Spay and Neutering advice Mini lops

[Amy]

I have 2 Mini lops – Female 4mo 2 weeks and male 4 months old. They had been caged together, but were separated about a month ago when the male started to try to mount her. Now, they live side by side in separate cages and seem to get on quite well. Question is when to spay or neuter. How will growth patterns be affected if done to early or behavior if done to late? Some vets I called said spay/neuter both….some said only neuter the male and unspayed female is best and others plain scared the heck out of me about how dangerous spaying is and recommended never to spay a rabbit. Online I read you should because of cancer risk. There is so much conflicting info and I just want to do what is best for the pair as I want them bonded living together eventually.

[Muchelle]

Surely fix both, or there might be problems later on with their behaviour. Also for females the cancer risk is very high if not spayed/not breeding.
Every surgery carries a risk, so no vet will ever tell you that spaying/neutering a rabbit (or any other animal) is a risk-free, easy peasy procedure; although if a vet told you to never risk to spay a rabbit, don’t trust them as an exotic expert because this *is* a routine surgery!
As for “when” to spay, I am pretty sure that anytime after they express sexual behaviour is fine, given that they are of the right weight and with no other health issues.

Be sure to find a clinic that has an exotic pets vet/surgeon and an anestesiologist that knows how to handle small exotic animals and I’m sure everything will go accordingly!

[Amy]

Thanks! Yes, the male is quite interested in her and even sprayed at my daughter when she was cleaning up his pen. He has also become quite unpredictable in his litter box habits. The female has not seemed to show any of those behaviors yet and I can still let her run around the house without worrying about her soiling or destroying anything still. I think I will take him in soon for neutering and have her done later on (after 6 months old). It is my understanding that I should still keep them separated until they are both fixed?

[Mikey]

Make sure your vet is certified to work on rabbits and has never had complications on the table during the every day spay and neuter. Most vets will spay between six months and a year old. Most vets will neuter as soon as you see your males testicles. Neuters are much easier, so expect your male to bounce back to being mostly normal within a day or two, but spays are a lot harder so youll have to keep an eye on her much more often while she heals. If either of them stop eating, make sure to have critical care and a feeding syringe on hand so you can feed them

[Amy]

I had my buck neutered last week and he is already back to his normal self after 3 days. They recommended that the doe be spayed now (5 months old) before her fat settles on.

[Amy]

Update: Both had their spay and neuter done and they are doing well. Back to their normal selves after just a few days.I just let them into the same space together again the other day and they are getting along great.

[Author]

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