Rabbit escaped, came back dragging hind end

Ugh. Seems like I can't catch a break with my meat rabbits. My flemish/French lop buck escaped his enclosure some time last night. I wasn't overly concerned because we've had escapees before and they always seem to return to the area for an easy capture. This evening I was feeding the other rabbits when my dog started whining at the blackberry bushes. I knew she must smell something in there and figured it must be him. I couldn't get into the bushes myself because its all a huge thick wall of blackberries and stinging nettle so I told her to go check it out (she is incredibly friendly and gentle with the rabbits so even if it was him I knew she wouldn't do anything except maybe flush him out for me). I heard her walking through the brush, and then heard something else rustling in there with her. Next thing I know my buck comes out dragging his hind legs with him. I know it wasn't the dog because I saw/heard her the whole time.. she didn't chase or bite or step on him, just slowly walked in towards him. I picked the buck up and turned him on his back to feel the legs and manually extend each one to see if anything was broken/dislocated.. both seemed to work fine. He still seems able to somewhat use them - he tried to kick me pretty good, but it's sloppy and uncoordinated. Half the time he falls over top of his hind legs and can't walk. My boyfriend thinks we should wait and see because he can still move himself around, but I think there is something seriously wrong. He just lies on his belly and flinched when you touch his back end.. He barely responds.. and when he does move he half drags, half stumbles around on the hind legs.



Any ideas what this could be? Is it best to just put him out of his misery? He's not our best quality buck, but he's our our favourite and I hate to think he might be suffering

Edit: he did get up and moved around when my boyfriend brought extra hay just now apparently. I came by and saw him sitting up and nibbling away.. so that's a plus right?

Sounds similar to what happened to my buck Mootah. Our goats harassed him after knocking his J-feeder out so he escaped through the hole and wasn't using his back legs much (Not at all for while). I was told to put him in something he couldn't move very much in. I gave him a water bowl, plantain leaves, willow (branch and leaves) and dandelion. If these aren't available in your area I can send you a link to the pill form of them on Amazon. If it's any help my rabbit was healed in about a month. I do have a few questions though..
1. Is he still eating?
2. Is he still drinking?
3. Is he going to the bathroom by himself?
If he's doing all three of those he should be a-ok. Unless rabbits are in severe pain they'll eat and drink.

Most likely he has bruised his spine. I had a rabbit that had this issue, he was attacked by my dog. He could move around and sit up but couldn't properly use his hind legs. If he did he tiptoed unsteadily and sometimes fell over.

Watch and make sure he is pooping and peeing.
Pinch in between his toes. If he responds, it is a good sign.

If he does not respond to pinching, or cannot poop or pee, then it might be best to dispatch him.

If he responds, then there is a good chance he will heal.

How to treat:
Put him in a small carrier or section off his cage so that he cannot move around. He should be able to reach food and water, but not move. Make sure his area stays clean, and he is eating and drinking. Avoid handling him. After a week, you can take him out very gently, supporting his back end, and see how he moves. If not almost completely healed, give him another week. If he has not improved at all within 2 or 3 weeks, it might be best to dispatch him.

I hope this helps!

I wouldn't dispatch if no improvement at 2-3 weeks. It can take up to a year for a spinal injury to heal. Although I will say his spine is probably just bruised. My rabbit took about a month before he showed any improvement at all and that was just him starting to prop up his front end. I just seen your editted to add. If he's sitting up I'd say it's a definite plus! He very well may be just sore where your dog picked him up at.

Oh no, the dog didn't pick him up - that's why I was so confused as to what happened. She literally just stepped into the bushes and the noise of her sent him running out. I thought maybe a coyote bit him, but he has no marks anywhere.

Most likely he has bruised his spine. I had a rabbit that had this issue, he was attacked by my dog. He could move around and sit up but couldn't properly use his hind legs. If he did he tiptoed unsteadily and sometimes fell over.

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That sounds like exactly what it is! He's sitting up occasionally, but he's wonky and wobbly on his back legs. It's almost like his whole back end is drunk, or slightly numb.

In answer to some of the questions..

1. Is he still eating?
2. Is he still drinking?
3. Is he going to the bathroom by himself?
If he's doing all three of those he should be a-ok. Unless rabbits are in severe pain they'll eat and drink.

Click to expand...

He's definitely eating. I saw him nibbling on some hay about an hour ago. His water bottle doesn't seem to have been touched, but I'll check on him again later tonight. Bathroom is hard to tell, because it all falls through the hutch.. We're going to move him into a cat carrier in just a moment here so that it will be easier to tell if he's gone. I was also told to give him a soft surface to lie on so that he doesn't develop bed sores, so we're lining the cat carrier with old t-shirts and towels. He definitely responds to the pinching, when you touch his fee he flinches just slightly so I know that he's feeling me at least.

I'm off to go on a dandelion picking mission now, and search for a willow tree (that's the same as a weeping willow right?) Out of curiousity do the branches of the willow function as an anti inflammatory/pain killer or something? I've been told that dandelion is a natural pain killer but never heard about willow so I'm just curious as to its benefits.

THANK YOU everyone. I've been really stressed about this so I'm extremely grateful for the help

He quite possibly torqued his spine... and is partially or permanently paralyzed.
This happens more often than folks realize. I certainly wouldn't let the animal
suffer for 2 to 3 weeks. It's your call, let your conscience be your guide.

Best of Luck,
Grumpy.

I've never heard that dandelion has any of this properties, willow has them (doesn't matter wich kind of willow), anyway, everything that is yummy is good now. If you find untreated roses, yarrow, plantain - they are yummy too. He already is used to greens, right?

About suffering, well, I don't think he will be in permanent pain- you'll see, and if you can cope with pampering him through a rough patch I would give it a try.
But it might be a good idea to define criteria when to cull now.

:good-luck:

My cat, Marilla (avatar moggie) once caught a young cottontail and although it was not marked by her attack, it's back was clearly broken. We dispatched it to save it from suffering.

For spinal bruising or injuries less than an actual break, there is hope of recovery. All the willows, including weeping willow, have analgesic and anti inflammatory properties. The medicinal effect is found in the inner bark.

If the rabbit does not respond to the pinch test or if it has no control over its bladder or bowels or if it is clearly in pain (grinding its teeth, sitting hunched up etc.) then you want to think about euthanasia. No one wants their animal to endure undue suffering, especially if there is not much hope of recovery.

I do believe, however, that a mixed bouquet of medicinal greens (plantain, dandelion, yarrow, red clover, sow thistle etc.) is useful for any rabbit undergoing health problems . . . provided they are accustomed to greens.

If you don't have access to these plants here's the pill form. A lady on a disabled rabbits forum from facebook *One of the actually nice ladies* recommended these to me while Mootah was still hurt *It was looking as though he might be paralyzed for good until he made a complete turn-around* She said she gave them to her bunny George and that he was paralyzed... I was told DO NOT CULL UNLESS HE ISN'T EATING! I followed this statement strictly and made sure he was eating and drinking, there was a few times where he would drink hardly any but I think that was because it's cooler inside plus you don't need to rehydrate as much when you aren't moving. Here's the links *There are three different ones. I noticed they all look a lot alike*
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00014FG0O/re ... TL05&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006NYI7C/re ... N7UE&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00583TPEG/re ... DCLZ&psc=1 <br /><br /> -- September 5th, 2016, 5:34 pm -- <br /><br />

Preitler":3ujzf1om said:

I've never heard that dandelion has any of this properties, willow has them (doesn't matter wich kind of willow), anyway, everything that is yummy is good now. If you find untreated roses, yarrow, plantain - they are yummy too. He already is used to greens, right?

About suffering, well, I don't think he will be in permanent pain- you'll see, and if you can cope with pampering him through a rough patch I would give it a try.
But it might be a good idea to define criteria when to cull now.

:good-luck:

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Dandelion: Blood purifying, respiratory ailments, anti-inflammatory, bladder infections, diarrhea, milk flow of nursing does, good treat for does after having a litter. Some rabbit respiratory problems, such as pasteurellosis, can eventually cause serious problems including head tilt, loss of balance and death. There have been tests on rabbits that were treated with dandelion’s showing that it is effective against pneumonia, bronchitis and upper respiratory infections. Use fresh leaves, flowers and dig up root, the root can be dried to make a weak tea to add to the rabbits water. Well known for its curative powers. The bitter milky sap stimulates the working of all glands, including the milk glands of lactating does. The plant has both laxative and astringent qualities and regulates constipation and diarrhea.

Lots of good advice already - if he's flinching when you touch/pinch the hind end then that's a good sign that he has some feeling left (not a full break at least). Here's hoping he's just stunned a bit and will bounce back!

Thank you everyone! I just have to say quickly that I appreciate the judgement free advice. I had a few people (not here) tell me that I'm being an irresponsible animal owner by considering culling him vs rushing him straight to the vet.. That I only consider him a "hopping bag of meat". It stung a bit because I care quite a bit about his well being and his quality of life.. I just want to see if there is an at home treatment that I can try first. And if not, I'd like to think that I'm just realistic in thinking that if he can't be helped then he's better off being put down. It's interesting to hear that this seems to be such a common thing though.. But I suppose that's been lucky for me because it means lots of people already know of remedies to help!

In answer to your questions, yes he is already used to greens so no trouble there (also, thanks for the links ButtonsPalace).. It turns out that dandelion grows EVERYWHERE on the farm here, so it was easy to pick a wheelbarrow full. Out of curiousity, does anyone know if it needs to be the flower or are just the leaves good too? Most of the flowers have died off by now so the leaves are all I can get. Willow was a bit harder, I drove the streets looking for one that wasn't in somebody's backyard - I already had someone get a little creeped out earlier this week when I stole a branch while walking by and didn't want that to happen again Turns out there is one at my boss's house, so I grabbed a bin full of little branches w/ leaves today and added them to his dinner when I got home a little while ago. He dug right into them so I'm thinking that's a good sign. It's cooling down here a bit so the rabbits aren't going through as much water as they were, but he drank half of his bottle today when I got home to check on him!

if he's flinching when you touch/pinch the hind end then that's a good sign that he has some feeling left (not a full break at least).

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He's definitely flinchy. You can tell that he's not feeling great, he's not his usual inquisitive self and he looks a bit tense.. He's not sitting hunched up but he just looks a bit off. Perhaps just a bit of pain from the swelling in his back? Its making it really difficult for me to know what to do, because I feel bad that he flinches when I pet him, but at the same time he's eating and drinking very well and doesn't seem to mind taking it easy. I guess just play it day by day? I'm having a hard time determining my cull criteria.. Just if he stops eating/drinking? Or if he starts showing the pain signals listed in one of the sticky threads?

Just to note, we originally had him in a cat carrier to limit movement, but we were really concerned that it was too small. He couldn't move at all, and we didn't want him to have to lay in his own waste all day until we got home from work to clean him each day. So we moved him back into his hutch, but tried to block half of it off so that he only has a small space.. a place to lay down and a place to eat right beside him. He can still move though.. Is that okay? We figured this still limits his movement, but not to the extreme.

I had my rabbit in a dog carrier and he laid in his waste through the day and every night I would wash his bum *Be very careful and make sure you get all the urine residue off his testicles or he'll get urine scald which looks really bad!* Dandelion is great in any form the leaf and the flower and even the root which they say to boil into a weak tea and add to their water. I'm all for not going to the vet with my rabbits and doing things naturally. So far I healed my boyfriends rabbit Mootah who I've spoke about quite a bit because he's our little miracle bunny. He didn't eat/drink hardly anything for days! I gave him plantains, dandelion, and willow every day for about a week, no pellets. It cleared up his diarrhea which was from him not moving around a lot. I also gave him Comfrey which if I'm not wrong helps heal wounds? *I may be thinking of something else* I got a lot of bull about not going to the vet as well. Saying "Why are you trying to save him if you're just going to eat him anyway?" Ok? This is just dumb, I mean a little thought. "I don't understand how you can raise such beautiful animals in such a cruel environment and then ending their lives in such cruel manner." This one really hit home. I didn't reply but I was pretty butt hurt. I love my animals to the point I'm not willing to cull 4 of my favorite Meat mutts to free up cage space!

More...dandelion leaves are fine.