So tomorrow morning I drop off my 9 month old Californian at the vet to get spayed.  I am very nervous, although my vet has loads of experience with bunnies and performing these surgeries.  I know they'll use the right medience and its all above board but still! I've gone all through the forum here reading any spay/neuter posts but does anyone have any general advice?  Anything you didn't know the first time around & wished you had?  Once the hormones settle, do their personalities change much?  Nibbler is so active, frisky and playful, I'd hate for her to mellow out too much.

I know she'll be a little weak and not too hungry at first.  And also that she shouldn't be jumping up on anything too high.  Just wondering if there is a piece of advice anyone has that you don't always see out there.  Anyway I'm rambling but just so nervous! My Nibbler hates the vet, even though they are very good with handling and getting her taken care of.  It'll be hard to concentrate all day at work...

 

Also unrelated but just wanted to say thanks Binky Bunny for the quick delivery of some really fun, tasty toys that my bunny is currently chewing on!  Especially the willow wreath; willow is definitely the bunny version of cat nip.

 I know it is nerve-wracking even if you have a vet you trust.  Sounds like you have a handle on all of the basics.  

All of my rabbits over the years have been altered and they are wonderful bunnies full of personality.  You may see less aggression (IF you had any of that), but even my Vivian who has been spayed for 5 years now still has her spunky personality which includes her funny grunts and huffs.  It's just part of who she is.  :0 )    So though you may see some mellowing in some characteristics (territorial etc), your bunny is young and still full of energy and I doubt that will change. 

Sounds like you have a handle on what to expect tomorrow but here is a good resource for pre-post surgery care.  Some of which you may already know -- doesn't hurt to review. 

The other thing is to ask your vet about pain meds.  Some vets will give enough at the office to last 24 hours and so they don't send you home with any, and some will give you a couple of days worth to make your bunny more comfortable during the recovery process. So, be sure to check what they do for  post-surgery pain management .

One of our members (can never remember who!) gave a great tip on how to check the incision without stressing your bunny.  IF you have a feisty gal who is not fond of being picked up this is really helpful.   Check the insicision with a hand mirror while you are giving your bunny a treat -- basically have your bunny stand up to get the treat, and you can either get a good look yourself with your own two eyes or if that doesn't work, use a hand mirror to get a better look. 

The other thing is --- just try to relax and imagine only the good stuff while this is all going on, to prevent yourself from worrying to much.  It will be okay.

Sending easy surgery and fast healing vibes!  

Keep us updated. 

Hi there,

I know exactly how you feel as my bunny Marble Cake just got spayed last week and I'm heading to the vet tonight to get her post op check up. I was just as nervous. Pre operation, she was trying to hump me a lot, she wasn't aggressive but I'd go see her and she'd constantly circle and try to grab hold of my leg or arm or knee. And then she'd breathe very heavily and flop over it looked as if she was trying to fight inner demons... But we brought her to the vet and got her spayed. The next day I got a call from the vet that her suture opened up cause she didn't have much sub-something-tissue to hold the inner suture but the vet fixed her up and she was good to go that night. When she got home they gave me this whitish liquid with a syringe to give to her for three days morning and night. I totally expected her to come back as an invalid but she was the same just a tad quieter a couple of nights after. But she ate just as much and drank just as good. I didn't bother her much and kept the cats locked out of her room. Giving her the meds was a bit of a challenge... nothing like the vet said it would be (he said it's easy) but she's such a piggy that I'd get her some parsley and lift it up until i could see her mouth and squeeze the meds in while she stuffed her face with parsley. It's now been a week and a day since, and the only changes that I've seen are that she's not trying to hump me. She still circles and honks for food. She has stopped excessively diggin in her litter pan which is a thumbs up for me!

I know its' nerve racking but take it easy! She'll be her good ol' self in no time

Ask your vet if they can call you after surgery is over, to let you know your bun is OK - my vet does that and it saves a lot of extra worrying to know you only have to wait until the surgery is over to know what happened. My vet only sends home one days worth of metacam, but I requested extra, which he provided in case she was in pain for longer. Personalities don't change too much, you may see a surge in hormones during a month after surgery, while things in her body adjust though. My buns both preferred a hard, cold surface as opposed to a soft surface, but some prefer something soft to lay on. Be sure to scrub down things with vinegar while she's at the office, especially the litter box, so she has a clean place to come back to, helps keep infection down (especially since some buns come home and flop in their litter box).

Pain meds some people can mix with food and get their bun to take, some buns take it from a syringe like a treat, some (mine) can smell it and are not fooled by the flavoring. Mine had to be held gently and the syringe placed into their cheek.

Thank you all so much for you helpful advice & kind words! My vet did call when they were finished & said she did great. They also gave me 5 doses of metacam to help with pain thank goodness. We've been home for an hour and I took the top & door off her carrier but she still hasn't moved. Just kind of sleeping in her carrier. I'm in the room with her, but I'm trying to just give her some space to relax, that surgery is pretty invasive. But again thank you so much for your advice, it really helps. Hopefully my bunny likes the pain meds, she liked baytril when she had to take that for a week but I'll try the mixing in her food trick if she doesn't.

Annilop, so happy your bunny is doing so well after her spay and its very encouraging to hear how quickly she's progressed.

Very glad to hear that most bunnies retain whatever personality they had previously, my bunny isn't aggressive but very affectionate and very, very playful. She binkies everying morning and evening and circles around my feet all the time but just so I pet her. So relieved she's doing well and so happy this website exists for us first time bunny parents!

It'll be hard to concentrate all day at work...

LOL I know! That's should be included in new bunny advice: Bunny proof home, feed timothy hay, limit pellets, book day off work when booking spay/neuter because you'll be useless at work


Fantastic news-and I love that you have metacam. Many vets don't give pain meds to well many animals after surgery, and I just feel like you wouldn't do that to a human so give them to your pet! So i think that's fantastic.
The metacam is usually honey flavour so they will almost always gobble it right up

Try some of her favorite veggies to get her eating again sounds like everything went great

Haha yes around the time I knew the procedure was going on I could not focus at all! Thats why I scheduled it for the weekend, so I could be with her & make sure she's recovering nicely.

One random question though, I'm pretty sure they said I could give her some metacam tonight & her surgery was between 5/6 hours ago, is it safe to give now? I tried googling it but didn't come up with much. Just don't want my bunny suffering through the first night if she doesn't have too.

Posted By Nibbler on 02/03/2012 08:24 PM
Haha yes around the time I knew the procedure was going on I could not focus at all! Thats why I scheduled it for the weekend, so I could be with her & make sure she's recovering nicely.

One random question though, I'm pretty sure they said I could give her some metacam tonight & her surgery was between 5/6 hours ago, is it safe to give now? I tried googling it but didn't come up with much. Just don't want my bunny suffering through the first night if she doesn't have too.

On paper or bottle is their a prescription for how many times per day? (Is it a once daily dose or more often?)  

I have actually have a small bag with 5 one time use syringes already filled with the correct amount. It says once a day for 5 days so I suppose I should wait til morning but I hate to think that the medicine will wear off and her having a terrible night.

If you said your vet though said to give tonight, then that's okay. They may have only given pain meds that would last to the end of the day, which is why they suggested tonight. Is it that you just aren't sure they said give tonight or just many hours since surgery? If they said tonight, then I'd say no problem giving tonight and you'd just give again tomorrow evening and so on.