Updated November 28, 2020
Losing the use of the back legs is one of the most common and serious problems of rabbits. It can happen either suddenly or gradually.
It’s critical that your vet considers all the common causes. It’s not a long list, and can quickly be narrowed down as you’ll see.
Causes Of Hind Leg Paralysis In Rabbits
Reasons for paralysis (no movement) or paresis (weakness) include:
- Spinal Trauma
- Encephalitozoon infection
- Arthritis
- Disc protrusion
- Unusual causes
Many of these are treatable by any good rabbit vet, so it’s important to get a correct diagnosis early. Delayed treatment can lead to permanent disability as well as secondary problems from urine and faeces in the fur,
Spinal Trauma
Back injuries are the number one cause of a rabbit suddenly being unable to use their back legs. The ways we see this happening are:
- Jumping out of people’s arms while being carried
- Struggling and kicking while being held
- Panicking in an outside hutch when a fox is about
If you think foxes aren’t common, please read this story of a rabbit and a fox in Adelaide.
When a rabbit suddenly starts dragging the back legs, they need to see a vet ASAP. Most spinal injuries can be easily seen on standard X-rays. Please keep them calm and as still as possible in the meantime.
Encephalitozoon Infection
E. cuniculi is the most common cause of gradual loss of hind leg function in young rabbits. It is a single-celled parasite that is carried by many rabbits without causing problems. However, for reasons we don’t understand, in some rabbits it causes:
- Head tilt progressing to rolling the whole body
- Falling on the side or inability to stand
- Urinary infections
- Hind leg weakness progressing to paralysis
E cuniculi is usually easily treated if recognised in time but can relapse.
Arthritis
Arthritis is the most common cause of gradual loss of hind leg use in old rabbits, usually over 9 years of age. It can occur in the joints of the legs, or the spine where we call it spondylosis.
Old rabbits with arthritis will gradually lose the ability to climb stairs and furniture or hop on slippery floors. With time they may just sit with a hunched posture due to pain.
Arthritis in rabbits is treatable. Visit our page on rabbit arthritis for more information.
Disc Protrusion
Prolapse of a spinal disc is the most common cause of back legs suddenly not working in an old rabbit. Just like for acute trauma, it’s very important to keep your rabbit quiet and see a vet as soon as you can.
Many rabbits with ruptured vertebral discs can recover enough function to survive. However, like in all cases of hind leg paralysis it’s important to be realistic. If the chances of recovery are slim, we have to consider their quality of life.
Soiling of the bottom with urine or faeces creates a high risk of skin infections and fly strike. Additionally, any rabbit who can only drag him or herself about is likely to be suffering. Your vet will be able to help you decide if treatment is a good idea.
Unusual Causes
Lastly, there are less common ways rabbits can lose balance or function in their hind legs. These include:
- Bacterial infections of the central nervous system or inner ear, especially Pasteurella multocida
- Infection with Baylisascaris procyoni in areas with raccoons
- Tumours of the spine, especially lymphoma
- Toxoplasma
- Herpes simplex
- Strokes
- Poisons, especially heavy metals
None of this list should be considered first, but your vet should be able to tell when these are possible causes.
So good luck. As you can see, most problems can be treated if you get to them in time.
Note: Thanks for all the comments. These are now closed but you should find all the common questions answered if you scroll through them.
Have something to add? Comments (if open) will appear within 24 hours.
By Andrew Spanner BVSc(Hons) MVetStud, a vet in Adelaide, Australia. Meet his team here. The information provided here is not intended to be used as a substitute for going to the vet. If your pet is unwell, please seek veterinary attention.
My rabbit woke up this morning and could not move her back legs. She just turned 7 and has never had any health issues before. She didn’t fall or get injured by trauma, she is a pretty chill bunny to begin with. She is dragging herself around the floor and seems bothered or in pain when I touch her back feet. She is still eating and drinking but I am really worried about her. She can still prop herself up to get to her water bottle but cannot hop like rabbits typically do. She tried to get into her littler box but couldn’t so something is definitely wrong. Should I take her to the vet? I don’t have a lot of money and I have no idea what the right thing to do is.
Hi Bella. Unfortunately, you really don’t have any choice except to go to the vet. I hope things work out okay.
My bunny is only a few months old and her back legs quick working all of a sudden i don’t know what happened
Hi Courtney. In young rabbits, the most common answer is a spinal injury, especially from a sudden jump or fall. I hope that I am wrong.
My rabbit is not to old, he is at-most 4 months. We was doing fine in the morning, gave him some broccoli and Romain lettuce as a snack. I went for work, when I came back he was doing fine, he kept running in and out the room, since I don’t like him being to far from his little box I carried him a couple times back and when he started wiggling I wound closer him to the floor and let him go then I kept him in the room with me to stop any further disturbance. He could still walk normally but then he started to just flop he moved somewhere and flopped, I thought maybe he was mad, but then he would flop and not move, I moved him a couple times but he would not move at all as if he lost senses of his back legs then I put him on the floor and he was in a Superman pose and he started to kick his legs but he wouldn’t move, it was late there where not vets open. I went to sleep thinking of the worst. Wake up to see him I’m a loaf position which means he can use his legs, he still eats but he is a pretty energetic rabbit but isn’t wanting to move to much, only walks a couple of step but then loafs again, is he okay? what do I do? Are vets really the answer?
Hi Justin. It sounds like he’s had a spinal injury. As you can probably see from the other comments, these are quite common and occur with excessive movement, especially when being held. It seems likely that the spinal-cord was bruised, not severed, so he might be very lucky. You should always see a vet to confirm what I’m saying, but keeping him strictly from moving for the next two weeks is likely to be very important, and avoiding whatever might have contributed to this injury in the future.
Hi Andrew.
My rabbit is 5ish years old. Still eating, drinking, can clean himself and play, still thumps his legs when he doesn’t get what he wants and scoots fast when he see carrot tops enter his food bowl. He still loves pats and purrs, shows no sign of pain or anything. One morning I woke up and he was dragging his legs slightly. He would hop but then the leg/s would get stuck and he couldn’t prop them back up until he’s stopped moving. I took him to the vet. First vet checked his spine and said nothing wrong he’s just got an inflamed leg, maybe sprained or torn muscle and said the keep him quite and put him in a smaller cage so he couldn’t damage it further. She said it might look bad before it gets better. The next day he was worse I still took him down just to be sure. Saw a different vet who checked his spine and said there was something wrong and when he pushed on a part of his spine he was in pain. This vet was very rough and actually hurt my hand when I passed him my bunny. I haven’t heard any nice things about this vet and with my cats he’s always so rough unlike the other vets there. I asked for an x-ray. He came back and said there’s nothing skeletal wrong, no fractures or breaks. I was given pain medication for my bunny and told to keep him rested for 8 weeks. It’s been about 3 months now. He’s much better and hops most of the time but sometime his right leg gets stuck under and he drags it and can’t turn on it properly. He can stand on his back legs totally if he holds onto his cage with his front legs. Still stomps and runs sometimes. He just struggles to clean his right ear and sometimes drags his right leg under. Do you know what this is? I’m fully confident he’s not in any pain at all as he’s always so happy and playful and shows no signs of distress I’m just upset he can’t run all the time now and has to be confined so he doesn’t injure it more. I do physio therapy with him but he hates that. I also do gentle massages on that leg, he likes them. Any clue what happened to him and if he will heal completely or at least more? Thankyou
Hi Sharlie. Judging by the long term poor use in the leg, the way it began, and the way you describe his leg turning under him, I would be very surprised if the cause was not an intervertebral disc prolapse. These come on exactly as you described, and often lead to permanent neurological deficits. If this is true, after this amount of time, resting the lesion should have no further benefit except to prevent other injuries from occurring, as the area should be adequately stabilised by now. If I am right, there is not much that can be done except to think about how he might have injured himself in the first place. A good example here in Adelaide is foxes patrolling around the outside of rabbit hutches outside, or rabbits getting dropped from peoples’ arms. However disc disease is often degenerative and has no obvious cause.
My rabbits back legs have also been dragging, few trips to vets and they’ve suggested we keep her as comfortable as possible until it’s time to let go, it’s at a point where she can’t clean her underneath back area or back legs properly, we’re daily cleaning her to get urine off her fur around that area, we’ve been advised it’s time to have her put down, I feel this is probably the correct thing to do but I’m wondering if you think there is more that could be done to help her?
Hi Leonard. If you’ve exhausted all the mentioned options and she’s soiling herself, then it’s quite hazardous for her to try to keep going.
My rabbit is 5 years old and he suddenly developed difficulty using his hind legs. He can only walk short distances before sitting down like he’s tired and can’t use hind legs to scratch himself because he loses balance. He can’t stand on his hind legs either, but is perfectly balanced while sitting on his butt.
I’ve taken him to 2 local vets: one suggested it’s a dental problem and referred me to a vet that treats dental issues in rabbits; the other one said it’s because of old age and gave him a B vitamins and anti-inflamatory shot. I’m not a doctor but as the rabbit is eating almost as usual I don’t agree on a tooth infection, and much less on “old age”.
Could you please advise on what I can do to save my rabbit?
Hi Adrian. I agree with you that neither explanation is a very good fit for your rabbit’s situation. Because there is no clear reason, further investigation is warranted. I would take x-rays if this were my patient before proceeding. Otherwise, all you might do is a longer treatment trial with anti-inflammatories. The solution may not be easy to find regardless.
Hi my bunny’s back legs have just collapsed and has been to vets but they don’t know what is wrong. She is on anti inflammatory and worm and antibiotics. Initially (a week ago) her breathing was very loud and exhaustive so I took to vets where they put her on oxygen and antibiotics for upper respiratory infection. She came home and 3 days later had the collapsed legs. She is still eating and on her meds. What do you suggest please?
Hi Kerri. I can understand your concern and it sounds like your vets are doing a great job. I’m sorry I can’t add any extra information. Good luck.
My rabbit has had a long life – he’ll be 14 if he makes it to July 11! I realize this is quite old for a rabbit. When he was 11, he was still capable of very high jumps . After he turned 12, he found it impossible to walk on hardwood floors and had a leg issue that caused him to slowly spin in place (!). Now at 13 he has gone from having difficulty standing up to not being able to walk or stand. I can get him sitting comfortably if I help him out a bit. He’s still an engaged and stimulated rabbit and loves to eat and lie out on the grass. He had a great vet when I lived in another city but his vet in this city handles him with kid gloves because he is nervous about stressing out the oldest rabbit he’s ever seen. And now with COVID, I can’t get in there to be with the rabbit and handle and calm him while the vet checks him out. His first vet said it was probably arthritis before I moved. I assume she is right and therefore not curable, just treatable. I give him Metacam. I keep a close eye on him to keep him happy, fed and clean. Just telling my story, I guess. Kinney has had a good and long life.
Hi Mark. Thanks for your story – you’ve done a great job getting that far and my only thought is if it’s worth asking your vet about the dose rate of meloxicam (Metacam). There’s been a lot of debate about the correct dose so it’s quite possible that you could try a higher one.
Hi
My 4 month old rabit has hindering back leg but onlu the right leg. the left leg has no problem at all. what would be the cause? An x ray shows a bit curved leg bone. Is it the cause or the symptom?
Hi Hedieh. That’s unusual and you did the right thing getting an x-ray. It’s possibly a congenital or developmental problem, rather than an injury. Follow your vet’s advice, but it might be something that isn’t easy to fix.
My baby bunny is maybe 2 months old and as of today it is dragging it’s back legs. Help! It’s drinking and eating still.
Hi Nicole. It’s quite serious and usually a back injury- X-rays will be required.
My rabbit is around 9 years old and his back legs won’t move please advice me on what to do many thanks
Hi Tracy – As the cause of back leg problems can be one of many things, you will need a vet to help you. Good luck.