Protozoan Parasites – Rabbit

Coccidiosis

Coccidiosis involving both pathogenic and non-pathogenic species of Eimeria, is quite prevalent amongst intensively kept rabbits but is rarely encountered in pets, except in young animals at or around the time of weaning so the condition may be encountered in very young animals offered for sale. However, the clinician should be watchful for the occurrence of this parasite during the summer months when the sporulation rate of oocysts is reduced to below the usual 2 to 5 days. The parasite causes a rise in the pH of the gut which favours the proliferation of the bacteria, Escherichia coli, in the gut. The levels of E. coli in the intestinal lumen of a rabbit rises directly in proportion to infestation with Eimeria species.

Clinical signs

They include anorexia, polydypsia, depression and a staring coat. Faeces are foetid, watery, brown-green and stain the rabbit's coat. The presenting clinical signs may include blow-fly myiasis. Coccidiosis is a frequent misdiagnosis of other enteric disorders in pet rabbits so it is imperative to identify the oocysts which are readily demonstrated in the faeces.

Treatment

The most economical and readily available treatment is sulphadimidine in drinking water for three days, repeated twice with two two-day intervals, but pets are usually treated with (human) paediatric potentiated sulphonamide solutions.

Other treatments include:

• amprolium (at the rate of 1 ml per litre of drinking water) or
• sulphamethoxine PO (Walden 1990)
• sulphaquinoxaline per day for the treatment of individual animals; for treatment of rabbits, see Okerman 1994 p 125.
• Toltazuril in the drinking water

Following an outbreak great care must be taken to clean the animal's living quarters thoroughly, using a flame thrower or a hot solution of ammonia (10%) or a boiling solution of 10% washing soda to ensure destruction of the oocysts.

References

• Okerman, L. (1994) Diseases of Domestic Rabbits. Blackwell Scien¬tific Publications ISBN 0-632-03804 -7. 2nd Edition
• Walden, N. B. (1990) Rabbits - A Compendium. The T.G. Hungerford Vade Mecum Series for Domestic Animals. Series C Number 13 Published by the University of Sydney Post Graduate Foundation In Veterinary Science March 1990 ISBN 0909973 80 6; ISN 0812 0048.