We had an appointment with our vet today to go over Nino's conscious Xray to look at this suspected arthritis. Just as we were leaving Mr Nino decided to oblige with his pain and bloat symptoms. Useful in a way as our reg vet hasn't seen Nino in his pain state for many months, normally whoever is on duty - so this was helpful really and we took the buns with us after all!:roll:
Some symptoms fell into place on examination and after seeing his Xrays. Rather peculiarly Nino was not bloated at this point - despite displaying his 'bloat' symptoms at home (he can blow up quite quickly however). On general examination our vet discovered that Nino is stiff to stand on his hind legs and arches his back, he remembered this from last week's exam and was looking for it. He has always reacted in this way to this position... but no one has ever picked up on it before. It explains a few things and a few excessive stretching and stiff behaviours he displays at home, especially after long periods of immobility (i.e. first thing in the morning when they come out of the hutch) I could kick myself for not putting two and two together before!
The Xray's were fascinating, the heads of his femurs are not smoothly rounded but oddly shaped, and the heads of his humerus are the same. We can not be sure but he does appear to have arthritic changes, but it is the odd shape of these bones that are a puzzle. His spine looks fine, no evidence of spondylosis, and there are certainly no bladder stones. It would fit that raising his pelvis to pee could be extremely painful - which would explain the pain he exhibits sometimes after trying, certainly over the last few weeks on and off, if it is athritis it would explain why it has been getting worse and his recurrent bouts of bloat from the chronic pain.
It is degenerative, I know that already. Our vet said what he was seeing he would expect to see on an 8yr old rabbit, not a 4yr old one
It looks like congenital bone malformation of some sort to me... but it could be purely arthritic changes... or both? hard to tell with these Xrays. But it certainly could explain ongoing pain sufficient to cause recurrent ileus and bloat throughout his lifetime, and getting worse as he gets older.
Vet needs some proper Xrays of his hip joints extended to make certain this is what we are seeing, so tomorrow morning Nino is having a GA and Xrays. We are going to get his skull Xray'd at the same time, get any mild spurs burred down, rule out everything else, and tommorrow afternoon pick him up and see the results of the Xray. My bunny has never been admitted before and I have never been through a GA with either of my buns, I am terrified! I know he will be ok but I will a nervous wreck tomorrow! Poppy is going with him of course
If it is arthritis long term NSAID seems to be the only thing we can do.