Sore Hocks + Weepy Eye = EC? U/D Better Appointment

Can EC "cause" sore hocks, balding of the legs (no scalding or burning) and also a weepy eye?

And if not, is a fungal infection possible?

Background is that Muesli has severe arthritis and hind leg muscle wastage so is susceptible to sore hocks. We have hibiscrub and cream for his hocks, we don't tend to bandage unless necessary as we were told its best to keep it dry by letting the air get to it. We noticed last night the sore bits on his hocks have got much larger. He must be in so much pain We increased his pain medication as previously discussed that we could with a vet. Took him to vets today to see what we should do for him, they looked at his balding legs, sore hocks and weepy eye, and said it is likely to be EC.

I know EC can cause urinary incontinence, which Muesli does have to some extent, but no other obvious signs of EC and I didn't know that weepy eyes are linked.

Could someone enlighten me about the links and likelihood of this please?

I have 7 days of Panacur - I thought the treatment for EC was 28 days but it only occurred to me afterwards. I was told to keep Muesli separately from his bonded companions. I absolutely refused to do that.

I was given a vague reply about pain relief but certainly not given any long-term plan to help to keep him comfortable, I have requested acupuncture for him again, but the vet that did it before has left. He seems ok in himself. Not brilliant but ok. I'm worried about him & want to help him.

Interested in any thoughts anyone has please.

sorry, i can't help with advice, but bumping this up for anyone who can :wave:

EC does not exactly 'cause' sore hocks. It is that EC can cause hind leg weakness which in turn causes sore hocks as a secondary symptom. Does that make sense, not sure I have explained it very well :?

I would question the Vet's diagnosis of 'EC' here I would think it was far more likely to be a deterioration of his chronic arthritis causing worsening of his sore hocks which may now have some bacterial infection present. The weepy eye may be a sign of bacterial infection too and/or related to Dental issues involving tooth roots

I think I would be very :? about being sent away with a course of Panacur and nothing else :?

Could you seek a second opinion from another Vet ?

Hi Jane, thanks so much for replying, that was just the reply I was looking for, as I felt very uneasy about the consultation we had yesterday. The vet we saw yesterday was Spanish and I think there was a real language difficulty, as she hardly explained anything, hardly understood anything I was saying, and then just said she thought the eye and skin condition on the legs were linked. I see them as two separate issues, but then the vet is the vet.

Yes, what you said about EC causing hind leg weakness which can lead to sore hocks makes total sense. Its possible Muesli has EC, but I just found it strange that she overlooked the arthritis issue really by not giving us more of a long-term management plan. I am concerned for his ongoing quality of life basically and how best to keep him comfortable and as happy as can be. I wanted to discuss pain relief and acupuncture, but was given Panacur :? He was tested for EC several years ago and it came back negative. I know this isn't absolute and I don't think Panacur can do him any harm?

But we do know that he has long-standing arthritis and muscle loss around his back end. Richard Saunders saw him several years ago about it as it was causing urinary incontinence at that time but we check him daily and he is so much better in that respect and very rarely wet or sore on his skin from that these days. He has the odd day where he seems to have got wet again but mostly he is clean and dry.

I am really concerned that she said to split him from his bonded friends so easily too.

Our vets is a drop-in clinic on weekends and evenings (when we tend to go) and so you see a different vet each time. Our good bunny vet left a few months ago, and if we weren't moving away I would be looking to register with another vets practice. We are taking him back on Thursday evening, have upped his medicine dose and attending to his sore hocks twice daily, plus Manuka honey, and hope that we see a different vet then.

Thanks Jane.

PS. If I put hay down on the floor of their kennel (its quite a big space so not sure how much that would cost to do all the time but will look in to it), will that be better or worse? I'm just worried it will completely confuse their litter habits and they will stop going in their litter trays and then will the hay get soggy and wet which would be worse for him. What do you think? We do litter trays daily but main clean out weekly. We couldn't afford to change a whole floors worth of hay every day. Hope this makes sense!

You could look into obtaining some stable matting to use in the kennel.

I think looking at what more could be done to manage his arthritis would be what I would be pushing for. What dose of Metacam is he on and how much does he weigh ?

I've just googled stable matting - the results that came up were all rubber - is that what you meant Jane? I'm not sure if it would work better than the lino, we've got the grippiest lino that we could get, but will certainly consider that, I will just worry in case they eat it. And also not sure how easy it would be to clean, as it looks bobbly or grooved?

Its looking better already today, could be the cream/manuka honey or it could be that his pain relief is helping. I've certainly seen him move a bit more today.

I'm glad you agree Jane, that its his arthritis that needs to be managed better. He's lost weight in the last 6 months, we've been keeping an eye on it. He currently weighs 1.87kg. We were giving a 2.5kg dose but now he is up to the equivalent of 5kg (just this week). (We have syringes that measure it out according to kg, rather than ml, so not sure what that equates to in mls I'm afraid). Its loxicom rather than metacam if that makes any difference.

Also do you think it would be worth asking for a referral, maybe to the vet practice where my old vet now works? She is rabbit savvy and knows Muesli well but is about an hour away so I can't register with her as our main vets.

I would definitely request a referral as I really would not be happy with the current situation

Yes, stable matting is rubber but it is very tough and as it is used as a base in stables it is possible to clean it. It would provide much better 'hopping traction' than lino.

Yeah I see what you mean about the rubber matting. Wonder if we can pick up a sample. Its definitely worth thinking about putting that down.

I will see if we can get a referral to our old vet. Fingers crossed for Thursday!

helgalush said:

Yeah I see what you mean about the rubber matting. Wonder if we can pick up a sample. Its definitely worth thinking about putting that down.

I will see if we can get a referral to our old vet. Fingers crossed for Thursday!

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Hope you get to see a more helpful Vet xx

Thank you, me too! x

Lots of 'brilliant rabbit vet' vibes coming your way.

Thanks Tulsi.

My Oh took Muesli to the vets tonight and saw someone MUCH better who actually seemed to know what they were talking about. She spent a lot more time checking Muesli over and listening to everything he said, answering all his questions and taking it all a lot more seriously. She agreed it was not advisable to split Muesli from his friends.

The upshot is that we are focussing on his arthritis and have a better plan for his pain relief. He can be on quite a bit more pain relief if necessary, but for now we are going to try double and see how he gets on with that. She said her first and foremost concern was about managing his pain.

She thinks he may always have sore hocks and the amount of bare skin that he has now, may be what he always has. However the wound is clean and dry and not infected, just very sore for him. She was pleased we are using Manuka honey and said to carry on with what we are doing.

Vet isn't sure if the acupuncturist that is there now has any experience with rabbits but is going to look in to it for us. If need be we will ask for a referral outside of the practice for that as it seemed to help him so much before.

Most importantly, the vet was very happy to refer us back to Richard Saunders for more advice for Muesli, so we can make sure we are doing all we can for him. I know there is no magic cure for his arthritis, I just want him to be as comfortable as possible.

Thanks again.

That sounds more encouraging.