How to tell if I rabbit breaks something.

[PuckWrangler]

I have had my rabbit maybe a month and he is about 16-20 weeks old. I've been hearing from the get-go from my veet, online forums, websites, and rabbit info books abouthow easily rabbits can break their legs, back, feet and such just by struggling when being picked up, thumping their feet, or kicking.

Puck is fine, I have no worries that he MIGHT have a broken leg, I'm just wondering how I would tell if he did. Every time he tries to jump somewhere and misses and falls down, or when he thumps his leg really had when he's being grumpy, or when I try (unsuccessfully) to pick him up the way my vet showed me, I'm initially afraid that he might break something.

I couldn't find any signs of a broken foot or leg or back in the forums already. I'm assuming there would be a limp ordisfiguration int he case of a broken foot or leg, and paralysis/death in the case of a broken back.

Are there other signs? Being prey animals, would a rabbit possibly break something and no show any sign at all?

Thanks for the info!

 

[Pipp]

Most of the time they just get very still, they don't hop or move much at all.

They are designed for jumping and thumping, so they're not THAT delicate. A lot of injuries come from being kept in a small cage and doing their 'bunny 500' in there, but if he has room to run and/or hop in a large cage or a ton of 'out' time, he should be fine.

If you're holding him with his back pressed against your body with one hand tight on his chest and the other supporting his bum, he should only be able to kick the air and can't do any damage.

Try sitting on the floor with him in a pen or small area and practice picking up and holding him on your lap (but let him go when he struggles), with little treats (I use single oat flakes or bits of apple skin) to compensate for the stress.

Pipp makes all kinds of weird jumps and hops, but the only time she was injured was when she slipped sideways off the arm of my chair -- a slow, short fall, but it still sprained her leg. She stopped hopping for a couple of days. But no bone damage.

They're pretty sturdy as long as they're not forced into unusual movements, which is why bathing a rabbit is so dangerous. They can twist or slip while struggling.

Nice to see concerned bunny slaves!!


sas :bunnydance:

 

[tonyshuman]

You're right, there would be paralysis, death, or at least a loss of mobility if the spine was broken. Often times the rabbit will scream when a bone is broken, due to the pain. Other than limping, hopping funny, excessive grooming of one limb, the only signs will be general pain signs. These include tooth grinding (which is distinct from tooth purring), sitting in an awkward position or different location than normal, hiding more, breathing and heart rate can be affected (usually increased), and temperature may change (cold=shock). A safe height for a normal-sized rabbit to jump is probably no more than 3 feet (unless you're doing rabbit hopping competitions ), and dwarves and young bunnies, I'd say no more than 2 feet. Just don't allow him to have unsupervised access to things that are higher than that. We had a very tragic accidental death on here not long ago--the owner had the bunny on top of her clothes dresser and walked away for a second to get something, the bunny jumped off, and broke its spine. It was something that you couldn't really predict would happen, and it was very sad and unexpected--also a sign that sometimes bad things happen and you can't do a lot about it.

The best thing you can do to keep Puck safe is to keep him in a nice, roomy cage so he doesn't get frustrated, have good flooring so his feet don't get stuck in wires, don't let him be near large drop-offs unsupervised, watch where you walk (this happens a lot), and hold and carry him properly. I think bunnies could technically fracture a leg from thumping, but it's really rare and only occurs in captured wild rabbits, I think. I have heard of jack rabbits being so scared of captivity that they kill themselves in trying to escape--I've never heard of a domsesticated bunny breaking bones out of frustration, fear, or anger, except if confined to a very small cage.

Edit: I wanted to add that Tony does a lot of trying to jump up places (the couch) and not making it. He never gets hurt from this, just embarrassed and a bit confused. To be honest, it's one of the most hilarious things he does.

 

[PuckWrangler]

Thanks for the info!

I'm still trying to get the hang of picking him up. I've tried having him facing away from me, toward me, and with his side toward me and he always struggles so I let him go and he runs away. He only lets me pick him up with no fuss when I'm at the vet. He's not neutered so he might be more willing after that little snip.

Unfortunately no matter how closely I watch him, he still jumps onto my bed and computer desk (both about 3 or 3.5 feet) but he's perfectly comfortable jumping down as well. Sometimes he does bunny 500s around my room and skids into the bed, and that can be loud, but he usually just runs off again.

His cage is a large dog cage, and I let him out whenever I'm in my room for a period of time, and at least 2 consecutive hours a night, but it usually adds up to more when you count the 20 and 30 minute clips throughout the day.

 

[Pipp]

What kind of bunny is Puck? And can you put your location in your profile? That will help us help you.

My dwarf, Pipp, is just a little 2-lb thing and she jumps up onto everything with no effort. (She's not caged).

A cage built from wire shelving panels may allow a bit more hopping activity because you can put in a shelf. A well toned bunny is less prone to injury. I have a little cage that's two panels square with a shelf covering 3/4 of the area -- more like a second floor. Its small but quite effective.


sas :bunnydance:

 

[PuckWrangler]

I don't know what kind he is. I adopted him from someone and she didn't know his breed or his parents (so unfortunately I don't know if he's genetically prone to disease). I haven't seen any rabbit photos that look like him though so he may just be a mutt. He's about the size of a smallish cat, 2 lbs last time I took him to the vet and has grown since. He has upright ears and is rather lean and long.

I'd take photos but he moves too quickly. All the photos turn out blurry.

And I'll fix the location on my profile, thanks.