Chloe getting spayed soon, anything special I should know?

[Rob]

Chloe should be getting spayed (finally) as soon as I recieve the certificate from the NJHRS, is there anything special I should be aware of concerning the process?  I know she might not eat for a day or two after the surgery, but that’s about all I know.  Should I do anything special that might make the recovery easier (like placing bedding in her cage or keeping her quarantined there for a few days)?

Thanks!

Rob

[Monkeybun]

Keep her confined for a few days, you don’t want her running and jumping and tearing stitches. Keep anything out of her cage that she can jump onto as well. She’ll be cranky about it, but it’s best for her

[Lindsay]

The main thing is just to make sure she has a nice clean quiet space to come back to. While Monty was at the vet being neutered, we gave his cage a thorough clean, put fresh litter in his litter tray, and put some soft old t-shirts down for him to snuggle up on if he wanted something soft. It’s a good idea to get the cage as clean as possible to avoid getting the wound infected. I don’t know if this is peculiar to our rabbit, but because we got him back pretty soon after he woke up, as the anaesthetic wore off he started to get cold and shivery, so we wrapped him up in an old t-shirt and that seemed to help.

It’s also useful to have a bowl of water if you usually use a bottle, because a bottle can be a lot of effort for a woozy rabbit recovering from surgery, and you want to encourage her to eat and drink as soon as she feels able. It’s a good idea to put down a bowlful of her favourite foods to try and tempt her, even if it’s just a few mouthfuls, as you want to keep her digestive system moving.

Other than that, the main thing is just to leave her be and let her recover. Keeping her in her cage for a couple of days is a good idea to make sure she doesn’t go jumping around and tearing her stitches. Keep an eye on her to make sure she’s not trying to chew the stitches either (but a little licking is fine, she’ll just be trying to clean the wound, which is good). Check the wound if she’ll let you for any discharge, and if it smells bad, call the vet as this could be infection.

[BinkyBunny]

I always like to recommend this article by the House Rabbit Society about Pre-Post spay/neuter.   Great tips on what to do before, and what to prepare and watch out for after.

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