tripod bunny has a limp

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Aldamar

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Hartford county, Connecticut, USA
Hullo all,

I'm the proud owner of a miracle bunny who survived amputation of a front leg given awful odds, and my little hero has been doing well overall. He's a five month old cottontail, eats, drinks, and does all his business normally.

This morning I noticed he was falling over more then usual and suspected maybe his Balance was of a bit. When I had him out in the kitchen to play for a but, though, I noticed him run sort of sideways. On further inspection, it looks like he is limping with an injured right hind leg. This is poor fun for Canolli, since his right foreleg doesn't exist any more.

Anyway, ideas what it could be and how to properly diagnose? My vet is great, however their office is closed for this week while they do annual maintenance.

Thanks as always for your help!

-Al
 
Thanks for the dosing link! I did give him a very small dose of Metacam today and wandered off to work. Me mum sent me some pictures throughout the day - he is apparently very happy to explore, and she was able to move both legs without meeting resistance from the rabbit (IE no pain).

I poked around online a little bit, and found a couple videos that looked similar to what Canolli is doing. He falls over while trying to walk around - I thought originally that this was musculoskeletal, but now I'm reconsidering whether he has something else wrong.

Any thoughts from anyone? I've read some scary words today (ataxia), and some less scary ones (ear infection), and wanted to hear everyone's thoughts. It seems weird that he would develop an ear infection while on antibiotics, but I'm no professional (he has been on orbofloxacin for a couple months now).

If there are any leads on the best way to check / diagnose anything, that would be great.

- Al
 
So my fine gentleman can move around still - he had a Grand time today in the kitchen exploring - and is laying in his cage. I checked in on him, and he was laying stretched out on his belly. His back didn't quite look right to a paranoid bunny dad, so I'm wondering if he could have a back injury.

I took this picture of him sitting up - can I get some opinions on how this looks? Trying to see if this is worth calling the vet as an emergency during their week off, etc. etc.



Much appreciated,

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Is he sitting or moving in this shot? If he was sitting, how long does he stay in that position?

Did the metacam make him seem more comfortable?


sas :clover:
 
He is active, but his gait is disrupted in the rear. When he wants to he can move quickly, and he jumped up onto a mini chair yesterday (maybe 6-9 inches high) so he can jump. He falls over often, and sometimes runs sideways however. When he is in his cage he lays down a lot - but maybe he just likes laying down? His lifestyle changes so much and so often that it's hard to peg "norms" down on him right now.

I called a vet referred on my usual vets answering machine while they are closed this week, and he recommended we just wait until my Canolli's regular Dr. is in since he eats, drinks, etc.

Metacam hasn't really made any noticeable impact, but rabbits also often hide their symptoms. That said, since I suspect he may have a mild traumatic spinal injury, to prevent inflammation and further damage I'm going to keep him on a low dose (.1ml) of metacam until Monday.

- Al
 
Be sure to check the rear legs/feet for 'sore hocks' (hair loss, sores or inflammation on the part of the foot that sits on the ground- opposite end the feet are at). Some rabbits, particularly large ones, with a missing leg, will often put more weight than normal on the remaining legs, increasing the chances for causing 'sore hocks'. See your RDVM if this is the case.
 
Well, first and foremost surprise! Canolli isn't a he, she is a she we discovered yesterday. That was the least obtrusive news.

An xray showed what I thought - there was some spinal trouble happening. In particular, it looks like there's infection pressing against Canollis spine from underneath (probably a relic from the initial cat attack). She is now on a very aggressive antibiotic regimen to try to fight it off - surgery is extremely likely to result in full lower body paralysis, so that will be a last resort...

Wish us luck.
 
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