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Do we continue to neuter our special bunnies?

Hugo's There

Wise Old Thumper
After what has happened today and what happened to Austin in January, we are now questioning if we are doing our best by these special bunnies.

Do we continue to neuter the bunnies that are otherwise healthy but have neurological problems so they have the chance of bunny company or do we keep them single so they do not have to face the risk of a GA?

Both Geordie and Austin craved company and were so excited to see another bunny. But both of them had no hormonal behaviour (except when loose with another bun) and adored human company.

They were both very happy bunnies that truly loved life, but we wanted to offer them everything a "normal" bun would have. We are now wondering if maybe that was expecting too much for them.

Austin would spend hours sitting with us on the sofa, he would even sit on my arm when I was eating so I had to lift him everytime I put the fork to my mouth :love:

Geordie loved being carried around like a baby, i would hold him with his head over my shoulder and gently pat his back. I always joked that i would be so shocked if he actually burped:) He would spend hours like that given the chance. He even washed my hand as i put him in the carrier this morning :(

I know ideally all bunnies should have bunny company and we do put a lot of emphasis on bonding here, but neither of these bunnies have company now :cry:

So should we stop neutering these type of buns and just give them the best life possible with human interaction and other buns around them but no proper companion?
 
Oh Liz I can't believe this has happened to you :(

I think you have to make a judgement on each bun, and take your vets advice. Unless there was anything about a buns condition which meant they were unlikely to be able to be bonded or were at a greater risk under GA I think I would continue to neuter but understand why you will be reluctant :?
 
The problem is these bunnies are so unique that at the end of the day the vet can't be that certain. all they can do is check their heart and lungs and over all condition.

Geordie had 2 check ups and a pre op blood test, all clear

Austin and a PM after we lost him and it came back clear ( just a basic in house one)

These bunnies possibly have some underlying problems that just can't be detected easily, especially if it is neurological :?

I guess when you have a bun with deformities the chances are there is something wrong on the inside too which also can't be detected easily.

Which is why we are wondering now, if we have a bun with brain damage or bodily deformities and there is even a tiny chance that there could be something else wrong inside even if the bun appears healthy should we take the risk :?
 
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If they had no hormonal behaviour and craved bunny company I'd say if they could be put with a neutered female and it worked I would say no. Obviously I think it is totally different if it is a female as there is then the risk of cancer. A really tough decision I think.
 
Liz, I'm so sorry to read this, and feel bad because I said I would go ahead with the neuter, but I still would.
At some point these buns may have needed a GA, I think you said Geordie was also going in for x-rays at the same time as his neuter. All you did was for the best, and although it doesn't make things feel any better, he wasn't aware of his passing, he just didn't wake up.
Nobody can really answer for you, in our situation we would always neuter, unless the vets said no, because we can't be with each animal all the time, and therefore it is better, in our situation, they have a companion of their own species.
 
I must admit, I do go by my gut feeling. If I feel that a bunny will have a problem with GA, then I won't have it done, even if I can't explain what stops me.

I never had my now bridge bunny Pippa spayed. I just had a feeling that she wouldn't make it. Of course, I could never prove this, but I was so anxious that I also made my vet lance her ear abscesses with local anaethetics only!

However, 18 months ago, she needed to have a big ear operation without which her quality of life would not have been acceptable. I was so pleased that she got through the op allright and I was proven wrong... however, I was proven right after all as she died without any obvious reason about two weeks after the op!

This has taught me to trust my own gut feeling. Apart from Pippa, all my bunnies have been neutered and none ever had a problem. But without doubt, I would following my instinct again if I was worried in a particular case, and would not neuter just because everyone else says I should! :)

Vera
 
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We did try him in with other buns as that would have been the perfect answer but he humped them continually. He didn't have any hormonal behaviour when he was alone though such as aggression or spraying so he wasn't unhappy in that respect.

When it comes to having GA's for medical reasons there generally isn't any choice ie have the dental or not be able to eat, so if things go wrong we did our best for them even though it is still heartbreaking.

When it comes to neutering it is purely down to my choice and responsibility so loosing one for something I have choosen is so much harder to deal with. I bet if Geordie had a choice today he would be happily playing out in the garden alone with his little treatball with Gideon laying near him on the otherside of the run. But I have taken that away from him :cry:
 
As Louise said I guess its a case of judging each case on its on merit.

I have had two 'special needs' entire Bucks and me and my Vet agreed not to neuter them unless they needed a GA for another reason such as a Dental.
These Buns were older though, about 9.

I honestly dont know what I'd do if I took in a special needs young entire Buck.
It really would depend on the individual Bunny.
All any of us can do is try to make our decisions based on the overall best interests of the Bun. That's what you did and its so tragic that the outcome has been the loss of a much loved Bunny :cry:
 
As Louise said I guess its a case of judging each case on its on merit.

I have had two 'special needs' entire Bucks and me and my Vet agreed not to neuter them unless they needed a GA for another reason such as a Dental.
These Buns were older though, about 9.

I honestly dont know what I'd do if I took in a special needs young entire Buck.
It really would depend on the individual Bunny.
All any of us can do is try to make our decisions based on the overall best interests of the Bun. That's what you did and its so tragic that the outcome has been the loss of a much loved Bunny :cry:

I think if they had of been elderly I wouldn't have considered it, both Austin and Geordie were under a year old so potentially had a long life ahead of them where they could have been snuggled up with another bun :(
 
I can't really say anything other people haven't already posted. I would've made the exact same decisions as you, & there's no doubt you did what was best for them with the knowledge you had.

I have an entire bun here living with a spayed girlie. He has not been neutered because he is tiny. All his siblings had dental problems, & if has to have a dental, that's probably when I will get him neutered. I know I got really lucky with him not being a "humpy" bun. I probably would've neutered after blood tests otherwise.
 
Really tricky one isn't it...my head says 'yes, still neuter' but given what you've sadly experienced with Austin and Geordie, my heart says 'if they're happy, leave them be'.

Did they both have the same anaesthetic protocol? Did they both pass away at the same stage of the operation? The only other thing I can think is whether there is a different protocol (e.g. gas ony) that could be tried in similar circumstances.

I don't think there's an easy 'yes' or 'no' answer though, sadly :(
 
Really tricky one isn't it...my head says 'yes, still neuter' but given what you've sadly experienced with Austin and Geordie, my heart says 'if they're happy, leave them be'.

Did they both have the same anaesthetic protocol? Did they both pass away at the same stage of the operation? The only other thing I can think is whether there is a different protocol (e.g. gas ony) that could be tried in similar circumstances.

I don't think there's an easy 'yes' or 'no' answer though, sadly :(

Thanks Alison

With Austin we insisted on gas only Ga, he had the op started to come round but then fitted an died before regaining full consciousness.

Because the gas hadn't helped Austin, Geordie had the injection first. He was Ok with this and then stopped breathing when they tried to intubate him, so they never even started the op.

So both circumstances were completely different :(

One thing to add, Adele did say that when they removed the tube from Geordie there was blood on it which usually indicates some sort of problem. I didn't ask what it might be as I was a bit shocked at the time :(
 
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