HIS NAIL FELL OFF

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alexandra the great

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Hello all.This JUST happened. I was in Bean's enclosure petting him and he started what I thought was his grooming. But he was only licking one paw. And then out of nowhere his nail just fell off!!
I was extremely startled. He just kept licking it.
I took him to the counter and counted them and he now only has 4 nails on his left paw. It was very hard to get a picture, but from what I can tell, the inner quick on his front left paw is exposed. I had to wet his paw so I could get all his fur out of the way for the picture.
And it is, in fact bleeding

Questions:
Has this happened to any of ya'll's rabbits?
Is this considered an emergency that I have to take him to the vet?
Are there remedies that I can give him at home?
Will it grow back?

Update: as I'm writing this he just keeps on licking his paw.
 

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Last edited:
Some more details include the fact that I cut his nails last week but I evidently didn't cut that one because it was on the inner side.
He turned a year old the other day and has only ever been to the vet once(who was not exotic)
 
Have you been to the vet? This has never happened to any of my buns so I don't really know, has he maybe eaten something unusual?
 
Hello Cheesepaws. No, i haven't been to the vet. This just happened and it's nearly midnight where I live. I'm a minor and can't drive myself. Unfortunately, it might be a huge hassle to get him to the vet in the morning because we have church tomorrow morning and my dad is a pastor and we only have one car soooo.......
 
Do they know about it yet? And if it's still bleeding you should protect it to keep the wound clean
yes, i've told my parents already. they're not as concerned about it as I am and they are currently asleep.
Should I bandage his paw? Is there any type of ointment I can put on it?
 
Yes I think bandaging is a good idea, make it a little damp maybe so that its more comfortable in the area he's hurt, and you should probably stay away from ointments unless you have one for bun injuries
 
If it's stopped bleeding, there's not really anything else that needs to be done. I wouldn't bandage a foot with just a broken nail, as it would likely lead bun to mess with it more and try to chew the bandage off. But I would recommend having your buns area clean, clean litter box, etc, to help prevent the wound from getting infected from a dirty environment.

If you want to go to the vet tomorrow, that's up to you. But as long as your bun is continuing to eat and drink normally, isn't showing signs of being in pain, and doesn't have any other injury to the foot, I don't know that there's anything else a vet would need to do. Though if your bun does stop eating or isn't eating very much from being in pain, or has signs of a possible leg injury, then your bun would need to be seen by a knowledgeable rabbit vet.

https://rabbit.org/veterinarians/
Once your bun is no longer trying to keep licking the area, what I would do is maybe put a light dab of plain triple antibiotic ointment (no added pain relief) on the nail bed, twice a day for a few days. It helps to distract bun with food or something, so it's not immediately trying to lick the ointment off, otherwise it won't do much good. Also I would keep an eye out for signs of infection (eg redness, inflammation, pus), and if any signs of infection did develop, I would get bun to the vet right away.

Though if in doubt about anything or what's safe to do for your bun, it's best to have your rabbit checked by an experienced rabbit vet.
 
If it's stopped bleeding, there's not really anything else that needs to be done. I wouldn't bandage a foot with just a broken nail, as it would likely lead bun to mess with it more and try to chew the bandage off. But I would recommend having your buns area clean, clean litter box, etc, to help prevent the wound from getting infected from a dirty environment.

If you want to go to the vet tomorrow, that's up to you. But as long as your bun is continuing to eat and drink normally, isn't showing signs of being in pain, and doesn't have any other injury to the foot, I don't know that there's anything else a vet would need to do. Though if your bun does stop eating or isn't eating very much from being in pain, or has signs of a possible leg injury, then your bun would need to be seen by a knowledgeable rabbit vet.

https://rabbit.org/veterinarians/
Once your bun is no longer trying to keep licking the area, what I would do is maybe put a light dab of plain triple antibiotic ointment (no added pain relief) on the nail bed, twice a day for a few days. It helps to distract bun with food or something, so it's not immediately trying to lick the ointment off, otherwise it won't do much good. Also I would keep an eye out for signs of infection (eg redness, inflammation, pus), and if any signs of infection did develop, I would get bun to the vet right away.

Though if in doubt about anything or what's safe to do for your bun, it's best to have your rabbit checked by an experienced rabbit vet.
thank you so much for the answer. =)
 
@alexandra the great this happened to my last bun, looked a lot like yours.
I noticed the nail laying on the floor before I was about to vacuum.
So of course I looked over her paws and didn't see anything wet (blood, puss or otherwise) just that all her nails were long.
I brought her to the vet and they clipped her nails. Never happened again.

With black bunnies it is super hard to see the "quick" and you MUST make sure you don't clip them too short or they'll bleed and can cause major infection.

Glad to read your bun isn't having issue due to the lost nail (the photos showed a bit of blood and a sore at the bed which you want to make sure heals well), however a trip to the vet to give the nail a look over, is a good idea to make sure.
 
@alexandra the great this happened to my last bun, looked a lot like yours.
I noticed the nail laying on the floor before I was about to vacuum.
So of course I looked over her paws and didn't see anything wet (blood, puss or otherwise) just that all her nails were long.
I brought her to the vet and they clipped her nails. Never happened again.

With black bunnies it is super hard to see the "quick" and you MUST make sure you don't clip them too short or they'll bleed and can cause major infection.

Glad to read your bun isn't having issue due to the lost nail (the photos showed a bit of blood and a sore at the bed which you want to make sure heals well), however a trip to the vet to give the nail a look over, is a good idea to make sure.
I actually went to cut Miley's nails and it fell off in the clippers 😂
I'm glad to say that he hasn't been licking his paw anymore since last night and he is acting completely normal. Thank you for the advice, and I'll definitely be monitoring it so it doesn't get infected
 
@alexandra the great this happened to my last bun, looked a lot like yours.
I noticed the nail laying on the floor before I was about to vacuum.
So of course I looked over her paws and didn't see anything wet (blood, puss or otherwise) just that all her nails were long.
I brought her to the vet and they clipped her nails. Never happened again.

With black bunnies it is super hard to see the "quick" and you MUST make sure you don't clip them too short or they'll bleed and can cause major infection.

Glad to read your bun isn't having issue due to the lost nail (the photos showed a bit of blood and a sore at the bed which you want to make sure heals well), however a trip to the vet to give the nail a look over, is a good idea to make sure.
Have you seen that video where the woman shows you how to clip buns nails? Sorry I forget her name but you could google her.
She takes the foot and then puts the clippers on the nail and gently and presses on the nail 3 times and if bun doesn’t pull back or show any fuss she actually cuts on the 3rd press as she knows bun is okay with that area to cut!
The woman who does Minx’s nails has used that process with no fuss or problems
Just passing this little trick along! Let me know if you’ve had any problems if Trying this!
 
Have you seen that video where the woman shows you how to clip buns nails? Sorry I forget her name but you could google her.
She takes the foot and then puts the clippers on the nail and gently and presses on the nail 3 times and if bun doesn’t pull back or show any fuss she actually cuts on the 3rd press as she knows bun is okay with that area to cut!
The woman who does Minx’s nails has used that process with no fuss or problems
Just passing this little trick along! Let me know if you’ve had any problems if Trying this!
Ive watched many vids, and have decided to leave it to a couple of ladies I have come and do my buns nails.
Anything that needs attention for their health is taken care of by their vet and their maintenance crew 🙂.
 

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