Claw came off; [another update Jan 5th]

[Mikey]

January 5th update 

Another nail came off. This time while he was throwing an angry fit over me cleaning their litter box. After getting him all cleaned up he started throwing himself into Blue so i have Bombur in the crate now so he cant fling himself around and accidentally cause a fight (he throws himself around when hes angry, like a toddler throwing a tantrum). His first claw never came back, should i assume this claw wont either? Should i also assume that he will just lose nails easily given that i keep them well kept and this is the second time one has just seemingly come off? Is there any way to make his nails stronger? He is eating, drinking, running around, ect all fine again like nothing happened. Any ideas how to help with angry little bunnies who throw tantrums? 

First post:

I dont know how it happened or when. He and his bond mate were free roaming like normal for the past few hours. I went to refill their hay as i noticed it was low, and i noticed little blood spots on the carpet near their cage. I checked over Blue, since he lets me pick him up and move him around fairly easily (although he gets very mat at me for doing so) and no blood on him at all. I have to coerce Bombur into the crate with some pellets so i can snag him and look him over. As soon as i picked him up, blood brushed across my hand. His left dew claw (unsure on spelling) is half off and bleeding. I take him to the bathroom so hes in a small quiet area and put him on the rug while i get toilet paper and neosporin ready from our bunny first aid. Pressing on it hurts him a lot (i started crying holding the toilet paper to his paw, so im sure my own emotions didnt help him feel any better), but i was able stop the bleeding enough to start inspecting the nail. It is hanging on by a red meat/tendon/vessel/thing. I have no idea what to do. He cannot move the nail, but he did flex that toe for me so i know his toe is ok. What do i do? From what i read on google, i should just quickly cut it off then apply pressure and wrap it in gauze, but i dont want to do that without a vet telling me its safe. Theres still 3 hours before the vet opens, but our actual vet wont be in until wednesday

[Mikey]

I want to add that he is still eating, drinking, walking on it, and grooming himself while ignoring it. Im debating putting the cone on him to avoid him from over grooming and getting fur stuck in it since he is shedding, and i worry that when he digs for his hay he might get hay in it which would also be bad. This happened maybe 20 minutes ago so i havent seen him pee or poop yet

Another post on google says that if i leave the broken nail attached, his body will remove it on its own and start to grow a new nail, is that true? Were still going to see the vet as soon as we can, but its worth asking here

[Azerane]

Nail injuries always seem much worse than they usually are because they bleed a lot. It sounds like the nail probably got caught in something and partially ripped off when he tried to free himself. As you read, it will naturally fall off with time although since it is loose, you do run the risk of it getting caught in something again and tearing again, starting up the bleeding.

It sounds like it is hanging by the quick though, which is the blood supply to the nail. I imagine it will probably dry up quite quickly at which point you could cut it without causing pain or the bleeding starting up again. Once it’s dried up and receded, it will as you mentioned regrow from the base, although in some cases the nail doesn’t regrow. I’m not sure how long it would take for the quick to dry out, a day or two maybe? If possible I would apply neosporin or an antibiotic cream to the area to prevent infection, since he’ll be standing in his litter tray etc.

[Mikey]

Well sometime between when posted and now, his nail came off. I can only think that its probly in the litter box. All bleeding has stopped though, so thats good

[Azerane]

Ahh, well there you go It’s good that the bleeding has stopped. The quick is probably a little painful for him, but once it dries it won’t hurt any more.

[Mikey]

Thank you for the help I am currently snuggling with him (one of the rare moments when he allows anyone to) to help calm him down before i have to fight him for gauze again. He keeps trying to lick where it was and i dont want him over cleaning it

[LBJ10]

I agree, nail injuries can look so awful when they first happen. If the bleeding has stopped, then there isn’t much else to do except keep it clean. Time will tell if it grows back. If the root was damaged, then it may not.

[Mikey]

Would it be a problem for him if it doesnt grow back? The vet techs at the vets office said not to worry about it unless we see it become infected or he stops eating/drinking like normal

[Azerane]

No, not a problem at all if it doesn’t grow back. From memory I think Luna is missing a claw, and my first bun Hazel-rah had two toes without claws.

[LBJ10]

I think a lot of bunnies are missing claws. It’s such a common thing to have happen. It doesn’t really affect them.

[Mikey]

You learn something everyday Thank you both very much

[Meghan4420]

This happened to my Eddie when he kept out of my arms on to the sidewalk. It was bleeding a ton and I was so worried about him. All I did was washed off his nail and made sure it stayed clean, and the nail grew back eventually. Don’t worry too much about it he’ll be fine!

[Mikey]

Thank you His feet are so fluffy i cant tell what the wound site actually looks like, but hes not licking it or caring about it any more so ive mostly left it alone. I figure when a nail decides to show up, ill be able to see it but i wont want to mess with it and bother him

[Mikey]

Update again. Let me know if this isnt allowed; ill make a new post if it isnt 

[Bam]

It’s allowed – it’s just when a new post is unrelated to the first post and it’s been a long time that we rather see members start a thread of their own. Updates are always welcome!!!

[Bam]

Some animals have more brittle nails than some. The GSD I had before almost never needed her nails cut, but my current GSD needs her nails cut all the time – they get much the same amount of exercise, so it’s not that. To an extent the hardness and “durability” of nails and hoofs and claws is hereditary. To a lesser extent it has to do with diet. I don’t think it’s diet in your case, since you have other rabbits that don’t have this problem.

My Bam looses nails quite easily. Yohio never broke a nail. They were on the same diets and had the same type of carpets and floors.

The newly broken nail could grow out again. Bam’s grow out again.

I don’t know what to do with a bun that throws temper-tantrums. Has he always had these tantrums?

[Mikey]

Thank you, that is what i thought about the rules, but i wanted to make sure

Ill assume then its mostly his genetics. I will try to trim them more (something he surprisingly doesnt mind as much as the other two) often and see if that helps him out at all. It is just so scary to see him run across the floor with a red tinted foot and blood drops behind him D: He acts like nothing happens, which baffles me still

Yea, hes always thrown these tantrums since we got him. Theyve calmed down a lot since being neutered, though. He will flail his front feet (which he also does when hes super happy), wiggle his butt around, then slowly run. When he angry slow runs, he kind of “bucks” (think the movements of an angry bull, or exaggerated unhappy leg flicking). Blue usually ignores when he does this, so sometimes Bombur will purposely buck or run face first into Blue. Blue has of course learned to ignore him at this point, but sometimes Blue nips because Bombur will buck into him so many times and he gets annoyed. Blue used to force cuddles on Bombur when he would do this, to get him to stop. Now i wonder if it partly has to do with wanting attention while being mad. He only does this when hes obviously unhappy, like when i get caught cleaning his little fleece bed (he loves to pee on it), or get caught cleaning their litter box. He will also do this once in a while when i tell him its time for bed and he isnt ready to go back into the cage. Its really silly to watch because hes so tiny and acting so tough, but if hes going to hurt himself doing it, i would like to try to find a way to get him to stop it

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