Article by vet about sick pets tilting and walking in circles- w/diagnosis

[Chameleons Northwest]

I've noticed several threads recently about chameleons stumbling in circles and tilting heads in one direction. THis evening I was reading our local paper and saw an article, by a veterinarian, about a parasite that effects rabbits (and other animals) that exact same way:

"[Encephalitozoon] cuniculi is a protozoal parasite of rabbits and other animals and humans. One of the hallmark symptoms for this disease in rabbits is a head tilt, but not all rabbits with the parasite will exhibit head tilts. Other symptoms include weakness, circling when trying to walk and abnormal eye movements. The parasite can involve multiple organs of the body, including kidneys. Rabbits with affected kidneys will show increased water intake and increased urination and abnormalities in blood work."

Also of interest is that the article also noted that it can cause weakness in the back legs.

Apparently it can affect other animals and humans. The article doesn't elaborate on what other animals, so I can't say whether reptiles could get this condition from this protozoa but it is interesting.

The vet states that he has the most success when treating the condition with a family of drugs called bendazoles.

Here is a link to the article online on a Kentucky site:
http://www.kentucky.com/2012/07/11/2255015/froto-a-rabbit-has-a-head-tilt.html

 

[camaleonte82]

thats really interesting. i too noticed the posts about the turning and such but my chams havent had that problem so i wasnt worried. and recently one of my mice had a weird epileptic fit and died and i didnt really think to much into it until i noticed my other mouse's head was tilting to the left, she was walking in circles, her one eye was half closed all the time and her legs seemed to not support her weight... and now that i read that i guess i did give her alot more water that normal because she was always running out... she is recovered now tho and i didnt do anything special :/

 

[ataraxia]

Very interesting. Thanks for the post!

 

[blackened]

Good post. Thanks for sharing!

 

[sandrachameleon]

Intereseting. gesang had you considered contacting the vet to ask if this could be contracted by reptiles?

 

[UrbanChameleon]

Intereseting. gesang had you considered contacting the vet to ask if this could be contracted by reptiles?

That was my first thought. I haven't read the link yet, but this is a good find. The forum hasn't had much to go on at this point, so this is a step in the right direction.

 

[Alexl]

Encephalitozoon cuniculi doesn't affect reptiles. There's another one, Encephalitozoon lacertae, which was found in Sphenodon sp., Mabuya sp. and Podarcis sp. yet ...not in chameleons. Those reptiles didn't show any similar symptoms to those seen in rabbits infected with Encephalitozoon cuniculi - the reptiles had intestinal instead of neurological problems.

And remember the symptoms Encephalitozoon produces aren't unique. They're even watched in lots of other diseases much more typical in reptiles.

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

Encephalitozoon cuniculi doesn't affect reptiles. There's another one, Encephalitozoon lacertae, which was found in Sphenodon sp., Mabuya sp. and Podarcis sp. yet ...not in chameleons. Those reptiles didn't show any similar symptoms to those seen in rabbits infected with Encephalitozoon cuniculi - the reptiles had intestinal instead of neurological problems.

And remember the symptoms Encephalitozoon produces aren't unique. They're even watched in lots of other diseases much more typical in reptiles.

Good points. Thank you for the input.