bunny paralysis

Question
QUESTION: I have a pet bunny, my lovely little dougal.  He is about 6 and i have had him all his life.  For the past 3 months he has had problems with his back legs.  Sometimes he can shuffle along and even walk properly but sometimes he cannot move at all and i have to move him from his bedroom the living room.  I have been to the vets three times. first i was told it was a disc prolapse and given metacam.  this initially seemed to work but doesnt appear to be working as well anymore.  the second time i got some more metacam but was told that it may be a parasite and told to go back if the metacam didnt work.  although he didnt get full use back to his legs he managed to shuffle about and had masses of spirit and was eating fine.  The past week have been awful.  He has been doubly incontinent and has burns to his legs as he is going to the toilet constantly.  I have put puppy pads down on his bed and change his bedding daily and have been putting sudacrem on his legs to soothe them.  today i have been told that it cant be the parasite thing because they consider he would be alot worse than he is.  The thing is that they have confused me.  they said that he can feel his feet because he was flinching when she pinched his toes.  i have noticed he walks around in circles and has been twitching as if there is something wrong with his nerves.  she has told me to put him to sleep and i really want a second opinion.  i dont want him to suffer because i love him more than anything in the world but he is so full of spirit and is eating fine.  Am i making him suffer? she said he wont be able to feel any pain but is probably miserable. im baffled.  is there anyway he can live happily being incontinent and not able to walk properly?

i appreciate any help you can give me so much.  he means the world to me and if there is anything i could do to help him i want to but she seemed so adament that i was making him suffer.

ANSWER: Hi Carmel. Your letter touched my heart and made me cry. I have been where you are many times and it is never easy. The average lifespan of a rabbit is about 7 years. They may make it to 10 if they have outstanding genes and the absolute best care. So at 6 years of age Dougal is approaching the end of his life span. There are so many things that can go wrong with a rabbit and most vets know little about them. It would be my guess that he has had a spinal injury but I can not be sure. There are other things such as a stroke which could leave him only partialy paralized as he is. Cancer of the brain or spinal could cause such a condition also. Does he grind his teeth, grunt, shiver, or sit and stare? If he does any of these things he may be in pain and it would not be fair to ask him to continue to live like that. If he does not appear to be in pain and seems to be happy with the bit of life that he has it is a decision only you can make. If you feel that you can do things to keep him comfortable for a while longer and are willing to commit to the care that he needs I will try to give you ideas to work with. First, you are going to have to make diapers for him or he will have really bad burns and will be wet and uncomfortable all the time. Try taking a puppy pad and cutting it in the shape of a childs disposible diaper but very small. You will probably have to try several times to get the right fit. Once you have the proper fit, make several more from the first pattern.  Attach it with diaper pins,and you can change him often and keep him dryer. I would suggest that he have good fresh hay at all times. Both to eat and to lay on, for his body will hurt if he has to lay on a hard surface and can not move around. Make sure his living area is warm. With both his age and lack of mobility he can get chilled easily. Do not give him fresh fruit or vegies as that will make for loose stools and difficulty for you to keep him clean. This may sound a little gross but a rabbit passes two types of stool. The little round hard pellets that you normaly see and small soft pellets that look like a bunch of black shiny grapes. You usually do not see this stool because he eats most of it. It is necessary for him to have this stool. Soooo.... when changing him I suggest that you save any of this stool that looks fresh and allow him access to it if he wants it. That is all that I can think of at the moment. Please contact me any time and I will try to help. However please know that there will come a time when you will have to make the decision to let go. It will be the hardest descision you will ever make and it will never let you go. That is the price we pay for loving our little friends that depend on us for their living, be it dog, cat, horse, llama, goat, bird or bunny. My heart is with you. Like I said I have been here many times and it never gets any easier. Please find peace with whichever decision you make for neither one is right or wrong at this point.  Pat

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QUESTION: i just wanted to say thank you to pat.  I am going to monitor him closely this weekend and see how he gets on.  sometimes he is ok and can move around just fine but ohter times he is completely miserable and cant move at all.  He isnt grinding his teeth but he does appear to have nervous type twitches. the vet said this could be caused by nerves being pushed on but she didnt seem to know and didnt think it would be fair to put him through x rays and surgery.  once again thanks so much.  x

Answer
Hi again Carmel. I have been going over things is my mind and researching things a bit. Am I correct that Dougal does not hop any longer? That he only shuffles or walks? That some days are better than others? If this is the case he may have sever bone spurs on his spine. They fuse together with time and the discomfort will ease but while they are growing and fusing they rub against each other and cause pain. Thus the rabbit will shuffle instead of hop and some days he can be so uncomfortable he chooses to move no more than necessary. He can be treated with pain meds for an extended time and with that time should find relief. He may never hop again but may be able to find peace with life. If he is over weight I suggest you put him on a diet. Again hay is the most beneficial food you can give him. You might try massaging the long muscles along his spine for a few minutes every day. Do not rub the back bone only the muscles. I have read that acupuncture is helpful and reduces the need for pain meds. Heat applied to that area would also probably be a good thing. You might try a 2 liter pop bottle filled with warm water that he can snuggle up against for a while every day. Run this past your vet and see what they think. My mother had bone spurs and now I do. They are not comfortable, but I would not like to be put down yet :o} AND if this is the case, once they fuse completely he may be able to take a little better care of himself and have a little more normal life.  I hope this helps.... Pat