neutering my male bunny

[scotgirl]

Hi

I have a seven month old French lop male bunny called Benedict.  My mum took him to our rabbit savvy vet recently for a check up and discussed neutering with her.

I was intending to have him neutered at the first available opportunity, but the vet has recommended not to do this unless he starts to show aggressive behaviour or to spray.  He does not live or come into contact with female rabbits, so there is no chance of an accident.  The vet felt that the (small) risk of general anaesthetic is not worth it unless there is a specific reason for doing this.

I would really appreciate some advice.  Many thanks.

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[osprey]

What an adorable bunny!  I love the color of his fur and the shape of his ears.

There are multiple reasons to get your boy neutered other than simply limiting reproduction (I am very pro-neuter for all companion animals):

• Better litterbox habits and no spraying of urine to mark territory
• slightly improved health (some reproductive cancers are eliminated)
• limiting agression
• can be bonded with another bunny if you choose to have a pair at some point

I think the risk for a healthy rabbit is very small, but maybe your vet has had bad experiences in the past. 

[BinkyBunny]

Welcome VickCrake. I do not share your vets opinion for all of the reasons Osprey has stated. (as well as they can become less destructive – digging, chewing, which is really important for rabbit that is inside)

Ultimately though, if you do decide to have him neutered, you would want to make sure the vet really is rabbit savvy. What makes you feel the one you have is? There are some screening information and questions that can help you and your mum determine this.

The only reason I ask, is that all of the rabbit savvy vets and experts I know would also not share your vets opinion.

By the way, Benedict is beautiful. I just love French Lops. Big ‘ol sweet bunnies! So what’s his personality like?

[MooBunnay]

Hello & Welcome VickCrake! Benedict is soooo cute! I see he’s got some nice bunny treats all around him I work with a couple rescue groups, and we never adopt out a rabbit that has not been neutered. Generally, its to help prevent the bunny develop bad behavior from hormones later in life, and to prevent any more bunnies that need rescuing….but we also recommend it highly to prevent the risk of reproductive cancers. I have heard a couple vets share the opinion that anasthetic is not to be used on a bun unless necessary – but the same vets also considered a neuter/spay surgery more of a “necessary” kind of surgery. Its definitely a personal decision to make – but if you want to have your boy have a friend one day, its a good idea to neuter!

[scotgirl]

Thank you all for your advice.  I had done quite a lot of reading, all of which pointed towards the benefits of neutering.  I was particularly aware of the possibility of reproductive cancers in female rabbits but was not aware it was such an issue for males.  You have all  confirmed my feeling that neutering is a good idea and I am grateful for the reassurance. As I live in Scotland, it may be that views vary from vets in the USA. 

The pic was taken a little while ago, and Benedict is quite a lot bigger now.  I guess that I am lucky that he has never shown any aggression and is not a digger, although as with most buns, he is a chewer.  I have lost several supposedly rabbit proofed telephone cables – he is nothing if not determined.  He is so soft and gorgeous, however, that it impossible to be cross for long!  He is a real character and loves sprinting around the furniture in my sitting room (otherwise known as his playroom), through his tunnel, binkying as he goes, before flopping on the rug. 

 

 

[Hedi]

Hi!

I have never had a male rabbit before I got Cooper. I had him fixed after I got him from the shelter and he was 6mth old. I couldnt get him fixed for a month after I got him d/t scheduling.

Cooper sprayed EVERYTHING. So once your bunny hits puberty you may have a lovely surprise. Cooper would spray us, furniture, our other bunnies. It stunk and was a mess to clean up. He sprayed all over the bunny room he was in.

I have to agree that I would check out if your rabbit vet is really savvy. With female rabbits there is a cancer risk but with males their hormones are in such overdrive that it is almost mean to not fix them because they will hump and spray all the time. It has been over a month since Cooper was fixed and he is so sweet, never sprays, rarely humps. He is a much better behaved bun.

Many vets dont like to do rabbit spays/neuters because it can be hard to get them under anesthesia. If that vet is trying to lean you toward not getting your bun fixed that would worry me. Sounds like your vet would rather not perform the surgery and may not be comfortable with rabbits and anesthesia.

Hopefully you have other vets close you can check? Also local humane societies sometimes offer spays/neuters for rabbits for a much lower cost.

BTW-your bun is adorable! I love the loppy ears but I have found with my little boy that he drags his ears through everything! lol

[poopy]

Ya if you do get him neutered, I might try and find other vets who are more experienced since it sounds like your current one isn’t that experienced. HOWEVER since it is a male, the neuter operation is not as risky and not nearly as complicated as getting a female spayed. So if your vet has done it before, I would say it should probably be fine if you can’t find a better vet. Maybe you can just do some reading on the anesthesia dosage beforehand to make sure the vet doesn’t give too much.

[kralspace]

I agree about finding a bunny savvy vet. I almost made a serious mistake this weekend. My regular vet said he did bunnies all the time, no problem, I took Mr. Spray Everything with me Saturday to pick up some supplies and asked the vet to have a look while we’re there.  After searching for a few minutes the vet looked up and aske ME where rabbits keep ‘them’. So today I called and found a small animal specialist that does do rabbits and was knowledgeable and am just so grateful I had read the info here on finding a vet and checking things out first. Otherwise I wouldn’t have known that rabbit surgery is so different.

This isn’t to sully my vet’s rep by any means, I’ve known him for 35 years and he’s treated my cats, dogs, rats, hamsters, gerbils and with his devoted attention, my horse lived to be 49 yrs old. I just didn’t realize bunnies were so different and I’m glad I found a bunny vet in our area.

So thanks! Binky Bunny!

Kathy

[Gravehearted]

welcome to binky bunny, kralspace!

Even though rabbits are the third most popular pet in the US, there are many vets who don’t know much about them. They are really very different from cats and dogs too! I’m so glad to hear you were able to find a vet who knows more about rabbit care!

[skunklionshow]

I’ve always been super pro neuter/spay for dogs & cats…until our bunny luv therapy program, I never had much bunny experience.  My ex worked as a vet nurse and I was often astounded by the number of cats/dogs that developed mammary or reproductive cancers.  After each sad story, I couldn’t help but think…if only they fixed their pet they wouldn’t be dealing with this.

Well Jessica got spayed in June and she’s like a whole different bunny.  She’s become much more friendly and super great w/ her litterbox.  The vet told me that female buns have very fatty uteruses and that’s why they tend to develop mammary and uterine tumors.  Our bunny from childhood died from mammary cancer.

I know that it can be an expense…but I’d rather be safe than sorry! 

[BinkyBunny]

Welcome kralspace! 

Whew! Well, I am glad you were "Vet Savvy" enough to look for another vet that would be better for your bunny.   Kudos to you!

[scotgirl]

Hey guys

I wanted to give you a quick update.

I have booked Benedict into a new vet tomorrow to discuss neutering.  I will go armed with all of the questions to ask to assess them.  They are a small animal practice in the town where I live and have ‘bunny month’ this month, so I am hoping that they really are rabbit savvy.

Benedict has not yet shown too many signs of raging hormones, but his litter habits have started to deteriorate, with poops appearing on the floor, when he used to be pretty fastidious about using his litter tray.

I hope it all goes well and that I have managed to find a reliable and bunny savvy vet!

Thanks again for everybody’s advice.

 

[(dig)x(me)x(now)]

I hope everything goes well!

[Author]

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