8 Year old unspayed rabbit friend?

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This topic has 8sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 4 years ago by DanaNM.

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- 10/27/2020 at 10:37 AM
  Ana700Luna
  Participant
  6 posts
  Hi everyone! This is officially my first forum post! I specifically made this account for this question so all help is appreciated!
  
  I have an 8 year old polish and dutch rabbit mix. Her name is Jasmine. She’s unspayed, as my parents told me I didn’t need to spay her since she was a rodent (which is obviously not correct but I really couldn’t change their minds). By the time I finally convinced them to let me get her spayed, she was 6 years old and the vet said she was too old to be fixed. I recently asked my vet again this year and he repeated his earlier sentiment saying that she was far too old, it was just too risky etc. So fixing her is unfortunately out of the question which is a real bummer because she is now exposed to all sorts of potential reproductive health complications. 🙁
  
  Jasmine is a free-roam rabbit and she lives in my room. In my old house she lived in a two-level condo/NIC cage. While she lived in the condo she displayed lots of territorial behavior when I would clean her letterbox (lunging, biting, etc.) but now that she is free-roam in this new house she is like a whole new rabbit! She’s super friendly, very affectionate, and not territorial in the slightest. She has yet to bite, lunge, or act aggressively (except for once when I was clipping her nails and she gave me a small nip on the thumb, but I’d say that was warranted).
  
  All this to say: I’m wondering if it would be possible to get her a friend that is fixed. I try to give Jasmine as much attention as possible, but she is very demanding sometimes and I’m a college student taking extra credit hours. I’m also planning to get a job soon and I am worried she will get lonely. Right now she has a stuffed rabbit friend which she frequently grooms, sleeps next to, and tries to play with. She’s completely obsessed with it.
  
  I was wondering if anyone has had any success with bonding an unspayed/not neutered senior rabbit and a spayed/neutered rabbit? If I find another rabbit with a laid-back personality will it work? If not, it’s completely okay. I just want the best for Jasmine 🙂 Thanks in advance!
- 10/27/2020 at 11:21 AM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  It used to be more common to bond neutered males with unspayed females, back in the day when very few vets would spay. And we do occasionally see situations where it happens still, such as a case where the female can’t be spayed for health reasons.
  
  If you do try, it would definitely need to be with a castrated rabbit. Maybe an older neutered male bun? It depends on her personality as well. If she is very territorial she might not accept a friend. Is there a rescue in your area that will allow dating? Most rescues probably wouldn’t allow dating with an un-castrated bun generally, but in this circumstance they might.
  
  It is worth getting a second vet’s opinion, because you might be able to find a more experienced vet that will do the procedure. At her age it is very possible that she already has cancer, so spaying would also remove the tumors.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 10/27/2020 at 12:49 PM
  Bu20055
  Participant
  248 posts
  I agree about seeing if another vet would spay her. It’s unfortunate they turned her away when she was six, as that’s not too old, my girl was spayed a few months ago and she’s six.
- 10/27/2020 at 1:34 PM
  Ana700Luna
  Participant
  6 posts
  I really do want to get her spayed, but I live in a small town and there are only 4 vets who specialize in rabbit care. The vet I go to now is the highest rated. He said that Jasmine was in incredible health for her age, but since she’s so small and so old (3.3 pounds, 8 years old) the risks of spaying her outweigh the benefits. He also couldn’t find any evidence of tumors or cancers. She had 2 seizures in a span of 2 days earlier this year but the vet said that she had no neurological issues and that the seziures were due to stress and low blood sugar (we had just gotten a dog and moved houses, so the vet assumed that this was why). I agree with his diagnosis because after she was put on digestive and anti-worm medication she has gone back to normal. All this to say: Jasmine’s size, age, and recent history of seizures made the vet unwilling to spay her. It’s not that I refuse to get her spayed or that I don’t want her to be spayed, it’s just that at this current moment in time Jasmine’s vet has deemed it too dangerous, and I’m inclined to agree with him. I’ve thought about seeing a second vet, but I don’t know why I would do so if the simple answer to this situation is just to not attempt to bond her/get her a friend. With that being said, has anyone here had a rabbit of 8 years old or older undergo a spay surgery successfully? I am specifically asking about spay surgery because it’s far more invasive than neutering.
- 10/27/2020 at 1:43 PM
  Ana700Luna
  Participant
  6 posts
  Oh! I totally forgot to respond to something else you mentioned, DanaNM:
  
  As I stated in my previous reply, I live in a very small town. The closest rabbit rescue is 1 hour away. I’ve been to most shelters in my area and none of them have rabbits because rabbit breeding for “agriculture” (consumption 😥 ) is unfortunately very popular here, and house rabbits are considered unconventional. I would love to do rabbit dating but I would likely have to drive Jasmine up to the shelter with me? Again, this is one of those situations where the costs probably outweigh the benefits, I just wanted to ask and clarify because I’m worried that Jasmine might be lonely.
- 10/27/2020 at 3:22 PM
  Hazel
  Participant
  2587 posts
  Regarding the reasons to spay, I would say possibly bonding her is secondary to eliminating the cancer risk, so I would go for the spay, bonding or no bonding. I would give the other vets in your area a call, ask them if they would have issues with performing the surgery. If not, ask them how many rabbit spays/neuters they do and what their success rate is, that should give you an idea about how rabbit savvy they are. I know you said your vet is the highest rated, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are in fact better than the others. Make sure you speak to the actual vet, receptionists or even vet techs don’t always know what they’re talking about as far as rabbits go.
- 10/27/2020 at 6:10 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  @Ana700Luna I will ask at the rescue about the oldest rabbits we’ve had spayed. I know just recently there was a 6-7 year old. It really is about the vet’s comfort level and experience.
  
  Have you had any blood work done on her?
  
  I think if you were willing and able to have another rabbit live separately if they didn’t get along, it could be worth a shot. Even if unbonded, rabbits do enjoy the company of neighbors. But since you aren’t able to do any dating, it is a bit of a gamble to know whether bonding would work out, so being prepared to have two single rabbits would make it a lot less risky.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
- 10/27/2020 at 8:14 PM
  Ana700Luna
  Participant
  6 posts
  Thank you all so much for your prompt responses! When I say that the vet is the highest rated in my area I mean that they have 4.5 stars and the other three vets are rated as either a 3.5 or 2 star with many allegations of animal mistreatment, neglect, and overcharging. I know in most cases spaying a rabbit is best for their health, but it would absolutely destroy me if I took Jasmine in to get spayed and she ended up dying from surgery complications in a stressful environment (the clinic), when I could’ve just saved her that horrible trauma by just allowing her to remain unfixed.
  
  I know that uterine cancer is a risk, but she has thus far been in perfect health (minus the two stress seizures) and she displays zero territorial instincts, no bad litterbox habits, and no destructive tendencies. So I’m just really uneasy about spaying her as the vets in my area seem mostly unqualified to work with rabbits and I fear that spaying Jasmine will also be a death sentence at her age.
  
  I have not had bloodwork done for her yet. Again, having a buddy for Jasmine is not necessary, I was just wondering if anyone had experience with this type of situation. I understand that getting rabbits spayed is strongly encouraged, but I’m not privileged enough to live in an area where many rabbit savvy vets are available. That is why I will be adopting already-fixed rabbits from now on.
  
  DanaNM I really appreciate that you’re looking into your shelter’s spay success. Hopefully if it was possible there, it could be possible here.
- 10/27/2020 at 9:44 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  I do think if your vet is the most experienced one in the region and they don’t think it’s wise, then it’s best to go with their opinion on it. But I will get some numbers from the rescue and our vet and get back to you.
  
  I mentioned blood work because it might be a good idea to do regular blood work with her to detect any irregularities. Rabbit’s blood values can be really variable between individuals, but if you get a good baseline for her it will help you know if something is up in the future.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
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