Bunny's leg not working well after being under anasthesia

[Jen1717]

Hi, So I took my rabbit, Wally, into the vet today, he had to get his molars filed because they had spurs on them, so they put him under anasthetic and did the procedure, which went fine.
I took him home about an hour after he initially came out of it, as I had to go to work and wouldn't be done until they were closed.
He was quite floppy and drowsy when I took him home, but I expected that, and made him comfortable with everything he needed nearby.
It is now 6+ hours since I brought him home, and he isn't able to use his right front leg, it's like the muscles aren't working properly, as his leg is quite tight against his body.
I worried that something was damaged when he was under...or that the anasthetic has affected his nervous/muscular system somehow...

Has anyone had an experience like this before, is it just taking him a little longer to fully come out of it?

Any advice, words of wisdom, etc would be appreciated!

Thanks

Jen

 

[Pipp]

I haven't had that specifically happen, but I've had buns act oddly for the first 12 to 24 hours when coming out from under.

I'd let him stay completely quiet, don't try and see if he's still reacting like that for awhile, and see how he is after a looong rest.

Did they give him post-op main meds? The filing may not hurt, but having his mouth in the brace makes it pretty stiff and sore.

Is he showing interest in food yet? I'm not too concerned if mine go 12 to 18 hours or so, but 24 hours, it's back to the vet. (Although Pipp would always start eating after 23 hours in her early spurs op days, she loves giving me a heart attack).

Please give us updates as to how Wally's doing as often as you can.

sas

:goodluckray:

 

[JimD]

I would put a call in to the vet. Leave a message if necessary/possible.

I've also had buns react unusually when coming out from under.

Treat for shock.
Keep him warm and under frequent observation.
Restrict his activity as much as possible without stressing him.

As already asked....Any pain meds sent home , or given by the vet post op?

ray:

 

[Jen1717]

I wasn't given any pain meds to take home, which I didn't think about until the vet was closed....but I am going to call first thing in the morning and see if it's something he might need still.
He eats a little every once in a while, and will drink water/pedialyte eagerly
It's mainly just that his right leg is tight against his side, he doesn't use it when he walks (which he isn't doing much of, but that doesn't concern me too much, he's still kind of grooggy)
The skin surrounding his right leg is all loose, and feels like it might be a bit swollen.

argh waiting is hard...

Jen

 

[Maureen Las]

I am wondering if his leg was sonehow injured during the procedure; nothing like this has ever happened to me and my bun has been through a lot of dentals.
Do as the others above have instructed keeping him warm enough, quiet and hydrated and call the vet ASAP>

 

[Jen1717]

Yea, I thought about that too, as he was quite unstable when I brought him home, so he may have fallen on it, or twisted it funny or something...in which case it's not necessarily a big concern, it will just take time to heal...
he does put it down a little when he is sitting/standing, but keeps it up close to his side when he is walking around, and he doesn't seem to keen to hop in and out of his cage on his own. But I don't think it's broken, as he lets me move it around and put pressure around the bone, and he doesnt flinch or make any sort of noise/loud grinding, which I think he would do if it was painful (ie. broken)
I left a message for my vet (West Arbutus Clinic in Vancouver) so I'm hoping they will call me before 9am tomorrow.
I just hope it's still some sort of effect of him coming out of the anasthetic...but who knows!!

 

[Maureen Las]

Sometimes a rabbit can can actually injure himself by jerking really hard..when a bun is anesthesized and in surgery it is difficult to know what is going on in there ...

don't try to force him to move it or use it ..just let it come back naturally

 

[Maureen Las]

How is your bun ?; did you go back to the vet ?
Let us know

 

[tonyshuman]

Yikes. Don't know what went on here. Did they take blood for tests from that leg? Any chance they injured it (hit a nerve or tendon, etc) while drawing blood? I hope the vet can see him again soon and figure out what the problem is.

 

[JimD]

tonyshuman wrote:

Yikes. Don't know what went on here. Did they take blood for tests from that leg? Any chance they injured it (hit a nerve or tendon, etc) while drawing blood?

Kind of what I was thinking, too.

Any updates, Jen? How's Wally doing?

ray:

 

[Jen1717]

Took him back today, the vet thinks it is inflamed soft tissue, she felt for fractures/breaks and didn't find any.
He also had the fluidy-sac in the area of the arm.
And now I just discovered a second fluidy-sac under his stomach area, I'm freaking out here, I don't know what is wrong with him.
He is really tired looking, and when he licks me it feels pretty warm...possible fever???
The vet also gave us some antibiotics in case the fluidy-sac is some sort of infection, so he has had a dose of that as well as some anti-inflammatories (meloxacam?)

 

[Jen1717]

So I just called Dr. Martinez (his housecall phone number) and I told him the whole story, and he thinks that it is likely due to the subcutaneous fluids they gave him, he thinks they probably gave him too much, and that is what the fluidy-sacs are, and that itll just take longer for them to absorb because he probably wasn't very dehydrated to begin with.
sigh... i sure hope he is right!

 

[Maureen Las]

I would be somehat concerned that the sq fluids were contaminated which would cause a systemic infection,; I don't knowany other reason fluid sacs would be warm How is his fatigue ? How is his leg?

 

[tonyshuman]

hmm that is interesting. Watch for a few days to make sure the vet is right.

 

[Pipp]

For some reason I didn't get notifications this thread was updated, sorry!

But yes, I agree it is likely just to be inflammation or a bruised ligament or something that may take a couple of days to right itself. Pipp had a 'sprain' from falling off my chair, she did that for a couple of days, but no lasting damage.

Glad you connected with Martinez.

Did Geronimo (a.k.a. Dr. Piano if he passed his CDN exam) do the molar spurs at Arbutus?

Metacam/meloxicam is a pain killer and anti-inflammatory, that's what I would recommend. Really needs to be taken with food and only given to a well-hydrated bunny.

Also good that you took him back to Arbutus. I assume they didn't charge you for the visit.

Is Wally eating and drinking normally? Pipp is lackluster for a few days after her spur surgery.

She also often has a very 'hot' tongue at various times, I've never thought of it as a 'fever' thing, but I haven't specifically looked at when and why.

I'm PM you my number, feel free to call anytime.


sas :bunnydance: