bunny in a cast

Question
I have a three month old mini lop. Over a month ago he broke his leg and has since been in a cast. The vet who treated him has since run us ragged making and breaking appointments and canceling or changing things at the last minute. Because of this the cast has yet to come off. We were planning on taking him to a different vet but they are having trouble getting his records and don't want to treat him without them. And we were hit with a blow in the form of a death in the family that we now have to finance memorials and such for. All this basically adds up to a horrible financial and medical situation. I'm so worried about Jack but I have no idea when the vet will finally release his papers, or when we'll have the money to have the cast removed. Is there any way that we can remove the cast ourselves at home until we can get him in to a reliable vet? I feel horrible asking this but I feel like its either this or he's potentially hurt worse because its on so long...

Thanks for your time,
Jessi

Answer
Dear Jessi,

What a nightmare!  I am so sorry you're having this trouble, and that vet should be absolutely ashamed.  There is a veterinary oversight board in your state, and I would ask the new vet for contact information or get it on the internet so that this irresponsible vet can be reported.  It might not get any results, but at least someone will know.

You can find a better rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

To tell you the truth, just about the only thing even *I* won't do at home is remove a cast.  The material is so hard that it requires special tools for removal, and trying to do it yourself could be very risky, especially if the baby struggles.  He could end up with another serious injury.

I wish I could tell you otherwise, but cast removal is not for the faint of heart.  If it were just bandages, I would tell you something else.  But it's also probably better for the leg to be checked by a vet when the cast comes off to be sure that everything has healed properly, and it no longer needs to be stabilized.  Taking it off too early could be dangerous, too.

I am so sorry for this mess.  I hope the new vet can help you right away and get this taken care of once and for all.

Take care,

Dana