Helo – Dislocated Toes, Foot Fracture (UPDATE 2: All Better)

[MoveDiagonally]

Helo escaped from his pen this morning and managed to dislocate two toes on his back foot in the process. Our vet didn’t have an official appointment available today so we opted for a “drop off appointment” (where she does the check up/treatment between other appointments and gives us a call). He’ll be in a splint for a few weeks but since he’s still growing we’ll have to get it re-splinted a couple times during that time. He’s still at the vet and we’re waiting for another call letting us know he’s ready to be picked up. 

There’s a chance he won’t have full use of the toes again (not sure how that will affect his motility if that happens). It will depend on whether or not he sprained or tore the tendon. 

She’s putting him on an anti-inflammatory and pain management meds. Poor little guy.

Has anyone else had anything like this happen? Any advice for keeping him from chewing on his splint? 

EDIT: As I posted this my vet called and it turns out he has a fracture in his foot.  

He should make a full recovery and there should not be a risk of losing toe function. Our vet is optimistic that it will heal quickly since he’s a young bunny and the fracture is small. 

UPDATE 4/26/12 :  See my comment below. 

[MooBunnay]

I’m sorry to hear about Helo’s foot One of my bunnies sprained or broke a toe on her front foot when she was jumping off of my bed one evening. Unfortunately, my vet at the time said there was not much to be done because it was one of her toes on the front feet, and I don’t think she could come up with a way to splint it. We managed her pain with meds, and tried to limit her movement, but for about a week she hopped around with that from foot raised in the air.

After a week it healed and she can walk on it, but I do notice when I trim her toenails that the toenail on that one toe points in a slight different direction.

I’m glad to hear your vet could do something for Helo, it is probably more significant when it is their back feet since they use them so much to get around. Hope he is feeling better soon!

[MoveDiagonally]

It’s really sad for me to see him have trouble hopping around in his splint right now but he seems to be adjusting to it. He’s on metacam and doesn’t appear to be in any noticeable pain/back to normal. When we brought him home yesterday he was just exhausted (busy day) and he fell asleep in my lap while I was stroking his head.

I’m glad to hear your bunny had quick heal time, it makes me feel more optimistic about it all. I’m hoping Helo will bounce back quickly without any long term effects (he’s only 9 weeks old).

[LittlePuffyTail]

Sorry to hear about Helo’s injury. Bunnies are very adaptable. I’m sure he will be just fine with lots of TLC.

[Sarita]

Oh no, poor little guy. Probably keeping him caged is a good idea until he heals. Keep us updated.

[MoveDiagonally]

He’s been in his little splint/cast for 5 days now only 9 more days to go! He goes back in on Friday to see if he needs a bigger splint and then again the Friday after that to have it removed.

He’s still a little awkward with the splint/cast but he’s able to get where he needs to go. With the medication he doesn’t seem to be in any pain and is acting normal considering. He hasn’t chewed on the splint/cast at all. My vet put duct tape over part of splint/cast to discourage chewing and keep it dry (the tape is not on his fur or anything it’s just a loose cover over the splint/cast material).

So far so good!

[MoveDiagonally]

UPDATE 4/26/12 : His cast/splint is OFF! Toes wiggling, flopping, hopping, and healed. He’s still slightly awkward on it but my vet said that’s just because he got used to having it wrapped up. He should re-adjust and be a normal happy baby bun!

Foot fractures are scary but the treatment process wasn’t really so bad. Helo didn’t chew or fiddle with the splint/cast at all which surprised my vet. I’m not sure what other vets would charge but it was really reasonable.

Helo DID NOT limp and it would have been all too easy to overlook this injury, it was his toes that made us realize something was wrong. So keep an eye on your bunny’s tootsies! Sometimes they can tell you something your bunny is trying to hide.

[Sarita]

Glad he’s healed.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Hurray for Helo!

[jerseygirl]

Helo DID NOT limp and it would have been all too easy to overlook this injury, it was his toes that made us realize something was wrong. So keep an eye on your bunny’s tootsies!

Good tip! I’ll be keeping an eye on the foster bun. He jumps in corner of his pen and clings to the panels. Goofy boy! I’m worried he’ll do something one of these days.

Happy to read Helo has recovered and was such a good patient. : )

[BinkyBunny]

Posted By MoveDiagonally on 04/26/2013 12:56 PM

Helo DID NOT limp and it would have been all too easy to overlook this injury, it was his toes that made us realize something was wrong. So keep an eye on your bunny’s tootsies! Sometimes they can tell you something your bunny is trying to hide.

So what were his symptoms? Sorry if I missed that — I reread your first post.   I think this will be very educational for us.  

 

 

[MoveDiagonally]

@ BB – When he was standing on a surface his feet looked normal but when my husband picked him up I noticed the two middle toes were not being tensed up and curling like his others. When we looked closer at his foot the toes were definitely floppier and had less tension . We were concerned that he had dislocated or sprained them so we took him to the vet.

He let us touch the area without protesting and wasn’t limping or hunching at all. In hindsight he was a little slower. He usually is running all over the place and he was taking more time getting around. When the pain meds kicked in he started zipping around again. Behavior change was a symptom but one we missed because we were still getting to know him.

It’s just a new thing on my mental checklist. When I pick them up, groom them, etc.. I give their toes a little extra attention to see if anything stands out.

[BinkyBunny]

Wow — your experience has been very educational. Something I will remember! I would have thought that if there were a foot fracture that it would have been more overtly obvious. Now I know better! So I definitely will keep your experience in mind.

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