Dwarf rabbit depressed and still not eating days after spay surgery

[Elle and Harry]

We currently have 2 dwarf bunnies aged 6 months who have been together since birth and we’ve had to get one of our bunnies India spayed as she was starting to be aggressive towards her sister Ruby as she kept humping and pulling Ruby’s fur out so we went and got India spayed, before her surgery she was full of life and so hyper all the time and very affectionate and also very greedy with food! However now she has been spayed (which was on Monday) she hasn’t eaten or moved much at all but when we put her water bowl next to her she has a little drink but we’ve noticed she hasn’t pooped in about 24 hours so we’ve been back and forth to the vet and he said she could be depressed due to keeping her separate from her sister and to put them back together which we did and that hasn’t worked (I forgot to mention at the start he gave us liquid pain killers to give to her through a syringe). So we went back today as that didn’t work and what’s concerning is he said he’s never experienced rabbits behaving like this before and her stitches are looking fine so he wasn’t sure what was going on and gave us syringes and said to soak pellets in water and feed her through a syringe.

I was wondering if anyone else has ever been through this before and has any advice? I feel so guilty doing this to her as she isn’t moving much at all and eating nothing and she’s starting to smell where she’s weeing and doing tiny wet almost like diarrhoea poos and isn’t grooming herself and we’ve been told not to clean her as she needs to eat the poos coming out.

We’ve also had to separate the bunnies again as Ruby is starting to be aggressive towards India now and we don’t want to stress her out anymore than she already is but we let our bunnies free roam in a room but have put India in a cage in the same room as Ruby but have they became unbonded? And does anyone have advice on what to do in this situation?? Apologies this is such a long post but I am just so worried for India as it’s been a couple of days now and the vet saying he’s never experienced this and doesn’t know what to do has really concerned me.

[Sirius&Luna]

I have to say your vet doesn’t sound very experienced. It’s not at all uncommon for rabbits to stop eating after surgery, and most vets will send you back with painkillers and critical care to force feed if they don’t eat by themselves. Which painkiller were you given?

It sounds like she is now suffering from GI stasis, which is when a bunny’s gut stops moving entirely. Is there a rabbit specialist vet near you that you can go to? From your writing I feel like you’re from the UK, in which case you can look for a rabbit certified vet on the RWAF’s site. http://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-care-advice/rabbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/ If you’re not from the UK, we can help with lists for other countries/places too.

The most important thing now is to get her eating and pooping. This probably requires painkillers – metacam is normally prescribed for rabbits. You absolutely should be force feeding her with a watery pellet mush, or critical care if possible. You should also be tempting her with any sort of tasty veg or fruit that she’ll eat. Often bunnies will eat things that they weren’t that interested in before they were ill, especially herbs, so keep trying. When my bun had stasis the only thing she would eat voluntarily was parsley, so I gave her tons of it.

As for the bonding. It is best to keep them separated. Unspayed/neutered rabbits should never be together anyway, because as you found out, as they mature they become aggressive towards each other. Rabbits can be extremely vicious, so they should be separated until they’ve gone through a proper bonding process. As a separate note, vet visits often break bonds anyway, as the rabbit comes back smelling totally different. When rabbits are bonded, you should always take them to the vet together. That said, your rabbits weren’t properly bonded, so it’s not really the issue here.

I think it might be nice if they are kept in sight of each other, unless that seems to be causing India more stress. They shouldn’t be allowed to touch, as rabbits can and do nip and bite through bars.

[Sirius&Luna]

Oh, and as another side note, it’s important that you get Ruby spayed too (although you might want to use a different vet after this experience!) as rabbits have a very high rate of uterine cancer when left unspayed. It will also be essential to creating a happy relationship between the two of them once they’ve both recovered.

[Elle and Harry]

Thank you for taking the time to reply and yes I’m in the UK. I’m not quite sure what type of pain killer I was given for her but we’re going back to the vet tomorrow for another check up so I will ask tomorrow. The vet we chose seemed experienced as all the reviews we found on google for him were from farmers who had chickens and other animals and all had given him 5* reviews and other bunny owners and when we fished on the internet for the best vet for rabbits in our area it was his name that came up first which is why it threw us back so much when he said he’s never experienced a rabbit behaving like India after surgery.

We’ve force fed her a couple of times now today and she’s still just not moving much at all – I also forgot to mention the last couple of days she has been grinding her teeth and we read online that means she is in pain but today the teeth grinding has stopped so I’m hoping that’s a good sign.

In regards to them being bonded when we first got them they were really affectionate towards each other and would sleep next to each other and groom each other most of the day and follow each other around the room so I definitely think they were bonded to begin with, even after India started becoming more aggressive they were still sleeping together and grooming each other so maybe it is a case of the change of smell from the vets that has caused it so for the time being we will keep them separate until India has livened up a bit more and take it from there. We will definitely get Ruby spayed soon but for now it’s easier for us to do one at a time so we can concentrate on India getting back to good health. Also when we first took india home and had her in the cage Ruby was sticking her nose in and licking India’s face which is why we’re so confused by the sudden change from her.

Is there anything more we could do to help her? We’ve left her favourite foods in a bowl and a fresh water bowl and have put in a hot water bottle to keep her warm and feeding her through a syringe every couple of hours but she still just looks lifeless.

[Elle and Harry]

Also just an update I’ve just gone to feed her (I put her on her back because it’s the only way I can do it where she keeps still) and noticed poos on her bum but smelly and wet and when I wiped it just turned to mush. Is this a good sign?

[Asriel and Bombur]

If she’s having mushy poos I’d still take her to the the vet. It’s good she’s pooping, but mushy poops mean she really isn’t the best condition.

And no, baby bunnies don’t bond. They were never bonded, and showing aggression at that age is normal because of hormones. Hormonal and unfixed bunnies can’t bond. They both have to be fixed first to prevent injuries and excessive hormonal behaviors from one bun bothering the other. Even if they were “sisters” it doesn’t matter because bunnies don’t recognize family units. When someone says “bonded” it’s a fixed pair. Babies make friends with anyone till hormones start. And aggression in bunnies is never okay. They can seriously injure each other, which why if they’re aggressive in anyway they aren’t bonded.

[Elle and Harry]

Ok now I see what you mean, so I should get Ruby spayed asap (deffo with another vet) and take India back to the vets. I will see what the vet says about her tomorrow and will probably find another vet with better experience.

Sorry to keep asking loads of questions that I should be talking to my vet about but is it normal for her to be so limp and not move much at all? And after feeding her through a syringe how long should it usually take for her to start going back to normal?

[Asriel and Bombur]

Is she on pain meds? They can really dope out some bunnies. It’s hard to say on the syringe. Some buns jump right back and others take a while. But if she’s still not doing so well tomorrow I’d get her in.

[Elle and Harry]

She is on pain meds but I’m not sure which ones she’s on, she’s booked for a check up tomorrow but today we gave her her meds we were given and when we took her into the vets and he gave her an extra injection so fingers crossed it’s just a bit spaced out due to the pain meds. Thank you so much for all the advice I will update tomorrow what the vet says/does

[DanaNM]

How is she doing today? I’m glad to see she pooped, keep up the syringe feeding as long as she isn’t eating (3 times a day) and supportive care. Gentle tummy rubs can help, as well as providing warmth and a quite place for her to rest.

I also just noticed you mentioned syringe feeding on her back. Please don’t do this, as it’s possible for the bun to aspirate.

This video shows how to syringe feed safely (there are some very wrong ones out there): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iGZVYVm5Bg

((vibes for India))

. . . 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.  

[TheEstherBunny]

Hi Elle & Harry,

Sorry to hear little India is having a hard time post-spay. The way I got Esther back to eating post-spay was by hand-feeding her very small bits of her favorite foods. Just a tiny, pea-sized piece of banana and then a couple of cilantro and arugula leaves, every hour, to get her going. Are you able to pet her and get your hands near her face in her recovery area? Sometimes the social aspect of hand-feeding can be what a bun needs to get back into food.

If India isn’t voluntarily eating yet, it might be because she’s in too much pain. Esther was on 1ml of Metacam (1.5mg/ml) by mouth twice a day for 5 days, and hated being force-fed her meds. I slowly, drop by drop, let her lick it off the syringe every time she was owed a dose, which worked great.

Does she respond to attention? She might need a lot of ear rubs, gently belly rubs, and snuggles right now. Once she is feeling better, she’ll start moving around more.

You mentioned her bathroom area smells strong- that’s normal. Just make sure you’re changing her litter at least once a day to keep her incision as clean as possible.

One last thing- you mentioned you brought India home in her cage, but does she have a small, carpeted, isolated floor space where she is recovering? If you can corner off a small piece of your room for her with NIC grids or something similar, she will probably feel more comfortable and at home.

Sending you good thoughts and best wishes!

[Elle and Harry]

Thank you for all of your responses.

Unfortunately the following day she passed away. When we woke up she was unable to lift her head and respond to anything at all so we immediately took her into a new vet who within 2 minutes of having a look at India knew what was wrong (GI stasis and major bloating to the stomach and possibly botched surgery) and unfortunately was too late as she died on the examination table. We showed the second vet the painkiller we had been given and it was deffo not metacam. We are looking into getting the veterinary surgeon investigated as when the second vet we took her to called them up for details on the surgery and what pain meds were used on her they denied performing any spay surgeries on rabbits that week.

Anyone in the UK Kent area please be warned about taking your bunny to Ancare in Canterbury as this was an absolutely heartbreaking experience for us and do not want this to happen to anyone else.

We can’t stress enough how greatful we are for all the advice everyone gave us.

Our only concern now is Ruby being on her own as we didn’t get the chance to bring back India’s body to show her so for the time being we’re watching very closely at any behavioural changes and have given her a soft toy who she spends most of her time grooming. As she isn’t spayed yet we will give it a month or so before we take her to get spayed (using the website we were suggested) until we are ready and maybe in the near future consider looking into adopting a male to bond with her.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Oh, no. I’m so very very sorry.

(((((Binky Free India)))))))

[Wick & Fable]

I’m so sorry. Binky free India.

Having the vet surgeon investigated is so noble of you– while what you’ve been through is nothing anyone would want, you bringing to light this situation will no doubt help other rabbits.

You are being very attentive to Ruby, which is good during this time. Giving her a soft toy is probably helpful as well. Many rabbits unfortunately experience grief, but do overcome it with the support of a loving owner, like yourself.

Best wishes to you and Ruby.

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.

[Doodler]

I am so sorry for your loss of India.

I wouldn’t be too worried about not being able to bring her home for Ruby since they weren’t bonded anyway. Please don’t be overly worried about her but of course it’s always good to keep a close eye on them.

[DanaNM]

I’m so so sorry

(((Binky free India)))

. . . 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.  

[Bam]

I’m so very sorry.

Binky free ****India****

[Sirius&Luna]

I’m so sorry to hear this. No one should be so let down by a vet.

I’m glad you’ve found a vet you trust, its reassuring for the future.

Ruby should be fine, just keep an eye on her eating and pooping

Binky free India <3

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