Bun hocks

[GeorgeWash]

Can you guys look at my newly adopted bunny George Washington’s hocks? He is 4 years old and a happy guy who just moved in to his new digs. I have attached a pic. When I picked him up from the MSPCA he had red points at the top of his hocks, but since then additional hair rubbed off down one hock shown in the pic. I did do a search in these forums, but I am a first time rabbit mom and would love some feedback

[Celamentum]

Hello!!

I believe as long as there’s no scabs/sores on the feet, it’s fine. The fur on rabbit’s feet often wear down with age, especially with some breeds more than others (I read something about lops having thicker hair around their feet? While rex breeds have thinner hair and sore hocks is a common problem).

If it looks a bit red, it might be irritated or inflamed… There is a way to treat it and get the fur to regrow (here) but some rabbits won’t tolerate the treatment (my bunny won’t sit still and panics whenever i tried to wrap his feet… so I gave up because I didn’t want to keep stressing him out.)

There are other treatments, like using getting your bun to sit on a towel damp with a diluted chlorhexidine solution (1 part solution/5 parts water)…here’s a video on that.

Before you try and treat it, I would recommend consulting your vet first!

If your rabbit gives you a hard time, you can always just make sure to keep his environment clean (change his litter often so he’s not sitting in damp litter) and try and prevent them from walking on hard surfaces (I’ve put lots of soft blankets all over the floor, it’s better than carpet). I sometimes take a damp paper towel and gently wipe their feet if you can to try and keep them clean.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Hard to tell if it’s very red or inflammed but I can def see where the fur is missing. What is his housing situation like? Caged or Free Roam? And what is his flooring like if he’s caged?

[GeorgeWash]

He is nic caged at night, and he’s on tile flooring with blankets on top. During the day he is free roam on carpeting with some tile. Since I last posted (and I apologize for the lag time!) I put exercise matting under the blanket in his cage, and I secured so he can’t dig/eat/get at it. The hocks already look better!! Thank you guys for replying!

[LittlePuffyTail]

That’s great to hear. It’s a good idea to monitor hocks regularly as part of your grooming/maintenance. Much easier to treat if you catch it early.

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