Toenail Injury?

Question
We just brought home a beautiful new bunny this week.  She spent a few hours in a wire-bottom hutch while her "real" cage in the house was getting ready.  I noticed some blood on her front foot after being on the wire.  It looks like she pulled off part of her toenail--the best description I can give is that the quick is still there, and the rest of the nail is gone.  She is eating and eliminating well, and moving about her cage well.  She will also hop in and out with no problems.  However, whenever she walks/hops on the carpet or any non-smooth surface, the toenail starts to bleed again.  Will this heal itself or do I need to take her to a vet (of course, it's a holiday weekend!).
Thanks for your help!

Answer
Dear Sue,

Ow!  I've had a bunny do this before, and it looks so painful! :(

It's not a life-threatening emergency.  But you might try putting a small bandaid over it (just cut away most of the sticky parts on either side of the pad, fold it over the toe so that the non-stick pad is on the quick and a small amount of bandaid sticks to the fur, and make a "pocket" out of it) to protect it while it gets a scab.

You also might want to gently wash it with dilute povidone iodine solution to be sure it's nice and clean before you bandage it.

Bun might tear off the bandaid, so watch her very closely when you first put her down.  If she worries at it, then you might want to just remove it so she doesn't eat it.  If she won't keep a bandaid on, then just keep it clean and watch it. There's not much else you can do except let it heal.  The nail will grow back, and pretty fast if the quick is still there.

Hope this helps.

Dana