Wound on Foot

[Nykki]

Hi everyone,

Today Snowflake (formally known as Bunny  ) was running around his room as usual and I went to put him in his cage to run the vacuum (hay everywhere but thats another story…) and Snowflake had a red spot on the bottom of his rear foot.  I scooped him up and took a closer look and seen it was bleeding.  It is not like a puncture wound, more like a small piece of his skin lifted to form a flap.  I’m not exactly sure what cut him because the room is completely bunny proofed or so I thought.  Could it have been caused from his cage?? 

Anyways, I cleaned his cage out and put a towel in it.  The towel is light colored and his wound bled about a nickle sized amount and stopped.  I left him in his cage for a bit to calm down after being picked up then looked at it again.  He had cleaned the area so good it was hard to see which foot it was.  So my point is what should I do for him?? Should I leave him in his cage which he poops everywhere in or let him roam free where he won’t be sitting in poop?  (He still goes to his cage to use the bathroom though)   I have betadine, do you guys think I should clean it out?  I’ve read rabbits get abcesses fairly easily and I’m worried about Snowflake.  Thanks for any help!

Nykki

[jerseygirl]

Hi Nykki. Snowflake is what we suspected to be a rex breed? The rexes are very prone to sore hocks. You have to be extra protective of their feet. Does he have a solid cage floor?
 

[Nykki]

Hi Jerseygirl!

Yes, the cage bottom is solid plastic. Up until a week ago there was carefresh bedding and Yesterdays News in the litter box. Now there is just a couple layers of fleece and his litter box is the same. He constantly moves the fleece around and spends most of his time in the cage just on the plastic. He also spends a lot of time outside the cage on the carpeted floor (or on my bed!).
Thanks!

[BinkyBunny]

How long have you had her? This may have also started before you even got her, and it’s true that Rex breeds are very susceptible to this even when you give soft bedding etc.

Be sure to keep her nails trimmed as long nails will add pressure to the hock.

Since her hock is already pretty sore and bleeding, I would recommend taking her to the vet to get some topical antibiotics and ointments – They also may choose to give her oral antibiotics if it is bad enough.

Here is a great  article from the House Rabbit Network about sore hocks http://www.rabbitnetwork.org/articles/sorehocks.shtml

Keep us updated!

[Nykki]

Thanks BinkyBunny!
I’ve had Snowflake about 3 to 3 1/2 weeks. I looked at his other foot and it is callused but doesn’t look sore.
I just read the article and it said New-Skin has been effective in treating sore hocks. Anyone ever tried it?

[BinkyBunny]

I read that too, and I always have a hard time imagining that a bunny would actually leave it alone and not lick it, but maybe someone else who has used it would be able to help. Sorry that I can’t help with answering this one.

[RabbitPam]

I had a mini rex and ended up using only carefresh litter because of his sensitive feet. He actually healed well, but the red spots stayed uncovered most of his life, ie. the fur didn’t grow back on those spots. He also preferred the plastic floors, so don’t worry if he pushes away the fleece. That’s fine to let him tell you what’s the most comfortable.

Definitely take him to the vet for some ointment to treat it to avoid infection. It may flare up from time to time, so now’s a good time to get the right meds in the house.

[Sarita]

I’m not sure I would try the nu-skin without consent of the vet.

My vet has given me silvadene for the calloused areas as needed – silvadene is also great for urine scald – this was originally developed for burn victims so you can imagine how soothing it is.

[MooBunnay]

I agree that it is probably best for a vet to tell you what to do, because I would imagine that if you put anything on his feet he will groom it off! Is your litter absorbent enough that it absorbs all of his urine? If he is putting his feet in his urine that might lead to increased irritation on his feet. For my bunnies, I put a layer of hay over their litter so that they are not standing directly on the litter itself. They seem to like that, and I think they also enjoy eating and pooping at the same time

[Nykki]

Thanks guys,
I have Yesterdays News in his litter box and these last couple of days I tried putting a layer of Carefresh on top but he just digs and kicks its everywhere. I tried the hay and the same thing. He rearranges everything other than the Yesterdays News out of his litter box. I don’t see him spend a whole lot of time in the box anyways and I dump it at least nightly.

I also called the vet and explained the situation/ described everything and was told that if anything got worse call ASAP but if not, Snowflake has a vet appointment the 18th. The vet is around 30 -45 minutes away and I’m worried about transporting a rabbit. He will be riding in a plastic cat carrier of course but how else can I minimize stress?? And he doesn’t like to be held/restrained (like most rabbits) so how do exams usually go over with your bunnies?

[Sarita]

Hi Nykki, none of my rabbits like the ride either and they are always stressed – you can try some Rescue Remedy to see if that will help minimize the stress but I think there is never a way to make it totally unstressful (for you or for Snowflake). Make sure that you have plenty of towels or lambskin bedding in the bottom of the carrier (not newspaper) to keep him comfortable and from sliding around in the carrier.

[BinkyBunny]

Rucy and Bailey were great, but Jack, he’s a nightmare. He’ll try and bite and kick. I have a warning note on the carrier for vet techs who have to take him to the back for tests. And when he came back from surgery, the vet was joking about how much energy he had (a nice way of saying how feisty he was!) She did say he tried to bite, but the fact that I gave warning to the vet techs, they were prepared, so they didn’t actually get bit.

I’ve only had Vivian a few months, but she had her visit for just regular check-up right after I adopted her and she didn’t hesitate to growl and try and bite the vet. However, she has calmed down quite a bit since she’s been here. (Rucy used to be a real fiesty gal too when I adopted her, but she calmed down and was a dream at the vets.)

I’ll have to try Rescue Remedy too.

For now the only thing I do is prepare the vet and staff so they can act fast, and try and do their best to work quickly to minimize stress and maximize their safety. LOL

[RabbitPam]

That’s a good tip about putting a warning note on the carrier, BB. My vet’s tech complained about Sammy’s “Rabbitude” after her spay, so I think I’ll do that.

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