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Is my rabbit infected?(Baldish spot)

22 11:13:28

Question
Hi my rabbit has a baldish spot on the inside of her hind leg...the area around it is thick with fur but that spot is only a little fuzz. Could it be from the urine/ammonia? Because she usually will sleep in her litter box. Thanks for the help!

Answer
Hi JC,

it sounds like she possibly has a bald spot that is a precursor to what is called 'sore hocks'.

The hair around their back legs is a little thinner than elsewhere because they sit on it and have extra weight rubbing down there.  It also happens because this fur is usually resting on harder surfaces or cage wire.  Another reason why this happens is because the rabbit is overweight (too much weight equals too much friction and excessive wearing away of hair).

If she is overweight you need to start reducing portions of pellets and really cut the treats down.  Increase exercise time and increase hay.  She won't go hungry, she'll eat more low-cal hay and feel fine.  Look at her from the top when her nose is at the top, her rump is at the bottom.  She should have a nice pear shape with narrow shoulders.  Her legs should provide the nice widening pear shape at the bottom.  If she looks more like a sausage and less like a pear, she's overweight.  Your vet could probably tell you what weight she SHOULD be at so you can have a target weight to get down to.  

You could also take her to the vet to confirm that it is sore hocks as opposed to something else that could be more serious.

In the meantime, you can put preparation H on the spot to make sure the skin is less irritated.  If the skin is not cracked, you can put a coating of New Skin on it and the skin will be protected.  You could even use a little Bag Balm on the bald spot.

Best thing to do though is confirm with your vet that it is sore hocks, and also make sure she is or is not overweight.

If you don't have a good rabbit vet, go to:

www.rabbit.org\vets

and find a House Rabbit Society recommended vet in your area.

Lee