Infected wound following hind leg amputation (update)

Hi Everyone

i am just after a bit of advice really. 2 weeks ago our beloved 8 yr old bunny was grabbed by a dog, breaking his back leg. He had the leg amputated and is doing really well - except his wound got infected and the middle bit was all yellow and not healing. He is currently in the vets having this dead tissue removed and the wound re-sutured. Speaking to the vet this morning she thinks she may need to leave 1 end of the wound open as she doesn't think there is enough skin to close fully. So has anybody any ingenious ideas of how I can keep the wound clean/dry or keep a dressing on it. She mentioned using a baby grow so stitch up the 'affected' leg side and his bottom could stick out the 'poppers' which i will give a go. It is such a shame as he is full of character and is as bright as a button - it is just this wound. i don't mind spending money on him as he is a big part of our family (he is a dwarf lionhead, and lives in the house with us).

We have changed his bedding to the 'vetbed' type as it is soft and keeps him dry as any urine just drains though - but the vet mentioned keeping him on towels - won't this just keep him wet??

i really want to do anything I can to give him the best chance of getting through this - so any help/advice/guidance/hints/tips very welcome

26/11/2017 - So we made the heartbreaking decision to have our bugs put to sleep on tuesday. He had MRSP in his wound so was unlikely to heal but more to the point he lost his 'spark'. We always said that as long as he was fighting we would do everything possible for him. But he more or less overnight went from a bunny whose head popped up everytime there was a noise - to not even lifting his head to eat. He also bit me.....and i mean really bit me on Tuesday and in all the time we have owned him and all he went through he never so much as nipped - I suspect he was telling us enough is enough. If I am honest - I think he would have passed away anyway - but I wasn't prepared to let him suffer.

I would love to put a picture up for you all to see him - but I am not sure how to do that.

but thank you to everyone for the advice along the way.

Sorry this will be a very quick reply.

The vets should be able to bandage the area and you'll need to go back every 2 to 3 days for bandage change.
Honey can be used by the vets to help it heal quicker - I think it's Manuka that is used but happy to be corrected as brain isn't working.

Vet bed is best for open wounds as bodily fluids drain to the bottom of the base but you may experience sore hock due to its abrasive nature.

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You could use towels over puppy pads to keep him drier and more comfortable.
I presume he is on antibiotics for the infection, and pain relief.
Medical grade manuka honey is what daphnephoebe was thinking of. Ask your vet if it would be appropriate. It is available online in various forms (eg. vetuk)
https://www.vetuk.co.uk/index.php?m...rch_in_description=1&sort=vuk&keyword=manuka+

We used child's thick tights to make body stockings when our rabbit had his front leg amputated. He had a weird massive line of infection / abscesses all down one side for several weeks. It was a challenge to keep any dressings on him, but he did heal fully in the end.

Thank you both - update from the vets - she has removed quite a lot of pus and cleaned the wound. It now has Manuka honey in there and one area of the wound will need flushing with saline - not sure if any of the woun is open now. Just need to work out how I keep the dressing on - let alone clean & dry.

We found non-adherant dressings useful - they absorb the gunge without sticking to the open wound. They can be held in place with gauze bandages. Then cohesive bandages can be quite useful for keeping other dressings in place as they are stretchy and stick to themselves. Micropore tape can help to keep other bits in place and is easy to tear while you are handling the rabbit. You can get them from supermarkets in the first aid section.

Shimmer said:

We found non-adherant dressings useful - they absorb the gunge without sticking to the open wound. They can be held in place with gauze bandages. Then cohesive bandages can be quite useful for keeping other dressings in place as they are stretchy and stick to themselves. Micropore tape can help to keep other bits in place and is easy to tear while you are handling the rabbit. You can get them from supermarkets in the first aid section.

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Aswell as the above suggestions I used these on my Rabbit Harry when he had his hind leg amputated

https://www.weldricks.co.uk/product...MIoPiqmdur1wIVDrvtCh1pkQYNEAQYAyABEgI1wPD_BwE

den1se1965 said:

Thank you both - update from the vets - she has removed quite a lot of pus and cleaned the wound. It now has Manuka honey in there and one area of the wound will need flushing with saline - not sure if any of the woun is open now. Just need to work out how I keep the dressing on - let alone clean & dry.

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For this sort of thing I have used non adherent gauze, cohesive bandages (they stick to themselves and also stretch) and a high grade Manuka honey (25+). I usually change the dressing twice daily - what has your vet advised?

MightyMax said:

For this sort of thing I have used non adherent gauze, cohesive bandages (they stick to themselves and also stretch) and a high grade Manuka honey (25+). I usually change the dressing twice daily - what has your vet advised?

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Thanks everyone for your advice.

So a visit to the vet today and my improvisation seems to have worked. I used a small babies disposable nappy to cover the wound dressings which seemed to stop any urine soaking the wound and held everything in place with a tiny babygro. The wound looks clean. The vet irrigated with saline and inserted Manuka honey into it- no pus came out when irrigated. She has given me the equipment to continue this myself until Friday when she will see him again - unless of course i am worried. He has antibiotics and pain releif and he is quite bright today, eating and pooping - will be keeping my fingers & toes crossed for him - he is a fighter.

den1se1965 said:

Thanks everyone for your advice.

So a visit to the vet today and my improvisation seems to have worked. I used a small babies disposable nappy to cover the wound dressings which seemed to stop any urine soaking the wound and held everything in place with a tiny babygro. The wound looks clean. The vet irrigated with saline and inserted Manuka honey into it- no pus came out when irrigated. She has given me the equipment to continue this myself until Friday when she will see him again - unless of course i am worried. He has antibiotics and pain releif and he is quite bright today, eating and pooping - will be keeping my fingers & toes crossed for him - he is a fighter.

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Good news that things seem to be going better now and hopefully wound healing will continue without any more set-backs. I'm glad that Bunny is bright within himself xx

den1se1965 said:

Thanks everyone for your advice.

So a visit to the vet today and my improvisation seems to have worked. I used a small babies disposable nappy to cover the wound dressings which seemed to stop any urine soaking the wound and held everything in place with a tiny babygro. The wound looks clean. The vet irrigated with saline and inserted Manuka honey into it- no pus came out when irrigated. She has given me the equipment to continue this myself until Friday when she will see him again - unless of course i am worried. He has antibiotics and pain releif and he is quite bright today, eating and pooping - will be keeping my fingers & toes crossed for him - he is a fighter.

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You're welcome

I'm glad you'e found a way around this, and it's working well. I have to say I am all for improvising with 'clothing' for rabbits where necessary. I usually make my own 'garments' to cover spots that need time to heal.

I'm amazed you found a babygro tiny enough

So just a little update - i am worried about my little Bun. The wound doesn't seem to be healing - in fact inbetween the stitches it is open. He is still taking antibiotics and pain relief. I am flushing it twice a day with saline and using Manuka Honey - but I am having terrible trouble keeping the wound clean properly due to its position (it starts right next to his bottom) and to keep dressings on. I have tried bandages, vet wrap, opsite/tegederm, disposable nappy, babygro. He is bright enough, eating fine pooping fine etc. He is not really making any attempt to mobilise himself though - he drags himself round like a sealpup - so this also drags the dressings down. We are back at the vets tomorrow - I don't want to give up on him as he is such a fighter - but I don't want him to suffer either. I am strugglng now with what is best for him as opposed to what is best for us - we would all be devestated if we lost him.

I am so sorry for you and your bun. I hope a better solution turns up for you so this wound can heal properly.

So just a little update - i am worried about my little Bun. The wound doesn't seem to be healing - in fact inbetween the stitches it is open. He is still taking antibiotics and pain relief. I am flushing it twice a day with saline and using Manuka Honey - but I am having terrible trouble keeping the wound clean properly due to its position (it starts right next to his bottom) and to keep dressings on. I have tried bandages, vet wrap, opsite/tegederm, disposable nappy, babygro. He is bright enough, eating fine pooping fine etc. He is not really making any attempt to mobilise himself though - he drags himself round like a sealpup - so this also drags the dressings down. We are back at the vets tomorrow - I don't want to give up on him as he is such a fighter - but I don't want him to suffer either. I am strugglng now with what is best for him as opposed to what is best for us - we would all be devestated if we lost him.

I hope the vet can help, I don't have any experience of this so I can't offer any advice. Maybe a change of antibiotics might help. I imagine bunny is on pain relief?

Oh crumbs, how awful .

I don't have any advice, I'm really sorry, but I do hope that it all works out for you and your poor little bunny.

I would edit your title and add Up Date! :thumb:

den1se1965 said:

So just a little update - i am worried about my little Bun. The wound doesn't seem to be healing - in fact inbetween the stitches it is open. He is still taking antibiotics and pain relief. I am flushing it twice a day with saline and using Manuka Honey - but I am having terrible trouble keeping the wound clean properly due to its position (it starts right next to his bottom) and to keep dressings on. I have tried bandages, vet wrap, opsite/tegederm, disposable nappy, babygro. He is bright enough, eating fine pooping fine etc. He is not really making any attempt to mobilise himself though - he drags himself round like a sealpup - so this also drags the dressings down. We are back at the vets tomorrow - I don't want to give up on him as he is such a fighter - but I don't want him to suffer either. I am strugglng now with what is best for him as opposed to what is best for us - we would all be devestated if we lost him.

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Poor Bunny I guess if he is not mobilising himself he will have some muscle wastage around the hip of his remaining hind limb. Also, has the Vet ruled out any age related arthritic issues he may have in his spine which would, of course, further hinder his ability to remain mobile with just one hind leg.

Is there still pus coming from the wound ?

I do hope that the Vet can do more to help him and that there will still be a chance for him to recover x

Can the vet nurses suggest any alternative ways of dressing the area? Maybe something like a donut shaped dressing around the wound to stop it catching on the ground, and provide something for bunny to scoot around on (I'm thinking along the lines of the rubber ring cushions for piles, or first aider dressings to protect large embedded foreign bodies).

Our tripod bun had a lot of issues with healing, but did get there in the end. Most of the damage was due to friction against the ground (bathroom floor in his case) and we had to find a way to prop him up that didn't make the horrendous sores worse. The actual front leg amputation wound wasn't an issue and healed fairly well (once we found a way of keeping the dressings on).

Keep doing what you are doing. It's hanging on in there for a long enough time that will make a difference to the healing process, as long as bunny is Ok in himself. You may need to temporarily reduce his space to give him a few days to heal without causing any further damage - in which case, you may need to get inventive in ways to keep him occupied (eg hanging willow branches, toilet roll tubes of hay, etc).

den1se1965 said:

So just a little update - i am worried about my little Bun. The wound doesn't seem to be healing - in fact inbetween the stitches it is open. He is still taking antibiotics and pain relief. I am flushing it twice a day with saline and using Manuka Honey - but I am having terrible trouble keeping the wound clean properly due to its position (it starts right next to his bottom) and to keep dressings on. I have tried bandages, vet wrap, opsite/tegederm, disposable nappy, babygro. He is bright enough, eating fine pooping fine etc. He is not really making any attempt to mobilise himself though - he drags himself round like a sealpup - so this also drags the dressings down. We are back at the vets tomorrow - I don't want to give up on him as he is such a fighter - but I don't want him to suffer either. I am strugglng now with what is best for him as opposed to what is best for us - we would all be devestated if we lost him.

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So sorry to hear things aren't progressing smoothly

It sounds like he's a little fighter, and I would want to try and continue a bit longer with the wound dressings - hopefully the vet can give you an idea of alternatives whilst it's healing?

You may also need to explore the services of a physiotherapist, as with him not mobilising there can be muscle wastage, which in turn makes it more difficult for him to move.

You might find it helpful to join a group such as disabled rabbits and get some advice:

http://www.disabledrabbits.com/limb-loss.html

https://www.facebook.com/disabledrabbits/

I have used 'supported hopping' to get a rabbit's muscles working again.

I hope he can recover and give you hope to carry on x

26/11/2017 - So we made the heartbreaking decision to have our bugs put to sleep on tuesday. He had MRSP in his wound so was unlikely to heal but more to the point he lost his 'spark'. We always said that as long as he was fighting we would do everything possible for him. But he more or less overnight went from a bunny whose head popped up everytime there was a noise - to not even lifting his head to eat. He also bit me.....and i mean really bit me on Tuesday and in all the time we have owned him and all he went through he never so much as nipped - I suspect he was telling us enough is enough. If I am honest - I think he would have passed away anyway - but I wasn't prepared to let him suffer.

I would love to put a picture up for you all to see him - but I am not sure how to do that.

but thank you to everyone for the advice along the way.