Wearing a cone after surgery

[kylo]

My rabbit had stomach surgery today because there was a golf ball sized abscess on where his reproductive organs would’ve been. It attached to his stomach wall and they were able to get it all out under one surgery. He is stapled and sewn up on his lower belly, and he’s wearing a cone. He hates it, he won’t eat with it and can barely walk because it hits the floor and makes him fall. I’ve had him for over 6 hours now since the surgery and he is constantly taking the cone off. He grooms himself and it slips off no matter how tight we tie it. He’s being syringe fed and is drinking water. It’s very frustrating because I have to stay up and watch him all night and all day for the next week and miss school just to make sure he doesn’t take his cone off and take out his staples, when he’s constantly slipping it off. I’ve googled for any other method to use and I saw baby clothes/ gauge but the vet wants the stitches to not be touched and to be able to breathe. We’ve tightened the cone as much as we could and he still slipped it off on his head but it was stuck on his face so I had to take it off. Please leave suggestions for my sanity

[LBJ10]

Does he mess with the incision when he doesn’t have the cone on? Female rabbits are spayed all the time and do not require a cone. Many vets won’t use them with rabbits unless absolutely necessary since a rabbit can injure themselves while wearing a cone.

[kylo]

So far when I’ve taken it off he’s just groomed himself and fell asleep. I’m nervous to leave the cone off of him and in one second while I’m on my phone or something to have the staples out ): I read something about an inflatable collar? ( can’t remember the exact name) but does anyone have any experience with that?

[LBJ10]

I’ve seen fabric ones that resemble a doughnut. I’ve also seen ones that are a yoke-like shape. If you google it, you can find images.

Does your bunny have pain medication? The number one reason why stitches get messed with is because the bunny in question did not receive adequate pain medication. Like I said, the vast majority of bunnies do not need an e-collar.

[kylo]

I’ve looked up many collars and the reviews on most inflatable ones say they pop, and the doughnut ones say the animal could still lick the incision. He was given pain medicine I give him every 24 hours. He really hates the cone and I feel so bad for him. I take it off whenever I can and sit with him, and then he will groom himself forever. He had his surgery on Tuesday and I go back next Tuesday to get his stitches taken out if all is well, but I don’t want to wait and have him upset for that long. I know if I were to take the cone off he’d groom the staples and my vet directed it to be completely dry and not messed with. I read about a wrap that is safe for bunnies but his incision is at the lower belly right where his legs are so I don’t think it’d work. I’d attach a picture if it would let me

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