Thank you, LBJ10. We did take Max to the ER. While we were waiting, we noticed that his dewclaws were very long. The right one was longer than the left, and both were touching the floor. Ugh. I’m not sure how we missed them when clipping his nails, but considering their length, we clearly missed them more than once. That made me wonder whether they could be causing his discomfort.
The vet examined Max, watched him move around, and pulled and pushed on his limbs. She said he had a good range of motion and did not appear to have a fracture. Based on that assessment, we decided not to get the X-rays because they would have cost an additional $300, and we had already waited two hours to be seen.
She trimmed his nails and sent him home with meloxicam 1.5 mg/mL, to be given every 24 hours for one week. She also told us to limit his activity for a week.
Max continues to have a hearty appetite. After receiving his medication this morning, he briefly went into a complete loaf. Later, however, he went back to leaving his right front paw extended. He was also able to eat his cecotropes from his right side today, whereas yesterday he would only reach them from the left.
I’m now wondering whether we made the wrong decision and should have gotten the X-rays. I know prey animals can hide pain extremely well. I set up cameras and have been watching him carefully. It sometimes appears that both front paws may be bothering him, although the right seems worse than the left.
If you click on my profile, there is a link next to the bunnies’ names. It contains two videos, each less than a minute long. If you have time to watch them, could you please let me know what you think?
Could he still be sore from their being so overgrown? I’m hoping that was the cause, but I’m really not sure.
Does “limited activity” mean he should remain in a small area but still be allowed to walk around normally, or should we try to prevent him from walking as much as possible (and keep him in his carrier).
