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Sore hocks!

tashp90

tashp90

Warren Veteran
Star has sore hocks :(! We discovered them at the vets on Thursday after I had picked her up.
She was being kept in a cage with sawdust, allowed to roam on laminate flooring, and a hard rug.

Obviously I've gotten rid of the sawdust. I've covered my laminate flooring with towels, an old duvet etc for her.

Is there anything else I can do to sooth/heal them. They aren't bleeding or anything, just very red and look sore!

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Ashley has them at the moment too and it's a bit of an ongoing battle to be honest :?

We tried aloe vera gel for a couple of weeks but it didn't help much, just prevented them from getting worse really. Currently doing a week of cleaning them with lukewarm salt water followed by dabbing Flamazine on them. I think they are getting marginally better, but wonder if she could do with more of a long-term solution as Flamazine should only be used for 7 days. Back to the vets Tuesday to discuss options.

We have just moved them outside a couple of weeks ago so I'm hoping that her being outside more/on grass etc will help. I've noticed she isn't as active as Bailey and tends to sit in the same spot all the time (including in the litter tray!), but that might be just because her feet hurt.

I really like Vetbed for the hocks too, even though she pees on it sometimes as it doesn't absorb it, it just goes straight through so she's not sitting in it for ages.
 
Don't put anything on them if they are only red spots and are not infected or bleeding. A lot of the time if you put cream on them or bathe them, you will make them worse.

I have a boy who has sore hocks. They are just pea-sized spots on his heels and look quite sore. I know they bother him a little because I see him licking them occasionally, however they have never bled or gotten infected etc. He has these because he has arthritis in his lower spine. It changes his hopping/standing position s that he tends to lean back onto his heels, hence why they are a bit sore.

Apparently the best flooring for a bun that has sore hocks is a thick layer of hay. If you can do that, I would, but obviously this isn't always possible. Duvets are a help, but make sure your bun doesn't rip it open and pull out the insides. :lol: You can also use excersise mats (the ones you can fit together) or vet beds and towels. I find vet beds are quite useful for keeping Fiver's sore hocks under control. I try to place them in places where he normally sits to take the strain off his feets.
 
Thank you :)

They are rather large patches! Will try and get a picture tomorrow, although handling her alone isn't easy :lol:

I've put a cheap duvet cover on the old duvet so she can't rip it open, that's under the bed, and I have soft fleece blankets, and some towels around the bed. Just trying to keep her off the flooring really to see if they'll improve.


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jackaroonie1997 said:
You can use foam mats if your rabbits aren't chewers :thumb:

I've seen foam mats in Tesco.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately Star is definitely a chewer! I was changing her newspaper and hay earlier, as I was putting fresh paper in, she was pulling it out to chew :roll:

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Did the Vet prescribe a non steroidal anti- inflammatory analgesic (Metacam) ? Sore Hocks are.........sore..................

It is also very important to try to get the inflammation under control to lessen the risk of the hocks ulcerating.
 
Jack's-Jane said:
Did the Vet prescribe a non steroidal anti- inflammatory analgesic (Metacam) ? Sore Hocks are.........sore..................

It is also very important to try to get the inflammation under control to lessen the risk of the hocks ulcerating.
Click to expand...

No, they said to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't ulcerate

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Jack's-Jane said:
:cry:
Click to expand...

I know. I'm going to try and get a look at them today, it concerns me that they aren't just little patches, they are quite large!
I took to a different vet to my regular one, I took her to the one she was registered with by hee previous owner, so I may take her to my regular vet tomorrow.

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if they're just patches, then leave them and if they become dry and look like they're about to crack then that's when you put cream on. putting cream on too much can be bad. if they do happen to crack, bathe with cooled boiled salt water once a day, and apply honey twice a day. don't bathe more than once a day as this dries them out too much. :wave:

eta: and metacam if they're looking sore. bisc is on metacam anyway though so is covered that way all the time :wave:
 
Last edited:
If they are quite large then I would probably ask your vets to give you some metacam for her. Fiver's look red and sore, but he has metacam daily for his arthritis anyway. I've also been getting him out on the grass as much as poss to see if this helps, since absolutely nothing else has. Is it possible to let your bun on the grass for a few hours a day?

Try and get a pic of them, this will make it easier for us to suggest things, but don't bother if she gets stressed with handling. :)
 
Vegan_Bunny said:
If they are quite large then I would probably ask your vets to give you some metacam for her. Fiver's look red and sore, but he has metacam daily for his arthritis anyway. I've also been getting him out on the grass as much as poss to see if this helps, since absolutely nothing else has. Is it possible to let your bun on the grass for a few hours a day?

Try and get a pic of them, this will make it easier for us to suggest things, but don't bother if she gets stressed with handling. :)
Click to expand...

I live in a flat with no garden :(!

I'm going to try and get a picture when I go to bed. She's at her calmest for night time cuddles :lol:
If not, I'm going to pop.her to the vets tomorrow, so will also get a pic then.

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tashp90 said:
I live in a flat with no garden :(!

I'm going to try and get a picture when I go to bed. She's at her calmest for night time cuddles :lol:
If not, I'm going to pop.her to the vets tomorrow, so will also get a pic then.

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Click to expand...

Never mind. You are doing everything you can for now, but I would deffo pop her to the vet if you are worried and at least ask if pain relief is worth a go.
 
Vegan_Bunny said:
Never mind. You are doing everything you can for now, but I would deffo pop her to the vet if you are worried and at least ask if pain relief is worth a go.
Click to expand...

I need to introduce her to my usual vet anyway, and she'll get a more thorough health check.
You can see she struggles on the bare laminate so I've tried my best to cover it all, but she keeps moving the towels when she darts under the bed, going to buy some non silp mats, and vet beds tomorrow to.hopefully stop them from moving.

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tashp90 said:
I need to introduce her to my usual vet anyway, and she'll get a more thorough health check.
You can see she struggles on the bare laminate so I've tried my best to cover it all, but she keeps moving the towels when she darts under the bed, going to buy some non silp mats, and vet beds tomorrow to.hopefully stop them from moving.

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Click to expand...

I found this a problem. :lol: I tried mats and they chewed them, so gave up with that. The best thing I got was some velcro strips that you stick to the laminate. Most towels and stuff stick to them. I use them to hold my vet beds in place. I also got a big off-cut of carpet and put that down, I covered that in towels and vet beds too but it didn't work for my boy, so I just have the carpet down now. Carpet can actually cause more problems with sore hocks, so I wouldn't recommend using carpet in your case.
 
Vegan_Bunny said:
I found this a problem. :lol: I tried mats and they chewed them, so gave up with that. The best thing I got was some velcro strips that you stick to the laminate. Most towels and stuff stick to them. I use them to hold my vet beds in place. I also got a big off-cut of carpet and put that down, I covered that in towels and vet beds too but it didn't work for my boy, so I just have the carpet down now. Carpet can actually cause more problems with sore hocks, so I wouldn't recommend using carpet in your case.
Click to expand...

Definitely going to get vet beds, they'll be easier to cut around my furniture too lol.

She's sat thumping at my attempt to take a picture so it's going to have to wait until tomorrow :lol:
Although I know my vet will.be helpful, I find speaking to people with experience actually provides more helpful advice sometimes!

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I'd be interested to see if manuka honey umf 18+ would help sore hocks. It is antibacterial, antifungal and promotes healing of tissue. Diabetics use it on wounds that won't heal and its used on bedsores, also to pack abscesses on rabbits, so it seems like a good thing to try and completely harmless if they lick it off.
 
Max1 said:
I'd be interested to see if manuka honey umf 18+ would help sore hocks. It is antibacterial, antifungal and promotes healing of tissue. Diabetics use it on wounds that won't heal and its used on bedsores, also to pack abscesses on rabbits, so it seems like a good thing to try and completely harmless if they lick it off.
Click to expand...

I tried this but with no luck. However, I have heard it usually helps a great deal with sore hocks. :thumb:
 
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