Small sore and bald area on back.

Hi everyone,

We are new to the forum and have come here looking for some help for our rabbits. We have two Mini Lops, Buttons and Beau, who are around 12 months old now. When we bought them, we were told one was a male and one was a female, which was fine as we were happy for them to mate initially. However, observing their behaviour and the fact they haven't mated in this time, leads us to be unsure of the sex of either.

That aside, Beau (the believed male) often climbs on the back of Buttons (the believed female) it what appears to be mating, or at least imposing dominance. This has gone on since we have had them and we have not noticed any detriment to the health or well being of either rabbit, only a lot of fur coming off, until today.

The female appears to have a thinning bald spot on her back, roughly between her shoulder blades. On closer inspection, it appears she has a small scab and it is very dry/sore/flaky. I have had a look on the internet at mites etc, but to me it doesn't appear to be this. Is it possible it is scratches/scabs caused by the males claw when mounting?

I have attached an image of the sore. She doesn't appear to be in any distress from this. What could it be?

Thanks

Hi and welcome..

Firstly the sore spot could be from mites or could be an injury from a claw if one bunny is mounting the other,

Personallly i would get them sexed and vet checked .

Please though do consider NOT breeding the rabbits as there are already too many bunnies in rescue..

Cheers
fee x

Have they had any jabs in he last couple of weeks both my boys had sores like this after their neuter it's either anti-biotic or anti-inflammatory injection site

Hi both,

Yes we are going to take them to the vets for sexing and looking at, but wanted to alleviate any initial fears if we could!

No they havent had any jabs recently so can't be that.

It looks like it could possibly be mites but normally this would be irritating to them and they'd be scratching it at. I'd also consider a scratch?

Buttons&Beau said:

Hi everyone,

We are new to the forum and have come here looking for some help for our rabbits. We have two Mini Lops, Buttons and Beau, who are around 12 months old now. When we bought them, we were told one was a male and one was a female, which was fine as we were happy for them to mate initially. However, observing their behaviour and the fact they haven't mated in this time, leads us to be unsure of the sex of either.

That aside, Beau (the believed male) often climbs on the back of Buttons (the believed female) it what appears to be mating, or at least imposing dominance. This has gone on since we have had them and we have not noticed any detriment to the health or well being of either rabbit, only a lot of fur coming off, until today.

The female appears to have a thinning bald spot on her back, roughly between her shoulder blades. On closer inspection, it appears she has a small scab and it is very dry/sore/flaky. I have had a look on the internet at mites etc, but to me it doesn't appear to be this. Is it possible it is scratches/scabs caused by the males claw when mounting?

I have attached an image of the sore. She doesn't appear to be in any distress from this. What could it be?

Thanks

Click to expand...

Welcome to the Forum :wave:

Looks to me like it could be mites, as I can see some of the tell-tale dandruff:

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/furmite/fur_mite.htm

It's easily treated by your vet, usually with a spot on treatment (that's what my vet uses).

As Fee says, one bunny mounting another can easily make a scratch at the point where the male 'holds on' - though from what you say, it may not be mounting for mating, more for dominance?

Buttons&Beau said:

Hi everyone,

We are new to the forum and have come here looking for some help for our rabbits. We have two Mini Lops, Buttons and Beau, who are around 12 months old now. When we bought them, we were told one was a male and one was a female, which was fine as we were happy for them to mate initially. However, observing their behaviour and the fact they haven't mated in this time, leads us to be unsure of the sex of either.

That aside, Beau (the believed male) often climbs on the back of Buttons (the believed female) it what appears to be mating, or at least imposing dominance. This has gone on since we have had them and we have not noticed any detriment to the health or well being of either rabbit, only a lot of fur coming off, until today.

The female appears to have a thinning bald spot on her back, roughly between her shoulder blades. On closer inspection, it appears she has a small scab and it is very dry/sore/flaky. I have had a look on the internet at mites etc, but to me it doesn't appear to be this. Is it possible it is scratches/scabs caused by the males claw when mounting?

I have attached an image of the sore. She doesn't appear to be in any distress from this. What could it be?

Thanks

Click to expand...

It is probably a wound caused by Beau latching on to Buttons scruff when 'he' mounts 'her'.

I assume that as you are intending to allow them to mate you have full details of both of their genetic histories going back at least 2 generations ? Random mating up of two Rabbits of who's genetic history you know nothing about can be a recipe for disaster.

I would get both Rabbits seen by a Vet to confirm their genders and if they have not been vaccinated this needs to be done too. Both Myxomatosis and VHD are horrible fatal diseases which can be prevented by an annual vaccination

These links may be useful to take a look at

http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...re-considering-breeding-then-please-read-this

http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/content/leaflet_pdfs/neutering28.8.07.pdf

http://www.rabbitwelfare.co.uk/resources/content/leaflet_pdfs/vacination28.8.07.pdf

Hi,

Thanks for the info everyone. Looking closely at her and the links you provided, it does look more like grazes from Beau mounting her. Theres a closer one below, with what looks like claw marks?

She will be at the vets this week and we will have a good read of what you have provided - thank you.

If the wounds are caused by the mounting, is there anything we can do to help her?

The best - and certainly the wisest - thing is to take them to the vet as early as you can this week to be checked over and an appointment made for them to be neutered. (I am assuming they are already vaccinated).

Buttons&Beau said:

Hi,

Thanks for the info everyone. Looking closely at her and the links you provided, it does look more like grazes from Beau mounting her. Theres a closer one below, with what looks like claw marks?

She will be at the vets this week and we will have a good read of what you have provided - thank you.

If the wounds are caused by the mounting, is there anything we can do to help her?

Click to expand...

Personally I would get her to the Vet tomorrow and start the ball rolling re:

1- Ascertaining genders-if Buck + Doe personally I'd separate them until they have been neutered. Even if you intend to breed, it is not fair to keep the Buck with the Doe as he will pester her endlessly and this will make for a stressful life for her. If you are planning on breeding you need to fully research how to do it responsibly. Although most (but not all) people on here believe that in this climate of over population of already unwanted Pet Rabbits no deliberate breeding can be classified as 'responsible'. But that debate is probably left for another thread !

2- Obtain any treatment deamed necessary for the damaged skin

3- Discuss vaccinations and neutering

4- A general overall health check including teeth

Good luck

Buttons&Beau said:

Hi,

Thanks for the info everyone. Looking closely at her and the links you provided, it does look more like grazes from Beau mounting her. Theres a closer one below, with what looks like claw marks?

She will be at the vets this week and we will have a good read of what you have provided - thank you.

If the wounds are caused by the mounting, is there anything we can do to help her?

Click to expand...

If you think it's because of the mounting, then I would separate them, as once the skin ulcerates and begins to bleed, you will have to keep it very clean and allow it to heal. It won't heal if one is mounting the other continually, for whatever reason.

Whether you decide to breed or not is your business only, as people on this site are more than happy to purchase rabbits from breeders!

I hope you will be able to sort out the sore very soon - whether it be mites or a claw injury. If you separate them tonight, then there would be no rush to take your rabbit in tomorrow.

Best of luck!

I dont know about the bald patch but regardless the sex of your bunnies please get both neturered of this is just the tip of the iceberg with regards to wounds, fighting,humping, dominance, pregnancy, breeding, not to mention several types of cancers. Please unless your for good reason get them neturered

As a member who supports rescues and does not buy from a breeder, I gave the advice to neuter because

(a) there are hundreds of rabbits stuck in rescues, desperate for new homes; and

(b) the health risks attached to not neutering are so great - as I understand it most unspayed females will suffer from uterine cancer by the age of 5.

As MM says, it is your decision whether or not to breed, but it is important that you have the facts before making that decision

Whatever else, I hope you manage to get them checked over and sexed by your vet, so you know where you stand.

Personally I would get them neutered, not for the reason of stopping the doe from getting pregnant, but for all of the other health concerns that come with not being neutered. Even if both are girls or both are boys then I wouldn't still suggest it to stop the development of diseases such as cancer, but also because if they are not neutered they are more likely to fight and can even come 'unbonded' in the future, which would cause real problems. Also, although behaviour such as dominance and digging will still occur after being neutered it won't be anywhere near as bad as if they are not neutered.
As for the sore on the back, my female bun sometimes 'mounts' my male bun and I can't say I have ever seen a mark like this on his back. But, rabbits have very delicate skin so it would only really take your bunnies claw to dig in a little deeper than normal just once for something like this to occur. As suggested by many others, I would separate them for the night and then take them to the vets tomorrow

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Thank you everyone for your variety of advice. We took Buttons and Beau to the vets in the week for them looking at, sexing, etc.

The mark, as thought, was indeed from Beau marking Buttons' back when grabbing the scruff. The vet sexed them as both boys and commented how healthy and loving they were with each other, which made us very proud! They are also booked in for neutering just after christmas. Thank you again for the advice.

Buttons&Beau said:

Thank you everyone for your variety of advice. We took Buttons and Beau to the vets in the week for them looking at, sexing, etc.

The mark, as thought, was indeed from Beau marking Buttons' back when grabbing the scruff. The vet sexed them as both boys and commented how healthy and loving they were with each other, which made us very proud! They are also booked in for neutering just after christmas. Thank you again for the advice.

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What a fabulous outcome! I'm so glad they will be able to live together and I hope you're not disappointed about not being able to breed from them

Are you also thinking of getting them vaccinated?

They have been vaccinated previously and also been wormed, so no concerns there.

Not dissappointed at all, we are just pleased how loving they are with each other.

Buttons&Beau said:

Thank you everyone for your variety of advice. We took Buttons and Beau to the vets in the week for them looking at, sexing, etc.

The mark, as thought, was indeed from Beau marking Buttons' back when grabbing the scruff. The vet sexed them as both boys and commented how healthy and loving they were with each other, which made us very proud! They are also booked in for neutering just after christmas. Thank you again for the advice.

Click to expand...

I am glad that the Vet was able to reassure you

I hope the boys remain on good terms until they are neutered. As some mounting has already started you will need to be ultra-vigilant as on hitting puberty Bucks can start to fight. Mounting can be a sign that puberty is imminent, even in the absence of fully descended testicles. The trigger to a fight can be if one Buck continues to mount the other and he, the Buck being mounted, suddenly takes exception and turns on the Buck mounting him.

Buttons&Beau said:

They have been vaccinated previously and also been wormed, so no concerns there.

Not dissappointed at all, we are just pleased how loving they are with each other.

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Lovely news!

As we mentioned in PM, I know you'll keep an eye on these boys as they grow up

Please feel free to post again if you have any need, or just to show us more photos!