# Sore Hocks Help PLEASE?!



## taylor (Jan 22, 2018)

Hey y'all, I noticed about a month or 2 ago that my bun has bald, sore spots on the bottoms of his back feet and took him to the vet. As I suspected he has sore hocks, what I didn't expect was him being slightly overweight. The vet sent me home with some pain meds to take down the pain and swelling while I found him some softer bedding and set up more of a play area for him. 

He currently has soft foam pads on the bottom of his cage with soft bedding (not wood chips, but the floofy kind). His cage opens into a playpen that is about ..., which he has access to all day with lots of toys and a basket of towels that he loves to dig in. At night, and whenever I am home, his pen is open and he has access to my whole room (which is 100% bunny proofed). 

After his vet appointment I cut down on pellets (1 tablespoon), vegetables (about 1/2 cup), and treats (no more than 1/2 teaspoon/day, but this doesn't happen everyday). 

I feel like he has lost some weight, but the vet didn't tell me his weight so I'm just guesstimating. Yet his sore hocks has not gotten any better, though I don't think they have gotten any worse. I am going to take him back to the vet in a couple weeks to see what the vet thinks again.

Does anybody have any suggestions on how to help heal the sores or any toys or other things I can try to keep him active? I know I have read forums and blogs that suggest herbal salves or ointments and wrapping the feet. Any thoughts?

My Fur Baby and I send so many thanks!!


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## Aki (Jan 22, 2018)

I've dealt with sore hocks a few times - my previous lop had bad posture and my current Holland lop is just a pig who won't clean himself up like he should (never had that issue with my nethies so I'm also guessing lops are more predisposed to it, maybe because their bone structure is heavier?). I've tried a lot of things for months, including bandaging and a lot of different meds / creams / natural remedies, and nothing was working. One thing is for sure: sore hocks don't go away on their own. I was feeling pretty desperate until a vet specialized in rabbits gave me a cream called Forudine. I applied that twice a day and in five days, the sore hocks were gone and never came back. When my current bun developped sorehocks, I tried the cream again and in 5 days they were gone (that was a year ago, it has yet to come back). In my experience it's the only thing that works. You can go to the vet and ask for it over the counter if you explain it's for sore hocks. I don't know if you can find this specific brand where you are, but the main ingredient is fusidic acid, so if you ask with the name "Fucidine" and the main ingredient, I'm pretty sure the vet can give you something equivalent.


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## RoseCottageBuns (Jan 22, 2018)

I have just adopted a rather overweight Rex bun from the RSPCA and he has sore hocks. I have been using zinc and caster oil cream and they are getting much better. I have also radically cut down on his diet. A small handful of pellets ( burgess adult) and massive amounts of hay. Hay is fibre , with no calories at all, and the weight seems to be coming off.Am also making him exercise, he has to jump onto a ledge to get his pellets, has to stand on his back legs to get at the hay net and I give him a whole new room to run around in. Am also in mid process of bonding him with my email lion head, and this gives him plenty of exercise and excitement, so he is moving around a lot more than normally. Zinc and caster oil cream, working for food and a playmate, takes the weight off and so cures the sore hocks hopefully!


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## taylor (Jan 22, 2018)

I am going to take Theo to the vet and ask about both of those cream options and bandaging. RoseCottageBuns thanks for the ideas for working for his food. I never thought about that, thank you. 

My worry with the creams and wrapping his feet is that he will either, ingest the cream while grooming himself or that he will gnaw at the bandages. Did either of you have any issues with that?

MANY THANKS!


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## Aki (Jan 22, 2018)

Bandaging is not all that safe, I don't recommend it as the rabbit can eat it, it will probably bother the rabbit a lot, and if it's too tight, it can cut of the blood flow and be potentially dangerous (it's also a real pain to bandage paws). One of the perks of Fucidine is that it penetrates the skin very quickly - you just put a little bit of it on the sores, massage for a few seconds and it's done. None of my rabbits licked it and it didn't leave any traces on my wooden floor.


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## RoseCottageBuns (Jan 23, 2018)

Yes, I would not recommend bandaging either, as the air needs to get to the skin as well as problems with him nibbling the bandage. I have found too that just a small thin layer of cream..he is not interested eating it.. once a day should help , I do this usually early to mid morning before he has his day time snooze. I did cut a couple of fingers off an old pair of wool gloves to make some temporary socks for him, when things were really bad, but it is all healed now. Best of luck.


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## taylor (Jan 24, 2018)

Thank you again for all of the responses. My last question is, did the fur grow back eventually? When I spoke with the vet originally, so said that sore hocks never fully go away or heal and that Theo probably won't grow fur back in those spots. Is that true?


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## Aki (Jan 25, 2018)

On my previous rabbit it didn't completely (you had a small patch of pink skin visible, but as long as it's not red and that there is no crust or anything, it's fine) but on my current one, it eventually did even if it took a while. I checked his paws recently and they looked completely normal, as if nothing ever happened. I guess it's because the cause of the sore hocks was different. On my previous rabbit it was due to his posture, so even if it wasn't really sore anymore I guess the 'wrong' part of his feet was still rubbing on the floor when he was moving around which prevented the fur from growing back. Tybalt is just a pig who won't wash himself correctly (I swear I once saw his bonded mate sniff under his feet, make a face like 'eeew' and then wash them vigourously) so nothing prevents the hair from growing back. Once the problem is gone, considering you know your rabbit is prone to it (some of them aren't... Aki is over 8 and a half years old and never had this kind of problem), it's best to keep an eye on his paws and examine them once in a while anyway.


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