Paddy's Sore Hocks (Pics) - Advice Please

Hi guys, I'm hoping that some of you who have had experience with sore hocks can advise me.

Paddy's had slight problems with his hocks for a while, but they have got a bit worse recently and I'm at a loss as to what to do. When he and Benji came to us a year ago they were on carpet, and I feel bad because that is probably what started off the problem. They weren't on carpet for long though as we put down soft fleece blankets to cover the carpet. It was a soft polyester fleece but it didn't seem to make much difference (may have been too abrasive due to synthetic fibres? ).

A few weeks ago we tried putting vinyl (lino) over the carpet, but although it was quite a matt surface, he was slipping everywhere on it and clearly didn't like it. I was scared he would injure himself and we removed it. Now, for the last week or so, we have had an old soft cotton sheet over the carpet and I'm hoping that will help.

The thing is, when we saw Brigitte Lord in Edinburgh with Benji last August/Sept, we mentioned the problem Paddy was having (it wasn't too bad then), and she recommended not having the surface too soft, as the back of his feet would sink down into it more and more pressure would be put on the hocks. She said to get a natural surface, like coir (although coir can be really rough, we thought more like seagrass or jute) as it would be firmer for him to stand on and promote a more even distribution of weight along his feet. So a couple of days ago, we got a couple of jute mats from B&Q and put them in his dog crate (his crate is his base, but he has the rest of the room covered with the cotton sheet as well). Today he has not been in his crate as much and consequently hasn't eaten as much hay (it's in there) so I'm now wondering if he is finding the jute rugs uncomfortable to stand on. They are quite scratchy and although firm, I feel they could be making his feet uncomfortable. So, we have just put some old cotton pillowcases on top of the rugs for him to stand on when he is in the crate.

I have seen him nibbling at his hocks recently which is probably making them worse. We were at our vet on Tuesday for his myxo booster and she seemed quite worried about them. She sees most of the rabbits in the practice, but isn't an exotic vet so not an expert as such. Her only suggestion is to put him outside in a hutch or shed and thinks that being on the grass (ie, a more 'natural' environment) is the only thing that will help. For various reasons, we really, really don't want him to have to go outside - not least because he is a single bun at the moment.

I feel like this at the moment! Just not sure what to do for the best. He's not overweight, and his nails are kept short. We put Sudocrem on the hocks occasionally, but don't want to soften the skin too much. We haven't tried dressings yet, and having read Jay's thread about Stewie I'm wondering if that is what to try next. Would covering them help the fur grow back a bit do you think? We are giving him a small dose of Metacam every day at the moment, on the vet's suggestion, just to see if it will stop him grooming them so much if they are uncomfortable. The bald bits seem to extend up the foot a bit, especially on his left foot.

I don't even know how bad they are compared with what they should be like, and I'll post some pics of them, so anyone's input would be really welcome.

Sorry for the long post, but I'm stressed about this and just don't know what to do. Can anyone tell me how worried I should be based on the photos? Again, sorry for all the photos, but it gives an idea of any changes over the last few weeks. Thanks x

Left foot on 16th March


Left foot on 23rd March


Left foot 4th April


Left foot 9th April



Right foot 16th March


Right foot 23rd March


Right foot 4th April


Right foot 9th April

If he wouldnt chew them I honestly found rubber matting the best answer, like foamy type gym mats or the childrens tiles, they are spongey and help buns stand evenly.

In some pics they look worse than others, the ones where I think they look worse is where it looks raised, and more inflammed, others its not as bad. I would stick to the sudocrem as it doesnt really soften the hock like you would expect, and perhaps try the rubber mats? x

Hope Paddy's hocks are better soon. xx

Thanks guys. I'll keep using the Sudocrem for now then.

Sarah Jane, that's helpful, thank you. Where is the best place to get the right type of mat? EDIT - have found some on eBay and I'll order some today.

Do you think we should get hold of some vet wrap and try to cover it? He's been nibbling at it more today I think, and I'm worried he's pulling a bit of fur out and making it worse.

I've just fed him this morning and the bald patch is becoming more visible - you can see it when he's hopping about without pulling the fur back. I think it's bothering him now and he has probably been nibbling at it overnight.

Should we get hold of some vet wrap today and try and dress it to stop him nibbling at it? I'm not sure exactly how to dress it - can someone talk me through it please? I'm sure our vet could show us but we are not back there for another 9 days for his VHD and I don't see how it's going to get anything but worse if it's exposed, no matter what floor surface he's on.

Any advice on whether, and how, to dress it would be greatly appreciated.

I know I was advised not to dress Peanuts hock because it stopped it being able to breathe however, he had an abscess so thats different to this case. I think if you are going to do it then dont make it too tight and i wouldnt leave on for too long either. Is there any way you could potentially distract him instead? Like when PB's was at its worst he used to get so many willow balls and stuff like that to keep him entertained so he left it alone for longer? is that something you could try?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SAFETY-FOAM-FLOORING-INTERLOCKI-NG-PADDED-FLOOR-MAT-EV5-/270698199811?pt=UK_Sporting_Goods_Exercise_Fitness_Fitness_Accessories_ET&hash=item3f06debb03 this is the sort of thing that we used. I would try to use bigger one rather than the tiny kiddy ones, less edges therefore less nibbling!

I bought four big ones from argos, but whether they sell them still im not sure.
I cant see any but maybe even something like this?
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3405712/Trail/searchtext%3EPLAY+MAT+FOAM.htm
(I would probably recommend the first one more as it seems thicker)
I dont know why but I swear by them, they really did help Peanut I just wish I had found them sooner than I did.

Peanut nibbled at his because he was in pain, is he on any pain relief?

Sorry just saw you had found some on ebay anyway!! xx

Poor paddy, they do look sore, Stewie's weren't quite that bad even at their worst
I didn't get to try the foam flooring that SJ recommends, but it must be worth a try. You have to find a balance between keeping them treated and not trapping that moisture in so that the skin doesn't harden up. I think my vet would have prescribed Bactroban if they had got to the stage Paddy's are, with hock sock wraps, but not putting the wrap on straight afterwards, but once the cream had dried.

If you can get them to the point where the skin isn't broken, dabbing them with surgical spirit will toughen the skin up. I'd speak to the vets if you haven't already Helen, see what goes, but Fuciderm was, to my vet, a last resort, but seems to be a first resort to a lot of vets. Catherine said that this wasn't the right approach, because it thins the skin as it has steroid in it.

Keep us posted and a cuddle to Paddy x

Yes Fudicerm was what peanut got first and i dont think it helped him at all x

Hi Helen,

Im really sorry to hear about Paddy's sore feet.

I wish I had some good advice to help. So instead I am sending lots of love and vibes that they can be made better.

Katie xx

Thanks for your posts, Jay, SJ and Katie.

I feel so bad that his hocks are in this state. We have been keeping an eye on them and trying different floorings over the last few weeks hoping desperately that they would improve, but they seem to have got worse just recently and I didn't realise they were so bad. I feel terrible. Maybe we should have let the vet see them a few weeks ago. The thing is, all she recommends is to let Paddy live outside so he is on grass. I will order some of the foam mats today and they should be here by Tuesday - Sarah Jane, those are the same ones I found on eBay, thank you.

We have been giving him Metacam for the last few days, and I think it's helping him - he is fine in himself and behaving normally, except for nibbling at him feet sometimes.

He does have lots of toys to distract him and both myself and Rob spend a lot of time with him, but obviously can't be there 24/7, so we'll do what we can to distract him and keep him occupied.

I think we might get hold of some vet wrap today and cover them today just until tomorrow so he can't nibble his feet. Should I cut a bit of a cotton wool pad to cover the sore area and then use the wrap on it - is that how to do it? Then wrap the dressing to secure it, but not too tightly?

Will speak to the vet about the Bactroban and wraps - thanks Jay. To be honest I don't think she has much to suggest apart from putting Paddy outside, but I'll take some of these ideas back to her.

With the cotton wool pad, fold it 1/3rd up, and cut a small circle out below the midline, that will keep the pressure off the sore bit. What I did was also cut 2 level grooves on either side, like this...


The hole goes over the hock, then the grooves act like a hinge. Bit with hole on foot, bit without on ankle and shin. Wrap it in vet wrap. I secured them with that medical cotton tape before putting the wraps on, because otherwise it's well tricky to keep them in place, but after a few goes you get a knack for it. I left an hour after applying cream to putting the wraps on. The other thing we found is that when the wraps were on, Stewie didn't move about as much, which I think is beneficial?

Don't feel bad Helen, I was alarmed at how quickly these went from little pink spots to much bigger ones. As for keeping him outside, I don't know how much of a difference it would make; it's really confusing because there doesn't seem to be a 'one glove fits all' surface, some buns respond better to a particular surface. It is important to keep the as dry as you can - Does Paddy sit in his litter tray? cos that won't help.

Thank you Jay, that's really helpful.

I see now how it's done, and how you've described it makes sense. When you say you use medical cotton tape before using the wrap, do you mean the adhesive stuff like Micropore tape just to stick the cotton pad to itself so that it stays in place? I couldn't use sticky tape on his fur obviously.

I'll not keep a dressing on for too long and will check to see it's staying dry. I just really want to stop him grooming it, as a short-term measure. He doesn't sit in his litter tray really, except when he's using it, so that's good. We've been changing the Megazorb and hay in it every day to make sure it's not wet.

I think you can buy the Bactroban cream? I'll maybe talk to my vet on the phone and try and get hold of some if she says it's OK as it's only 5 days since we were there and we're not back until next week for his VHD. Too many vet visits stress him out.

Will keep you updated, thanks again.

They look so sore, poor little chum. Please get better soon.

Jo xx

I am really sorry, I have only just seen your post - didn't realise when I replied to you earlier that you are having terrible troubles too. Your poor little bun, his feet do look so sore. How is the little chap doing? Are you having much luck with wrapping up his feet? A friend of mine gave me some 'vet wrap' (usually used on horses legs) but Daisy just kept pulling it off

Alfie has the same thing, although it tends to go through phases of when its bad or not. Our vet told us to keep and eye on them and not to put anything on it. it also doesnt help when Alfie sits where he wees!!!!!

Thanks everyone.

Well - the dressings did NOT go down well with Paddy!! We managed to get hold of some vet wrap yesterday and dressed his feet according to Jay instructions (thank you!). It was pretty fiddly (I guess I'd get better at it with practice) but he was a good boy and let us put them on. Unfortunately, once he was back in his room he kicked one of them off within about 10 seconds and proceeded to chew frantically at the other one, in between running around trying to kick it off. He was really quite distressed and after a few minutes we took it off - it obviously wasn't going to work and was really stressing him out. I guess some buns are just like this - they won't tolerate them?

So, not a success. But, on examining the bald bits again yesterday, they looked a little better than the previous day, and the skin is definitely not broken. So I'm guessing he wouldn't need the Bactroban if the skin is intact - probably better to leave it alone?? The skin is a bit calloused and I tried to rub the flaky patches off, but with not much success. The close up digital pics do make them look really bad, and somehow they don't look quite as bad in reality - if that makes sense!

So ... I think our best bet is to keep on giving him Metacam, as I'd say it's helping him, and to put down the foam floor tiles. I ordered them last night on eBay and they should be here tomorrow, fingers crossed. Will have to hope the fur begins to grow back and his feet don't get worse as he just won't tolerate the dressings.

Wizbit - Daisy sounds just like Paddy - not a fan of the dressings! I hope Daisy and Oscar's feet are doing OK at the moment.

Tammybunny - sorry to hear Alfie has the same problem too - hope he's OK. Such a worry, these buns, aren't they?!

Sorry it didn't go well, Stewie really didn't like them, but he did get used to them. See what the vet says about the creams etc, glad to hear they haven't got worse, I hope the foam pads help x

If you can get hold of a thin Memory Foam mattress they are very good, what we did is we went to a camping shop and bought a small foam thin mattress and cut it to size and put it in a pillowcase.
We put 'Flamazine' from the vet on his hocks.

Hi Helen,

Just wanted you to know that I am thinking of your little boy. x x x x

K x x

Katieb wrote:Hi Helen,

Just wanted you to know that I am thinking of your little boy. x x x x

K x x

Thanks so much Katie. I haven't been around very much - had a bad week with Paddy last week. Not because of his hocks, but last Tuesday he got a bad fright with the window cleaner and was in a terrible state. It really took him most of 48 hours to get back to normal, though thankfully he didn't stop eating. He's fine now, but it was very stressful and we had to postone his vet visit for his VHD jab twice. Needless to say, the window cleaner will be getting cancelled - not going through that again! He's normally OK with it, I'm not sure why it gave him such a bad fright this time.

Anyway, we got the foam tiles from eBay and they have been down for 2 weeks. I think there is a little more fur growing on his feet, though they're still looking much the same really. He's still having a little Metacam daily and I haven't seen him nibbling at his feet so much. So fingers crossed the foam tiles will help. He's had a few little chewing episodes at the foam but doesn't seem to eat the bits - just leaves them for us to clear up!