Old bunny with poop ball

[heuchterteuchter]

cleaning and winter proofing the hutches for our dwarf bunnies today. first bunny fine, but our old bunny has been hiding a big dried-on ball of poop on her wee bum.
In April, her back legs 'went'-vet said old age, she recovered and is happy, still able to hop about and even binky. She's a rescue, so age is approx 5/6 we think.
My poor old girl had to have a bum bath to carefully remove the dried on poop. She did not like it. then cuddles in a towel for 2 hours to make sure she was dry. (typical netherland dwarf-she tolerates attention for 5 mins, then nips to go home!)
She stayed cosied up for 2 hours (think she was in shock), then back outside to super cosy bed-everything all on one level now and she has a ramp.
She's fine now. But its not good. had this been summer, she'd have had flystrike. if she can't get round to clean her butt, what quality of life is that?
any advice? I clean their toilets every day and check them but I missed this clearly.

[nothernexposure]

Our boy bun ended up with poo stuck on him just before the first lock down. Vet nurse thought he was just lazy!! She (Vet nurse) does home visits and shaved his bum area to stop the poop getting matted in there. He sulked afterwards but it did stop the problem and we've not seen any poo stuck there since. Could you try something like this?

[heuchterteuchter]

hi, thanks for that! giving her a bunny brazilian made me proper lol!
I think its more old age than lazy, bless her. She's an outside bunny-hates being inside. I think shaving would just make her cold, though I'd consider shaving her in summer! It would prevent flystrike which is what worries me most!
she has at least stopped sulking and is back to growling at me!!

[bunnygeek]

I would have a chat with your vet (make sure they're rabbit-savvy) to make sure there's nothing underlying going on here. She's not actually that old. My old girl's arthritis didn't really kick in until she was 10-11 years old, she didn't need butt washes until her last few months at age 13. She was a Nethie cross.

Mucky butts can be cause by joint issues in the legs or spinal issues. They can also be caused by obesity, diet issues, lack of muscle mass if they've not had enough space to run or even dental issues. If this bun has a particularly flat face, then she could also struggle to reach to clean herself.

[Veterinari]

She likely has chronic pain after her spinal injury. 5-6 is no age - buns often live 10-12 years. It would be worth trying pain relief for spinal arthritis

Has she been spayed? The other possibility Nan insisted female is uterine cancer causing pain when she turns to clean herself

[Veterinari]

Sorry to be clear - arthritis can occur after a spinal/joint injury, not just as a result of age

[heuchterteuchter]

thanks for your thoughts. She is speyed, yes. We are not aware of a spinal injury, the vet was unable to pinpoint a reason for her back legs going. Since then she has recovered use of her back legs-hops about in a fair-sized run and runs and binkys when out in garden.
she was prescibed metacam for pain originally, I followed vets instructions and she recovered quickly.
She is a fat wee spoilt bun! We're addressing that, cutting down on treats and making sure she has plenty hay. I did check her teeth-they're even and look good (and feel sharp!)
For now, I'm keeping a close eye on her and her wee bum and will take her to the vet if needed. arthritis is possible, she hides her pain well! Her age is a guesstimate, we're aware she could be older.
attached a pic of her wrapped up after her bath.