My rabbit broke her legs, HELP PLEASE!

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love bunnies

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Hi everyone,

This morning I found that one of my young does had somehow broke both of her back legs. I did some research but all I am getting for options is the vet, Trying to help her myself, or to put her down. What do I do? She doesn't appear to be in pain, Gave her some greens and she ate a few. I can't afford a vet, Any suggestions? Thanks!
 
We need a bit more detail. Any idea how this happened? How did you determine that the legs are broken? Did you do a pinch test of her hind feet to see if she has feeling in them? What is she actually doing since the injury? Can she sit upright or does she just lay on her side?

Sorry for all the questions, but we really do need a clearer picture of what happened.
 
Willow branch/ is great for pain. I think you can also give a children's ibuprofen I believe. Could you post a picture of how she is sitting/laying. But mostly don't freak out. I thought my rabbit had broke his back and I cried for two hours and I couldn't afford a vet. If you can afford about $20 worth of meds I can send you links to some stuff that will help her heal and with the pain. It's all natural too.
 
Buttons raises a couple of good points.

Willow twigs or branches are wonderful for pain relief in rabbits because they can self medicate as needed and willow is also a safe and nutritious rabbit food.

It is quite common for rabbits to injure themselves and their backs and hind legs are the most vulnerable. If they have any feeling in the hind feet and have not lost control of their bowels and bladder, they often make a good recovery. We'd like to help you, but cannot give much advice without more information.
 
MaggieJ":1s9gmlt3 said:
It is quite common for rabbits to injure themselves and their backs and hind legs are the most vulnerable. If they have any feeling in the hind feet and have not lost control of their bowels and bladder, they often make a good recovery. We'd like to help you, but cannot give much advice without more information.

This is the most true thing ever. We really need to know more about your bun. They helped me get my bun back on the road to recovery. For about 2 weeks he was laying on his one hip not moving much at all, Then one day it was like things just suddenly got better and he started healing. I hope we hear from you soon. Just remember if she's peeing, pooping, and eating/drinking then they still have a chance. I really hope to hear from you soon!
 
Thanks to everyone for their replies!

I don't know how she broke her legs. all I know is she was ok the night before, hopping around and happy then the next morning she wasn't getting up even though she tried at least once.

Maggie J, The way I figured out how her legs were broken was because I could feel exactly where the bones broke. She could still kick from the hip but a little down further the legs were broken and could very easily be twisted any direction.

ButtonsPalace, I did some research and did come across the willow branches being good for her. I gave her some as soon as I found that. Sorry I did not have more info.

Micheals4gardens, I'm a firm believer in "while life there is hope". As far as I could tell she did not appear to be in pain, sadly I lost her last evening. I'm just glad she'll never have to suffer living with bad legs. If she would have appeared to be in pain then I would have been very quick to have her put down as I hate to see animals suffering.

Buttons, thanks so much for your support! Sorry I did not post more info on her. This was the first time I ever had something like this happen so I wasn't sure as to how to make her lay. All I could get was to immobilize her. So the best I could do was to put her in a small box. I tried to keep her upright but then she would kick and end up on her side so to keep her from kicking I let her lay what seemed comfortable to her (which was on her right side).

again thanks for your replies.
 
I'm sorry you lost her, love bunnies. :( There may have been other injuries (internal) that did not show. Sometimes something will make a rabbit freak out in such a way that it badly injures itself. It is usually the back, hips or hind legs that take the brunt of the damage. You did what you could and I'm sure the willow branches at least made her more comfortable.
 
Thanks ButtonsPalace! It was hard to lose her. I'm so glad that she's not suffering though! Looks like I'll have some new babies in the morning. Really looking forward to that!
 
So sorry about your doe.

If your buns are outside, I would add one small thing to think about, especially with a doe due to kindle. With no obvious cause of her injury, I would be concerned that a bad scare might have caused it. And that makes me think of possible predators. Maybe take a look around and make sure everything is secure and there are no signs of something trying to get to the rabbits.

*Fingers crossed for kits*
 
I agree with Marinea you should make sure nothing is getting near your buns. When I was living with my dad a few years ago we had our hutches under a small pine tree beside the water reservoir ( :bunnyhop: *tree* *reservoir*) and a snake crawled up the tree or the reservoir then the tree *who cares about semantics* but either way I had babies in a box that was connected to the hutch. It just happens someone went out there and saw the snake on top of the hutch before it got to the babies.
 
I'm so sorry about your loss!
I know how hard it is to loose bunnies and pets. It's painful knowing that we will never see them again.
But know that in her life she had a whole lot of fun and love! I hope you feel better soon.
Was she a pet or a breeding doe? or both? What breed?
 
Thanks everyone!

Olafthebunny, She was a new Zealand white-Champagne D'Argent mix. I had her since the day she was born. I was hoping to use her as a breeder but that's not happening now.

I did check around the cages and could only come to the conclusion that maybe she got her toes caught in the flooring of her cage and pulled to hard. I had other babies feet go through the flooring but didn't have a problem with any broken legs until now.

I had another baby that broke his leg this morning :x . He is in much better shape then his sister was though. He's a little drowsy looking now but when he was in his cage he was trying to hop around. He's almost 2 months old so still pretty small. opinions as to how to care for him would be really appreciated!

Better news, My doe had her kits this morning! 4 little bundles of cuteness! SO EXCITED over that.
 
Have you checked out the possibility that some animal is frightening your rabbits and causing this? This second injury seems unlikely to be merely co-incidence. I think something is definitely wrong, either with the cage design or with something making the rabbits panic.

I am wondering what kind of wire your cage floors are made of. For that matter, what kind of wire are the the sides and top of the cage? Raccoons are notorious for reaching into cages and grabbing the animal inside.

Please add your location to your profile--state, province or country if not Canada or the United States. It helps us to have a rough idea of where you are so we know what problems you may be facing.
 
Might wanna fix your cages if you have rabbits getting their feet stuck and broken legs. Are they outside or inside? I would put a splint on his leg and give him so,e willow and offer him hay and water. I personally would put him in a cage that he can't move around much in and make sure it's comfy if it's not he'll shift a ton. I learned that with mine.
 
I agree with Maggie. Can you post more info/pictures of your set up?

And another thought-out if the feet are catching on something, be sure to check their nails carefully. A torn nail can be painful.
 
My cages are made of 1x2 wire for sides and top and the flooring on some of the cages are 1x1/2 and the others would be 1/2x1/2 inches. This seems to be what the cages BASS or other rabbit supply sites are using and it's also what other breeders I have met use. The cages sit in a building that our geese,ducks, and chickens live in so during the day the door is open but during the night I try to make sure everyone is secure as we have had problems with foxes alot lately. I'll try to get some pictures for you all tomorrow.

Buttonspalace, I did try to make a splint for him but the best I could do was using popsicle sticks and tape. Gve him willow branches as soon as I had his leg splinted. I also have him in a small box to try to minimize his movements and I tried to make it comfortable. So far he's not moving very much. He is eating and drinking though so that's a good sign, right?

Marinea, Thanks for saying about the broken nail issue. I'll check that.............. No broken nails as far as I can tell.

I think I need new and better baby pens. None of the adults have the issue of getting caught in the wire as far as I know. Seems to be the babies.

Thanks for your help!
 
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