Somethings not right about how my buck moves

[Preitler]

Hi,

Well, something is off. When he hops, it does make a sound, his rear feet impacting heavily, not hopping on toes, but whole feet. When he turns when sitting, he does it on his rear hocks, not like every other bunny on the toes.

There's also the way he sleeps, his hind legs stretched straight forward. It kind of seems that he tries to get his anus to the cool floor. I've been to the vet, she seemed alert and curious but could not point out what's wrong.

Any Ideas?

 

[JBun]

Were any xrays done?

 

[Preitler]

No?

 

[JBun]

It sounds like it could possibly be a joint or spinal problem. Maybe arthritis or a back injury. You could ask your vet about doing a trial on meloxicam to see if that helps at all. I know when one of my rabbits got old and developed arthritis/spondylosis, it affected how she moved a lot.

Or it could be some other internal problem, and if so having tests done would really be the only way to pinpoint the problem.

 

[Preitler]

Now that you mention it, she did ask if he fell somewhere, gosh, that boy is climbing everywhere, thinking he's some kind of goat. I once plucked him off of an open, swinging hutch door 1.5m (5 feet) off the ground. He sure fell some times. He's just, what, 4 years old, so it shouldn't be athritis, right? (Would be really bad news since he's my herd buck)

Would Ibuprofen work too instead of meloxicam, just to see if it changes behaviour? I used it at some emergencies with no ill effect.

That symptoms are very symmetric.

 

[JBun]

Ibuprofen is more apt to cause gastric issues than meloxicam. It is on the safe meds list, but I wouldn't use it more than for a dose or two, certainly not ever long term like can be done with meloxicam. Best to consult with your vet about it though.
http://www.medirabbit.com/Safe_medication/Analgesics/safe_analgesics.htm
http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00Chem/ChComplex/Ibuprofen.htm

 

[Preitler]

The quesion is, if I do an xray, what can be done about it? I do not think spinal surgery on a rabbit is something any vet around here does, but well, asking isn't that expensive. What would be alternative treatments?

(Edited post above)

 

[Preitler]

Well, it got slowly worse, and after a visit to the vet and two x-rays, it's clear that it's his hip joints, mainly the right one, Athrosis. No way to tell the cause, I guess, he's on Metacam for a week now. That really does make a difference.

He's still limping and lieing in odd positions, but he's much more happy now, it obviously did hurt.

There's just the issue of where to get cheap Metacam, the little bottle from the vet costs me as much as I spend to feed myself each day, and with the prospect to not being able to return to work full time for at least half a year, or until a covid vaccine is worldwide available, so that is a somewhat bad thing.

Can anyone give me tips, or even help me to order that 180ml bottle?

https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/metacam-oral-suspension-for-dogs

 

[JBun]

Do you have a pharmacy that will compound it? If your vet will write you a prescription that will last a while, that was the cheapest method I found of getting it. Or an off brand like meloxidyl, and getting a larger bottle of that, like 100-200ml

To order online or get it compounded, tell your vet you would like to order it online, then follow the online companies instructions. Usually you place the order and they phone your vet to get the prescription approved. Or to have it compounded, have your vet phone the prescription in to your pharmacy.

The very cheapest would be getting tablets and mashing them up yourself, then mixing with juice or syrup to administer. But then you have to accurarately divide the tablet into the correct dose.

 

[Jasminebunny]

Well, it got slowly worse, and after a visit to the vet and two x-rays, it's clear that it's his hip joints, mainly the right one, Athrosis. No way to tell the cause, I guess, he's on Metacam for a week now. That really does make a difference.

He's still limping and lieing in odd positions, but he's much more happy now, it obviously did hurt.

There's just the issue of where to get cheap Metacam, the little bottle from the vet costs me as much as I spend to feed myself each day, and with the prospect to not being able to return to work full time for at least half a year, or until a covid vaccine is worldwide available, so that is a somewhat bad thing.

Can anyone give me tips, or even help me to order that 180ml bottle?

https://www.petdrugsonline.co.uk/metacam-oral-suspension-for-dogs

Hope your bunny gets better!

 

[Preitler]

Thanks.
I'll need to start to talk to people *sigh*...

 

[Cluckin'Bunny]

I'm sorry about your bunny.