My rabbit, Annie, is 8 years old. For a few months I felt like she was moving around in a strange way. She was still active (and eating and pooping normally, jumping up on the couch, etc.) and had nightly zoomies, but when she hopped, she was dragging her back legs slightly. Very very slightly. Then I started hearing a crackling/clicking sound when she moved. I read that could be a sign of arthritis, so I took her to the vet about a couple weeks ago. They did xrays, blood tests, etc. A radiologist said she has what appears to be arthritis in her shoulder as well as degenerative joint disease (or maybe degenerative disc disease...I can't remember which...either way, it's in her spine). The radiologist said that there are growths around the joint in her shoulder, which could be normal, but could also be a sign of possible cancer. But there are no breaks and the bone itself looks good. The vet put her on metacam twice daily and asked us to come back in 3 months for another xray on her shoulder.
Last night she didn't take her daily vitamin. She usually goes crazy for them, so it was concerning. It was around the time she needed her metacam dose, so I gave her the dose and hoped that would help with whatever pain she was in. An hour and a half later and she still wasn't eating. I increased the dose. An hour after that she ate the vitamin, started moving around, and started eating again.
But one thing I noticed before and even after she started eating last night (and I saw her doing it once this morning too) was that she was resting her front paws on the edge of her bed. It's a new bed. The previous one didn't have a raised edge. I thought maybe she was just getting used to it or she found it comfortable. But then I noticed she did the same thing on one of the snuggle/bolster beds that we've had for years. She'd sit on the flat bit in the middle and then rest her paws/arms on the bolster. I've never seen her sit like that. I read this online in a few different places as a symptom for heart disease: "Distinctive resting position, with the front portion of the body elevated; the neck and nose may be pointed upward". Her neck and nose aren't pointed upwards. She seems to be having no difficulty breathing. But she's clearly putting herself in a position where her upper body is elevated.
I will take her into the vet, but am wondering if anyone has experienced this? Here's an image I found online of another bunny doing exactly what Annie has been doing...
Last night she didn't take her daily vitamin. She usually goes crazy for them, so it was concerning. It was around the time she needed her metacam dose, so I gave her the dose and hoped that would help with whatever pain she was in. An hour and a half later and she still wasn't eating. I increased the dose. An hour after that she ate the vitamin, started moving around, and started eating again.
But one thing I noticed before and even after she started eating last night (and I saw her doing it once this morning too) was that she was resting her front paws on the edge of her bed. It's a new bed. The previous one didn't have a raised edge. I thought maybe she was just getting used to it or she found it comfortable. But then I noticed she did the same thing on one of the snuggle/bolster beds that we've had for years. She'd sit on the flat bit in the middle and then rest her paws/arms on the bolster. I've never seen her sit like that. I read this online in a few different places as a symptom for heart disease: "Distinctive resting position, with the front portion of the body elevated; the neck and nose may be pointed upward". Her neck and nose aren't pointed upwards. She seems to be having no difficulty breathing. But she's clearly putting herself in a position where her upper body is elevated.
I will take her into the vet, but am wondering if anyone has experienced this? Here's an image I found online of another bunny doing exactly what Annie has been doing...
