Seems like Cinnamon just won't get better...

[tinfoilxtouch]

A little bit of background on the bunny. She'sone of my original rabbits, ayear-old Netherland. She livedin a hutch with my Holland Lop for quite some time in perfect harmony,until one day he started getting agressive (fur pulling, chasing, ect).I quickly removed her, but somehow in the process she lost use of herback legs. This was about two months ago.

I took her to the vet, and they indicated it was not a broken back.They gave her an anti-inflamitory shot and sent her home. Slowly, shestarted getting better. I'd bathe her once a day to clean the messshe'd make on herself. She's finally regained about 95% of her originalmobility, which makes me happy.

The problem is that she is still sore and swollen "back there" from thetime she was injured. Her hair is starting to grow back on her tail andthe rest of the area, but things obviously are still not fully right.I'm using the softest pet bedding I can find and cleaning her off asneeded.It seems like she'll be lookinga littlebetter, then suddenly be soreand swollen again the next day.I'm making an appointment today to bring her back to the same doctorlater this week.

It seems like she has loose stools sometimes, but I'm not really surewhy. She lost a lot of weight during this whole thing, so I'm trying tofeed her as much hay, pellets, and veggies as she can eat.. along withsome apple slivers. She probably has another pound before she gets backto "healthy" weight.

Thoughts on all of this before I take her to the vet? Also, is Yorba Regional a good place in my area to take her?

 

[JimD]

I have 2 bunnies that are very sensitive to the amount of protein in their diet.
Too much protein causes soft poops, excess cecals, and at the same time it seems to cause urine scald for these two.
To reduce their protein, I had to change the pellets. They now gethalf&half timothy based and alfalfa based (they were gettingall alfalfa based). They're also sensitive to fruits and greens so theyget those on a very limited basis.

All of this and I still check them at least once a week to make sure they're clean and healthy.

 

[jordiwes]

See this thread for recommended vets in your area. It looks like Yorba is on there:

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=11590&forum_id=9

 

[bbgrl20]

I work at Yorba Regional and take my buns therefor treatment as well. Ask for Dr. Grace Matsuura, She's the only onewho sees my buns. There are two other docs who will seerabbits, but I don't know the extent of their knowledge. So stick withDr. Grace, ask to have some rads done to make sure she is healing right.

Good luck with your bun!! Hope to see you walking through my doors

Oh PS

If anyone recommends Dr. Tom Greek, don't go with him. I've heard somereally sad and awful stories about him. They may not be true, but I amnot going to risk my buns health!!

 

[naturestee]

I'm sorry you're having problems taking care ofher. I do agree with JimD that the pellets might be causingthe poop problems. What type are you feeding and howmuch? Pellets should be limited and have highfiber. Lower protein pellets often cause problems withexcess/mushy cecals. Examples of low protein pellets areOxbow Bunny Basics/T and Kaytee Timothy Plus. She might alsobe sensitive to certain veggies/fruits. Have you noticed anycorrelation between poop problems and a specific food?

95% of mobility back sounds pretty decent to me. Does shemove around much or tend to stay in one spot? Is she on anypain meds?

What kind of bedding are you using for her? The problem withmost bedding is that it absorbs urine but it's still right there nextto the skin. You could try putting something like a Vet Bed,synthetic sheepskin animal bed, or something similar on top of thebedding. These are designed to allow urine to pass throughand away from the body. They're very popular with caretakersof disabled rabbits.

How are you bathing her? Is it a wet bath? I'mbetting a dry bath would irritate her skin less. Here's someinstructions:
http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/buttbath.html

Trimming the fur on her rear end would help prevent urine from gettingtrapped against the skin. I think you can also put Desitin onher skin (diaper rash cream).

Have you looked through the Rabbit Health References yet?Some of the threads there might be able to help you. This onein particular has lots of articles that may give you some good ideas:
Caring for Sick Rabbits

 

[JimD]

naturestee wrote:

Lower protein pellets often cause problems with excess/mushycecals.

:?...I thought it was high protein that caused this issue

 

[naturestee]

Oops! Long night of work. Higher protein pellets often cause poop problems!

:blushan

 

[JimD]

whew!

 

[naturestee]

Can't believe I didn't think of this yesterday,but she might be getting urine on herself because she can't positionherself properly when she pees. It's not uncommon withrabbits that have arthritis. Keeping her fur short and usingDesitin will still help, but you should also talk to the vet aboutlong-term pain relief. Proper painkillers might allow her toget into the right position so the urine goes away from her body andnot onto it.