Can neutering ever 'not work?'

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This topic has 5sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 17 years ago by Gravehearted.

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- 11/26/2007 at 2:44 AM
  BunnyLugs
  Participant
  117 posts
  Both my rabbits are booked in for neutering and spaying ~(They live seperately right now). But the appointment is booked and it will definately go ahead. However, I just wondered, health benefits and unwanted pregnancies aside, I’ve heard that for some people behaviourwise it doesn’t seem to decrease destructive behaviour or aggression. Does anyone share this experience? Anyone with a regular bunny, that hasn’t been subjected to abuse or aggression. Is it a matter of days, weeks, monthes before hormones decrease?
- 11/26/2007 at 9:44 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  welcome to BinkyBunny!
  
  i’m not sure if i understand your question… by "not work" do you mean can a male rabbit impregnate a female after neutering? i believe they can for about a month afterwards, so i think you’re supposed to continue to keep them separated during that time… which is a good idea anyways to let them fully heal. are you having them both altered the same day? if you are, i think that’s a pretty good idea, that way after that time you can reintroduce them both hormone-free.
  
  now the second question… every rabbit is going to respond differently to a decrease in hormones. you may see a reduction in aggression and destructive behavior, but you may not. the hormones take, in general, about a month to dissipate, but i know with my rabbit i saw a decrease in aggression (namely annoying nipping) almost immediately. but… i believe that overall… if a bunny loves chewing carpet or wood or whatever, that’ not necessarily going to change b/c of surgery. rather than thinking a surgery will "fix" your rabbits annoying habits, you may want to find better alternatives for your rabbit, other toys and activities to take up his time, or maybe rethink your bunnyproofing so the prized possessions are not in danger from bunny teeth or nails. people tend to think that their rabbit will fit into their life, whereas actually, they need to adjust things to better fit with the rabbit.
- 11/26/2007 at 1:13 PM
  BunnyLugs
  Participant
  117 posts
  Thanks, I was just curious. That sounds like a sensible response. I only wondered because I’d spoken to so many people who had had their bunnies neutered for ‘bad behaviour’ and they hadn’t changed but I suppose if they’re not being mentally stimulated or their hormones are decreasing then they would be experiencing some difficulty
- 11/26/2007 at 3:25 PM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  and of course, rabbit sare "trainable" to a certain degree… it’s mostly just trying to prevent the bad habits from really setting in or correcting them.
- 11/26/2007 at 6:42 PM
  Scarlet_Rose
  Participant
  4293 posts
  Welcome Bunnylugs! I see you’ve already gotten some great input/advice from Beka! (Thank you Beka!) You are right, some rabbits even after altering are difficult behavior-wise but those cases are in the minority. I think that you’ll find a few more members will surface with their recent experiences with neutering. If not, here are some recent discussions (I think it’s helpful to read the experience of many):
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=2&tpage=1&view=topic&postid=8753#8780
  
  https://binkybunny.com/Default.aspx?tabid=54&forumid=1&tpage=1&view=topic&postid=11645#11666
- 11/27/2007 at 12:04 AM
  Gravehearted
  Participant
  2428 posts
  hi BunnyLugs,
  
  I think most of us see bunnies calm down, become less destructive and territorial after being spayed / neutered. However – this is not a simple cure all that will fix any behavior issues. It is the right thing to do healthwise for your rabbits – so I would recommend considering that to be the biggest importance, and the behavioral issues improving are more like a bonus. I think it takes a month for the hormones to decrease enough to see a difference, but it may even be two months.
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