Cecotropes: What’s That?

Rabbit Poop Diagram

You can tell a lot about your rabbit’s health by examining their feces. Rabbits have 2 types of normal poop: fecal pellets and cecal pellets (aka cecotropes). Fecal pellets are a waste product primarily composed of fiber, and should be well-formed and consistent in size, not wet or mushy but not completely desiccated. Cecal pellets,…

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RHDV-2: What’s That?

As we all now know, viruses are very difficult to keep in one place. Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV) is a calicivirus that has been associated with rabbit populations in China and Europe, but had never been an issue here in the US. Unfortunately, that changed recently with the discovery of a variant that affects…

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Exotic Vet Care’s Online Pharmacy: What’s That?

When your pet needs a medication, he needs it right away. We fill all initial prescriptions in-house so you have what you need to start your pet’s treatment immediately and get on the road to recovery. With refills or supplements, you are able to plan ahead and order before you need them, so many clients…

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Fear-Free Practice: What’s That?

Birds and exotic pets are for the most part prey animals. This means that it is their instinctual nature to regard any type of restraint, handling, or examination as a threat to their lives. The fear response can trigger aggression as they desire nothing more than to escape to safety, can cause them to injure…

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Otitis Media: What’s That?

Rabbit Ear Anatomy

Rabbits have big ears but it doesn’t mean that they can always hear well… Your rabbit has been diagnosed with bacterial middle ear disease (otitis media). What is this? Inflammation and bone infection (osteomyelitis) of the middle ear caused by the spread of bacteria from the upper respiratory tract and in some cases  through the…

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Stress Bars: What’s That?

Bf2

One year ago this 26 yr old Gold-capped Conure came to us for an evaluation. The primary abnormal physical exam finding was black pigmentation of his feathers, it was also noted that he was in a near-constant state of molting. Sometimes called “stress bars”; these are lines that run crosswise through a feather shaft illustrating…

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PDD: What’s That?

Pdd3

The disease, originally known as “Macaw Wasting Disease”, was initially reported in the late 1970’s in the U.S. and Europe. The term “Proventricular Dilatation Disease” was given to the disease in a 1983 report describing “impaction, dilation, and degeneration of the proventriculus”. The new term for this disease is Avian Bornaviral Ganglioneuritis (ABG) which is…

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Deslorelin: What’s That?

In an effort to offer more options for treatment of hormonal disorders in birds and exotic pets, we carry deslorelin 4.7mg implants (Suprelorin). The implant is placed with your pet under sedation subcutaneously (under the skin) between the shoulder blades by our veterinarian. In ferrets, deslorelin is helpful in preventing the onset of adreno-cortical disease…

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ECUN: What’s That?

E Cuniculi

Encephalizotoonosis (aka ECUN) This is a very common infection in domestic rabbits, guinea pigs and other small mammals. It is caused by an intracellular parasite: Encephalitozoon cuniculi; about 50% of rabbits demonstrate exposure to the parasite.  Spores are shed in the urine and infection usually occurs via ingestion of contaminated food or water. It is…

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