UPDATE Sophie is spayed and back to normal!!

[SophieBun]

Hey everybun!  So yesterday I was at Penn Dutch and I finally found carrots with their tops!! I had read here in the forum that bunnies loveeee carrot tops and I could never find them. You should’ve seen me yesterday at the store with a big smile on my face with the bag full of carrots and their tops! hahaha When I came home I gave a little to Sophie and she LOVED them  I put the full carrot for the picture lol I just gave her a little bit  I have a question, how much of the carrot top can I give her daily? and how much carrot a week?

The other news is I went to trim Sophie’s nails to the vet today and decided to get her spayed I am super nervous though! The appointment is for this Sunday at 9am. I went to a different vet since I moved. They charge $100 for spaying, $20 for painkillers, and $12 for boarding since I’m gonna leave her tomorrow afternoon until Sunday, because I have to go pick up my dad at the airport with my mom Sunday morning. The Wildlife Care Center of Fort Lauderdale recommended this vet, it’s called DPC animal hospital. They told me the rabbit surgeon comes only on Sundays, does anyone living in FL know this vet? I get so paranoid with surgeries They told me to bring a lot of food for her including veggies, what should I bring? And anything I should do before and after the surgery? Also, Sophie doesn’t have a cage, she’s free in my bedroom. Should I build her a cage with the NIC cubes for after the operation?  (I have a lot of them left since I used to have a cage for her). If so, for how long should she be in her cage for? I know it’s a lot of questions! I’m just so worried Thank you everybun

And nowwww…pictures!

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[Monkeybun]

Monkey and Moose usually inhale a whole carrot top when I give it to them.. they loooove them.

I’d build Sophie a temporary cage for her after surgery rest time, you don’t want her to race around and do any jumping for the first few days. Monkey was confined to her cage for a couple days, then I let her out into a small part of her pen, I didn’t give her the full pen for at lest a week after that, then she was allowed out fully again after a couple weeks.

[MarkBun]

I could only find two reviews on the internet but they were both very positive.  Also, the fact that they have a vet that specializes in rabbits is always a good sign.  Many general vets will try to do the spay but may have done only a couple of rabbits in their history.  That’s why we always use the ‘trick’ question.  “How long should I fast my rabbit before surgery?”  The answer, of course, is you don’t.  Almost all rabbits are incapable of regurgitation so they will not aphixate during surgery in that manner, not to mention their very high metabolisms need all the food they can get for healing.

 

[Barbie]

Jeannie and Leroy say good luck with the spay, Sophie!

[SophieBun]

Thanks guys

no more advice from everybunny? I’m taking her later today, what food should I bring for her?

[jerseygirl]

Maybe a variety of the things you know she likes best. She mightn’t feel like eating so they’ll want to tempt her with different things. I wouldn’t take any type veg that will go bad too quickly. Maybe some robust type greens and some herbs like parsley? Take some of her pellets too. Make sure they know what she usually drinks from – crock or bowl.
Sending you some (((calm vibes))) and (((successful spay and recovery vibes))) for Sophie!
 

Edit to add: If you don’t want to (or haven’t had chance to) do a cage for her, just limiting her floor area should be fine. Take out anything she might want to jump up onto. Try keep familiar and comforting things around her. 
 

[Sage Cat]

I don’t have advice but, I do have healing vibes:

{ { { { { { { { Quick recovery, Sophie } } } } } } }

[SophieBun]

Thanks I left her three hours ago at the vet. I just called and they said she’s eating and doing fine

[katiep]

Albert says he knows how Sophie feels and hopes she has a speedy recovery too!! Must be the weekend for fixing black rex bunnies!!!

[jerseygirl]

Thanks for the update – good to hear!

Oh, meant to say re carrot tops. You might be able to get them without having to buy carrots every time. I often ask for the carrot tops and the store – as they cut them off for many customers.

[MirBear]

our carrots with carrot tops are soooo expensive! its insane, an extra $2 for half the amount of carrots just because they have the tops…

[SophieBun]

MirBear Wow! that’s an expensive carrot top! O_O Here 6 carrots with tops is $1.99 where I got them.

UPDATE: I just called the vet and she said Sophie is in recovery and she’s doing well and that I can go pick her up in an hour!

About the cage, I built it but I remember when I had that cage for Sophie and she always managed to get out. So I took it down. I was thinking that if I put her in there anyway, while trying to get out that she can get hurt. In my room, she doesn’t have any place to jump on but my bed. What do you guys suggest I do? Thank you!

[SophieBun]

Hey guys, I just picked up Sophie and she looks like she’s in a lot of pain. Her eyes are very teary, do bunnies have the ability to cry? The vet gave me 10 syringes and told me to give her one every 8 hours as needed. I know it’s hard to tell with bunnies but she looks so sad and hurt. Is this normal? Is she supposed to eat right now? I don’t know what to do. When I got home I put her carrier down and opened it, I left the room, and when I came back she was in her favorite spot, on her blankies under my bed. She’s in meatloaf position and her eyes are completely closed. She only opens them when she hears my voice.

[usagi]

Oh no! Is she looking any better? I would call the vet right away and ask them what to do. If they are closed, is there an Animal 911 number you can call to speak with a vet or vet tech?

[Elrohwen]

The teary stuff on her eyes may be the lubrication they use during anesthesia to keep the eyes from getting dry. Also, bunnies can excrete tears and get sleepies in their eyes, so it might just be that. My bunny has them every day and I wipe them away for him.

Have you offered her anything to eat? How long as it since her surgery? It often takes females a little while to get over the surgery – it is a big operation! I would offer her favorite things to eat and see if she’s interested. If it’s within 24 hours since her surgery, she might not eat, but after 24 hours I would take her to the vet if she’s not eating anything. You could also try giving her critical care or something if you’re nervous – it will hydrate her and get something in her tummy.

[SophieBun]

Thanks for answering

I just picked her up an hour ago, it’s been maybe 3 or 4 hours since the surgery. What is critical care?

[Sage Cat]

{ { { { { Come on Sophie!!! } } } } }

Did the vet say if they had already given her anything for pain?

[Elrohwen]

3 or 4 hours really isn’t that long. My male bun wasn’t even eating at that point and the vet kept him until he did start eating and pooping well (about 12-15 hours after his surgery). I would give her some time to rest and relax. Just offer her food and see if she eats it. If she’s not eating anything by tomorrow morning I would definitely call the vet.

Critical care is kind of like a powdered pellet that you mix with water and syringe feed. Oxbow makes it and you can probably buy it whever you buy Oxbow food. It basically just mushy food that will get some food and water into her system.

You could also try syringe feeding her pedialyte (you may need to dilulte with water, I would do a search on that or hopefully someone else comes on) as that will rehydrate her.

You might find that she picks up and starts eating a bit after her first dose of metacam.

[SophieBun]

I offered her her favorites, carrot tops, carrot, and lettuce. She sniffed it, but it looks like whenever she tries to open her eyes they just automatically shut down like she’s under anesthesia. She didn’t eat anything.
They didn’t give me metacam, they gave me Buprenorphine pain medication. They said they gave her a dose already, to wait until night time to give her a syringe. Should I wait until later tonight? All pet stores are closed right now to buy Oxbow

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[Elrohwen]

I would wait to give her more meds until later, like the doctor said. She’s probably still coming out of the anesthesia, so she might just want to sleep. It can take hours for it to wear off.

I would keep some of her favorite veggies near her, give her pain meds tonight on schedule, and call the vet in the morning if she hasn’t eaten anything.

[Sarita]

It can take up to 48 hours for a female to get “back to normal”. Buprenex is fine, I use it frequently. However it is an narcotic drug. Follow your vet’s instructions – she probably doesn’t need this until the morning however. I would let her rest for now and see how she is in the morning. She is not going to eat right away – it could take a full 24 hours for her to even want anything after the surgery. This is completely normal. You could try syringe feeding her critical care.

[CharleyGirl]

(((hugs to you & Sophie)))

[SophieBun]

Thanks for the advice and hugs I’m going to buy critical care tomorrow morning just in case. I feel better now. I hope she recovers soon

[Sarita]

I totally understand your anxiety! Continued healing vibes to Ms. Sophie and comforting vibes to you.

[RabbitPam]

She sounds like she’s reacting normally as Sarita said, and she’s familiar with that particular medication. Does she like hay? You can leave her some hay too, so she can nibble it.

I haven’t heard of that particular vet, but I live in FL and have heard of the Ft. Lauderdale Center. I considered going there when I was getting ready to get a new bun, who turned out to be Sammy and I found her closer to home. But they have an average of 80 bunnies at any given time, so they are very familiar with speutered rabbits, since you can’t adopt one from there before they are fixed. so all their buns tend to be around 6 months old or older. I would trust their recommendation of a vet, and you can call them for advice as well if he isn’t available. They might also sell Critical Care if she still needs it tomorrow. I have a feeling she’ll be eating by morning. Watch for poos, too.

[SophieBun]

I put carrot tops and lettuce but when I checked on her, she had moved away from them. Maybe she doesn’t like the smell right now? I just put a little timothy and alfalfa hay kind of near her. one more question? What temperature should I keep in the room? It’s pretty warm right now. Should I put the fan on?

[SophieBun]

Also, I smell really bad poop smell but I checked around her and there is no poop. (and it wasn’t me!)
Should I check her butt? If so, how do I do it?

[Elrohwen]

How warm is the room? If it’s cooler than 75 degrees I wouldn’t worry about it a bit. if it’s between 75 and 80, maybe opening a window to get a breeze in would help, but make sure that she’s not near any drafts. You don’t want her to feel the breeze from a fan or window, just cool the area down a bit.

[Sarita]

Actually after a surgery you want to keep her warmer (not hot). Anesthesia makes it harder to regulate body temperature. Definitely no drafts. I say since her surgery was done today, it’s best not to fuss with her too much right now – let her rest. It’s also possible that she will have smelly and gummy-type poops after surgery due to the anesthesia and pain medications, this is perfectly normal.

[Ali925]

I wouldn’t worry just yet at all… I just had my girl spayed a few weeks ago and one of the main things I remembered that upset me was how “sad” her eyes looked. and very weepy looking. The good thing is, it’s totally normal. It’s just the ointment to keep the eyes from drying out when under anesthesia…once she’s feeling better she’ll start cleaning them up herself. I tried helping mine out, but warm water didn’t seem to do much, so I let it be.

Also, she was very out of it for about 3 – 4 days…looking listless and just not herself. Spent a lot of time snoozing in her litter box. She was eating though, so I was happy. But they kept her overnight, and I know they syringe-fed her, so it might have been different if we had taken her home the day of. I would just give her some time. And if you know her favorite treats try those too…anything is good as long as you can get her to eat. I hope they gave you meds too…it’s a pain in the butt (we had to give 3) but she recovered very quickly so I think it helped. We gave her metacam, cisapride (for GI motility), and buprenorphine (for pain) which I know made her very drowsy.

Healing vibes, and try not to worry too much (although I know I was a wreck too…). I’ve never been so happy to see poop! That’s another thing, don’t worry what the poop looks like, I know we all tend to overanalyze that…hers were much smaller than usual until she was back to normal.

[dmh426]

Spaying your bunny is the best thing that you can do for their health! For the first couple hours after anesthesia, she’s gonna be groggy. I was told by my vet (who I love and owns her own rabbits) that for the first two days after surgery, give the pain meds as needed, add some apple juice to the bunny’s water, which is sweet so it will encourage her to drink and literally feed her anything she wants to eat. Give her all of her favorites to entice her to eat.

I swear by the book Rabbits for Dummies. You need to get it. It’s awesome! I let my bun have as much green stuff as she wants, weather it’s hay, carrot tops, cilantro, etc. Carrots should be rationed more carefully and should be treated as a treat.

[SophieBun]

Update: Sophie ate a little hay, lettuce, and carrot top! I didn’t give her the medicine yesterday cause she was so out of it, but I am now.

How do I do it? It’s an oral medication, do I try opening her mouth?

[Elrohwen]

The first step is to see if she’ll take it herself. Squeeze a little bit out and see if she’ll lick it up. I know metacam is pretty tasty, but not sure about the meds you’re giving.

If she won’t, your next step is to do it more forcefully. You can kneel on the floor with her between your legs (facing the same way as you) and put the syringe in her mouth. You could also pick her up and put her on a counter or table – she’ll stay still because she’ll be nervous up there – hold on to her well and try putting the syringe in her mouth.

I’m not very good at giving meds, so hopefully someone else has more tips!

[SophieBun]

Okay I just called the vet and my mom helped me. I squirted the medicine in the syringe through the side of her mouth.

And I saw a poop!

[SophieBun]

Thank you Elrohwen I’m gonna keep those tips in mind! I didn’t want to handle her too much just in case today, but she did walk and stayed in her litterbox like two minutes and nibbled on hay

[Ali925]

It’s definitely a two-man job for me… We had to move our bun to the kitchen counter and sat her on a towel. I would turn her facing my husband with her butt to me. Then I’d wrap her snugly in the towel and scoot her butt all the way back against me and hold her still, and my husband would do the syringes. She tried to fight it sometimes, so I’d put very gentle pressure to keep her head from moving too much and say soothing things/kiss her head at the same time (not sure if that last part was necessary but I felt like she was soothed by it ) By the time we were almost done giving her meds, she didn’t even need me to hold her still, we just needed to put her on the counter (another battle bc she doesn’t like being picked up or told what to do…haha)

Also, I know she’s not eating much right now…but once she is, you can always use that to give her meds. When mine was back to eating quite normally, I squirted the meds on her lettuce leaf, and would give it to her first, watch her eat and if I had more in the syringe would put it on another leaf. That was MUCH easier than the other way, but when they’re not eating normally you can’t really do that.

Lastly, having her on the counter made it very easy to check her incision every night. I’d lift her (her back against my chest) and my husband would check her incision. Worked well for us since she’d never let us lift her like that in her cage.

I hope she continues to improve!!

[MarkBun]

For the record, I only gave Maryann one dose of pain meds after her spay. After the first day of recovery, she was moving and eating (still slowly) but she wasn’t grinding her teeth in pain so I figured she was doing all right.

[RabbitPam]

Yes, but Markus, you can’t really compare Maryann to other buns. After the first day, she probably ordered a martini and a pedicure from a cabana boy.

[Monkeybun]

Nothing like martinis and cabana boys to get you through recovery! lol

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’m glad to hear Sophie made it through the spay okay, even though she isn’t back to normal yet. I was terrified the night I brought Olivia home after her spay, I thought she was going to die. But a few days later and she was back to normal…honking and pummeling the crap out of her bear It’s so hard seeing them in pain though.

And if she’s anything like Olivia, get used to the stink eye cuz you’re gonna be seeing it for a while

[SophieBun]

Thanks guys

She’s eating carrot tops and when I give her lettuce (her favorite) she throws it around O_O and doesn’t eat it lol and also she only drinks from the silver water bowl and then she throws that around too. And the same with her hay, I give her some and she eats it but then out of nowhere she throws it out of her sight *sigh* all hail queen sophie…lol She’s doing so much better, she even walked around the room a little today

[SophieBun]

Hi everybun Sophie is completely recovered! She’s acting normal again, playing with her toys, eating, drinking, pooping you name it! I just wanted to share with you guys! And thank you for helping me out

 

 

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[Monkeybun]

Yaaay! *snuggles*

[Author]

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