HI, I have been trying to learn about foot fungus, which I think is different from sore hocks. Not a pressure wound, not just heavy or rex rabbits, not on wire. Does anyone know the fungal genus and species? i have been told to use athlete\'s foot medicine, tenactin, twice a day. Does anyone know if Lamisil is OK for rabbits, as clearly they must be ingesting some of this. I heard it is contagious, can be picked up at shows, and clearly it went from our one buck to his new mate, and now to her kit. I am very worried, as it is hard to stop, and even with the treatments it doesn\'t appear to be getting better. The one post that said to use Vagatis cream makes sense as that is a fungus infection.......so, I think people may be misdiagnosing some foot problems, and some are indeed a contagious fungal infection. Thanks for any experiences to share.
I can\'t give you any of the technical stuff except to say that sore hocks and foot fungus in rabbits are entirely differant things. Vagisil will work for sore hocks but for foot fungus, the best thing to use that I have found is plain white vinegar. Soak a cotton ball with the white vinegar and then soak the foot/feet with the vinegar. Do this 2 or 3 times a day and within a couple of days, you should start to see a regrowth of hair. Keep doing the treatment for a full week to make sure the fungus has been entirely eradicated. I do not put anything on my rabbits that is not made to be ingested. Rabbits are vigourous self groomers and so most things that you put on them are going to end up in them. I have used the Vagisil with no ill effects but I was once told to use Desitin on a doe that had a case of urine scald that would not go away. That doe died overnight. Either she was going to die anyway or she died from ingesting the Desitin. I will never really know but now, I use nothing on them that is not meant to be ingested or that I know to be safe.
I never new that rabbits can get foot fungas so I am pleased to see this information on the mess. board. One more thought though, be sure to clean the cage down. I don\'t know for sure, but it may be possible for the fungus to reoccur if the cage is the fungus is still on the wire. Good luck!!!!!!!
Every week when we give the barn a major cleaning, we end with spraying all the wire floors with apple cidar vinegar. The acid in it is a mild disinfectant and it is something you can use that is not toxic to the rabbits. You can hold the rabbit, spray the floor wires thoroughly, and put the rabbit back in. They might not necessarily like it but it won\'t hurt them. As they hop around, the vinegar and the feet work together to clean. Keeping a clean floor will also help in the prevention of coccidiosis.
The best thing I\'ve found for fungal skin infections is Decolorized Iodine (also called White Iodine), same as regular iodine but w/o the dye to color it and mess up the rabbit\'s fur and your clothes. I got mine at Rite Aid.
For the past 27 nyears I\'ve treated Sore Hocks successfully by doing as little as possible. First, ointments will usually be licked off before any real benefit can be gained. I clean the foot pads daily with hydrogen peroxide, dry throughly and then place an EZ Mat in the cage for the rabbit to rest on until the open sores heal. If there are no open sores, it isn\'t Sore Hocks, just Bare Hocks and a coating of Liquid Bandage will protect while callous grows over the area and wont be licked off. EZ Mats are available from several sources
http://www.lbtools.com/ and are much better than sheet rock, carpet and/or boards to rest on. They are made so that urine and feces will pass thru while providing a smooth comfortable surface for the rabbit and they\'re not expensive- about $3-4.
Hi again,
I have been trying the vinegar for about a week, then Lamosil. Not a lot of changes. This is bare spots, no open wounds. Dwarfs on chips in plastic cages. Now I heard about a med called Vanodine. Anyone heard of it and where to get?
Hi Deb,
I am having problems with my Rex. He gets cracks in his feet which look like foot fungus, but last year when this happened, I took him to the vet and they did a scrapping and it turned out not to be a fungus. I am thinking the problem might have more to do with the heat but that is just a guess. Is your rabbit outside or inside?
One thing that has helped my Rex is a supplement I give my rabbit. I mix 4 parts of corn oil with 1 part of flaxseed oil and give him about 1/8 t orally every day. It helps his feet and prevents hair balls. My Rex only has a problem with his feet when it is hot. I think I might try cold therapy. I hope I have time to do this over the week-end. I plan on fencing in under his hutch and give my rabbits access to it. Them I am going to lay down some 2x4\'s and cover them with pegboard for the floor. Then I can put ice under the pegboard for him to lay on, and when the ice melts, the water will just seep into the ground. That should keep his feet cool.
Feeding oil might help with skin and fur condition but it will in no way prevention furballs. Furballs are formed when the normally ingested fur fails to pass thru the GI systemand mixs with mucous in the stomach, this happens only when the paristalic movements of the rabbit\'s gut slows down or stops- GI Stasis. If the rabbit is fed sufficent coarse fiber in it\'s diet the fur will be kept moving thru and no furballs will form. If there is any degree of stasis oil will be of little help in moving the fur thru, unless maybe it moves the fur thru by inducing a diarrhea, as mineral oil will. My feed now has suffucient coarse fiber so I no longer need to add hay, except during molts and when a doe is pulling fur, though I do feed it to weanlings transitioning from milk to pellets.
If your having sore hock problems, trying putting in some clean straw on the bottom of the cage and see what happens. Along with treating with medications for it.
I\'d put in about 2-3 inches worth, and change it every day. It should help clear it right up.