For a Rex, the feet tell the story early. The breed's famous velvet coat comes with a trade-off underneath: the fur on the hind feet is thinner and less protective than in most rabbits, so the skin over the hocks takes pressure and friction it is not well padded against. Sore hocks are the characteristic source of discomfort in a Rex, and they change how the rabbit moves before they are easy to see. A thorough pain check for this breed starts with gait and feet, then widens to the appetite, posture, and droppings signs every rabbit uses.
Movement that protects the feet
A comfortable Rex hops freely, rears up to look around, and crosses its enclosure without thinking about surfaces. A Rex with sore feet begins to edit its life: hopping with short, stiff, or shuffling steps, sitting for long spells with weight tipped forward onto the front feet to unload the hocks, shuffling rather than lifting the hind feet cleanly, or refusing to leave a mat or bedding area for bare floor. Some rabbits lick or chew at a hind foot repeatedly. Others simply become inactive, which owners often misread as a middle-aged Rex calming down. If your Rex has quietly stopped rearing, exploring, or coming to the enclosure door, treat that as a symptom worth examining, not a personality change.
When the rabbit is calm and supported, look at the underside of each hind foot. Early trouble is a bald patch with pink, dry, or callused skin. More advanced trouble is redness, swelling, cracks, or broken skin, and any open area on a foot that stands in bedding all day needs prompt veterinary attention. Note whether one foot or both are affected and whether the rabbit flinches when the area is gently touched.
The rest of the pain picture
Feet are the Rex speciality, not the whole story. Apply the standard rabbit read alongside: a hunched, tight posture with narrowed eyes; belly pressing or constant shifting; loud, repetitive teeth grinding rather than soft contented tooth purring; sudden defensiveness when a part of the body is handled; and reduced grooming, which in a Rex shows as the plush coat losing its even, velvety look. Above all, track eating and droppings daily. A Rex that skips meals and produces fewer, smaller droppings has a slowing gut, which is urgent in any breed and has nothing to do with feet. Ear scratching, head shaking, drooling, or dropping food each point the check in their own direction, toward ears or teeth.
Flooring is part of the follow-up for hock trouble specifically: long hours on hard, rough, or damp surfaces worsen pressure on thinly furred feet, so deep soft bedding and rest areas matter while the vet's advice takes effect.
When the vet cannot wait
Broken skin on a hock, swelling, a rabbit unwilling to bear weight or move, loss of appetite, teeth grinding, or scant droppings all mean a vet the same day. A bald, pink, unbroken hock patch in a rabbit still eating and moving well should be seen promptly, within a day or two, and watched daily in the meantime, because Rex feet can move from callus to open sore faster than owners expect. Record when the gait changed, which foot looks worse, and any flooring or weight changes, since a heavier Rex loads its hocks harder.
That record is most useful when it travels with the rabbit, and KinsLe Pet Passport holds a Rex's foot-check notes, weight, and earlier vet findings together in one packet ready for the appointment.