Less Friendly after Spay

[nddphoto]

New poster here. I searched for something similar to my question and I couldn’t find anything.

My rabbit Lana used to be a total love. I could pick her up and sit with her on the couch and she would sit on my chest/shoulder and cuddle for hours (back legs kicked out and everything). When she was free to roam the apartment, I could get on the floor and she would come to me to give kisses (she’s a licker), and lie with me to get pets, and tap me with her nose in passing. She also used to get up on our bed and do this thing we called “making the bed” which entailed her pushing and pulling on the bedding to create some sort of nest. My husband and I could go lie with her and she would perch on our bodies and nuzzle or lick us. She also had a love affair with our boxer and they would cuddle and often play together. She really was the sweetest little girl.

We had her fixed in April because I was afraid of her developing cancer. She turned a year old on June 6th.

Now she is super shy and jumps out of my arms as soon as she can after I get her out of her cage. She spends the majority of her time under the couch when she’s out of her cage. She always liked it under there, but now it’s constantly where she stays. I will lie on the floor and she will completely ignore me or run away. No more making the bed. If she is on the bed and we go in the bedroom, she acts like she’s trapped and runs to the corner and hides under a chair. She basically ignores the dog now.

From everything I’ve read, rabbits are supposed to calm down and be friendlier after they are spayed or neutered. Nothing else has changed in our lives except the spaying, so I am inclined to believe that’s the catalyst for her change in attitude.

Does anyone have any suggestions for how to get back in her trust and good graces? I totally love this darling girl and it’s breaking my heart to have seemingly lost this connection I so cherished.

This is when she was really little, probably a month or two after we got her.

They were like this for probably 20 minutes.

They are the odd couple!

Regular occurrence for her pre-surgery. I miss this cuddle time!

[Sarita]

I think just give it some more time – part of it is growing up and they become more secure in their surroundings – it just happens that is usually the time they are altered and it is just coincidence that their behavior changes not due to the spay/neuter.

I say don’t force anything, let her do her own thing and just enjoy her. Young rabbits generally are more cuddly – they do cuddle less once they get older regardless of spay/neuter.

[Jay]

Well, interestingly our rabbit used to allow us to pick her up when we first got her. Closing in on a year she had gone right off the idea and never liked us even trying to pick her up.

Then she started to show signs of increased hormone tendencies with marking territory etc. At this point she again allowed us to pick
her up…

We got her done at the vets and found month after she was back to completely hating the pick up thing. But always thankfully loved strokes and would give us bunnie kisses to.

I think its just Rabbit behaviour changing from infant to child to adult, same with us humans. They do change and I think will continue to change along the lines when they start to get old as well.

Just go with the flow, give her love and she will be the bunnie she is meant to be.

[Daisy1015]

How long ago was spay?

Teen changes are around 3 to 6 months not at a year

I have heard there is a hormone surge for awhile after the spay. But like dogs he temperment shouldnt change pre and post alter with exception of coincidental teen changes and even many of those should chill on e hormones are alleviated from alter. Do you think she may not feel well?

[Stickerbunny]

As rabbits get older, as Sarita said, their cuddliness tends to decline. Babies don’t mind being held, or cuddled, stay in laps, etc and adults tend to not like that stuff, somewhere around a year is when the shift happens. They also can go through phases of being cuddly and not. All a spay will do is rid you of hormonal behaviors, it doesn’t really make them more friendly (it just gets rid of say, charging/aggression due to hormones). The “making the bed” thing could have been hormonal nesting behavior, so I am not surprised that went away. The rest just sounds like typical baby bunny, which may or may not return as she finishes maturing.

My male is a very cuddly rabbit, sometimes. He’ll spend a few months being super friendly, then a few months being more aloof, then back to super friendly. Rabbits are more like cats than dogs, the attention is on their terms and only when they are in the mood. For example, my male jumped in my lap daily a few months ago and now won’t touch my lap. He used to get in the bed all the time and even sleep beside my pillow, now he acts like the bed is scary. Nothing has happened to cause his changes, he just isn’t in the mood to be doing those things.

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