Very sore under chin

[twistedtiggerz69]

Hi sorry not been on here for a while. Mischief has a very sore large area under his chin. All the fur has gone and it is red so very sore. I feel so guilty as have not been check8ng him as usual as been in a lot of pain. My OH has been doing his eyes all week so we don't know how long he has had this.

We have tried to clean it but he was getting very distressed so we have left it for a while and will do the rest in an hour.

We rang the usual vets but we have no money to take him until 8th October. They advised us to clean it with boiled salt water and dry it well and give him 1.5 ml Loxicom twice a day which we are doing.

We need to keep him eating until Monday when PDSA is open as we are also registered there. We do have some Baytril and Metoclopramide which was given to us for Lillabelle back in March. Is it safe to use that now at all please? Can anyone help advise us on that please? He is starting to not be interested in his food and we are so worried. Thank you

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Sorry I forgot our usual vets has just gone 24 hours so I rang and asked them and they have given us correct dosage for Baytril and Metoclopramide

 

[Shimmer]

A wet chin is often a symptom of dental issues. Keeping the skin dry will help to stop it getting sore, and maybe use a suitable barrier cream, if he isn't going to groom it straight off.

I hope all goes well at his checkup.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

He had a dental not long ago. I think it may have been water dribbling down from doing his eyes. The area is not as bad as I initially thought once I cleaned him up. He has lost fur and it probably is sore bless him. But skin is more pink when dry. But we will keep cleaning it until fur grows back and the Baytril will help until we take him to PDSA on Monday. Thank you Shimmer

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I did ask about using Sudocrem but that is not suitable as he can lick it off. We will be cleaning it 3 times a day and drying it off. Not sure about whether to use vaseline though? We changed him from a bowl to a bottle of water but he just isn't drinking out of the bottle so had to swap it back to a bowl. I did wonder if using a bowl could have caused this

 

[joey&boo]

I did ask about using Sudocrem but that is not suitable as he can lick it off. We will be cleaning it 3 times a day and drying it off. Not sure about whether to use vaseline though? We changed him from a bowl to a bottle of water but he just isn't drinking out of the bottle so had to swap it back to a bowl. I did wonder if using a bowl could have caused this

I'm sorry Chief is poorly. I don't like vaseline - I think if I'd use anything then maybe a touch of organic coconut oil. Eating a significant amount of fat wouldn't be toxic but not ideal for his digestion ...but nor would petroleum jelly Coconut oil has antibacterial properties, about £4 a jar in most supermarkets (I can't tell between branded & own brand - they are all consistently nice)

 

[Shimmer]

I was wondering about just using oil. Even a smear of standard cooking oil might do. I would just try to avoid getting any in the fur, as that may get messy and annoying - so may mean he is further irritated by it.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I'm sorry Chief is poorly. I don't like vaseline - I think if I'd use anything then maybe a touch of organic coconut oil. Eating a significant amount of fat wouldn't be toxic but not ideal for his digestion ...but nor would petroleum jelly Coconut oil has antibacterial properties, about £4 a jar in most supermarkets (I can't tell between branded & own brand - they are all consistently nice)

Oh yes coconut oil would work. We are living from a Morrisons gift card for food which we bought as a back up for when money is tight so we can get that tomorrow.

Unfortunately I ordered wood pellets from Amazon using Clearpay as we are so short of money and when it arrived it was wood shavings. It had got stuck to his chin but we managed to clean it all off in two goes. We need to use our last money to get wood pellets tomorrow and some fresh herbs as he loves them most but we can't get them from a supermarket. I hate being this short of money when we need to look after Chief.

At least we had Baytril and Metoclopramide here as well as plenty of Loxicom which we got when Chief's eyes were bad. Luckily his eyes are much better now as we have been cleaning them 3 times a day. My OH has been doing it the last few days as I hurt my back but his eyes have been much better recently and all the fur is growing back. We will have to continue doing his eyes for all his life from now on though.

Poor Chief has been lying in his litter tray fast breathing since we cleaned under his chin. We put a towel under him to protect his sore area from the wood shavings rather than having to move him. He always fast breathes when he is in pain

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I was wondering about just using oil. Even a smear of standard cooking oil might do. I would just try to avoid getting any in the fur, as that may get messy and annoying - so may mean he is further irritated by it.

I am just worried in case any oil will attract fur to get stuck to it. Would that not make his wound worse? I also am not sure how often to clean his wound? I was thinking maybe 3 times a day the same as his eyes

 

[Shimmer]

If the skin is intact, I would just aim to keep it dry without making it even more sore. If the skin is sore / angry looking, I would be inclined to try putting something simple on it (once it is dry) to see if it helps, and to give it a chance to heal. If it's cracked or infected, it needs a vet to look at it first.

Cutting the fur back would help to stop it getting and staying so wet - but I appreciate that isn't going to be an easy task so may be best left to the professionals if they think it's necessary.

Anything you put on is bound to get into the fur to some extent. Maybe try a cotton bud for more accurate application?

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

The skin is intact and once dry it is a pink colour rather than angry red but it is obviously sore where I just cleaned him. When I was trying to wet the wound to get the shavings off that had got stuck he moved really quick and caused me to jolt and caused a tiny dot of bleeding on it though. I think I will just keep it clean and dry for now as I have really shaky hands since my stroke and will probably just make a mess.

He is still fast breathing and lying in his litter tray and is making a sound like he is whining but I don't want to go over and disturb him in case he is just squeaking as fallen asleep. He usually squeaks when sleeping but it may sound faster as he is breathing fast.

I am worried I have used to much salt on his wound. Google said half a teaspoon per cupful but I usually just put a pinch in. Should I use less in future please?

Sorry for all the questions. Just want to make him comfortable as best we can. I am dreading having to syringe feed him as he always ends up with it under his chin. That would be a nightmare!

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

A quick update...we have been soaking under Chief's chin slightly with a salt solution (just a pinch of salt in half a mug) and drying it well. It is now a light pink colour with no sore spots and he is much happier with letting us clean it.

He is also much happier in himself- no fast breathing or lying in the litter tray. He is also jumping up on to bed asking for treats. He usually has a sprig of herbs but he has been having that then jumping back on the bed for more. Back to his cheeky self

Shimmer just wanted to say thank you for the advice re using oil on his wound. I wasn't ignoring your advice to use a cotton bud to apply it as that was a great tip but I was worried of my shaky hands imagining dropping it on his fur and making mess plus my OH is rather heavy handed as he would admit himself. Based on what you said I thought the skin was intact and didn't look too bad so I felt it best to leave the oil. I do really appreciate yours and Joey&boos advice. It really helped so thank you to you both

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Also just to say that I am going to stop giving him Metoclopramide now as he is eating really well and reduce the loxicom to 1ml twice a day. We will keep giving him Baytril for 3 more days unless vet says otherwise when I ring them tomorrow

 

[Shimmer]

I’m glad he is better today. That’s what matters

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

The vet said to keep doing what we are doing as it is healing up nicely so we are happy with that

 

[HarrySnotter]

Hi sorry not been on here for a while. Mischief has a very sore large area under his chin. All the fur has gone and it is red so very sore. I feel so guilty as have not been check8ng him as usual as been in a lot of pain. My OH has been doing his eyes all week so we don't know how long he has had this.

We have tried to clean it but he was getting very distressed so we have left it for a while and will do the rest in an hour.

We rang the usual vets but we have no money to take him until 8th October. They advised us to clean it with boiled salt water and dry it well and give him 1.5 ml Loxicom twice a day which we are doing.

We need to keep him eating until Monday when PDSA is open as we are also registered there. We do have some Baytril and Metoclopramide which was given to us for Lillabelle back in March. Is it safe to use that now at all please? Can anyone help advise us on that please? He is starting to not be interested in his food and we are so worried. Thank you

Our rabbit had this as as part of a chronic snuffles (pasteurella multocida) problem with lots of eye and nasal discharge. They can get it from a variety of things, even just from constant wetting of chin in a water bowl. I'm glad yours is doing better.

I treated it on and off three times a day for a year and a half. Salt water does work. The vet recommended F10 barrier ointment, which is like vaseline with a germicide. I never found it particularly effective.

If you think about it, that sore red scabby skin is just like your nostrils, upper lip etc get with a runny cold and the absolute best thing for that I have always found is Blistex Relief Cream. It's fine for rabbits and it healed the area within a day. The fur growing back depends on your rabbit breed - look it up. With a Rex like ours it can be up to six months or more, but it eventually does.

If you've never used Blistex on yourself for chapped lips, try it, it's 100 times better than a chap stick! Make sure it's the Relief Cream not the moisturiser or balm.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Thank you so much. Your post is really helpful. I have been checking under his chin and it hasn't been sore or the fur lost since but needs a little clean now and again .

I will get some Blistex to try. Thank you

 

[HarrySnotter]

Thank you so much. Your post is really helpful. I have been checking under his chin and it hasn't been sore or the fur lost since but needs a little clean now and again .

I will get some Blistex to try. Thank you

No worries, it was a lady who runs a rescue centre who told me about the Blistex, though I've used it on myself since i was a child. Sounds like he had some sort of bacterial flare-up and hopefully it's gone down. The tear ducts between the eye and the nose are tiny in rabbits and can cause problems with bacterial build-up. Loki got a tiny sliver of straw down his which caused scarring and then because it was partially blocked the pasteurella (most rabbits carry it) could build up and cause problems. He always had eye discharge issues to varying degrees after that but he lived happily for another 6 years until he was 11. Oh and don't pay for supermarket herbs, grow some in a plant pot or just grab handfuls of grass dandelions, clover etc from a verge. Ours love that as much as anything.