BB Mommy
Warren Veteran
The story of “A Bear with a Sore Head”…..
Bear was our first intake at Hopper Haven of 2013, arriving just after New Year.
His owner called to say that he had been attacked by a rat, but she was unable to take him to the vet.
When Bear arrived he made me cry…..he was covered in bites all over his body, bites all over his face and head, several so deep we could see the bone underneath. He had no skin at all left on the entire top of his head, face and ears, and his ears had holes big enough to push a cotton bud through.
He was full of infection and pain, his head was swollen and distorted and his ears were heavy and hot. How long he had been in this state is anyone’s guess, but these wounds were not fresh. The top of his head appeared to be “dead” as he would allow the regular cleaning and treatment required to enable the skin to heal and grow, but it was clear that any movement of his ears caused him pain.
Having been kept in a small hutch he also has muscle wastage, and was unable to hop.
I won’t share the early photos of Bears wounds as they are too distressing, but this little man, with Louise on his side, has shown how brave his is, and how sometimes, with the right care, how these little animals learn to trust again.
His wounds are healing nicely, and even the vet is amazed that the skin, and even the fur, has started to grow back.
He is such a sociable rabbit and will lean forward for a fuss, but he likes his food and will give you a nip if you’ve forgotten to bring him some!
He will need gentle rehabilitation to build up his muscles, and to continue the healing process for him. As soon as he is ready we will bond him with a partner.
The photos start at week 2 to week 5……..the layer of white cream that you can see in the photos is a cream that allows the skin to heal without it becoming a huge painful scab – his head will remain covered in this for several more weeks….
The early pics are rubbish quality - he'd been through so much we avoided any unnecessary disturbance to him, so the light is poor, and I literally just poked the camera through the bars.....
Day 12
Day 19
Day 26
Day 32
Bear was our first intake at Hopper Haven of 2013, arriving just after New Year.
His owner called to say that he had been attacked by a rat, but she was unable to take him to the vet.
When Bear arrived he made me cry…..he was covered in bites all over his body, bites all over his face and head, several so deep we could see the bone underneath. He had no skin at all left on the entire top of his head, face and ears, and his ears had holes big enough to push a cotton bud through.
He was full of infection and pain, his head was swollen and distorted and his ears were heavy and hot. How long he had been in this state is anyone’s guess, but these wounds were not fresh. The top of his head appeared to be “dead” as he would allow the regular cleaning and treatment required to enable the skin to heal and grow, but it was clear that any movement of his ears caused him pain.
Having been kept in a small hutch he also has muscle wastage, and was unable to hop.
I won’t share the early photos of Bears wounds as they are too distressing, but this little man, with Louise on his side, has shown how brave his is, and how sometimes, with the right care, how these little animals learn to trust again.
His wounds are healing nicely, and even the vet is amazed that the skin, and even the fur, has started to grow back.
He is such a sociable rabbit and will lean forward for a fuss, but he likes his food and will give you a nip if you’ve forgotten to bring him some!
He will need gentle rehabilitation to build up his muscles, and to continue the healing process for him. As soon as he is ready we will bond him with a partner.
The photos start at week 2 to week 5……..the layer of white cream that you can see in the photos is a cream that allows the skin to heal without it becoming a huge painful scab – his head will remain covered in this for several more weeks….
The early pics are rubbish quality - he'd been through so much we avoided any unnecessary disturbance to him, so the light is poor, and I literally just poked the camera through the bars.....
Day 12
Day 19
Day 26
Day 32