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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Hind-legs question.

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    • Pants
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        Hi all, posting with a lil’ problem & have no clue if this is the right area again or not. <:’)

        I have a female house rabbit turning 5(!!!) later this month. Me & my Mum have noticed some weird going-ons with her as of late– She’s been catching her back legs when she’s been hopping in & out of her cage (She has roam of the house for the day, she goes into her cage just for the night & does it knowingly on her own accord, it’s in my room so we’re always together. She has space to nyoom, stand, jump. Not too small!!). She’s also a lil’ apprehensive when it comes to jumping out in the mornings now– Usually she jumps out straight away, excited as can be to get her breakfast, so it’s definitely out of character for her.

        We hadn’t been able to get into the vets for quite the bit & her nails had gotten pretty long, we had the thought that that might be the problem but we managed to finally take her to the local vets a day or two ago & we asked them to give her a general lookover (specifying her legs in particular) & apparently there’s nothing wrong with them? We just can’t wrap our heads about this considering this back-leg hindering has come on quite literally outta nowhere.

        Apologies if this doesn’t make sense– I’ve not long been awake & thought I’d get this posted before I forget ghgh– <:’)
        Thanks in advance for anything!!


      • Wick & Fable
        Moderator
        5771 posts Send Private Message

          A picture of the set-up may be helpful to see. In general, regardless of cause, if the high-lip is causing issues, I’d get something lower so it’s easier. Also make sure that the flooring both in and out of the cage is rabbit-appropriate (i.e., not slippy) to maximize movement/jump ease.

          Was the local vet rabbit-experienced? Was an x-ray taken? It would be difficult to conclusive rule out any thing and say “nothing wrong” without an actual x-ray. For example, unless it’s unfortunately obvious based on angle/skin breaching, it is often not clear whether a rabbit has sprain or broken a limb without an x-ray. It could also be something higher up (e.g., spine), rather than the legs themselves. Jumping requires more than just leg movement — it is a full body endeavor.

          The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.


        • LBJ10
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          16870 posts Send Private Message

            Could she clear it just fine before? Since she is 5, she could have a little bit of arthritis developing.


          • Azerane
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              Hind leg weakness can also be a symptom of E. cuniculi. Worth considering as a possible cause.


            • Bam
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              16838 posts Send Private Message

                As Azerane say, e cuniculi does come to mind when hind end weakness is discussed. EC is an intracellular parasite that buns often get from their mum while they’re still in the womb. It often lies dormant for many years, sometimes the entire life.

                It’s treatable with a dewormer, fenbendazole. Its sold under various brand names, the most common one being Panacure.


              • GlennTheLionhead
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                  If the dewormer doesn’t help it could be as LBJ suggested, arthritis.

                  I previously had a bun approaching 5 who developed arthritis fairly suddenly and it presented in a persistant hing leg limp and hesitancy to move too much and jump. Daily pain meds help her a lot to move more often and even frolic but her limp never really went away.


                • Bam
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                    As Glenn says, you could ask your vet to try some daily meloxicam. It’s an anti-inflammatory painkiller that helps both with joint pain and the arthritis that’s causing the pain. You should see improvement in about a week, or sooner.

                    After a few weeks you can as a rule start decreasing the dose until you find the smallest effective maintenance dose. This is a standard treatment for aging dogs, but its becoming more and more common for rabbits as well -most likely because our pet buns live longer nowadays.

                     

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                Forum HOUSE RABBIT Q & A Hind-legs question.