Why is my nursing rabbit's breast swollen with a black wound?

Hi, and thanks for your question. Even though a picture of the wound itself would help to understand better the underlying cause, this presentation could be due to a trauma or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). An immediate check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Sorry to see what's going on with Ebony. If at all possible, I would say that you should have Ebony examined by a veterinarian. They should be able to shave some of the hair around the affected area to get a very good look at what exactly is happening, and to what extent the affected area is afflicted. Unspayed female rabbits are much more prone to the outer and inner portions of their genitals having disease processes. These can include superficial infections, abscesses, or disease processes caused by hormonal imbalances. Hope this helps.

Female rabbits have 4-5 pairs of mammary glands on their ventrum/underside. The most common issue with rabbit mammary glands would be mastitis in nursing does which would present as mammary glands that are painful, red or hot to the touch. If any of these symptoms are noted, a trip to your veterinarian is recommended for an antibiotic that is safe for rabbits (not all of them are). Oxbow Critical care for Herbivores would be beneficial for supportive care as well. If you have a different question re: rabbit mammary glands, please let us know!

Hi, it looks like there is still some infection. I am not sure what was the first diagnosis but this looks like an abscess to me and it can be tricky for antibiotics to clear the infection. In me experience, it would be better being removed and treated as a lump, provided X-rays, general health support this decision. Abscesses quite often end up reoccurring if not eradicated completely..if you wanted to try oral medications for a bit longer, injectable antibiotics would be the way forward. Hope this makes sense.

This kind of lump/growth needs to be ideally assessed by your veterinarian to have a definitive and specific answer. Usually there are two ways your vet can do that a part from examining it directly during physical examination. A biopsy can be taken under local or general anesthetic, otherwise a smaller sample through a fine needle can be aspirated (this technique is called FNA= fine needle aspiration). Differentials include skin cysts, infections, benign or more sinister type of tumors. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Ruby. I recommend that she sees her veterinarian. She may have a mammary gland tumor. Her veterinarian will be able to determine if this is the case and if the mass requires surgical removal. I hope this information helps!

Poor Shu! I can see that the growth is relatively large and inflamed. It also appears to have a bit of dead tissue in the center. This is likely to be fairly painful, so Shu should be seen by a vet to receive pain medication and a thorough cleaning of the area which may require mild sedation. There are certain viruses that predispose rabbits to developing masses, and while there is no cure for the virus itself, the mass can be removed to improve quality of life. If you have any other rabbits, I recommend separating them from Shu as the virus can be contagious. I hope this helps and that all is well!