# Can rabbits have roundworm?



## Dragonrain (Apr 29, 2010)

This isn't an emergency or anything but I thought this might be the best place to put it.

Can rabbits get/carry roundworms?

My dog just had his yearly checkup and his vet called me this morning to tell me that his stool sample came back positive for round worms. :yuck I'm stumped as to where he got them from and am wondering if there is anyway he could have gotten them from one of his bunny litter box raids.

I want to know if this is something I should have all the rabbits tested for too, or if I should just assume that the dog picked it up outside somewhere. The rabbits all seem normal and healthy. I'm going to keep the doggy away from them for awhile just to be safe. 

Thanks in advance.


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## tonyshuman (Apr 30, 2010)

Sorry, I read this yesterday and in your blog and meant to look it up but forgot! Here's the link to Medirabbit's page on parasites. It mentions several species of roundworms that bunnies can get. I think you'll have to check with the vet for which species Kit has and see if that's on the list.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Parasite/Parasites_main.htm

Typical treatment is a bendazole or ivermectin, although I know Randy is a big fan of the antiparasitic drug Marquis (ponazuril). I am not sure whether it's needed in this case, because I doubt that these parasites go into the brain. Marquis has the distinction that it's an antiparasitic that can cross the blood-brain barrier, which the others cannot. I think it is also more effective against parasites because fewer of them have developed resistance to it.
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/Parasitic_diseases/nematodes.htm


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## Dragonrain (Apr 30, 2010)

Thanks for replying.

I think my dog has "Toxocara canis" - which I don't see on that list for rabbits. I looked it up and it says it mainly infects dogs and foxes. I'm thinking Kit must have just picked it up at the park somehow.

Which is a releaf because I'm grossed out enough with one pet with worms, 4 would just be ...ick! 

Just in case I'll keep an eye on things (like I always do) and will take the bunners to the vet if I notice anything unusual.


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## tonyshuman (Apr 30, 2010)

Well... the wiki says that rabbits can carry the spores in their muscle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxocariasis

And this is just one of many papers studying the disease in rabbits, after an oral dose:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12219113

So I would imagine they can get it.  Sorry.


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## tonyshuman (Apr 30, 2010)

And it's on this page, the last one in the table of "Nematode parasitic worms of the domestic rabbit"
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/GI_diseases/Parasitic_diseases/nematodes.htm


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## Dragonrain (Apr 30, 2010)

Darn...okay. Would the rabbits show signs if they had it? 

Do you think there could be any chance they have it from the dog? The dog is really good about always going to the bathroom outside, and the rabbits never go outside. I keep the dog really clean and he only goes into the bunny room once in awhile.

Maybe I should have them tested? I dunno what to do now.


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## aurora369 (May 1, 2010)

Personally, I would treat all four rabbits just in case to prevent cross contamination between the dog and rabbit. Getting a fecal done doesn't always show the worms with rabbits, and de-worming them is fairly safe with the appropriate medication. 

Revolution will kill round worms, so you could get one dose for each bunny just to be on the safe side. That way if the rabbits do have them, they won't be re-infecting your dog or picking them up from your dog.

Revolution is pretty safe, and I don't think it will harm them to do a preventative dose. And if they do have worms, I'm sure they will all feel much better after the dose. I treated Baxter recently for mites with Revolution and he's perked up so much since.

-Dawn


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## Dragonrain (May 1, 2010)

Thanks for replying. I have 3 rabbits :biggrin:

I'll call their vet and ask about Revolution.


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## aurora369 (May 2, 2010)

Haha, oops... I have four rabbits, so I guess that's where the number came from!

Let us know what the the vet says.

-Dawn


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## CiaraPatricia (May 2, 2010)

I dunno about rabbits, but my kitten had roundworms, it was so gross! She seemed fine, but then one day she had diarrheoa and was passing blood. She meowed in pain when she was pooping and kept trying to poop but then only blood was coming out. We rang the vets and they gave us antibiotics. But as soon as we got her home I got some tissue to wipe her bum and there was a live roundworm on the tissue . . . *shudders* Anyway, we wormed her (twice ten days apart) and she was fine. I saw her pass one other (dead) roundworm.

So I'd look out for abnormal poop, blood, pain when pooping, worms in the poop . . . hmm I said poop a lot them.


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## Dragonrain (May 2, 2010)

Bleh. Parasites really creep me out. It takes a lot to creep me out...but parasites...:yuck

It's funny because the dog showed no signs at all of having them. Even after his first dose of worm meds, I never saw any worms in his poop. He's acting fine and had no signs of having them, but they turned up in his yearly fecal test.

The rabbits seem fine - happy and healthy. But I called my bunny vet and explained everything and am going to pick up a few tubes of Revolution for them tomorrow, just in case.


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