spayed rabbit??

Lucifer

my poor lil bunny is getting spayed tomorrow, i was just wondering if there is anything i need to do in advance before she comes home tomorrow night? is she ok still being outside?? do they get one of those big collars? and how much is it usually?? our vet sad it will be about 140 yoyo's, is this normal?? also if anyones interested in rabbits, our rabbit, oreo is going to be in the evening herald at some stage this week or next, the vet is writting an article on her being spayed... thanks in advance for any advice

Schlemm

Give her lots of rest and tlc, and keep an eye on her, she'll be groggy after the anasthethic but all going to plan she should do fine. Make sure she's lots of comfy bedding, access to water, and keep her out of the cold.

Just a question, what age do they reccomend you spay rabbits at? Would you neuter the males as well?

Lucifer

about 6 months for girls, not sure about neutring males?

Sigma Force

DO NOT put her outside when you bring her home she will be groggy for that day and night and will not be able to control her temperature she must be kept warm and free from draughts and you need to be able to keep a close eye to make sure she begins eating. Once you are happy she has fully recovered and is eating normally the next day she can go back out.

Sometimes they need a top up pain killer the next day a bunny in pain or uncomfortable may not want to eat or eat as much.

She must wear a buster collar it's hard to watch them hitting it off everything but tbh they do get used to it they may need a hand at first, put her in something like a medium dog crate putting hay above her head can help her reach the hay. If you take the collar off there's a good chance she will pick her stitches not very pleasant when they do it and means another trip back to the vets and another anesthetic which means more risk.

If she's not used to the car don't put her in till the last minute, you can smear some lavender oil on the outside of the carrier and give her couple of drops of rescue remedy in her water starting the night before.

I was charged 70 euros but that's a good while ago and it is more expensive on the East coast if that's where you are so 140 would be say the top end of the scale bit pricey to my mind but if the vet is very experienced than it's worth it.

Female rabbits should be spayed at 6 months males you can neuter around 5 months I would wait until 6 months for either if they are not living with another rabbit just to make sure they are big and strong.
Neutering males is a good idea less likely to spray and cuts down on aggression if they get hormonal.

If for example you have a male and female rabbit getting them done at the same time is a good idea because you can re-introduce them sooner they both get their stitches out the same time and since the female would be spayed even if he still is fertile (takes a few weeks for them to loose fertility altogether) there is no risk of accidental litters.
Owners themselves will usually be able to tell when they have calmed down enough for introductions, in the mean time housing them side by side before after their ops helps them get used to each other.

Best of luck with your bunnies spay it's always a concern when they have to go to the vets even bunnies can make you feel so guilty lol.

rc28

My sister is a vet and she says:
140 is a lot higher than normal. I also wouldn't advise the buster collars, they need to eat their droppings(the caecotrophs) and by preventing them doing this with the collar it can lead to really bad digestion problems. In my clinic we never give out those collars-nor have we needed to.

Sigma Force

If you don't want to use the buster collar bring one home just in case she starts picking on it as stitches tighten they can be a bit irritating, having a second anesthetic because of a rabbit opening up stitches will be a lot more serious you can always take the collar off as long as you can put it back on again for a while each day for the rabbit too groom and eat the 'soft poop'.

Speaking from experience btw one of our buns I gave in and felt sorry for her with the collar on within half an hour I had to rush back to the vets she had opened it all up luckily she didn't get through all the stitches she had to undergo a second anesthetic in the space of two days.

I have had no problem from rabbits with buster collars on, if some don't need it that's great but not all bunnys are well behaved.