****** WARNING ! This article contains pictures you may find disturbing. Continue reading at your own risk. These pictures were taken for us to be able to monitor Pickles healing process. *******
On August 4th, 2019 we welcomed a temporary rescue into our home. Found running from the neighbor’s lawnmower we took in a wild cottontail bunny that appeared to be about two weeks old.
After reading the last couple of posts about this straggler, you are aware we ended up making him a permanent Gauntt Farm member. This decision was not made easily nor without thoroughly discussing the pros and cons.
Just today, this creature hung out in our canopy of trees for a good half hour before finding prey elsewhere. Just one of the many reasons we could not let this baby out into the wild, we felt responsible at this point.
That and the fact he was getting too used to our cat, Tigger.
Once we realized that he was stuck with us, we took steps to get all the animals used to each other. Placing Pickles in his play pen in the living room as the other bunnies played aside of him, they took turns sniffing and getting to know each other.
Yay! Playmates
The one he was most excited about playing next to him was Bit-bit, our dwarf bunny. Weighing in at only 2.5 pounds, she has already spent time next to Pickles in my arms, as well as loose in the same room together. Snuggling up to her didn’t bother her one Bit (see what I did there?), she even groomed and gave him lovin’ back.
Aren’t they just the cutest? See how Bit-Bit is leaning in, loving on Pickles?
Just seven weeks after joining us, Pickles perception of safety did a 180.
Knowing that Pickles and Bit-bit have gotten along in the same space before, I decided to give them some run time in the house. Going between the living room and kitchen area, I kept a close eye as I do with all of the babies; and in an instance our home turned into a war zone.
Barely out five minutes, there was lots of scuffle right behind me.
Having heard the sound of scurrying bunny feet during a conflict before, I had my assumptions that Bit-bit was showing him who was boss. I flung around and stopped her in her tracks and told her “NO”, as she came to a screeching halt and slid another six inches before coming to a complete stop (yes, it was actually quite funny to watch her slide).
I turned every which way, looking for Pickles to comfort and reassure him.
Each time I came near, he would hopple in the opposite direction; and that’s when I found it – a chunk of Pickles fur. Yikes! I thought, but realized it was just a small piece of fur. When I finally caught up with him it registered that his injury was much worse than initially anticipated.
Taking a closer look, I immediately picked up the phone to call the vet as Cathy ran to get the pet carrier. We both knew without saying a word that an immediate visit was necessary.
As luck would have it, our Bunny vet was off that Tuesday. Referring me to another exotic vet, come to find out they were also off that day. “What is this? National Bunny Vet off day?”
Panic sets in
**** Beware ! Graphic pictures ! ****
You have to remember that I am an ER/ICU nurse as well as a retired medic – I do NOT panic easily! Yet here I was – panicking.
By the third phone call, Pickles was safely tucked into his carrier and I finally found a bunny specialist just a little over an hour away. We were in the car less than five minutes after hanging up the phone and off we went.
How much is this gonna cost?
On entering the facility we thought we would walk away broke from this visit – it was a spectacular place. Of course we did not care the cost, as long as Pickles would be taken care of and his leg reattached! (Just joking, his leg was NOT detached)
Pleasantly surprised
We met Dr. Cotton (like cottontail, get it?) and were immediately impressed with his love and compassion for our Mr. Pickles. He and his assistant Jackie were both exceptional in their care, knowledge and gentleness. Walking us step by step through the upcoming process we felt confident they would take care of him and make sure he would not be in any pain.
Caring, compassionate, knowledgable .. and very patient with us
After his procedure they brought him right back and explained everything in detail while reassuring us that he would pull through this just fine. He required extra sedation to no surprise, he truly is a Gauntt!
Poor thing had about 12 stitches in his leg which sounds awful, but everything looked good. I mean, I have never even had one stitch in my life so I can only imagine how much pain he was in. We went home with plenty of antibiotics and pain medications to make sure he stayed comfortable throughout his recovery.
Did I mention that their prices are surprisingly reasonable, considering the specialty required, as well as everything they did?
Um… let the fun begin
Pickles was used to taking milk from a syringe so giving him his medicine was pretty easy; until the second night that is….
He was absolutely refusing to take his medicine, continuously turning his head the other way snubbing my attempts. I was left with no choice other than to hold him to administer his medicine; and that’s when it turned ugly. Not wanting anything to do with me either, it took me a minute to catch him; I swear he enjoys taunting me by bouncing off my hand.
I won… or so I thought
Well finally I won – until I didn’t. After successfully retrieving him from his house, he calmed down and I was petting him when he decided to ‘ping’ right out of my arms. Thankfully I was sitting on the floor as he decided to take yet another tour of our bedroom. When I finally caught up with him I noticed that he had ripped several of his stitches. “Great – now what?” Immediately calling S.A.V.E.S. I found out that Dr. Cotton was off for the night (it was 830pm), and unable to find a bunny specialist elsewhere, I reached back out to them.
Could anything else happen to this baby?
This place is so awesome that they did not hesitate to take my message and contact him even after hours. It wasn’t long before they returned my call and relayed that it was ok to wait until the morning to have him seen.
We returned first thing the next day and Dr. Cotton was more than happy to take a look and fix him up again. Pickles was less than happy to yet again be with strangers and put back under, but several stitches and some skin glue later he was fine. His sutures dehisced in a high tension area and we were reassured that this could have happened even if he had not gotten away from me. His extra stitches and glue should prevent a reoccurrence but he did not guarantee it, due to the location.
After 10 to 14 days the sutures would be ready for removal and we had the choice of bringing him back there or to his regular vet. We chose the latter for two reasons: 1 – It would be beneficial for his normal doctor to see what had happened and be aware of his injury. 2- The facility was much closer than the emergency clinic.
Yes, yes it can…. why did I even ask?
We wholly trust our regular bunny doc and are confident in her skills and knowledge. When we brought him to her she mentioned the glue removal may present a problem, but she would check it out first. Once the tech brought him back they informed us that they “removed all of the sutures” – Yay, Great! “….but….” It appears the glue removal ended up tearing part of his wound back open, so he required more stitches yet again. We understood the possibility of this happening and did not fault our DVM at all.
Our hearts just broke – that poor baby!
So we left with more medication and a few sutures less than what we started with, so I guess that would be the good news. Unfortunately we have had to keep him in a smaller cage during his recovery, and this incident just added another 2 weeks to that. We realize limiting his activity to reduce risk of reopening his wound was necessary, but we felt so bad for him.
Close eye on recovery process
Keeping a close eye still, he continued to heal remarkably and this incident did not affect his lovely, happy demeanor at all. His aunt Ladonna fixed him up a pillow and case so he would have something soft(er) to lie down on. His recovery cage was the kind with the wire bottom, but we made sure to place plenty of hay and soft things like towels etc to keep him from having to walk on the wire; but nothing was as nice as his personally made pillow.
Him loves his pillow Homegrown carrots are the best Finally healing nicely Hiding inside the pillow case
Remember, this is a wild bunny and he still has some of his natural instincts in place that our other bunnies didn’t. The main thing is that he is way more high-strung than domesticated bunnies; and according to Dr. Cotton this, most likely will never be dampened. During his recovery he has learned how to take treats out of our hands, stand on his hind legs to retrieve said treats and even play with his jingly ball.
It’s about time
Finally, after an additional ten days his sutures were removed; the ones that were left anyways. Seems he has taken it upon himself to remove most of the sutures already; the area was healed so he did no extra damage by doing this. We were so excited to finally move him back into his larger house, but our excitement was quickly deflated. Although everything seemed just fine, as a precaution Dr. Cotton recommended another five to seven days in the small pen to ensure complete healing of the area; especially after suture removal. He did not expect any issues, but considering all this poor baby had been through we all wanted to err on the side of caution.
So here I sit on day seven (almost a month since the initial incident) and am ecstatic about today’s new adventure – moving to the big boy pen!
Finally all stitches removed Back in his big boy house
I want to thank the entire staff at S.A.V.E.S. that we had any interaction with. They have all been very patient and understanding with us (the neurotic bunny moms), and we have never felt that we were a bother.
From the phone calls, the front office staff, the DVM and his techs. We only got Jackie’s name and for that I apologize; each of the techs we dealt with were just as nice and compassionate.
If you live in or around the Atlanta area, I highly recommend this center for your emergency pet needs!
I am in no way affiliated with this business and will not make any profit, should you choose to see them. This is merely an article on personal experience and am thrilled to recommend them to anyone.
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