rsandrau

I don't post here much these days...but I was hoping that I could get
some creative ideas to help my poor brown bun. So I explained that
when I first got her I had no idea she was paralyzed in her left hind
leg. Well it seems that the leg is getting worse...where she is
dragging it rather than walking with it. It is a really sad sight.
Well I took her to the vet and he claims she has a pinched nerve. He
thinks that I should cage her until I see improvements. So I caged her
for over 48 hours and it was pathetic...she seemed confused as if she
wasn't even complaining about her leg and that that was unfair
treatment. So here's where I need some thoughts...now that her leg
just drags everywhere...she gets it hung up on things particularly the
edge of her litter box. In fact, she has pretty much refused to jump
into the box and has now resorted to peeing in the sleep area of her
cage. (her perfect litter box days are long gone) I still think she
has it in her to use the litter but I have to come up with a way that
she doesn't have to jump into or out of a box. I've been wracking my
brains and nothing seems feasible. Soooooooooo, I was hoping to hear
from someone here.

I remember that cute new zealand named patches (from bunfest 2003) who
had his leg amputated...did he stop using his box when he couldn't jump
in or out?

Well any and all ideas will be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

Sandra and the hobblely bunny Buzzy

jerseybunny@webtvnet beth

did the vet do xrays??? what kind of tests? i would get a second opinion
first...

beth and her cute little fuzzbutts,

http://community.webtv.net/jerseybunny/bethsabsolutely
http://community.webtv.net/jerseybunny/thatcatsurehaslong

http://community.webtv.net/jerseybunny/MeetCalthebunny

slykitten

My Angelbun Whiskey lived with 3 legs for oh... about 7 and a half
years. In answer to your question, he actually adapted quite well to
having one hind leg (he was really a fast little devil! cute too!!!)
and in the beginning, we got him a corner litterbox so he could get
used to using the litterbox. Then when we were sure that he was
"retrained" at using the box, we got a regular litterbox and trimmed
down the sides a bit to make them shorter by using a Dremmel tool. Once
he adapted to that box, we got another regular box and trimmed down 2
sides just a little bit.... Finally, when we saw that he could jump
like "normal" again, we got him a regular litterbox and he was good to
go. It took about a year and a half to 2 years to fully re-adapt him to
a regular litterbox... it was so worth it! He'd binky so cute when he'd
come out to play! He also had the help of Precious. Unfortunately
though, as he aged, I'd guess, after about 5 or 6 years of him hobbling
around on 3 legs, he began to slow down. So we went backwards a little
bit. Then we discovered that one of the risks was that his shoulders
and the stress would create some arthritis and what looked like "splay
leg" where soon, he began almost crawling. in his last year with us
(and it was a really hard year because of his age and health) he could
hardly even crawl... the vet described it as more like "slithering" so
I created almost like a sling to carry him in. I tried a "figure 8"
wrap using an ace bandage to help with his shoulders and front legs. He
was also pushing somewhere between the ages of 11 and roughly 13!
So to give you a little bit of an idea as to what you're up against,
it's hard work, it's a big comittment but it is so incredibly worth it!
I didn't really journal our journey and experience with Whiskey except
through APR. Aside from having my bunnies, I'm also a mom so my
skinkids keep me pretty busy too. =) Where are you located at? I could
look at my Rabbits USA mag to see if I could help you find a vet for
possibly a second opinion. they have an incredible directory for the US
and I believe parts of Canada.
I hope that what I've given you thus far has helped. Feel free to ask
anything further. I know that Patches had his rear leg amputated and I
definitely know that there'll be creative ideas there. Good luck and
let me know if I can help you any more, ok? Give Buzzy lots of nose
nudgies and ear scritchies from me! I miss my little Whiskey... He was
such a cool little dude!

miss ivy

Mr. Patches was never litter trained, he was house broken and would go to
the door when he needed to go, like the dog. The last eight months or so
before he crossed The Bridge he lost use of his remaining leg so during the
day I would make a bunny bathroom up for him and would carry him to it every
couple hours. At night I would make a clean bed up for him every night
using baby quilts and blankets on a piece of plastic next to my side of the
bed so I could keep an eye on him. Sometimes he would roll over and
couldn't get up.

I had a very large supply of baby quilts, blankets and fleeces, along with
being home all the time, so if he had an accident I was able to quickly
change his bedding so he wouldn't have to lay in any wet spots.

I don't know if that helps you or gives you any ideas but that's how I took
care of my good buddy.

Rich & Miss Ivy
Mr. Patches ('till we meet again)

pugnose

Poor Buzzy. If it is a pinched nerve, perhaps Buzzy can be given a steroid
shot to see if there is any improvement? Arlette that posts here with her
bun, Cocoa, has devised a sling for his back legs. Perhaps you get some
information from her and a second opinion,too. Healing vibes being sent
for your furkid. Carla and Claire.

christine

That is pretty much what I'm going through with Thumper my 12 year old bun
who recently lost use of his back leg. I bought wee wee pad today at Petco
and I'm going to put it over the spot where he pees on his carpet. Poor baby
cant hop into his box either. I'll let you know if it works.

-- Christine
http://client.webshots.com/user/bunnyhouse

rsandrau

And here is another issue....Buzzy's fecal sample came back with her
having strongyloides. It's a roundworm and I'm pretty sure it's not
species specific. I remember learning about it in my human
parasitology course. Now that Buzzy is having litter box
problems...she is pooping in other places around my room. I'm so
paranoid that I'm going to contract this worm from her. It's nearly
driving me crazy. The vet gave her some meds but he says that this is
such an uncommon parasite in rabbits....that he's not sure if she'll
ever be cured of them. The reason being, that rabbits recycle their
food and therefore will keep recycling the worm. The worm is very
adapted and can survive for long periods outside of a host as an egg
and worm. I noticed Buzzy is not gaining much weight and she is
soooooo tired. She hardly comes out of her cage and I find her resting
all day and night. Well needless to say, I'm freaking out. I feel
like I adopted a really sick rabbit unknowingly and it's creating some
conflicting feelings inside. I love her very much but there's so much
to consider now. I mean, I can't even get her a bunny cagemate knowing
that she'd infect him with worms. Bummer I'm bummed.

Thanks for sharing your hind leg stories Rich and 'slykitten'. I
decided to cut down the litter box on one side and that seems to be
helping a little. Tomorrow is a new day. Hopefully I'll dream up a
solution. Goodnight friends, furry and not.

Love,
Sandra and Buzzy

arlette & cocoa

Hi Sandra,
When Cocoa started having leg problems, I made ramps for him up to his
litter box (the side was cut down low too), and ramps up steps too. He did
go into his litter box until his leg became unmanageable even with ramps.
Right now, I'm putting him into his litter box at various intervals from
every hour to every three hours depending on the time of day.

From what I've read on my disabled rabbit group, a number of people have had
their rabbit's' paralysed legs amputated with good result. Before you do
that, you may want to try acupuncture, if you can find an animal
acupuncturist near you. It has helped some buns.

You should check out my disabled rabbit group as well. They will have more
info for you, since it is specialised toward rabbits like yours. Here's
their link: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/disabledrabbits/

--
God Bless,
Arlette, Cocoa & Brownie in heaven (See us here
http://photos.yahoo.com/cocoa3c
Need a vet? Click here
<http://www.rabbitvet.net>

professor

Kisses for sweet ol' Thumper. 8-)

--

8-) Professor :-P Merlin & ;-) The Jump

roniebunny

<<<Buzzy's fecal sample came back with her
having strongyloides. It's a roundworm and I'm pretty sure it's not
species specific....... Now that Buzzy is having litter box
problems...she is pooping in other places around my room. I'm so
paranoid that I'm going to contract this worm from her.........The vet
gave her some meds but he says that this is
such an uncommon parasite in rabbits....that he's not sure if she'll
ever be cured of them. >>>

Strongyles are intestinal worms most commonly found in farm animals
like horses and cows. So if the hay growers fertilize their fields
with manure of horses, there's gonna be a possibility that the eggs
will be on the hay. I've talked about the importance of fecal checks
here before in the past.

The only way you can infect yourself is the fecal oral route. so just
wash your hands after playing or touching or cleaning your bun. These
worms live in the intestines and can cause weight loss.

The medicine is meant to kill the adults in the intestines. with no
adults, they can NOT lay eggs to produce more worms.

At the shelter we use Fenbendazole for the recommended period of time,
and retest the poop after that, and look for the parasite eggs again.

As for the eggs lasting a long time in the environment, shampoo your
carpets if you are worried about it. Cats, dogs, horse, cow, rabbits,
frogs, fish all have the same problems with parasites living in the
environment. yea cats and dogs may get monthly heartworm pills, which
get most of the intestinal parasites, but it doesn't get all of them -
that's why the vet asks for a fecal sample every year at the time of
exam and vaccination.

The other thing that has me concerned is that there are ALOT of species
of coccidia that look very much the same as the Strongyle worm egg!
Coccidia is not a worm, but a protozoa (a single cell living parasite)
that lives in the intestines of many animals including bunnies which
should also be treated, but with a DIFFERENT medicine!

It's true we don't see too many strongyle worms at the shelter - just a
few a year. most common and most mis-diagnosed are coccidia because
rabbits can carry so many species of this parasite, not just the common
one seen in dogs that eat rabbit poop in the yard.

Pic of Strongyle egg
http://www.wisc.edu/ansci_repro/101equinelab/parasites/strongylus_spp.html

http://www.wisc.edu/ansci_repro/101equinelab/parasites/trichonema.html

Pic and life cycle of Coccidia
http://www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~parasite/lifecycles/coccidia_lifecycle.html

They can look similar, especially the coccidia on the left at the top
of the page. the way to tell is by size and looking at ALOT of rabbit
poop over the years.

I wouldn't panic yet. give the meds, have the poop rechecked after all
the meds, and if the buns still has "bugs" in the poop - ask for Albon
- the coccidia medicine.

Ronie