Splay leg?

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HeatherMarie

HeatherMarie

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For the last couple of days Mama bunny's back right leg has looked kind of funny. She just drags it behind her, but she CAN move it, she tries to itch with it but it just doesn't work right. She's eating drinking and pooping normally and still moving around with the best of them. I just called the vet and set up an appointent for the 27th, and she said it sounded like splay leg and if it was it's no big deal she will still live a full & happy life.



basically i just want to know if any of your bunnies have had splay legs and to learn a little more about it. i used the search bar on rabbitsonline.net here and nothing much came up and i've tried googling it and nothing satisfactory. after i get off work i'm going to look it up in my many bunny books, i was just hoping for some first hand experience. anything anyone can share with me will be greatly appreciated! thanks!
 
How old is she? Normally splayed legs develop very young while the rabbits are hitting their little growth spirts. I've had a doe injur herself before though and she always held that leg a little cocked out to the side, you could really only notice it when she'd run... I couldn't find any breaks though. Maybe she's hurt herself and the vet might want to do some x-rays.
 
She's about 1.5 yrs old. And I just noticed it about 3 days ago, she was out running around and I noticed she wasn't playing with the other bunnies so I went and saw her little hip bone was jutting out at an odd angle. but like i said she never made any noise of being in pain whenever it might have happened or even now. she lets me touch it (i was feeling on it to make sure it wasn't broken) and doesn't care. i don't know. and all these picture of "splay legged buns" on the internet are with their legs all flat out on all four sides and she's not like that. it's just her one back right leg and it still moves it just kinda hobbles or drags behind her....so i don't know :\
 
Hi there, I would get her into the vet as soon as possible as I think the 27th is too far away.

This could be many things- if her hip looks like it is at an odd angle and this came on suddenly, it could actually be a fractured hip. It may not be painful for her if it is pinching a nerve, but the longer it sits like that the more damage it will do to the nerves and surrounding tissue.

This is not splay leg since that is a condition that the rabbit is born with.

It does not sound like your vet is knowledgeable, if she were and also knew your rabbits age and how this came on in a matter of days she would never had suggested splay leg or that it is no big deal.

Other than a dislocated hip, this could be hind leg weakness. This can be caused by E. cuniculi.

Please read this about E. cuniculi: http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=14471&forum_id=10

And hind leg weakness/paralysis: http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12044&forum_id=10

It really sounds like a hip dislocation to me though. I would get her in today for an emergency appointment at a different vet. Can we help you find a vet in your location? She may not appear to be in pain but she might in fact be very painful. I am glad you posted this, it shows your concern and that you want to help her.
 
That is the vet that I had called and she said that it was something she could have been born with and not just shown up til now, and if she starts changing her eating habits or showing pain then to bring her into the emergency. so should i still go with what that vet said or......?

also, good news, i'm slowly training mama to be a house bun with full roaming priveleges and when i let her out this morning when i woke up she has a LOT more use of her leg, it's practically normal. how the hip was kinda crooked-it is no longer. she still kinda favors it, but it's pretty much back to regular....so confused.....
 
Since it appears to come and go, and since it came up later in life, it is probably not splay leg, as others have said. I agree that you should go to the vet very soon, as it is either an acute injury to the bone, nerve, joint, etc., or EC.

Hind leg paralysis (in particular in one of the legs) is an early sign of EC. EC can be a devastating disease but it can be treated if caught early and treated correctly. You will, however, need a very rabbit savvy vet who is very motivated to treat Widget and is willing to try new treatments that may not be in the veterinary textbooks in order to kick it. The member Randy has a wildlife rescue and sanctuary for disabled bunnies, and he has treated it successfully with some off-label treatments, I beleive. I don't recall his membername though. It might be worth PM'ing him (ra7551? something like that) to alert him to this thread and see if he has any vet contacts in your area. Other early signs of EC are increased urine output and water intake, so keep an eye out for that.

If it is an acute injury, it is probably very painful for her and she needs to get to the vet very soon for that. Unlike hamsters, rabbits don't get "cage paralysis" which is just a hind leg weakening that can be treated if the hamster is given more exercise, so just giving her more exercise time is not going to treat it.

BEST of luck to you and your crew. I hope it's just a small injury that can be treated easily. If not, I hope you can get her to a good vet and she can be another EC success story.:hug:
 
I don't think it sounds like splay leg, either. I also don't really think it would be EC, that usually shows up in the left hind leg, not the right. My bet would be injury of some sort, and if it were me I wouldNOT be waiting until the 27th. It needs to be taken care of now.
 
Thank you for all your help, I am going to re-call the vet and set up something for asap. i just believed that she knew what she was talking about when she said it was no big deal. i will keep you posted!
 
Keep us posted HeatherMarie, is does sound like EC as the others have mentioned.:( I hope not, but, let us know how she is doing and what is going on and what the vet says.;)
 
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