Pressure Sores

[Isabelle]

I noticed a few weeks ago that my bun’s heels were really red, and I mentioned it at my recent vet tech appointment to get her nails trimmed. She said it was pressure sores, and that she’d make a note of it in her chart to keep tabs on. She said that it’s caused from pressure like on wire cages or because she’s still growing and her skin is a bit thin. Dutchess (my bun) has a plastic cage bottom, not wire, so that’s not the issue. I put some vaseline once a day on them like the vet tech suggested, and now her hocks are pink rather than red, and it looks like a little callus or blister is forming on both of her hocks. She isn’t walking or favoring her feet at all, and runs around at top speed like she always has. Has anyone experienced this, and does the pink rather than red mean they’re healing?

[Free2Dream]

Bunnies are susceptible to sore hocks, unfortunately. What breed is Dutchess? Some buns, particularly Rexes, are more prone to developing sores on their heels because their fur is so fine and thin back there. A plastic bottomed cage could still cause sores if your bunny isn’t given soft bedding. What do you use for bedding? For my Rex, Dorie, I spread layers of towels and blankets around her xpen so she always has a comfy place to rest. Our floors are hard-wood, and they really seem to irritate her heels. You might need to add more blankets.

I’m not sure about the pink vs. red thing. Someone more experienced will have to help you with that. I’m sending quick healing vibes your bun’s way!

[Isabelle]

She is a Dutch breed. I use pine bedding in a good thickness over half her cage, she usually pushes away the bedding and makes a little space without it if I cover the whole thing. She is let out on fairly thick carpeting usually 8-12 hours per day. I’ve never used a blanket for her because she tends to dig up the carpet, so I’m worried she could eat a towel or choke on a piece if she tried to eat it.

[RabbitPam]

I always used plastic bottomed habitats but when I had a mini rex, Spockie, he still got some sore hocks. Though it was mostly from dampness when we moved from MA to FL and I couldn’t keep his water from spilling into his cage in the car. He had pink spots on his feet that never grew back fur, but were lighter than red, and he had no trouble with them after that. I believe the pink indicates healing. It may never grow fur again, but if he moves and binkies, and the vet says he’s healthy on your next visit, it’s OK.

[Free2Dream]

I’ve never had a problem with my buns chewing on their blankets. They do tend to push them to the side though, silly critters. You could try giving her a blankie and watch her for a couple hours to see what she does with it.

On another note, you might want to reconsider using pine shavings. They can be harmful to animals. Aspen is a lot safer.

[RabbitPam]

Oh, yes, good catch. Pine shavings are harmful. For soft shavings you can use Aspen, but with sore hocks I had changed to Carefresh litter, which was much softer.

[Isabelle]

I checked the bag of her bedding and it’s from petco, called softwood bedding made of pine, fir, and another tree. I had been using aspen from the kaytee brand but I couldn’t find it at petco so I bought this kind. What kind of blankets do you give, like towel kind of feel? I can’t imagine giving her one of my crocheted yarn blankets x.x

Dutchess hasn’t lost all the fur on her heels, in fact I have to really push it aside to see the sores, and only saw them by chance when the fur was pushed aside. Most of her foot is hard to see because her fur is so thick, only the sores themselves don’t have fur. Kind of a weird occurance, the vet tech was kind of stumped on how she got them.

[RabbitPam]

I am leary about the bedding. If it’s shavings and it lists pine, it’s ok for guinea pigs but not rabbits. I would try something else until they get aspen back in.

Hard to know how a bunny prone to sore hocks can get sores. It just can be wear and tear on a floor too often. Sounds like it’s healing well, though.

[Free2Dream]

Yeah, if the bedding contains pine, I would discontinue using it. Carefresh is substantially more expensive (part of the reason why I use aspen for my hedgehog, lol), and can be dusty, but it’s safe for bunnies. Pine can cause respiratory irritation and most animals just don’t tolerate it well. Did you ask an associate at Petsmart whether they had aspen? Sometimes I have to because I just can’t find it on the shelves. All the packaging looks the same to me, hahaha.

As far as blankets go, you can try an old towel (you can even use one that has your scent on it, it might help her get more used to you), or a fleece blanket. Fleece can be good because it doesn’t have any loose fibers that can catch on a bunny’s claws. We use towels and an old quilt.

[Beka27]

Fleece seems to be the blanket of choice around here. You can get a length of it at a fabric store (a couple of them) so you can change it out when you wash. Another option is an inexpensive cat bed. Really, you shouldn’t need any kind of litter in the bottom of the cage, only in the litterbox. Having litter all over might make it more difficult to littertrain… not to mention how much you’re wasting.

[Isabelle]

Thanks for the tips, I will get to work on her habitat

[LittlePuffyTail]

Sore hocks are extremely frustrating! My lop started developing them and now his cage is partially covered with a thick fleece blanket, he has a faux-fur pad to sit on and a huge box filled with hay and they still get inflamed often. He also has thick fur on his feet. Sometimes they are just inevitable. My Olivia is also having problems and she lives in a very pampered, soft environment as well.

My two suggestions are 1) check the areas daily to make sure they aren’t getting puffy or inflammed looking. If they look sore, then they probably are and you should see your vet. Sore hocks can progress literally overnight so you have to check them daily. 2) Make sure to keep her area clean and dry. Damp bedding will soften the callouses and make them progress to sore hocks.

[Isabelle]

I’m checking them once or more a day, and putting some vaseline on them. She hasn’t tried to lick it off, thankfully. They look sore, but they don’t seem to bother her, I can gently push on them and such and she doesn’t pull away or squirm at all, and her movement/running/binkies aren’t changed. The vet tech I saw said I didn’t need to bring her in unless they get very painful or break open and bleed, neither of which have occurred, and she said it can take a long time to heal, so it looks like a waiting game at this point.

[Isabelle]

~UPDATE~

So they look MUCH better now, they are a very light pink, a far cry from the dark red they were a few weeks ago. *crosses fingers*

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