You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

Scabby ears is the sign of a disease that needs to be treated as soon as possible. 

The most common cause of yellow to dark brown scabs inside the ears of rabbits is a parasitic mite called Psoroptes cuniculi. . It lives on the surface of the skin - usually inside the ear flap and down the ear canal, but also occasionally on the face and other parts of the body. If the scabs are rubbed off the skin underneath is red raw and has a wet appearance. The mite has a life-cycle that lasts about 21 days and they lay eggs which hatch after about 8 days . Rabbits with ear mites often shake their head and scratch their ears because they are irritating. Rarely a secondary bacterial infection can occur which can extend to the inner ear, resulting in the rabbit holding it's head to one side ( a condition called "torticollis").

Rabbits are infected with ear mites through direct contact with other infected rabbits, or indirectly through contact with bedding or ear wax debris. The mites can live for up to a week off a host in the environment.

The presence of Psoroptes mites can be confirmed by looking down the ear through an auroscope. They are oval-shaped arthropods and have 8 legs with bell-shaped suckers

Ear mites can be treated with a variety of insecticide drugs* but treatment has to be repeated every 7-10 days to kill newly hatched mites, because the eggs are usually resistant to treatment. If secondary bacterial infection is present antibiotics may be needed as well. Sometimes the use of 1" squares of Dichlorvos impregnated strips in the environment for 48 periods every 2-3 weeks will help to reduce infestation in the environment, however exposure to the organophosphorus that is in the strips may reduce breeding.

* One of the most commonly used drugs is Ivermectin - 200-400 micrograms/kg by subcutaneous injection.

Rabbit ear mites are not transmitted to humans.

Updated October 2013