Concerned about my rabbits swollen vaginal region

Question
Hello, I am very concerned about my Lionhead rabbit. She is less than a year old, and I noticed the other day the area around her vagina and rectum is swollen. She has very long hair so sometimes feces tends to get matted within her fur. I cleaned her off and trimmed any excess hair in that area hoping that the swelling was just caused by the irritation of the feces matter. But it has been a few days now and she still seems to be quite swollen, I am very concerned and am wondering if you have any idea what may be causing this swelling?

Answer
Hi,

its' a combination probably of urine scald and the feces contamination.  It may have also provided an environment for an infection to set in.

I would in the strongest terms, get her in to your regular, good rabbit vet.  If you don't have one, go to:

www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

and find a House Rabbit Society recommended vet near you.

You will need to regularly trim that area.  You should also make sure that you are not overfeeding her pellets and fattening foods, and that she is not overweight.  All of these things contribute to 'messy butt' and she will not get better unless she loses weight and is fed the right amounts of food.  The vet can help you out in this aspect and/or you can look up proper diet info at the HRS web site:   www.rabbit.org


Lee