Kim returned to KC yesterday afternoon from her work trip to Charlotte. At some point she must have decided that the rabbit’s ‘allergies’ were a bit too much and she called a vet. As a little background, the rabbit has been sneezing for a few months and lately has developed sores around his nose that we were attributing to his scratching. Anyway, the vet told her that rabbits don’t have allergies and that he probably has an infection that he cannot fight off himself. She decided to take the $70 plunge and take him into the office for an evaluation.

I’m told that the $70 wasn’t just for a visit, but also to cover the medications. Amstel got a shot of antibiotics into his system and some drops that we have to apply to his nose a few times a day. I don’t think they even had to numb him before getting the shot, the giant dogs in the office likely sent him directly into shock. The most surprising thing is that the doctor diagnosed him as having syphilis. Yeah, you read that correctly.

At first I wasn’t sure how that could be possible, since he has been a solitary rabbit since he was tiny. But after doing some research, he does have many of the symptoms of the disease:

• Lesions around the nose and/or mouth: check
• Sneezing: check
• Lesions around the genitalia and/or anus: Uhhh… I haven’t checked

Finally one article I read said that the disease can be maternally transmitted, so I guess that’s the only explanation. Hopefully he will be all cleared up in a week or two.