Posted By bam on 6/26/2018 11:24 AM
Of course we have words of wisdom and comfort ?Practically all of us that have make buns have neutered male buns. There are a few exceptions of course, and for an only-pet male bun, neutering is not always a 100% necessary.

I was very worried too when my Bam was to be neutered, I think all bun owners are. Try to find a vet that has done many neuters and has the right equipment for bunny anesthesia. Vets that do spay/neuters for shelters and rescues are often a good bet. They do lots of neuters.

You can have pre-surgery blood work done, if you are really worried. It will show if the major organs are working like they should (liver, kidneys) but it doesn’t detect all heart problems directly.

The neutering-procedure is very quick and a young boy as a rule recovers swiftly, within 2 days. We can tell you all about proper post op care if you like.

I haven’t heard of a male bun that had a change of personality after his neuter. They lose most of their sexually driven behaviors, but not completely. Their personality remains the same. Then again, all buns lose their baby personality when they go into puberty, but that’s about becoming an adult, it’s not directly linked to the neuter.

i was thinking of not fixing him but we’re now considering getting a second bun (a female) as a companion for him (and because we love bunnies of course!!) and do NOT want any baby buns (like any responsible pet owner!). so of course he’d get a snip (her too when the time comes). but if it turns out we don’t get a second bun, will he not spray? he leaves some poo piles around (and has managed to sneak to the bathroom to poop all over the rug in there a couple times -_-) but those are easily vacuumed

there is a shelter near me that does rabbits (and it’s even listed on the website, which is comforting. like they specifically listed them instead of my having to call and them telling me like “hmm.. a rabbit? sure…” u know what i mean?)

but if he’ll heal fast now, maybe it’s better to get it over with… he’s not even a year yet (i got him in February and he was i think 2 months or so? a tiny babe but old enough to be homed). i would LOVE to know all the post-op care if u have the time to tell me? or if u have any links that would help?

thank u so much for all ur help/info!!!

Posted By LittlePuffyTail on 6/26/2018 4:46 PM
Ditto everything Bam said. I’ve had many boys neutered and the only problem I ever encountered was my first bun was obsessively grooming his incision and needed to wear a cone for a week. Never noticed any personality changes, just positive behavioral changes.

how has it been having boys together?? i’ve read it’s harder for them to get along (territorial and such) and if i got a second bunny (one of my reasons for considering fixing him), i was going to get a girl. also i can only IMAGINE the havoc Poi would reek if he had to wear a cone! he’s spoiled and gets such an attitude when he doesn’t get his way! a cone would probably put him over the edge!

Posted By Sirius&Luna on 6/28/2018 5:34 AM
Traditionally, girl/boy bonds are easier, but it’s really more about personality. I have two boys that absolutely love each other (well actually, they’re part of a trio with a girl, but the two boys bonded almost immediately). I recommend checking out the bonding section of the forum to get an idea of the process, and see what hard work it is in reality! Lots of people have documented their bonding journey and it really helped me when I was bonding.

As for post neuter care – keep him in a restricted space for the first couple of days to prevent him injuring himself, make sure he is sent home with pain meds, make sure you have lots of tasty food on hand to encourage him to eat, and critical care in case he doesn’t, keep the litter box and hutch extra clean and give him something soft to lie on

that’s what i’ve heard, boy/girl is easier and girl/girl too right? a friend has two girls and they’re obsessed w each other i was thinking if i can find a place to adopt, maybe they’d give me the chance to see if there’s anyone the bun kind of gets along with (but i’ve been having a bit of a time finding bunnies around me; i’m still looking because i want to exhaust my options before buying). but either way im gonna look at the bonding section. i read about trauma bonding (is that what’s called or am i remembering it worse than it is!? lol) but i would rather not traumatize them if i don’t have too!

thank u

Posted By bam on 6/28/2018 6:04 AM
There’s also pre-op care, and that consists of one thing: Don’t fast your bun before surgery. Sometimes vet clinic receptionists tell you to fast your bun for 12 hours before surgery, but that’s not accurate: Dogs and cats (and humans) should fast, but not rabbits. It’s dangerous for a bun to not have food in his tum always, and an empty stomach could complicate recovery. Rabbits can’t vomit, so there’s no risk of vomiting under anesthesia, thus it’s safe to keep feeding them until about 20 minutes before surgery. Bring some food with you to the vets (hay, herbs), because it’s good if he starts eating asap after he wakes up.

As for post op care, S&L has already gone through it. Make sure you get a painkiller for him, Metacam is the most commonly used one.

The most important thing when you get him home is to get him to start eating. Fragrant herbs are often popular. Pellets are often shunned for a couple of days. In case he won’t eat you’ll need to syringe feed him Critical Care or pellet mush (pellets soaked in water). Get a feeding syringe, your vet probably sells those or you can get one at a pharmacy. (It’s always good to have a feeding syringe in the bunny medicine cabinet).

Don’t go to bed for the night the day of the surgery before he’s got some food in him. Most boys will start eating within a couple of hours after coming home, but in case he doesn’t, he needs to be syringed food.

Hypothermia is a risk with all buns post surgery, so a hot water bottle or hand warmers are good to have on hand. He must have space enough to move away from the heat source if he doesn’t want it.

A fleece blanket will be comfy for him to lie on. Serve his water in a bowl in case he can’t be bothered with a bottle.

Clean out his litterbox and refill with all fresh litter so you can keep track of amount, size and consistency of poop.

Check the incision site daily. Some buns get a”post-neuter craze” while their hormones are settling down. This can mean an increase in territorial aggression, grumpiness, poop- and peemarking and other hormonally driven behaviors. It’s self-limiting and as a rule it stops within 2 weeks.

So, this ended up very long but I hope the info can be of use to you ?

yes this is all extremely useful! thank u!! i have one last question if u don’t mind? about how long is the procedure? like they won’t have to keep him under for long will they? im sorry i know it’s a lot of questions but i just love that boy so much

also side note, the post-neuter craze is kind of funny! mostly bc he can already be SO GRUMPY and i can only imagine him going thru that!