Young Rabbit Missing Foot

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ladysown

ladysown

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So I have a young rabbit, about three-four weeks old now, missing a hind foot.

Happy, eager youngster that i am loathe to cull if not needed. Friendly little mite too.
Scoots around no issues.

BUT looking down the road.

She'll be a solid four pounds at maturity (most likely based on parentage though shes a touch smaller than the rest of the litter).

She's missing the WHOLE foot on a back left leg.

prognosis for future?

I won't keep her as a breeding doe, thinking perhaps a pet home... but not really sure.

Thoughts? Comments?

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Good luck with the little guys Ladysown. I've only had one like that in 45 years of breeding. Birth defect. It was a front foot and it seemed to do pretty good on it's own until 12-14 weeks old. Then things began going south and I put it down. Seemed that once it started putting weight on the other legs, joints started giving out and it was having a really hard time until it stopped trying.
 
If it's happy and doing well otherwise, you can postpone a final decision. For some reason, animals with disabilities seem to be fairly easy to place in pet homes.

Just wondering, was it a birth defect or accident? That might have some bearing on how well the stump is fleshed and furred. It might be possible to mitigate the friction with some kind of a boot, made of soft leather or suede. I seem to remember one of Miss M's rabbits needing socks to prevent sore hocks. (Don't quote me on that.)

My feeling -- because it seems to me you feel quite strongly about giving the bun a chance -- is to take a wait and see approach, but keep a close eye on it for signs of trouble. You can always cull later if necessary.
 
I honestly don't know. I ASSUME momma overcleaned, but it might be a birth defect.

You know how it is with the littles. You give them a check over, count them, make sure no one is dead or thin. BUT you don't count all feet and legs all the time. it's well healed over that's for sure.

Then the littles start venturing out and being busy little bits so you handle them lots and then one day you go.. oh.. you have no foot!
 
Especially if the parents are small and you expect him to stay small I'd say you can wait and see. If it's a 6lbs and up bunny though I would worry about the weight distribution causing issues. Either way you can still wait before you make a decision.
 

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