@ A&B/Rain – Yes, Wick’s dropped at 8mo. Wick’s a bit of a slow developer. Baby baby.
It’s good to hear your family is feeling better.
As usual, your dad shows genuine concern for Rain. Letting him know that rabbit surgeries and healthcare has progressed massively over recent years, and both spays and neuters are very common. I cannot say that all rabbit vets will be skilled at it (refer to the question probes I provided in your previous topic), but if your dad finds a vet who is experienced in doing a neuter/spay, the pain after the operation is manageable, and minimal. The alternative is potentially chronic frustration at the inability to mate and the constant “on edge” feeling from territorial instincts to attack and defend. If it’s confirmed Rain is a male, this may be even easier because neuters are very simple operations when done by an experienced vet, and very little owners experience complications. If it’s confirmed Rain is a female, while the operation is more invasive and recovery time is slightly longer, many owners go through it swiftly, and it is much more necessary due to the cancer risk in females. Conducting an emergency spay and cancer removal when it’s likely to erupt at 4-6 years of age is much more dangerous, invasive, and recovery would be much more difficult. Remember a benefit of getting a rabbit fixed in young adolescent is their immune system and body is more resilient, so recovery from any procedure for a healthy, young rabbit will typically go better than if it were an older rabbit.
Also, maybe if you sacrifice a birthday gift for a year, or offer to be the regular house vacuum-er or something, that will help convince them you are taking this decision seriously enough to go out of your way to have this done. But that’s a choice you’ll need to make.
Hormones is a possibility for this scratching. Hormones isn’t the only source of frustration, but at Rain’s age, it’s a likely culprit. Can you think of any other reasons why he’d be defensive or aggressive towards everyone? A change of scent around the house? A recent experience of fright or accident that caused him to become more scared?
Another possibility is misunderstanding the human body. Humans are huge in comparison to rabbits, so expecting a rabbit to know your foot is attached to your face is asking a lot. Additionally… clothes. Like what are clothes. It doesn’t feel or act like fur to rabbits, so it’s something that’s moveable, hence they really like getting to the bottom of it. It would be beneficial to help Rain understand that he’s digging/scratching things he’s not supposed to (aka your bodies). Even if it doesn’t actually hurt, if a scratch, bite, nibble, dig, etc. is rougher than what’s realistically acceptable, you can do a high pitched squeal and retract that body part. This is similar to puppies learning to “play bite” each other; they need to get feedback to know how hard is too hard. Wick used to try and pull off my toe nails because he perceived them as “dirt” stuck on my “fur”. After a few days of squealing and retracting repeatedly, he’s the most gentle tongue licker of feet in rabbit history. It worked too well, haha. Try this method out, and let your family know when they interact with him too. You don’t want to freak him out or yell at him; you want to emulate an animal that’s been slightly harmed. The high pitch squeal will get his attention and eventually, he may put two and two together.
In terms of scheduling the appointment, now would be a good time so it can be assessed by an experienced rabbit vet whether these are indeed hormonal vs. health behaviors, and if hormonal, does he/she seem developed enough to do the operation. Testicles descended are the typical “ready” sign for males, but if Rain is a female, only an experienced rabbit vet can have the best determination for when she’s ready. Regardless, you need to set an appointment for a check-up because no rabbit vet would (or should) just receive your father’s call, say “Okay the spay/neuter will be Monday”, and do it. All responsible vets will arrange a pre-op visit first to assess whether your rabbit is okay to go through the surgery. So this can occur anytime considering Rain’s age, but obviously if there needs to be a reduction in these hormonal behaviors, sooner is better than later. If the vet appt determines Rain cannot be fixed at that time, it wasn’t worthless because Rain got to have a general check-up with a vet, and you’ll probably leave with a good estimation of when he/she will be ready.
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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