Opinion's please! Disabled Bunny!

I have the biggest fear, and I'm very worried. (hence why I can't sleep).

Harley goes in for his check-up on Tuesday. He's had 4 drops of metacam daily since Friday.

He's still dragging his legs. As mentioned, he can move his leg's, he just wont put weight on them.

He's also being treated for EC as a precaution, but vet's did advise me there was no other tell tale signs and he was sure it's something linked to his spine. We're asking for an x-ray this week. I'm so scared the x-ray will show this is permanent. I sort of know in my heart, that this is going to be permanent.

Would it be fair to keep him alive if he can never use his hind legs? I mean we don't put down disabled people right? But how can you ensure a good quality of life for a disabled bunny?

Right now I just wish with every part of me he will use his hind legs again, on Saturday he hoped, we were over the moon, but all day today he's been dragging his legs.

I have several disabled bunnies and they are all doing fine, it's amazing how bunnies deal with disabilities and I certainly don't see it as an automatic reason for PTS, I think you need to know first of all what is wrong with the bunny and then of treatment, if treatable of course,

What weight is Harley?, 4 drops of Metacam a day doesn't sound a lot, I take it he is a tiny Neddie?

I have had both a rabbit and a guinea pig arrive unable to move their hind legs and both recovered nearly full use of them. In the guinea pigs case all he needed was metacam in large amounts - he is on 10 drops a day now in two doses, and regular physio.

The rabbit, Henry, a giant, had two months of panacur, steroids and engemycin to cover all possibilities. He still wobbles, but can jump onto his shelf and lives a full life in the shed and run he shares with his partner. I don't think it is fair to keep a miserable animal alive immobile but if you can provide the right environment to encourage mobility then they can and will recover to some degree. Physio is not complicated. I laid Henry on his back and flexed his legs and massaged the muscles, then turned him upright and bounced him on my knee making him take his weight on one leg and then the other to strengthen them. Long sessions are not necessary, 5 minutes twice a day is all I had time to do but the effect is cumulative and he is living proof it works. I did think of getting him a cart but it was not necessary in the end.

In an animal with limited mobility one of the most imprtant things is keeping thier skin from getting sore. To this end you need to either shave or trim the fur from their rear ends so that it doesn't trap urine or poo against their skin. This needs to be done regularly as it grows back quickly.

Another key is providing deep bedding - I use chopped straw horse bedding in a stable - so that if they are draggng themselves around they do not get abrasions.

Don't let the vet tell you to give up. I doubt the spine is broken or he wouldn't be moving at all. And don't waste time and money on testing for EC, just treat for it. And don't be afraid of steroids. I use them often and they don't have the dire side effects the trials on lab rabits indicated.
A dose of 1mg of prednicare per kg bodyweight can be kept up for a year and do no harm, and much good. Giving antibiotics in case of a spinal infection covers the other possibility, and again does no harm.

Give it a couple of months, but if he is miserable and immobile after that be brave enough to let him go.

When my Inca had hind leg paralysis we had x-rays done. She had spine problems. Turned out she also had EC at that time.

When she was at her worst, i would come in and she would be lying covered in pee and poo and not able to move. It was so sad as you could tell that she had been struggling to get up.

The vet thought that it was the end for her . I wanted to try and save her, but wouldnt have put her through complete drama. She had long acting steroid injections, one injection lasted her a few days and abx injections. They gave her mobility, but you could see them starting to wear off towards the end of the few days. I thought that she would be on them for life, but a few months on and she didnt need them.

I would speak to your vets. I think that steroid injections and injectible antibiotics could help. I think at this stage anything could be worth a shot.

The vet gave the steroid injections and i gave the daily abx injections at home.

Many years ago I looked after a fully disabled bunny. Arthritis in every limb. Initially when I saw this bunny I was really shocked, having never seen such a degree of disability. I had to collect his poos from his bottom, feed him his caecotrophs and never once did I think twice about doing this. A couple of days into his stay I realised that he was perfectly fit and healthy other than his disability. Fantastic appetite, huge personality and a wonderful bunny.
I found his visit to be immensely challenging, time consuming but, so, so rewarding. I am sure he appreciated everything that was done for him.


He was around 11 years old and managed to live for another couple of years.
An incredible achievement for a bunny.



IMO if you have the time, can put the effort in and cover any extra costs, go for it. They really will pay you back in kind for the extra effort.
Your bunny will let you know when they have had enough, but I am sure you know that already.


Good luck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FeDr3nSBd8

this bunny is amazing I followed them on line

Blueberry is a house bunny and runs around and is active like any other bunny with the help of this.

Has bun been tested for EC?? Your vet said no indications or am I presuming??
Has bun had any accidents etc where he could have hurt himself??
I really wouldnt rule out EC.

Im not vefy well so this may make no sense.

I wanted all this infor to take with me to vets tomorrow afternoon!

He's being treated for EC. And is 2.48kg. He get.s .5ml of panacur daily, and I've actually been giving him more than 4drop of metacam, I give him at least five or six in his food and then drop a bit in his mouth three times a day. I will be telling vet to give me higher dose as when I first got metacam I got a weird syringe with it and pressumed to give him 10ml of it. And he hopped the next day.

I have plenty time and adequate enough funds. However I want to have as much knowledge to avoid doing the wrong things.

We're not gonna give up on Harley, he is one of the five buns that inspired us to start a rescue! He's come leaps and bounds from the shy abused neglected bunny who arrived here.

I have a badly abused disabled bunny she was stood on and had her eyes poked at with a stick, she has a dislocated leg and a disabled one that she drags, and she is totally blind, she can't have the leg amputated as her body is so damaged but she is such a happy little bunny and such a character and lives with her Mum who has also been cruelly abused.

I found this video on youtube a couple of years ago. Read the description.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R9SVZ3FrI0

Thank you for all of the information. I've written it as a note in my blackberry so when I get to vets I will have a reference to what you's have said and what to ask.

Wish us luck, we go at 2pm tomorrow x

I just can't go into detail right now...sorry, but Eddie was paraylsed for a month before it started to get any better. He had suspected soft tissue damage (or nerve damage...which thank goodness, it wasn't.)
Don't write him off just yet. They can get bbetter!!

It went really well. :wave:

She suispects he'll be hopping in two weeks. He waddled around the vet floor like a penguin. Much better than last Friday when he was dragging his legs.

She suspects that maybe he had a fall in his hutch. He has a one of those Poppy Den hutch's and maybe he fell off the bedroom compartment? I'll never know. I just know he's gonna get better