Bunny had runs, now dragging back legs, help please! (RIP)

[cwebster]

Arnold seemed reticent to eat today. Apparently had diarrhea from some wheatgrass i gave to him and his mate. I trimmed and cleaned his rear end. Vet couldnt see him today, just said to give him critical care and roughage. Now his back legs are limp and no vets are open. He sprawls on his belly with his back legs behind him, and wont walk when out of the cage. Help!! His is a couple years old and has never had health problems. He is swallowing critical care and will eat hand fed carrot top stems. Am really worried.

 

[JBun]

Is he still having true diarrhea, where there are no normal fecal balls but everything is watery or pudding like? If he is, true diarrhea(not just some mushy cecals with normal fecal balls) is an emergency as it can be caused by a deadly bacteria that causes enterotoxemia.

I would also check his hind end very carefully to ensure he hasn't developed flystrike from flies laying eggs in the wet fur. That would seem the like a possible explanation for the hind leg paralysis, as flystrike can cause this. If this has occurred and your rabbit has maggots in and on his skin, this is an immediate emergency, and you have to find an emergency vet to get your rabbit to. Flystrike can prove deadly in a matter of hours.

https://rabbit.org/vet-listings/
If he doesn't still have diarrhea and you checked him over thoroughly and there are no signs of fly eggs or maggots, and/or if there is no emergency vet that you can get him seen by tonight, then I would continue feeding him until you can get him seen by the vet tomorrow. if he does still have diarrhea, there may be something that can be given to protect the digestive tract, until he can be seen by the vet in the morning. But that's just a last ditch effort if there's no way to get to a vet tonight.

 

[cwebster]

Arnold has been eating carrot tops if hand fed along with with critical care and some simethicone. He has made normal poops but cant walk. I trimmed off a four inch bunch of hair earlier covered with poop. I trimmed off balls of ungroomed hair and gently soaked poop off his rear end. There are no maggots (lives indoors) and his rear looks pretty clean now. Am wondering if with all the strugglingtoday if i bruised his hip or back or something? Vet isnt back until Monday. I tried to get him in around noon but they would not see him. There is another vet an hour away so will call them tomorrow. I sent photos to our regular vet because i was scared i cut his tail off. They said i didnt. Arnold is a giant/lionhead cross.

 

[Preitler]

It is possible that something got strained or bruised, struggling when being handled is one big risk for injury, rabbits are much more fragile than cats or dogs.

I would limit his space so he can't move a lot, and see a vet asap.

 

[cwebster]

Just heard from vet. Arnold has no feeling in his hind legs which he said gives a poor prognosis. Vet took two xrays, found nothing wrong on xrays. I am devastated as we love Arnold. Asked to put him on meloxicam, and will bathe him daily until we can give him a chance to get better. Am also taking Arnold to our usual vet tomorrow f(vet is coming in tomorrow so dont have to wait until Monday ) for another opinion.

 

[JBun]

I'm so sorry. At least there were no signs of spinal trauma on the xray, so maybe that gives some hope. And maybe the meloxicam will help. But even with a disability, if a rabbit can learn to cope with the reduced mobility, they can still have a good and happy life. I had an older bun that became disabled due to spinal disk deterioration, and she lost use of her hind legs. But she still plodded along. She would scoot herself around, still got excited for treats, and loved snuggling up to her bunny companion. She was less active towards the end, but that was primarily because of her age. Having a disabled bun did require more intensive care on my part, but she had a good life up until she passed from old age.

 

[cwebster]

Thank you. Just gave Arnold the meloxicam two hours ago. He is eating hay and seems happy, snuggling his girl bunny. Will try to focus on giving Arnold a good and happy life.

 

[cwebster]

Just took Arnold to our regular vet. He said prognosis is very poor because Arnold cannot feel his back legs. He is going to look at the xrays. Arnold is eating well. Vet says Arnold cannot control his urination or defecation. Quality of life issue...can i provide Arnold with a happy life?

 

[HalaBuns]

On one of the groups I follow somebody recommended the following pages for a bun who had a similar disability:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/201759429869484
https://www.facebook.com/JackInTheBagWV
So sorry to hear that you and Arnold are going through this

 

[cwebster]

Thank you. Arnold is looking good,except for notbeing ableto move his back legs. He just ate a lot of carrot tops andsome hayand i syringe fedhim lots of water. Am putting towels under him with paper napkins under hisrear end, which i remove and replace as needed. However, his girl bunny Dutchess removedsome ofthe paper pads at first! She grooms and snuggles him too. Am hoping he will get better.

 

[JBun]

For my disabled bun, what I did to help keep her hind end dry, is I had a layer of disposable puppy pee pads, then over that I had vet bed type material. It helps drain the urine away from their body so the fur doesn't get soaked. if you need a little added absorbency(as the pee pads can get soaked pretty quickly), I added a folded towel between the pee pad and vet bed. Then I think I changed out the towel once a day and the vet bed every two days to wash, then changed the bottom pee pad when it got too wet, which I think was once a day.

http://www.disabledrabbits.com/bedding.html
This kept her pretty clean. I never had to bathe her as it worked so well.

 

[cwebster]

JBun, thank you. What is vet bed material? Right now, i have Arnold on a towel, with a hand towel and paper napkins under his rear end, and so far, he is staying pretty clean (except when Dutchess, his mate, removes the paper napkins).

 

[JBun]

It's like sherpa faux fleece fabric, but is a thicker pile and is usually less absorbent and drains the urine away better. The sherpa stuff is a much thinner pile(usually) and may not drain the urine away quite as well. Vet bedding type fabric tends to be more expensive. The sherpa stuff is much cheaper. It's explained a bit in the link I shared in my post above.

sherpa faux fleece

thicker sherpa faux fleece

Vet bedding

This was the cheapest US seller of vet bedding I could find, though I can't say how reputable they are.
Vet bed remnants

 

[cwebster]

Thank you! Just ordered some bedding.

 

[cwebster]

Just went to check on Arnold and he is not moving or responding and i think he may have died. We thought he was getting better. What could have gonewrong???

 

[JBun]

I'm so sorry. It sounded to me like he was getting better too. All I can think is maybe he had e. cuniculi. It can cause hind limb paresis, and it can also cause organ failure, which could possibly have been a cause of death.

 

[cwebster]

Both vets said Arnold had no symptoms of e cuniculi so they wouldnt test for it. We are wondering if he maybe had a clot and heart failure. We are very sad and so is Dutchess, his girl bunny.

 

[Momma Luvbun]

@cwebster I am very sorry for your heart and that of his widow.
Know you did all you could for Arnold and he had the love of his wife, with him when he crossed over.
It is always hard on us because they take a piece of us with them when they go.
Healing vibes to your mourning hearts.

 

[cwebster]

Momma Luvbun, thank you for your kind words. I still cannot believe Arnold is gone.

 

[Momma Luvbun]

@cwebster I can relate.
I lost my best bun ever, a few years ago unexpectedly. It broke my heart along with her widow and their feline.
After a year I still was not (and even still am not)over my loss, however I needed to get her widow a new wife because he was very sad. I'm glad I did because both my feline and my fella love her to pieces