nipped ear?

[piperknitsRN]

It looks like Olive might have groomed Simon a little too heavily, as he's got a little superficial mark on his left ear that seems to have bled just a little bit (he's not soaking in blood, or anything, but you can tell the area has serosanguinous drainage). I'm convinced this wasn't vicious in any way, as Olive is snuggled up next to him and I didn't hear any scuffling (in fact, I've been in the same room with them all day long)--I think she just must have been overzealous in her grooming. Or else he scratched it somehow (but on what? He's a New Zealand and has long, wonderful ears, but I don't think this looks like a scratch). It's hard to tell, but I will keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't become infected. Expect it's all I can do, at this point, as he's not bleeding copiously, there's no obvious tears or anything like that.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Maybe a little Neosporin to.

 

[piperknitsRN]

Nancy McClelland wrote:

Maybe a little Neosporin to.

Wouldn't he just groom it off, though? It looks like he groomed his ear and I can't even see where the scratch/nip mark/whatever is anymore. I'm going to keep an eye on it over the weekend and if it starts looking red and inflamed I'll call the vet on Monday morning and see what they want me to do.

 

[aurora369]

Neosporin is safe if ingested. Just make sure it is the plain kind, not the plus. Put a bit on a couple times a day for a few days to help with healing and to prevent infection.

-Dawn

 

[piperknitsRN]

aurora369 wrote:

Neosporin is safe if ingested. Just make sure it is the plain kind, not the plus. Put a bit on a couple times a day for a few days to help with healing and to prevent infection.

-Dawn

Ah, ok... will do! But to be honest, I can't even see where he was nipped anymore. Have to take a look at it under brighter lights, I guess.

 

[aurora369]

If you can't see it anymore, I wouldn't worry about it. His body is probably already on it's way to fully healing the wound.

If the wound is small but visible, that is when I would worry about keeping it clean and putting neosporin on it.

-Dawn

 

[piperknitsRN]

When he gets done sulking behind the couch (SO walked in and startled him)--I'll check his ear. Thanks for the advice and reassurance!

 

[MandyK]

Sometimes when my rabbits groom each other, one will stick their head under the other, as if to say "Groom me please!" I've noticed a few times that when the 'groomer' hops away, he accidentally kicks and scratches the other's ear. This might have been what happened to your bun.

 

[piperknitsRN]

MandyK wrote:

Sometimes when my rabbits groom each other, one will stick their head under the other, as if to say "Groom me please!" I've noticed a few times that when the 'groomer' hops away, he accidentally kicks and scratches the other's ear. This might have been what happened to your bun.

That's true! Never thought about that. Any ways, I looked this morning and I still couldn't see where the scratch was from yesterday, so I think we're good.