I am Jude The Bunny Mom
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- May 24, 2018
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I am writing this for a few reasons, but the main reason is to give some hope and helpful information to any frantic, panicking bunny mom like I was one month ago. My bunny is a Lop Ear Dwarf. He's my 2nd rabbit child. His name is Lopshie and he is 12 yrs old and not neutered. My bun is so smart, loving and just my sweetest baby rabbit. From the day I brought him home, he has been the coolest bun. He was barely 6 weeks old and fit in the palm of my hand. I gave him his first bunny kiss right on the lips and, since he'd never been kissed before, he promptly bit my lip. I said "owwwww", with my lip still in his teeth. He immediately let up the pressure, but kept my lip in his teeth sooooo very gently. Then he let go and licked me. I knew right then this was one very smart little bunny. And for the next 12 yrs, Lopshie never disappointed. He weighs about 5 pounds, eats like a pig in a rabbit suit, and is VERY frisky. He only pees on me, which I know is pure love. Sometimes I wonder if I should have had him fixed, but hes such a "giant" among his dwarf buddies and seems to stay young and extremely frisky because he isn't fixed. I say he's being very "rabbitty" when he's trying to do obscene things to my toes! ANYWAY, hes always been playful, loving and healthy. About 3 yrs ago, he did get an ear infection and I got him to our family vet who gave him antibiotics. The infection was cured and i started learning alot about rabbit illnesses. We live in a small town and the closest " rabbit specialists" are 3 hours away. Our vet had a young woman, Dr. Deb Brinkman, who cared for Lopshie. Shes not a "specialist", but she is wonderfully trained and caring and she was very willing to learn about rabbits and their wellness. I think we both hit the internet and learned as we went along. I know it's fairly common for lop eared buns to have ear problems, and even though I made it a point to keep Lioshies ears really clean, he got an infection every spring. This April 28th, I noticed his right ear was smelling bad again, so I called Dr. DEB and got him right in. For once I wasn't freaked out. I knew what it was. Time for the Baytril. But Dr. Deb said " did you know his left front leg is fractured?" I was shell shocked! NO! I had wrapped him in his blanket my mom made for him, put him in his pet carrier and brought him right in. Sure enough, his little paw was just dangling. Dr. Deb took an xray and Lopshie's left front leg, (arm), was broken above his " elbow". I could not believe it. He must have done it when he was out of his house this morning while I cleaned his litter box. He did love to race around the house, chase the cats, do pinkies and circle my legs. What a little actor! I never noticed anything wrong. Now, Dr. Deb started saying things like "well, you know these things dont usually heal well. We cant do anything. It doesnt usually go well. And, well, he IS 12 yrs old and........" her voice was kind of trailing off. I knew instantly where she was going and I was having none of it. "NO. NO!" I stated my NO firmly, interrupting Dr. Deb mid sentence. I wanted no misunderstanding in any way. I was not entertaining that direction of thought AT ALL. "Okay, okay" Dr. Deb said right away. She was accepting that we needed a different solution. She treated Lopshie's ear and said she was going to refer us to a rabbit specialist in the nearest larger town, 3 hrs away. I left feeling anxious but trusting the specialist would help us. Well, boy was I in for a horrible surprise! My husband, Brad, and I discussed it when we got home. I decided to get on the net and read everything I could find on broken rabbit bones. Brad started calling any and all vets in the area. I was quite relieved to learn that rabbits actually did do very well healing from broken hind legs, front legs, even broken backs. Their little bones are so tiny and fragile. The hard part is finding a rabbit orthopedic surgeon or specialist that has the training AND the equipment to work on these tiny bones. I also learned that amputation was one solution for broken bones that couldnt be splintered or pinned. Rabbits do quite remarkably with 3 legs. I didnt want to go that route, but it was good to know it was an option. Now, if we could just find a doctor who could pin Bunny's leg back together! Price was another worry. Online I read that these injuries can run from $1000.00 to $4000.00. It's because there aren't many doctors who do it, let alone the difficulty in doing the actual surgery. Brad and I were going bat **** crazy trying to find a vet who could or would do this. The specialist Dr. Deb referred us to hadn't called back yet. It was now one week later. Lopshie had pain meds and antibiotic meds from Dr. Deb and was doing really great, considering. He was eating good, staying quiet and being the bestest little wabbit. He was doing his part really well. I kept him clean, loved him, groomed him, held him endlessly and made sure he got his meds on time. He would lick my hand when I checked on him in his little bunny bed, as if to say, " I love you, too, mommie. I know you're trying." It broke my freaking heart ! Why wasn't anyone calling me back? He couldnt just go on with his leg dangling for much longer. I worried about infection, loss of appetite, oh GOD, everything! No one did this kind of surgery. The vets told us that the break was up to high to splint so it had to be pinned. The bones are so tiny that you need specially sized drills and pins and they didnt have these things. Brad and I called over 30 vets, vet clinics, you name it within 200 miles. No one did this. The " specialist" we were referred to finally called 7 days later after over 10 calls from me. She was very cold and indifferent and stated bluntly that she would NOT operate on a 12yr old rabbit. She said it was a 3 hour operation and he wouldn't survive the anesthetic. Also, it would cost around $2500.00 to $3500.00 to amputate, more to do the pinning surgery. I was crushed. She had been my last hope! Now, after all this, was Lopshie going to die? Have to put him to sleep? I screamed to God for help. I begged him to send me a doctor who could help us! I also begged my mom to please ask GOD to help. Mom had been in Heaven since 2014 and everybody knew she held favor with God. One hour after my meltdown, Brad came home from work to tell me that Dr. Deb had called him and volunteered that they, (she and Dr. MEYER, our hometown vet) would do surgery for Lopshie. They would amputate his leg for us. No one else had even agreed to do that. That's why I was so distraught. I couldnt believe it! Our little local vets to the rescue! I was so thankful and relieved, I passed right out. Best sleep I'd had in 2 weeks. Loooong story short, Dr. Al Meyer did the surgery because Dr. Deb said he was FAST. Bunny was only under for 45 minutes. He did great during surgery. He came home that evening, alert and eating everything in site. They took his little arm off at the shoulder and he had 2 weeks of healing. His stitches came out last Friday and he is back to normal in every way. He enjoys his life, is happy and healthy. I knew he was healthy and strong and could survive this trauma and he DID! Please dont let anyone make you give up! If you know your baby and research everything you can, then YOU decide the right thing to do. I thank God that Dr. Deb was willing to reevaluate and find a better solution. Dont give up! Stand firm! I hope so much this might save some little lives that are loved so completely and unconditionally. Love to all you " bunny moms"!
