How old is he? Did you adopt him from a rescue?

Thirdly, how did the vet confirm he was neutered? Was it simply looking for testicles and not seeing them? Rabbits can draw them in to hide in a sort of little pouch of skin, especially when they feel scared or threatened such as at a vet visit. To find them when they’re like that you sort of need to push down and part the skin a little. Additionally if he’s young and just coming into puberty, it’s possible they hadn’t dropped yet when the vet saw him. The age when this happens can vary a little.

It certainly doesn’t sound like behaviour you would expect from a neutered rabbit. Spring can certainly bring these sort of behaviours on, but not usually to this extent with neutered buns.

If he was recently neutered (i.e., within the past month), it could be the post-neuter craze which just needs time to simmer itself down. Alternatively, it could be he was neutered and he actually still has a testicle or testicle matter causing the hormonal behavior. My rescue very recently discovered one of our rabbits who was indeed neutered had a 3rd testicle discovered via ultrasound, requested because he would sporadically show behaviors expected of a hormonal, intact rabbit.

Very unusual!

Sometimes bladder issues can cause hormonal behaviors in neutered buns. You may want your vet to rule out a bladder infection or urinary stones.

How long have you had him?

I think a vet visit is a good idea!  Even if he was neutered RIGHT before you got him, his hormones would have settled after 2 months.

A stuffy is a good idea!

It’s good that you are double checking! You never know, there could have been a mistake.

Whew! What a relief!! And so good they were able to check! That really explains everything!

And yes I bet the rescue will help you out, they will probably be very embarrassed that they adopted out an un-neutered rabbit!

Wonderful news that you have an answer to all those questions! Good idea on going back to the adoption place as well. You might need it in writing from your vet that he isn’t neutered they might want to contact the vet themselves to confirm.

What a mess… But I’m glad that it’s something that can be fixed (wink wink, nudge nudge… ehm… I’ll see myself out…)

Sadly it happens sometimes that adoption places advertise with fixed rabbits, and you get a surprise when you take them home 🙁

A friend of mine is very fond of rescuing and she brought her male bun to a shelter to be bonded to a rescue. They bonded him to an unspayed female, while the staff said that she was spayed. (Bonding with an intact rabbit is very questionable, because hormones can cause dangerous aggression.)

When she took the rabbits home the female became very territorial and peed everywhere. A vet visit confirmed that she was still intact, and that meant a €300 surprise spay bill. A couple of weeks after her spay the urinating behaviour didn’t stop. Turns out that she has incontinence problems as well. What a lovely surprise…

Sadly she didn’t have a proper case against the shelter because it was a verbal confirmation that she was spayed. I’m glad that you have paperwork to back you up.

If they act up you can also report this place to the animal welfare authorities: these “mix-ups” are so bad for rabbit welfare. Imagine that you had a young female that was still too young to be spayed: he could have gotten her pregnant at an age where that’s very risky. Imagine that he was adopted by a less caring owner: they might have dumped him if they heard that he still needed such an expensive surgery. There are some things that you need to be sure of when dealing with rabbits, and being fixed or not is probably the most important one.

Awww, Archie is a very cute name ^_^ Glad that things worked out and that they’re going to solve the problem without extra costs for you!

Bunny surgeries have become a lot safer over the years as veterinary techniques improved. A neuter is a small and simple procedure and not very invasive. Right after the surgery they get a dose of Metacam painkillers which works for 24 hours, and that is enough for most bunnies. Our Owen was active and happy again within 2 days.

An important thing to do as an owner is to feed Archie well on the day of his surgery. Rabbits shouldn’t be fasted before surgery: it only slows their recovery and can cause GI issues. They need all the energy they can get.

There’s one thing that you may want to get to help him be comfortable after his neuter: a hot water bottle with a cover. Some bunnies are a bit inactive and cold after surgery, and they like to snuggle up against something warm. I wouldn’t recommend chewable things like cherry pit cushions or liquid hot packs, because bunnies are curious and get in trouble easily.

Yes, I think that it’s reasonable to ask for a written confirmation. Here in the EU pets have a passport which contains info on their dental status, vaccinations and surgeries. If they don’t have that you could always ask the shelter if they know anything about the rabbit’s medical history.

It’s always a good idea to take your new rabbit to the vet just after you got them. We did the same the day after we picked up our new buns from a hobby breeder: just a quick checkup to see if they’re healthy, and giving them their vaccinations ASAP.

Woohoo! Glad that it went well ^_^ Hoping for a speedy recovery for Archie!

Excellent! thanks for the update!