Stained fur

[ZakuraRabbit]

(Not sure if this is the right place to put this but I guess it COULD eventually lead to a health-problem...)

One of the rabbits at work has a really funny fur at some places (Mainly the belly and back feet).
Its yellow (the rabbit is mainly white) and looks wet all the time, yet its really dry and stiff.
At first I thought it was because his cage was dirty (he was on straw because they had nothing else to put in his cage:? Been telling my boss to get something that actually absorbs for a while...its a pain to clean) so I cleaned the hutch and hoped he would clean himself, but he hasn't been able to it seems.
Yesterday I tried to wash him of myself with a wet paper, I got it a bit better I think but it still doesn't look very isolating.
Any tips on how to get his coat back to normal? He's an outdoor rabbit (up in the cold north Norway) so its pretty important his fur isolates, and I can't very well shave him of or he'd be naked at at least one leg:cry:

Here's what the fur looks like. First picture is his feet, the other is his leg.
The fur on his back is normal.

 

[tonyshuman]

It looks like it could be the beginnings of urine scald. This can be a sign of bladder infection, or general incontinence. Check out our thread on Urinary Tract Problems: http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12052&forum_id=10 . I think he needs to have a urinalysis done to check for any bladder issues.

Another possibility is that he can't clean himself. How is his mobility? Is he overweight in a way that keeps him from cleaning that area? Might he have spinal arthritis or some other spinal problem that limits how well he can reach his bum?

I agree that it could be bad for him in the winter, and it also could be a sign of something else bad right now. Good luck!

 

[Maureen Las]

Is it greasy feeling?

I have no idea what this could be if he is not wet and sitting in his own pee...
his coat looks really rough and greasy or wet

I am hoping that someone else can help

Ireally don't know :expressionless

examine the skin under the fur that looks greasy

maybe this is created by a skin condition?

i will be interested in others thoughts...
Do you know the conditions that he lived in prior to you getting him?

 

[ZakuraRabbit]

He's not mine. He lives at a farm/kindergarden I work at.
And he looks perfectly fine otherwise. He jumps around in his hutch normally. And its not really greasy either...its completely dry. His skin looks okay too.

 

[Maureen Las]

I'm pming Randy as he may know

 

[Maureen Las]

Does he live outside;?
maybe he is just very dirty and it has dried

anyway I pmd Randy

 

[ZakuraRabbit]

Like I said in the first post:
ZakuraRabbit wrote:

He's an outdoor rabbit (up in the cold north Norway) so its pretty important his fur isolates, and I can't very well shave him of or he'd be naked at at least one leg:cry:

 

[Maureen Las]

Sorry
I read a lot of threads and miss thing now and then...
Ijust wondered if he had gotten wet and then dried many times


Now I'm thinking that if he is bedded on straw that the urine may well sit on the top of the straw for awhile thus getting him wet; it could be the bedding material

you are right in that he needs more absorbent bedding

 

[ra7751]

Unusual problem. My first thought....based on the pics and the physical description....is the early signs of a urinary issue. It could be a medical issue....bladder sludge/calcifications, UTI and possibly the early presentation of EC. Could also be neurological. I have had a rabbit (and she ultimately developed EC) that would sit in her urine....and she would also barber herself to some degree which led to some unusual patches of fur. I think this is going to be one of those things that the root cause might not be so much identified as possibilites eliminated. If it's possible....I would do a blood panel with an EC titer (this titer might not be readily available in Norway as there are only a few labs in the US that can titer for EC). And I would do a full urinalysis. And just because I have an inquiring mind....I would have to do a skin scraping on the affected area just to see if something is there....in this case even a fungal issue. And it could be the result of past urine scald that has damaged the hair follicles.

Just wondering if you can find out her exact diet.....and see if you can get a handle on the stress level in her environment. It's amazing how diet can affect overall health. MBD, which isn't all that common but still possible....can lead to all sorts of odd issues. We recently received some grey squirrels from a rehabber that had really wirey type fur....and no teeth. All a nutritional issue...Metabolic Bone Disease.

I hope there can be some pointed diagnostics with this rabbit. I think it will be interesting to find out exactly what is going on. But until there are some labs performed to either point us in a direction....or in a different direction entirely....I don't think we can make a good call on this one at this point. I think we need to start with some lab info.

Randy