Bella's Spay Went Okay!!

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 16sd replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 16 years, 8 months ago by Kokaneeandkahlua.

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- 12/20/2008 at 8:33 AM
  Jolaedana
  Participant
  59 posts
  Bella got spayed yesterday morning- it’s been about 24 hours now.
  
  Her infected hock from a month ago cleared up with the antibiotics, and the bottoms of her feet are working on healing up and getting fur back on them. She’d also broken off an outside nail on a front paw, but that seems to have healed up with no infection, according to the vet! Good news there meant the surgery could go forward.
  
  The vet sent her home with us only a few hours after the surgery, when she’d woken up and everything looked okay. I was glad she didn’t stress her out by keeping her away from home any longer. We’ve got her some metacam, and the vet sent home some critical care as well, with advice to try and get her to eat something within 12 hours. She’s still not big on solid food, but we have gotten some of the critical care into her. I’m hoping the painkiller will help her feel a bit more like chowing down.
  
  Been reading other’s spay posts, and I guess maybe I’m freaking out for nothing since she’s nibbled on a carrot, apple, and piece of parsley here and there. She’s even nibbled on her hay just a bit. Between that and the critical care we got her to lick up last night, she seems like she’s doing okay. Her ears and nose are chilly, which worries me a bit, but we’re trying to keep her hydrated and all that good stuff.
  
  Here’s hoping her recovery goes well!! I will be interested to see what it does for her personality.
  
  She’s stopped digging in my furniture, and mostly stopped digging in the carpet as well after we got her nails trimmed and I started training with a spray bottle of water. She’s turned into a really lovely bun, and while she growls and stamps a lot (a LOT- lol.) to let us know her opinion, she almost never attacks us anymore. She’s also lost all that unhealthy weight she had on her when we adopted her, and is much happier on her new diet. Hooray for a happy rescued bun!
  
  Once again, All of you and this forum have continued to be a wonderful resource- thank you!
- 12/20/2008 at 1:02 PM
  bunnytowne
  Participant
  7537 posts
  Glad everything went well for Bella. Yes the spay recovery can drive you nuts. worry worry worry. Glad your girl is willing to nibble at her stuff and eat her critical care up too. Thats great.
  
  A stomper huh? Thats so funny to hear them stomp.
  
  Any questions please ask anything you want to share please share. Don’t forget the pics. PLEASE We would love ot see your girl
- 12/20/2008 at 2:30 PM
  Balefulregards
  Participant
  715 posts
  The first month post spay I didn’t toooo much of a personality change in Coco – but the subsequent months when the hormones dissipated some of her furious chewing slowed down.
  
  I too was completely freaked and sat next to her cage staring at her butt – as she was most certainly showing me all of her furry rump – to make sure she was eating something.
  
  Coco was a three day recovery – but once she was recovered, she was just fine. She also removed her own stitches – BUT not while she was in the immediate recovery time. We found out when we went in to have her checked about a week post op.
  
  She is already eating more than I think I was able to get into Coco – so that is great news.
- 12/20/2008 at 4:43 PM
  Kokaneeandkahlua
  Participant
  12067 posts
  That’s great news!! Sounds like she’s recovering very well
- 12/20/2008 at 8:43 PM
  jerseygirl
  Moderator
  22356 posts
  I hope Bella recovers nicely. It’s such a nervous time! I remember when I first had Jersey growl and lunge at me and I quickly organised her spay. I really didn’t want her becoming an aggressive, anti social rabbit. She came thru with flying colours…but the growling never really went away. I was naive, but now I know it’s part of her personality and a way to communicate and we get by. She is sweet – with attitude! I know she’s healthy, calm & happy and the growl is for when she gets miffed so it’s all good.
  
  It’s sorta like; You can take hormones out of the rabbit, but you can never take the rabbit out of the rabbit!
- 12/21/2008 at 7:38 AM
  luna
  Participant
  147 posts
  Glad to hear Bellas spay went well. Its such a relief when they get through surgery okay and start eating. I hope she continues to do well My rabbit Poppy was spayed over a week ago and she is still as destructive as ever. I really hope her personality changes for the better as she is a full time job right now!!!
- 12/21/2008 at 7:46 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  it sounds like she’s doing great! some buns barely eat for a full 24 hours, so i think the fact she’s nibbling here and there is awesome! continue to keep a close eye on her the rest of this week. the week after, check her incision once a day.
  
  i’m so happy she is behaving for you and you’re experiencing the joy of a house bunny!
  
  Double hooray for a happy, rescued bun!
- 12/21/2008 at 7:47 AM
  RachelF
  Participant
  287 posts
  SO glad to hear everything went okay!
  
  Can’t wait to see pictures when shes feeling better.
- 12/31/2008 at 9:55 AM
  Jolaedana
  Participant
  59 posts
  Sorry I’m so awful at checking in! I work online all day, so when I’m done working the last thing I want to do is get on the computer. lol.
  
  Bella’s healed up amazingly well. She’s eating and being her normal self! We let her out of her cage on day 10, and her stitches have all desolved and she’s all closed up. She was THRILLED to be let out of bunny jail. lol. She’d started shredding everything in her cage in protest.
  
  She’s still growly, but we have sort of begun to find it endearing more than anything. lol. It’s less like she’s seriously aggressive, and more like she’s just talking to us and letting us know her mild annoyance. I think it’s incredibly funny.
  
  My mom is constantly asking “is she nicer yet??” and I just roll my eyes and groan- she’s not a dog, Mom! lol. And I told her it can take a few months. We’ll see what happens!
  
  Her back feet are still having troubles- no infection, not open, but the fur’s not growing back in either. We’re keeping an eye on them, but the vet doesn’t seem to think there’s much for it. Anyone have any advice on sore hocks?
  
  For those of you who missed pictures of her first time around: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010139&l=069a4&id=94100484
  
  She has lost quite a bit of weight since then. She’s around 5 pounds, and the vet seems to think she could stand to lose a bit more. So we’ll see where she ends up! We’re thinking she’s actually a mini rex, rather than a standard– poor thing was just that pudgy!
- 12/31/2008 at 10:06 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  she might have the sore hocks chronically off and on her whole life. esp. being a rex and being overweight. all you can do is to watch her weight and her environment (make sure she always has soft spots to hang out) and continue to monitor them and make sure they don’t open or become infected.
- 12/31/2008 at 10:10 AM
  Jolaedana
  Participant
  59 posts
  That’s what the vet said, too, pretty much. We are definitely watching her weight (almost no treats, poor thing) and she has been getting healthier all the time! The vet is thrilled with that part. She’s also got a clean litter box every day, and isn’t on wires at all- always clean towels or newspaper. It’s about all I can think of to do. I am hoping they stay closed up! She doesn’t act like they hurt her at all at least.
- 12/31/2008 at 10:14 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  My standard rex always has callouses on her hocks – it’s best if you just watch them to make sure they don’t crack and split open. Just make sure too that you keep the nails trimmed because there is not much else you can do. Rexes are just prone to this and they aren’t actually a problem unless they do start cracking and splitting. I’ve only had one rabbit that could have potentially had a sore hock problem and that was Maxine my NZ White who is an extremely large lady – she was living in unsanitary conditions apparently and was that way when I picked her up from the shelter. The vet said to just watch them and we were lucky that there was no bone exposed. Better living conditions helped heal them up but there is still a callous on her hocks.
- 12/31/2008 at 10:14 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  oh yeah, nails too! make sure you trim them very regularly…
- 12/31/2008 at 10:21 AM
  Jolaedana
  Participant
  59 posts
  We are working on the nails. When we adopted her, not only could we not pick her up, but her nails had NEVER BEEN TRIMMED…. they were just HUGE. So we’re slowly trimming them back, but we have to keep waiting for the quick to receed.
  
  Thanks for the info Sarita! Good to know about the callouses- so far it doesn’t seem like they’re open, but since she just got over a bad infection that had spread into her foot and lower back leg (that was just after we got her, and pre spay) we’re keeping an extra close eye. Sure hope she doesn’t end up having major chronic issues!
- 01/03/2009 at 5:57 PM
  Kokaneeandkahlua
  Participant
  12067 posts
  Something I do to make things softer, you may be able to as well, if you have a condo and use coroplast…under our coroplast we put thick foam mats-we have to be careful with Rupert’s twisted leg that he doesn’t get pressure sores as well and that’s one of the things we did to make it cushier for him. They can’t chew the foam because it’s under the coroplast so it’s worked out well so far
- 01/04/2009 at 9:21 AM
  Jolaedana
  Participant
  59 posts
  Thanks K&K- She’s in a normal cage with the usual grid for sitting on removed, so she’s directly in the bottom tray. (it’s about 2 x 3 feet) We’d like to build her a condo, but are going to have to wait until all her vet expenses clear and we get some replacement back into savings. We’ve been discussing getting something easily cleanable to put in the bottom in the meantime, like rubber flooring, or an anti fatigue mat- we’ve looked at the foam, but she’s a serious digger, and I’d be worried about her going right through it.
  
  If anyone has any suggestions I will be happy to hear them. The only rubber floor tiles we can find add up to quite a lot, and have a much higher minimum order than we want to do.
  
  She had to go to the vet again on Friday because her infection was flaring up again. They did x-rays to make sure that it wasn’t in the bone (and it wasn’t, thank goodness!) But they’ve put her on a long course of antibiotics (4 weeks!) and lactobacillus (the bacteria in yogurt) to help keep her digestive system working well. They’re saying that hopefully this will keep the infection at bay long enough that everything heals up well. We have also switched her to a litterbox with a grid over it, so she never actually touches the litter, and I can clean the surface she’s sitting on.
  
  We’re trying everything we can! Hopefully this time we’ll be successful.
- 01/06/2009 at 8:34 AM
  Kokaneeandkahlua
  Participant
  12067 posts
  You could line with those rubber mats, and then put some coroplast over top!
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