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Bunny dislocated rear leg

22 11:17:10

Question
A rabbit my daughter found and rescued had a litter. When they were 3-4 weeks old a blue jay attacted one of the babies. Before we could get out to help the bird had torn her skin and dislocated her right rear leg..I couldn't spend the $ to take her to the vet and with some basic care from us her skin healed but her poor leg is still dislocated and kind of flops around when she moves. She is now about 5-6 months old and so sweet but she can't keep up with the others. Can a vet do anything for the leg now and would the quality of life be better to have it fixed or leave it alone. Also any idea of what the Vet cost would be. Thank you for your time. Kelly

Answer
Dear Kelly,

If these are wild rabbits, then they must be returned to the wild. It is illegal in all states to keep wildlife without a permit, and wild rabbits do not thrive in captivity.  Please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/wildbabies.pdf

If the leg is still dislocated, then it's possible a vet could help, but it must be done soon.  Better--if these are wild cottontails--to get her to a wildlife rehabilitator who knows how to repair "broken" cotties (and will not just feed her to a snake or bird of prey!  You have to check these rehabbers carefully, when it comes to rabbits!).  The article above has some links to find one.

But in any case, the baby should be seen by a vet to determine the extent of injury and whether any repair can be done.  The cost will depend on the vet, and your area.  But you can find a good rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

I hope this will help.  If these are domestic rabbits, I hope you have a happy, hoppy warren of love.  Be sure to have everyone spayed/neutered before your warren gets any bigger:

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

If these are wild rabbits, I hope you will teach your daughter to leave them in their nests where the mama can care for them.  As the babies grow, they will become wilder and should be released.

Good luck,

Dana