Spay

[daisy]

I have read in several places about having a rabbit spayed but I can’t seem to get solid answers. I was going to have my rabbit spayed at the Humane society because it is only $55 and that includes meds to come home with her. The HS spays rabbits regularly and I called and asked about age and size req and she said 10 weeks was old enough (thats what Daisy is) and she would need to weigh 2 pounds. Has anyone else heard this information or know anything about spaying a mini lop

 

[Deb~]

I have 2 Holland Lop girls that I’ve had spayed and the vet that we take them to suggest that they be 6 months of age. I didn’t have to bring any meds home……the vet kept them for several hours after surgery to monitor them. I live in rural KS and we paid 85.00 for each girl.

Good luck! They are so worth it, aren’t they?

Deb~

[Hedi]

Personally I would wait until 4-6 months of age so they are big enough to really handle the anesthesia. The meds the HS is talking about is probably metacam which is a pain med in liquid form they will send home to give twice a day for pain control.

I volunteer at a HS in Ohio and I paid $50 for a neuter so if that is what you are paying for a spay then  you are getting a great deal. Just make sure that her surgery is on a day that isnt fully booked. We have a mobile vet unit come do ours and some times they do 50 animals in a day. Which doesnt really give them the time to give the rabbits attention they need. Rabbits are very time consuming because putting them under anesthesia can be tricky and then the risk of hypothermia after surgery.

You will be thankful for the pain meds-trust me! Spays can be very painful for a bun. And just some advise-when you get to the point of having surgery the meds will come in a syringe and they expect you to squirt it in their mouth. If they bun will let you thats fine but if not you will need to disguise it in their favorite treat to get them to eat it. I had to hollow out raisins to give my little boy his meds. Do you know how hard it is to hollow out raisins? lol

[Deleted User]

My bun was spayed at 4 months old … they would not touch her prior to that. The vet also gave me meds to administer to her … I disguised in some apple by squirting the meds directly into the holes I made with the syringe.

[BinkyBunny]

I know they use that two pound rule for kittens (CAT babies) but not for rabbit babies, which by the way, rabbit babies are also called kittens. 

I have always understood that for female bunnies, vets prefer to wait 6 months to spay.  Though very experienced vets may do it as early as 4 months. 

I’d be a bit cautious of someone saying they would spay at 10 weeks – not even three months, many aren’t even sexually mature yet.

Here is some information about the "right age" by the House Rabbit Society – http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/spay-neuter.html#age

[daisy]

Thanks, I will call back down there and check again, But she said they want to get them before they have thier first cycle. Im not sure when this typically happens either, But I do know that this vet is a good vet who does tons of spay/neuter. I just worry because I have heard horror stories about bunnies beign put to sleep.

[osprey]

Daisy,

You may be getting poor advice from the HS in this case.  Rabbits do not have a ‘cycle’ like dogs or cats.  They never go into ‘heat’, and can get pregnant at any time once they are sexually mature (around 4 months I think?)  The people you are dealing with may be using the same rules that they follow for cats.  10 weeks sounds awfully young; we get upwards of 50 rabbits spayed each year and they never go before 4 months.

 

[BinkyBunny]

Yeah, the moment you said “cycle” I was concerned. Maybe they were meaning before she reaches sexual maturity, but like Osprey said, rabbits don’t have a cycle. This sounds scary to me and if they’ve done this before, I’d personally believe they’ve been lucky. I know the price is enticing, but maybe you can look around for another vet that or spay/neuter clinic that is more rabbit savvy. The surgery for rabbits is NOT the same as cats and dogs.

Ask them if you have to fast your rabbit first. If they say yes, RUN! But either way, I’d seek out other options.

Another thing that could have happened was that the person that answered the phone didn’t know what they were talking about but that the HS themselves does it correctly. So one person could have represented the HS’s procedures incorrectly. You can ask to talk to a manager or even a vet to see if you get another answer.

[daisy]

I think the misrepresentation thing may be the case because the lady I talked to said i amnot sure and I can get teh vet on your phone but I told her not to worry about it I would try and come down there to talk tothe vet in person. But I will definitely ask the fasting quetsion. THANKS! This place is amazing for help

[Hedi]

Yeah, that is one thing with the Humane Societies- you have a lot of people doing a lot of different tasks all the time. So whenever you do call and ask for info make sure you talk with the right people because rabbits are so different. At our HS we do not really have a rabbit savvy vet and sometimes we are the ones educating them which is kinda scarey.

[skunklionshow]

Many HS use volunteers to field calls/ answer questions.  Unfortunately, many people don’t get that rabbits, cats, dogs, etc. are different species completely…they are NOT just different breeds.  Many HS attempt to spay/neuter early b/c return rates are low for spays/neuters.  This is why the HS prefers to spay/neuter cats/dogs as early as 10 weeks. 

However, rabbits are very special and they do not respond well to anesthesia.  Therefore, it is recommended that the bunny is old enough to tolerate anesthesia and sturdy enough to handle surgery.  I hope that made sense.

I spoke w/ my neighbor (a dog/cat vet) and she said that the type of anesthesia is different for bunnies and cats/dogs.  Bunnies tend to get an anesthesia blend, whereas, dogs/cats get a low dose of "sleep away" (the name of the meds used for euthanasia). 

As I’ve learned bunnies are nothing like cats….therefore…seek out a small mammal specialist, even if it costs a bit more.  Jessica gets spayed on Friday and the estimate w/ pre surgical bloodwork, pain meds, and surgery is $200.  I was told to bring her food in w/ her b/c bunnies can’t fast like dogs/cats do.

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