the case, and if treated properly, it should clear up just fine. If rabbits affected by syphilis, were never cured, there would be a lot of rabbit breeders that wouldn't be able to breed their rabbits, and that's just not the case. Rabbits that have had it, receive treatment and have shown no further signs of infection.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Bacterial/Syph_gen.html
http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/syphilis.shtml
http://www.criver.com/files/pdfs/infectious-agents/rm_ld_r_treponema_paraluiscuniculi.aspx


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## squidpop (Dec 2, 2013)

Yep, rabbit syphilis can be treated with injections of penicillin and is curable. And this other article I found says it could also be treated with azithromycin/zithromax http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2154443
If it were me I would print out the article on Azithromycin and take it to the vet because Azithromycin comes in liquid form and taste like banana so its easy to give to the rabbit- so its much easier than penicillin injections. But you just have to get the dose exactly right.


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