Wounds

Question
Dear Dana, I have a Himalayan Dwarf Rabbit. A few weeks ago I notice a very large lump on his right side just above his leg. This morning I went to pet him and notice a lot of fluid draining from a wound that had formed from the lump. There was a lot of pus that we managed to drain out, and the wound itself is very deep. Do you know what could have caused this. What can I do to help it heal?

Answer
Dear Coventry,

I can't begin to guess how he was injured without knowing anything about his living conditions.  If he's outside, he may have been bitten by something, such as a rat.  If he's indoors, he might have been worrying at a small wound, such as a flea bite or other injury, and gotten it infected.  It's nearly impossible to know for sure.

The main thing to do now is to be sure it's properly treated so it resolves, and that might need the attention of a good rabbit vet:

http://www.rabbit.org/vet

For now, you can flush the wound with dilute povidone iodine (Betadine) to remove pus and kill bacteria.  Use a very clean syringe, such as a pediatric ear bulb.  But this type of thing is best handled by a good vet, as antibiotics might be necessary to completely resolve the abscess.

I hope this helps.
Dana