sore hocks?!

[Beka27]

i was trimming Meadow’s nails just now… (which is not an easy task at all) and i noticed that she has red sores on the bottom of her feet…  i’m assuming that’s sore hocks.  Stephen never had them and Meadow is cared for the exact same way.  is there something that predisposes some rabbits to sore hocks?  everything i found online about it just says not to use a wire-bottom cage, which of course, i don’t…  am i doing something wrong and i don’t even realize?

[Sarita]

Is this on the back feet? I think that weight sometimes has something to do with it. Also is Meadow a Rex? My rex has some calloused areas on her back feet and she’s never been on wire cages. I think the rexes because of their short fur have a predisposition to this too. They aren’t necessarily sore hocks but they are something you want to watch and make sure they don’t get dry and cracked – they can result in sore hocks if not taken care of – nails trimmed, soft flooring, obesity, poor hygiene, damp bedding, etc…

You might want to put something on them like silvadene to keep them moist so they don’t get all dried and cracked up if you are concerned about that.

[Beka27]

it’s on the back feet at the opposite end of the nails.  two small red dots.  she is a rex… maybe that has something to do with it?  they aren’t callous looking tho…they are actually red.  what is silvadene?  is it a kind of ointment or cream?

i have a really hard time trimming her nails.  Stephen would always let me, it was never a problem.  the vet said she has really long quicks, longer than normal, but it’s hard to get them trimmed on her, maybe that’s an issue too, that they’re not cut real close?  i think i’ve tried every technique to get them done and it’s nothing but problems.  i’m half tempted to take her to the pet store once a week or so to have them do it.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi Beka, I wrote you a nice post and then it disappeared again! Argh! So anyway, most of it was just along the lines of what Sarita (sorry I had mistakenly put Osprey) posted and that you are not doing anything wrong. Some rabbits are predisposed to it because the fur on their hind legs is thinner and their weight too. My Daffodil had this problem.  There are a couple of things to do, soften every surface that your bun has the run of, no lineoleum or hardwood floors, and rough carpet or seagrass rugs can be like sandpaper. Rub vitamin E oil, Vaseline or Calendula cream on them to keep them soft & from breaking or cracking open.  I also checked out the HRS web site and found a remedy that suggested placing tea bags on them to toughen the skin. I hope this helps!

 

**My word my spelling is bad tonight! Sorry! I’ve been in a class all day long with lawyers so my mind is mush.

[Sarita]

Silvadene is a cream you can get from the vet that is used on burn victims among other things. It helps keep the area moist. It is a sulfa drug – ask your vet about it for her calloused areas. Calendula is also nice and it does not have to be prescribed. I think with the back nails (and I totally understand about uncooperative rabbits) the only think you can do is to keep them trimmed as you can – it may seem like they have a longer quick too because more of the nail is exposed in these rex rabbits because of their fine short fur. Maybe you can just take her in regularly to the vet for a nail trim. I’m not sure you will get her to cooperate enough to place tea bags on her back feet though :~)

Also her back feet sound just like Emmy my rex’s back feet callouses. It’s just because they are rexes and have that short fur.

[Beka27]

thanks so much everyone!  when she goes in for her spay (only 9 more days… )   i will see if the vet tech will give me some pointers on how to restrain her to trim her nails.  Stephen was a larger rabbit too, so maybe i wasn’t so afraid of hurting him.  Meadow just seems so much more delicate.  i didn’t realize that the rex and mini rex rabbits have these sorts of problems more often.  i’ll try and do some more research on it too and see what else i can find out.

[osprey]

You have gotten great advice so far (I had never heard about the Calendula thing).  I will simply add that one of mine is a rex, and she has those same small areas of reddish/pink on her heels.  Curly Sue is a really thumpy bunny, and I suspect that she is injuring the area when she thumps on the wood floor.  She also has long quicks, I think this is a trait of rexes.  The only thing you can do to shorten them is to trim the nails more often, and just clip a tiny piece off.  This is called "tipping".  This is supposed to make the quick shrink.

 

[PocketFaeries]

It’s so wonderful to see the knowledge and experience of the forum members here come through for others!  I just love it!

I wanted to add that I don’t have any experience or advice on the red spots on the feet themselves, but just a few other tips in general. 

I really like the calendula cream idea over Vaseline (I’m not too fond of petroleum products because they work on a temporary basis but are not breathable even for human skin, so they invite a bevvy of bacteria and unwanted germs to get "stuck" with the moisture that is then trapped under the skin, which can cause WORSE dryness problems and cracking…and infections…later. This is why you see some people who use petroleum-based chap sticks constantly having to reapply and appear "addicted" to chap sticks). 

Also, for nail trimming, if you’ve got a vet nearby, I’d definitely recommend going to the vet every two weeks or so to get a trim done professionally for awhile.  It’s true that the quick on an animal will actually, naturally recede with regular nail trims (you don’t have to actually cut the quick…it will grow shorter as it adapts to routine and consistent trimmings of the nail tip). 

Some groomers will do this for like $5 if a vet isn’t nearby, and it sounds like from reading a lot of these posts in other threads that some bunny orgs do this as well for a nominal fee.

When you get comfortable handling it yourself, you can do what I call a "swaddle trim."  Take a towel and wrap your bun in the towel so that s/he can’t wiggle out.  This will actually feel relaxing once they get used to it, as it mimicks a tight space.  Gently find one paw and pull it out of the swaddle so that it’s the only one exposed, and trim.  When that’s done, stick it back in and pull out the next one.  Do this until all four paws are done. I’d recommend just starting with very little bits of the tip being trimmed off…if you get too ambitious the first time or so, you may end up clipping too much of the elongated quick, and might scare your bun and yourself which sets a negative tone for future clippings.  The idea is to make this a quick, simple, painless, and successful trim that is a positive interaction for both of you.

Make sure to treat with a favorite immediately after the trimming is complete.

I hope this helps!  Sorry to hear your little Meadow is having spots on the feet but it sounds like you’ve got it all under control now!

[PocketFaeries]

PS:  Just to clarify, in rereading my post, I didn’t specify that you must leave the animal’s head out of the towel!  I’m not assuming anyone here WOULD think they are supposed to wrap the head, but just in case, I wanted to note this.  Don’t wrap the head…just the body…so that the bun can still breathe open air, see you, and not panic. The swaddle works on the body and prevents him from wiggling and fighting away, or twisting while you trim.  This keeps your bun safe from any accidental movements that could make you inadvertently trim more than you wanted to.

[Beka27]

i know some rabbits (like my first bunny) will tolerate being turned onto their backs for trimming.  Meadow freaks and twists violently when turned on her back.  i think i’ll take her to the vet or a groomer for a couple months until i can figure out a way that works best for both of us.

[poopy]

My bun has had sore hocks since I’ve adopted her (its been a year). That means for a year she has been on carpet only and they haven’t gone away, so it probably is genetic. The funny thing is she has very thick padding on her feet too.

Honestly, if they aren’t infected, open, or bleeding, I would just leave it and monitor to make sure that doesn’t happen. Calendula can be risky- Dana Krempels advised against using it because it contains limonenes, which can be toxic to small animals.

[Deleted User]

My vet said to use A and D ointment with NO ZINC in it. THis can be smeared on the but to protect from pee burns too.

[Beka27]

this makes me feel better that i’m not the only person who’s been thru this.  i was feeling really bad at first like i was doing something horribly wrong…  thnaks guys!

[Scarlet_Rose]

No problem Beka! Pocketfaeries, thank you for sharing and the kind compliments! The swaddling you described is what we like to call the "bunny burritio."

Beka, also my Daff doesn’t like to be on her back for a nail trim so I’ll cradle her where she is sitting more upright or if she’s really feisty, I put her in the bunny-mummy pose, wrapped kinda loosely, sitting up and facing forward, pinned between my knees. 

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