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Hind Limb amputation, Giant Rabbit?
- Thread starter DoodleBunny
- Start date
DoodleBunny
New Kit
In the last week or so our rabbit has shown no improvement with her abscessed hocks, after not knowing what to do I've spent the last few days getting in touch with different practices to see what their opinions are regarding treatment options for her. The majority of practices were in agreement that amputation would be worth trying as she's only a year old and the other foot/leg is healthy
She's currently booked in for x-rays and amputation on Monday, but I'm not sure I'm making the right decision.
Part of me thinks that we should try, she's young and maybe could adapt and live happily for a while longer. But what if she doesn't, what if she goes through all that but can't recover and we have to PTS anyway. I'm not sure that's fair on her.
Everyone on this forum has given me so much good advice and support. I need some very honest opinions. What would you do?
She's currently booked in for x-rays and amputation on Monday, but I'm not sure I'm making the right decision.
Part of me thinks that we should try, she's young and maybe could adapt and live happily for a while longer. But what if she doesn't, what if she goes through all that but can't recover and we have to PTS anyway. I'm not sure that's fair on her.
Everyone on this forum has given me so much good advice and support. I need some very honest opinions. What would you do?
She's not improved - but hasn't got worse either?
Is she still Ok in herself - eating, drinking, moving around, etc?
I tend to give things a bit more time, if it's not an obvious decision. Amputation or PTS are pretty much one way options and can't be undone, and options which will still be there in a week (or whenever).
Are there any options on the treatment? Different / more frequent antibiotics? Dressings? Surgical intervention? Really push to see what else is a possibility. X-rays may be useful, whatever else you do.
If you want to see how a disabled rabbit copes, have a look at some of Hugo's There's old posts - she took in severely disabled rabbits. They still had a quality of life and their own personalities, despite everything. Just to give another perspective on things - not saying it is right (or wrong) for you both - all situations are different.
I know you have her best interests in mind and you will do the right thing, whatever you decide.
Is she still Ok in herself - eating, drinking, moving around, etc?
I tend to give things a bit more time, if it's not an obvious decision. Amputation or PTS are pretty much one way options and can't be undone, and options which will still be there in a week (or whenever).
Are there any options on the treatment? Different / more frequent antibiotics? Dressings? Surgical intervention? Really push to see what else is a possibility. X-rays may be useful, whatever else you do.
If you want to see how a disabled rabbit copes, have a look at some of Hugo's There's old posts - she took in severely disabled rabbits. They still had a quality of life and their own personalities, despite everything. Just to give another perspective on things - not saying it is right (or wrong) for you both - all situations are different.
I know you have her best interests in mind and you will do the right thing, whatever you decide.
DoodleBunny
New Kit
She's still getting about (mainly on 3 legs) eating, drinking, toileting as normal. She still seems happy.
The leg is rapidly getting worse and doesn't seem to be responding to antibiotics. It's very swollen and hot. The vet said she could try sewing antibiotic balls into the hock but said the location would make that difficult and she wasn't convinced that it would much good.
She said that she'll have a think over the weekend as to other options and we'll discuss treatment on Monday but really feels that amputation or PTS are the only options at this stage.
I will have a look through the posts you've suggested, thank you.
The leg is rapidly getting worse and doesn't seem to be responding to antibiotics. It's very swollen and hot. The vet said she could try sewing antibiotic balls into the hock but said the location would make that difficult and she wasn't convinced that it would much good.
She said that she'll have a think over the weekend as to other options and we'll discuss treatment on Monday but really feels that amputation or PTS are the only options at this stage.
I will have a look through the posts you've suggested, thank you.
InspectorMorse
Wise Old Thumper
After Xrays the bone involvement should become evident. If it is not yet osteomyelitis before amputation I would suggest discussing changing the abx protocol. Penicillin INJECTIONS for example.
DoodleBunny
New Kit
When she first started antibiotics she was having an injectable penicillin every other day but when she had a culture done to see what antibiotic would be best for the bacteria present, it was an oral antibiotic this worked really well initially but has since stopped working. I did have another vet suggest that we try daily Depocillin injections, although the vet yesterday didn't suggest this. Could that help abscessed hocks? If osteomyelitis is an issue would something like Depocillin help this? Or is that an irreversible issue?
InspectorMorse
Wise Old Thumper
Did the culture show the bacteria is RESISTANT to Penicillin ? If so then Depocillin would not be of any use.
Osteomyelitis is challenging to treat, the outcome depends on the specifics of the individual case. I would be reluctant to opt for amputation until every other treatment option has been considered. Finding out the extent of the infection ie if bone is involved and if so how severe it is, making sure the Rabbit has no other skeletal problems that could make losing a leg unmanageable. If you have an Exotics/ very Rabbit Savvy Vet I am sure they would not carry out an amputation if they felt it to potentially be unethical to do so.
DoodleBunny
New Kit
Update:
We took our rabbit for her x-rays on Monday and they unfortunately showed the worst possible outcome; she had severe osteomyelitis and a badly fractured hock. She must have been in so much pain but always remained so sweet natured.
We decided that due to her being only a year old we would try amputation (in the hope that she might have at least a few more months/years of happy, pain free life.
Within hours of the operation she was up on three feet and has already managed a very small binky, something she hasn't done for months. She's still very sore and recovery will be fairly slow but fingers crossed everything heals ok.
The only issue we're having is that she's not eating much, what does everyone on here tempt their bunnies with when they're feeling off?
(If the eating doesn't improve the vet has said she'll give her a gut stimulant and stronger pain relief but wants to give her chance to recover from the operation first)
Thank you for everyone's support and advice.
We took our rabbit for her x-rays on Monday and they unfortunately showed the worst possible outcome; she had severe osteomyelitis and a badly fractured hock. She must have been in so much pain but always remained so sweet natured.
We decided that due to her being only a year old we would try amputation (in the hope that she might have at least a few more months/years of happy, pain free life.
Within hours of the operation she was up on three feet and has already managed a very small binky, something she hasn't done for months. She's still very sore and recovery will be fairly slow but fingers crossed everything heals ok.
The only issue we're having is that she's not eating much, what does everyone on here tempt their bunnies with when they're feeling off?
(If the eating doesn't improve the vet has said she'll give her a gut stimulant and stronger pain relief but wants to give her chance to recover from the operation first)
Thank you for everyone's support and advice.
Dandelion leaves, celery leaves - anything that smells stronger usually tempts them. If she's really not eating / pooing much by day 2 after the op, I would ask for gut stimulants anyway. You don't need more complications, especially over a weekend. Vet probably wants to do a post-op check anyway to make sure everything is healing OK and there is no infection.
Wishing you all the best for a good recovery.
Wishing you all the best for a good recovery.
Best of luck with recovery. I have a bunny who had his back leg off due to it being broken by the previous owner. It's been two years and he is really good but a small bunny. X
InspectorMorse
Wise Old Thumper
I find that fresh herbs such as coriander and flat leaf parsley can tempt a Rabbit to eat. I hope that your Bunny will make a good recovery. When Harry had his amputation he was on gut motility meds and strong pain killers for the first 4-5 days after surgery.
