Dutch bunny

Question
We have had Thumper for a little over a year and he has developed a golf ball sized lump under his neck. It reminds me of a fat roll. We have another bunny but he does not have it?

Answer
Dear Leah,

If the lump is round and hard, then it could be an abscess.  If it's attached to the underlying tissues and doesn't move freely with the skin, then I would fear it could be a jaw abscess originating in a tooth root.  Please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/jawabscess.html

and

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/culture.html

If the lump moves freely with the skin, then the prognosis is probably better:  such an abscess (if it's an abscess) is usually surgically removed in its entirety, as if it were a tumor.  This avoids opening the capsule of the abscess and risking spread of the infection that the bunny has "walled off".

If the mass is soft and squishy, it could just be the bunny's dewlap, a soft fold of skin that develops under the chin in some rabbits--more often females than males.  Or it could be a lipoma--a harmless fat body.  But those usually don't get quite so big!

Bottom line:  If in doubt, get bun to a good rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets

for evaluation of the mass to set your mind at ease.

Hope that helps!

Dana