Dislocated hind leg

Question
I have two rabbits (totally inside).  My male (about 5 years old) dislocated his hind leg.  Took him to Vet and she tried to pop it back in, but was unsuccessful.  She instructed me to keep him isolated in ONE cage for 2 weeks.  I have to tell you that my bunnies LOVE each other and are ALWAYS together.  They have a small area about 6' x 4' that is totally theirs, with a cage with food and litter box that is always open.  They are confined to that area with a baby gate and only let lose when we are at home.  My question is....Is it ok if I let the injured one lose in that confined area?  It's not very big and now with TWO cages in there, he doesn't have room to "run".  I just don't want to injure him further.  THANKS!

Answer
Well, I know that it can be very tough to keep your rabbit in a small cage, but I do think you need to follow your vet's instructions.  I'm afraid if the rabbit is given more space the injury may get worse.  I am curious however what reason your vet gave for separating such close friends.  Often when one rabbit is hurt or sick, having a dear bunny friend helps the rabbit cope with the injury.  Personally,  I would let them spend some time together in the same cage.  But not let the injured rabbit out of the cage.

I am however, uneasy with this course of treatment by your vet.  Some vets are more conservative, but I'm not at all comfortable with just letting the rabbit spend two more weeks in this condition.  Also, did your vet give you any pain medicine for your rabbit?

You may want to consider a second opinion on this.

Here's some more information on this problem:
http://www.fuzzy-rabbit.com/fuzzyleg.htm
http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/dislocated.html
http://www.rabbit.org/journal/2-7/hop.html