• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

  • Please Note - Medical Advice

    Please keep in mind that posts on this forum are from members of the public sharing personal opinions. It is not a replacement for qualified medical advice from a veterinarian. Many illnesses share similar symptoms but require different treatments. A medical exam is necessary for an accurate diagnosis, without which appropriate treatment cannot be given.

    You should always consult your vet before following any suggestions for medication or treatment you have read about. The wrong treatment could make your rabbit worse or mean your vet is unable to give the correct treatment because of drug interactions. Even non prescription drugs can do harm if given inappropriately.

    We are very grateful to members who take time to answer other members questions, but please do be clear in your replies that you are sharing personal experience and not giving instructions on what must be done.

    Urgent Medical Advice: If you need, or think you might need, urgent medical advice you should contact a vet. If it is out of working hours phone your vet's normal number and there should be an answer phone message with instructions on what to do.

Bunny wheelchair

A

awskinnie

Young Bun
Hi I'm new to this forum,
I have a giant lop eared house rabbit called Missy.
Recently missy had an accident flicking her back legs or when jumping and has hurt her back.
She either has a dislocation of a disc or has broken her back, due to being on bed rest for 3 weeks vet seems to think it's broken.she doesn't seem to be in any pain and is still very alert and playful to an extent and eating and drinking well and toileting well.
We were told to look at getting a wheelchair for her as she is still happy and a fighter.
Does anyone know of a UK based company that could help.
Myself and my partner would love to get Missy mobile again to give her her freedom back.
Thanks
b287fc287cb909358bccb1071e1cfc3f.jpg


missy before her accident.

sent from Xperia Z2
 
Hello

I am very sorry to hear of Missy's accident. Has she had Xrays taken to establish the exact nature of her injury ? Has she been on any anti-inflammatory medication ? Before thinking about whether or not a cart would be suitable I would want to try to establish exactly what the spinal problem is incase using a cart may make it worse.

I have no personal experience of using this company, but you could email them to see if they would be able to make a Rabbit cart

http://www.doggon-uk.com/products.html

But as I said, I would not want to try to get her mobile on a cart until I was certain that doing so would not exacerbate the spinal injury.
 
awskinnie said:
Hi I'm new to this forum,
I have a giant lop eared house rabbit called Missy.
Recently missy had an accident flicking her back legs or when jumping and has hurt her back.
She either has a dislocation of a disc or has broken her back, due to being on bed rest for 3 weeks vet seems to think it's broken.she doesn't seem to be in any pain and is still very alert and playful to an extent and eating and drinking well and toileting well.
We were told to look at getting a wheelchair for her as she is still happy and a fighter.
Does anyone know of a UK based company that could help.
Myself and my partner would love to get Missy mobile again to give her her freedom back.
Thanks
b287fc287cb909358bccb1071e1cfc3f.jpg


missy before her accident.

sent from Xperia Z2
Click to expand...

I'm sorry to hear that Missy has injured her back in some way. When I had a rabbit in a similar position I found this article really useful:

http://rabbit.org/rehabilitation-and-movement-therapy-for-your-rabbit/

In the States they are forward thinking with regards to rabbits and mobility, so worth searching their websites and finding a corresponding UK Company to help out.

Good luck. You obviously love Missy so very much x
 
HI

sorry to hear about Missy - obviously much loved.

Has she totally lost both of them or are they just very weak? What diagnostics has she had? A set of wheel is an option for some buns but it depends on the cause.

She is also quite a 'large' lady - and may need to slim a bit if the weight is not to be a hindrance :oops::oops: (sorry!!)
 
Hi when we went to vet when it happened the vet said to put her on bed rest for 3 weeks with anti inflammatory meds and see if she can start using her legs after that as with a bruised spine it can take 3-6 weeks for her to get better but we would see an improvement by 3 weeks.
We haven't seen any improvement and we took her as an emergency straight after Xmas as she was bleeding to find she had water infection so on antibiotics as well.
The vet then said it would be slipped disc or broken back but as she has lost all movement with her back end she said it was more likely a broken back and the vet themselves showed us videos of the wheelchairs for us to consider with Missy.
The vet said she could see how alert and happy she was and so wouldn't out right say put her down as we wanted to adapt to her and help give her still a quality of life as long as she was happy and alert and playful putting her down which was hinted at was not an option for us at anytime as we wanted to fight to help Missy and exhaust other avenues.
The emergency app was with a different vet to who we saw initially.the vet we are seeing Friday is same vet from first app so will go over all info with them we got from emergency app and go from there.
We didn't rush with x-ray as she has to be sedated and stay in vets all day and she doesn't like vet or the travelling so choose bed rest first to see what happens with vets approval.
Missy does look big and is a little overweight but only just over the ok line for her size so we are keeping an eye on her food so she doesn't become overly overweight. In the photo she was actually at a good weight so the vet said and not over weight then.
We wouldn't look into a wheelchair if it wasn't something that the vet did ok.
She is a very pampered little girl and loved very much xx

sent from Xperia Z2
 
Last edited:
awskinnie said:
Hi when we went to vet when it happened the vet said to put her on bed rest for 3 weeks with anti inflammatory meds and see if she can start using her legs after that as with a bruised spine it can take 3-6 weeks for her to get better but we would see an improvement by 3 weeks.
We haven't seen any improvement and we took her as an emergency straight after Xmas as she was bleeding to find she had water infection so on antibiotics as well.
The vet then said it would be slipped disc or broken back but as she has lost all movement with her back end she said it was more likely a broken back and the vet themselves showed us videos of the wheelchairs for us to consider with Missy.
The vet said she could see how alert and happy she was and so wouldn't out right say put her down as we wanted to adapt to her and help give her still a quality of life as long as she was happy and alert and playful putting her down which was hinted at was not an option for us at anytime as we wanted to fight to help Missy and exhaust other avenues.
The emergency app was with a different vet to who we saw initially.the vet we are seeing Friday is same vet from first app so will go over all info with them we got from emergency app and go from there.
We didn't rush with x-ray as she has to be sedated and stay in vets all day and she doesn't like vet or the travelling so choose bed rest first to see what happens with vets approval.
Missy does look big and is a little overweight but only just over the ok line for her size so we are keeping an eye on her food so she doesn't become overly overweight. In the photo she was actually at a good weight so the vet said and not over weight then.
We wouldn't look into a wheelchair if it wasn't something that the vet did ok.
She is a very pampered little girl and loved very much xx

sent from Xperia Z2
Click to expand...

Her bladder infection may be due to the fact that she is not able to fully empty her bladder when she urinates due to her spinal injury. Rabbits who have hind leg paralysis often develop a build up of calcium deposits in their bladder. This combined with not fully emptying the bladder will lead to 'bladder sludge' and bladder infections/cystitis. So another thing to discuss with the Vet is how best to manage any longterm bladder issues that are usually present in a paralysed Rabbit. Sometimes it is necessary to manually express the bladder but this should only be done either by the Vet or by the care giver after receiving detailed training from the Vet. Rabbit bladders are extremely delicate and so any manual expression needs to be undertaken with great care.

Is Missy spayed ?

I hope that her next appointment with the Vet goes well :)
 
Jack's-Jane said:
Her bladder infection may be due to the fact that she is not able to fully empty her bladder when she urinates due to her spinal injury. Rabbits who have hind leg paralysis often develop a build up of calcium deposits in their bladder. This combined with not fully emptying the bladder will lead to 'bladder sludge' and bladder infections/cystitis. So another thing to discuss with the Vet is how best to manage any longterm bladder issues that are usually present in a paralysed Rabbit. Sometimes it is necessary to manually express the bladder but this should only be done either by the Vet or by the care giver after receiving detailed training from the Vet. Rabbit bladders are extremely delicate and so any manual expression needs to be undertaken with great care.

Is Missy spayed ?

I hope that her next appointment with the Vet goes well :)
Click to expand...
Hi
Thanks for the info will.speak to the vet, Missy seems to be emptying ok as she goes a good handful of times and alot each time to our detriment as we have got covered when moving her :) unless she planned it lol.
Will definitely speak to vet though to make sure if there is anything we can do to help if needed x
Missy is not spayed we didn't think it necessary as she is the only bunny in the house and doesn't go outside.Plus we didn't want to breed her.we thought the operation was something she didn't need to have x


sent from Xperia Z2
 
awskinnie said:
Hi
Thanks for the info will.speak to the vet, Missy seems to be emptying ok as she goes a good handful of times and alot each time to our detriment as we have got covered when moving her :) unless she planned it lol.
Will definitely speak to vet though to make sure if there is anything we can do to help if needed x
Missy is not spayed we didn't think it necessary as she is the only bunny in the house and doesn't go outside.Plus we didn't want to breed her.we thought the operation was something she didn't need to have x


sent from Xperia Z2
Click to expand...

The reason it is necessary for Does to be spayed even if they live alone is that there is a high risk of them developing Uterine cancer once they reach about 5 years of age, sometimes even as young as 3 years of age. I dont want to cause you more anxiety, but I do think you need to discuss this with the Vet too. Pathologic (disease related) spinal fractures can occur as a result of metastatic disease (spreading of cancer cells) related to Uterine Cancer. Blood in the urine is also another symptom of UC.

I am certainly not saying that UC is likely, but as she is unspayed the risk is there and it is something that needs to be taken into account when considering her longterm care.

Wishing Missy lots of luck xx
 
I would definitely agree with Jacks jane on this - and would at some stage perhaps query with your vet why you were not advised of the high risks of not spaying. It may have nothing to do with Missy's current problems, but a good rabbit vet would have informed you of the risks which rings slight alarm bells. An xray or other form of scan (does your vet have a CT/MRI in house?) would also help to finally diagnose what is wrong - you may need to consult a specialist exotics vet for a final diagnosis.

Missy is obviously cherished which is wonderful as it means she will have every chance of a future happy life whatever is causing the problems!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

M
Benji is coming to his end
Replies
10
Views
140
olices
olices
J
Advice please
Replies
8
Views
252
Jb31
J
PumpkinBells
Healing and forearm lifting question
Replies
11
Views
226
PumpkinBells
PumpkinBells
Back
Top