My rabbit's nail came off and he's biting the wound. What do I do?

Be very careful with putting antibiotic ointment on any wound on your rabbit as this can upset their digestive system very seriously, if they lick the ointment off. Do nothing more and just observe the wound. If it happens to become infected (red, painful, hot, discharge of pus) then take your rabbit to a vet for an exam and injectable antibiotics.,

You should take Hops to the vet as this is likely to get infected, she will need a course of antibiotics as well as pain killers for a few days, the tip of the broken nail will need to be checked as well, in some cases it is necessary to remove the nail in order to prevent any complications.

The most common reason for a young rabbit to be limping would be generalized musculoskeletal pain from something traumatic. Certainly as you said nail length can contribute or a wound on the affected limb. However, if you have eliminated these as possibilities, I would say that the next logical assumption is there is a bony or soft tissue injury affecting your bunny. She would probably benefit from a physical exam to see if an area can be isolated, and possibly if warranted, some x-rays could be obtained. Anti-inflammatory and pain medications are also available for rabbits and might provide some significant relief. In the mean time until you can get him in, I would just try to limit his mobility and confine him to a smaller area. Hope this is helpful.

Since you've already tried clipping the nail short and it's grown back, I recommend making an appointment with your vet. There is likely an underlying problem with the nail such as a fungal or bacterial infection that needs to be treated.

I can see what looks like a small wound on Thumper's skin. It appears rather small and superficial, and does not seem to be bleeding. I recommend keeping it clean and applying a small amount of SSD (silver sulfadiazene) ointment to the area. I'm not sure how Thumper may have gotten the wound, but I would recommend evaluating his environment for sharp edges or any contact with bigger animals. I hope this helps and am happy to answer any other questions you may have!

Ouch, poor Rupert! The quick itself should be left alone, but it appears in the picture that there is a long skinny piece of tissue or retained nail on the inner aspect of the quick. If that's the case, it will need to be trimmed back. If you're comfortable taking care of this yourself, you can trim that part back with a dog nail clippers (make sure you are comfortable with what you're doing and know what should and should not be trimmed - do NOT trim the quick itself as that would be very painfu for Rupert!). You can apply a gob of neosporin over the quick, and it may be helpful to cover that area with a clean sock for a few days, as the quick will be very tender, and will bleed easily. If you're not confident to do this yourself, bring Rupert in to the vet and they'll trim back any remaining nail tissue, and will likely apply medicated ointment and place a soft bandage. Monitor Rupert's nail bed over the coming week or two and make sure it is not getting red, swollen, or having discharge, which would indicate a nail bed infection requiring a vet visit and antibiotics. Hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Thanks for your question, and thank you for the pictures - they are very helpful. In the pictures, the nails on Pierre are pretty long - I am not sure if you took these before you trimmed the nails or after, but this may be the reason that he was biting at his feet. When rabbits' nails are too long, they can be irritating to the rabbit and can even break and tear the skin or cause a wound. Rabbits typically dig to keep their nails short, so this may be the reason that he was trying this activity. I would recommend monitoring Pierre now that the nails have been trimmed to see if he responds. If he continues to bite at the fur, then he may have something underlying going on and he should be evaluated by a veterinarian. I hope that gives you a place to start, and that Pierre feels better soon!