Is my rabbit ready for neuter?

[Laura & Leo]

My male Holland Lop recently turned 6 months old and has his neuter surgery booked for less than two weeks from now. I’m worried that he isn’t ready for surgery because he hasn’t displayed any aggressive or mounting behaviours. This is my first time getting a rabbit fixed and I was wondering if anyone has any opinions on whether it would be best to delay his surgery.

[Doodler]

It’s definitely not required for them to show mounting or aggressive behaviors in order to be neutered. My bucks never did either.

Your vet will make the final call on if he’s ready. Some vets want their testicles to be clearly descended so they may hold off if they aren’t. They should require an exam before it’s done anyway. For my bucks I had the exam done the morning of their surgery. For my doe I did it a day before because even though I had blood work done on all of them I wanted to get more blood work done for her.

For one of my bucks I was able to see his testicles before I had it done when I laid on the floor and he was hoping around. I never saw my second buck’s.

[Sir Ollie]

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[Laura & Leo]

He saw the vet in January and she said his testicles were just starting to descend and she wanted to wait a couple months. I’m just worried that we will show up the day of his surgery and waste the vet’s time because he still isn’t ready.

[Doodler]

It doesn’t hurt to call the vet’s office to see what they might recommend, but unless you can see his testicles the only way to know if they will complete the neuter is to bring him in. I wouldn’t postpone it just due to the lack of mounting or hormonal behaviors. I would think they gave you a two month window because there is a high likelihood he’d be ready since they had already started to descend.

Since bucks can tuck up their testicles they can be descended but you might not see them. It caught me off guard the first time I did see them on my first buck. If you haven’t already I would just spend time on the floor with him with your head close to the ground and just watch him when he’s hopping around. He might just show you the jewels you are looking for and you’ll have your answer.

[Laura & Leo]

Thanks for all your help. I took a look tonight and got some pictures of what I think are his testicles. I’m not sure how big they should be. He’s not quite 3 pounds but I don’t know if that would make a difference for how big they would be.

[Wick & Fable]

White fur is so difficult to look at for me. It’s definitely a skill to hone….. Wick’s testicles were not very furry, so they stood out as fleshy, which I seem to see one in the first picture? This is what Wick’s looked like when just one descended: https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/160503/Default.aspx

You can always set up an appointment to consult about the neuter, which is required anyways to ensure your rabbit is of good health to go through a neuter operation at this time. It would be irresponsible for a vet to schedule a neuter without a pre-check, so if you’re worried, remember to ask your vet if he/she feels he’s OK for the procedure at this point in time.

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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