Paralyzed Cottontail Housing

[4Bunjamin]

Posting a new thread here to get feedback. We rescued a baby cottontail about 3 weeks ago. We are predicting he is around 8 weeks old now. He has been growing and healthy and does not seem to be sick or suffering. We believe he was born with back leg paralysis. He is well adjusted and still quite nimble getting himself around his cage.

I see tons of posts about exercising rabbits, play pens, size of homes, etc. Since he has limited mobility I don't want to move him into something too big to maneuver, but I don't want him to be in something too small either. We are beginning to consider an outdoor hutch/coop and I wanted to get general feedback. We live in the midwest so the temperature this season is mostly mild and we would put him up against the garage in the shade.

Or maybe the cage is fine? Just looking for what has worked for others. Bonus points if anyone has worked directly with partial paralysis lol

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We have 3 rescues in our "rabbit room", yes, they have their own room. Each gets 8 hours a day out of their hutch and we have boxes and all sorts of chewable toys. I would keep him inside and set up a "play" area for him when not in the hutch--we got a collapsible wire play pen at Petsmart that folds up --Nancy used to take a Rabbit to school with her every day and her students loved it--easy to set up with toys, a pan, and a box to hide in and easily put away.

 

[JBun]

I would also say to keep him indoors. He'll get far more interaction being inside with you, and I think be much happier because of it. Keeping pet rabbits outdoors really is only good for them if they have company from being bonded with other spayed/neutered bunny companions, otherwise it can be a very lonely isolating existence for most pet rabbits. Especially for a disabled bun that won't be able to do normal behaviors like digging, running, and hopping.

There's also an added risk of being outdoors for a disabled rabbit. Because their disability makes them more prone to getting wet or soiled fur on the bottom, this puts the rabbit at very high risk of developing flystrike in the warmer months, which can very quickly prove fatal. So I'd strongly recommend keeping him indoors because of this increased risk alone.

https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Flystrike

(LINK CONTAINS GRAPHIC MEDICAL RELATED PHOTOS)
www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/Myiasis/Miyasis_fly.htm

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/flystrike-in-rabbits/

To give him more space to scoot around, many of us use pet xpens. This can be attached around a rabbits current home base cage, or used independently without a cage. Of course this will need to be configured in a way that works best for your buns reduced mobility. I thought I had posted a picture of my disabled rabbits enclosure in your other thread, but I guess the link didn't work, so I'll try again.



https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/housing-options.html

www.disabledrabbits.com/setups.html

(RO member indoor set ups)
https://www.rabbitsonline.net/threads/2023-2024-indoor-cages-spaces-add-your-photo.105421/

If you do still want him to be able to experience the outdoors, supervised time outside can always be done. Just make sure to do it during the cool periods of the day and out of direct sun. Rabbits can overheat easily in the summer. Also watch for predators, particularly birds of prey.

https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Hot_weather_concerns