Post-surgery food problem

[Stickerbunny]

My female just got home yesterday from her spay surgery – we have two doses of pain meds (vet gave us one extra for free because we asked, he said only give to her on sunday if she needs it).

She had her surgery around noon yesterday, at 6:30pm she nibbled some alfalfa and a little lettuce. At about 11pm she nibbled a little more alfalfa. These were all hand feedings, she seems to only eat if I put food in my hand and hold it under her nose to tempt her with the smell. Over night she did not touch her food and her night droppings are still in the litter pan, she didn’ t eat those. 9am she had her pain meds and 11am she ate 3 pellets and another nibble of alfalfa.

I’m worried she isn’t eating enough, but the vet is not open on weekends and there are no emergency vets that know a thing about rabbits. The vet said to bring her in Monday if anything was wrong and he would fit her in, no matter the time (because he’s had very bad experiences with the emergency vet care, he’d rather we not take her in to them unless we REALLY have to).

I’ve tried all her favorites and she just eats a little bit, then just wants pet because she feels so bad.  

She’s eaten maybe a small handful of alfalfa and 5 pellets, 2 small pieces of lettuce since she got home yesterday. Should I make her a mash and see if I can get her to eat from a syringe, or is that enough to keep her going until she feels better? Also, should I set my alarm tonight so I can get her to nibble at something during the night or would it be better to leave her alone to sleep?

She’s a small rex, I think mini 4.2 lbs before surgery and vet guessed her age at about 6 months.

[Tate]

It does take about 24 hours for them to perk up again. She wont want to eat her food or cecals and she will be quite lethargic. Continue to offer her food- pellets, maybe a few greens- and make sure she’s drinking some water. You can grind up her pellets and mix with water and maybe add some veggies- spinach or carrot or something she especially likes. You can also mix her pellets with apple juice or pineapple juice, but not too much because of the sugar content.
Overall, sounds normal! Give lots of loves and by tonight or tomorrow, she will be feeling much better!

[Stickerbunny]

Thanks for the reply

It’s been 26 hours since her surgery (our vet was nice and called us as soon as it was over to let us know she was OK!) so I was hoping she would be eating a bit more by now. I’m a big worry wort though. She’s hopped around a little, but i’ll keep offering her hand feedings. If she doesn’t start eating more by tomorrow, would you recommend the critical care stuff?

[Tate]

I loooove Critical Care. I keep in on hand all the time. It’s not going to hurt her at all. It’s usually found at vets. You can call around to local ones and see if they carry it. I’ve only found it in one feed store and it looks like they stopped carrying it.
It has slightly higher percentages of protein, fat, and fiber, so the idea behind it for right now would be to give her just enough to stimulate her appetite so she will eat her regular food and hay. No worries though, because the extra calories in the Critical Care will help her heal nicely.
If you can’t get the actual Critical Care, you can ground up her pellets and mix with water and maybe some veggies (put it all in the blender). You could also use baby food as a base… Gerber has a veggie line and it’s purely just mashed veggies like carrots, peas, and lettuce. Mix with pellets and you’re good to go!
Keep in mind that spays are more taxing than a neuter. It took both of my boys just about a full 24 hours before they would eat willingly and move around. Since a spay is much more invasive, it may take a little bit more time.

[Sarita]

Usually pellets are the last thing that rabbits seem to eat after spays so lots of fresh greens are good to offer and everything else Tate said.

It can take a good 3 to 4 days for them to get back to “normal”.

[BinkyBunny]

It’s good that she is nibbling on things and Tate’s advice about getting some critical care is a good idea. (great to have on hand anyway). Since it sounds like she will nibble on food when you present it to her, just keep doing that as well through the day. Of course, allow her to get the rest she needs.

Keep us updated.

[Stickerbunny]

I made the boyfriend go out and get her fresher hay just so it would be more tempting – he got oxbow oat hay and alfalfa for her, she isn’t a fan of timothy atm, but she’s still young and they had her on 100% alfalfa until she came here so been introducing new foods slowly to her to avoid upsetting her tummy. I’m not really sure on her age, the vet guessed 6 months, but he said she could be older. So been mixing alfalfa and oat/timothy hay for her.

I offered her a medley of her favorite foods and she ate a small serving of alfalfa, nibbled at the oat, a couple of pellets and some dandelion \o/ she also has been hopping around a little bit and even dug the carpet and nibbled on the wall… (which, for once, I was happy for her to try to destroy something). She is sleeping back on her A/C vent now after a nice long pet session.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Sounds like she’s doing really well! Trying the different hay and offering so many veggies was a great idea and obviously working. As others said it can take a few days for them to really settle back into their routine.

[Beka27]

It sounds to be a normal progression at this point. She had invasive, abdominal surgery. And as the others said, it can take a full day or two to get eating.

You may notice looser poop/uneaten cecals due to the high amount of anesthesia/meds being processed thru her system. This should also go away within the next few days.

(((Bunny!)))

[Deb'sBuns]

Poor bun. Spaying always scares me but it’s so necessary.

[Stickerbunny]

Thanks all for the replies. First time having a female bunny done – my dogs/cats always pig out next morning, scary to see them not wanting to eat for nearly two days without having to harass them with food (well, to her mind, she kept pushing me away with her head).

Today we skipped the second dose of pain meds, because she is hopping around and eating a bit without them. The vet said to only use it if we needed to, because he doesn’t want too many drugs put into her if not needed. She ate half her normal salad and a little hay, on her own this time without me having to stick it under her nose. I feel so bad for her but now she’ll not have to worry about the higher cancer risks or babies, so worth it.

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