We’re heartbroken.
What was thought to be a simple surgery to fix an abscess, ended up in a devastating diagnosis.
Aside from already being in gastrointestinal stasis over the weekend, Penelope’s pre-surgical exam revealed significant weight loss in the last five days, generalized muscle wasting, and that her dewlap masses had doubled in size and number. A chain of approximately 10 masses extended from between her jaw bones to the right dewlap.
Blood tests revealed a very low white blood cell count consistent with sepsis (caused by a severe and potentially life-threatening bacterial infection). Fine needle aspirates were collected from the masses in her dewlap and neck. A few of the masses were examined in clinic which revealed a large amount of bacteria (two different types) and a large amount of white blood cells. We don’t know what caused the infection that was raging through her insides, but Penelope’s body was shutting down. The vet gave Penelope every treatment possible during the hours she spent at the clinic, but her condition worsened as the day went on. When it came to the point that we knew there was no chance of recovery, we made the heart wrenching decision to let Penelope go to end her suffering.

Penelope spent two years, almost to the day, in our care. She waited all that time for a forever home, but despite a few “almosts”, Penelope’s gotcha day never came. We are thankful Penelope spent those two years in a loving foster home where she could live cage-free and spoiled rotten. Our hearts go out to Penelope’s foster family. We know they’ll miss her grumpy personality. Penelope did have a softer side at times, and we like to believe she actually enjoyed the petting and cuddles she occasionally allowed from her foster family, but she had held the spicy bunny demeanour for so long, she needed to keep up the facade. She was such a funny bunny, and she was so loved.

Rest in peace, Penelope. We’ll never forget you.

Penelope came into Hamilton Animal Services as a “stray.” This chonky bunny was definitely not a stray. More than likely she was abandoned outdoors by her owners when they no longer wanted her. Behaviourally, Penelope was not doing well in the shelter, so Hamilton Animal Services reached out to us for help. We got Penelope out of the shelter and got her in to see a vet.

Poor Penelope was obese when she first arrived into our care. It seems wherever she lived before, she didn’t get any exercise at all because she had pretty much no muscle mass. Thankfully, her “rolls” were just fat and did not have any suspicious masses or tumours in them.  She did however, have a urinary issue and both of her ears were full of infection. After a round of medication, the bladder issue cleared up, but one of her ears was still quite blocked. We are assuming Penelope was kept in a wire bottom cage, because her toes are splayed and a couple of them jut outwards. Thankfully her wonky toes do not cause her any discomfort, and she can get around just fine.

Over the next few months, Penelope lost enough weight that she could finally have her spay surgery.
While Penelope was under anesthetic for her spay, Dr. Davis was able to get a more extensive look into her ears. There was still some infection in Penelope’s one ear, so Dr. Davis recommended she go to OVC for a CT scan. Because lop eared rabbits ear canals are so narrow, it’s tough to see inside, and a CT scan would give us the total picture. The CT scan showed that Penelope doesn’t need surgery (yay!) but her hearing is limited due to her narrow ear canals. Potential adopters should be willing to give her ears a regular cleaning. Here’s what OVC recommend:
“Due to the morphology of lop eared rabbit, it is important to keep their ears clean to prevent accumulation of wax and debris which could lead to issues (otitis). For lop-rabbits we recommend to routinely clean their ears every 2-4 weeks. Ear cleaning liquid such as KlearOtic can be used. Only a small amount should be dropped in rabbit ears (the excess oily liquid can cause skin irritation). The base of the ear can be gently massaged and any excess should be wiped with a soft tissue or cotton.”

So, if you think of it in terms of having to trim a rabbit’s nails every couple of weeks (which every bunny owner has to do anyway) – just add the ear cleaning to that routine and it’s easy peasy!

Here’s a note from Penelope’s foster family:
“Penelope is a funny bunny. She’s very sweet and will run over to say hi to whomever enters her room. But she’s not always keen on being petted. She’d rather come to you for affection on her terms. A home without children would be best for her.
She has a very large room all to herself, and she takes full advantage of the space to get much needed exercise. She loves her play tunnel, and we would be happy to pass it along to her new home.
Penelope’s forever home will have to have a similar, bunny proofed room for free range living. We don’t ever want her to suffer cage life again. She makes a great candidate for free range living because her litter box habits are impeccable. She’s a superstar in that regard.
She looks forward to her twice a day veggie treats – her favourites being romaine lettuce and dandelion leaves. Penelope has met our cats and is very curious about them. She might enjoy the company of another rabbit if they were introduced properly, but we don’t know for sure.
Even though Penelope has a bit of bunny attitude, she’s made great progress since coming to us. We know she’ll make a wonderful companion for the right home. She needs someone who will be patient with her, and who will be able to attend to her ear cleaning on a regular basis. We promise Penelope is worth it!”