The importance of proper sexing (Pet shop buns)

kerry-123 · Jul 19, 2009

I'd just like a moment to warn everyone who has just bought any pet shop bunnies. PLEASE have a vet re-sex them to make sure they are the actual sex that they were sold to you. Just remembering my own experience of Scooch having a litter (of seven kits:shock

Four months ago to her brother thanks to petshops getting her sex wrong.
Please get your buns re-sexed by a rabbit-savvy vet.
Most petshops out there don't have the fainest clue, they normally just go by what the breeder has told them (this is what happened with mine). Even though we've kept all the babies we sadly lost one at 3 weeks old

most likely from some genetic disorder from being inbred.
Anyways just wanted an opportunity to warn people.

doorkeeper · Jul 19, 2009

Better yet get a rabbit rescue to sex them. Vets have been known to make mistakes too:?

It seems nearly every rabbit we have had in lately has been mis-sexed at some point.You would think 50% at least would have to be right, but no:roll:

kerry-123 · Jul 19, 2009

doorkeeper said:
Better yet get a rabbit rescue to sex them. Vets have been known to make mistakes too:?

It seems nearly every rabbit we have had in lately has been mis-sexed at some point.You would think 50% at least would have to be right, but no:roll:

Yeah this too it true

My vets are pretty rabbit savvy though, aren't many bunny rescues near me

Lspacehopper · Jul 19, 2009

kerry-123 said:
I'd just like a moment to warn everyone who has just bought any pet shop bunnies. PLEASE have a vet re-sex them to make sure they are the actual sex that they were sold to you. Just remembering my own experience of Scooch having a litter (of seven kits:shock Four months ago to her brother thanks to petshops getting her sex wrong.
Please get your buns re-sexed by a rabbit-savvy vet.
Most petshops out there don't have the fainest clue, they normally just go by what the breeder has told them (this is what happened with mine). Even though we've kept all the babies we sadly lost one at 3 weeks old most likely from some genetic disorder from being inbred.
Anyways just wanted an opportunity to warn people.

Just a point to note here. We had an adoption bun in (at PAH) who was pregnant when she came in. She had a litter of 4 and we adopted the babies out. We got a phone call from the gentleman telling us he'd been to the vets and they told him we had mis-sexed his bun. The bun was a boy. It was my dep who dealt with the adoption and she was mortified that she had mis-sexed a rabbit (she has 12 of her own).

The vet the gentleman was using had been and gotten a colleague to come and confirm that the rabbit was female not male so 2 vets sexed this rabbit. They booked the rabbit in for a SPAY.

Before the appointment for the spay, we got him to bring the bun in so we could check our mistake............it turned out the rabbit WAS male and WE had been correct.

If you get your vet to check the sex of your bun, make sure it's a savvy vet!!

kerry-123 · Jul 19, 2009

Lspacehopper said:
Just a point to note here. We had an adoption bun in (at PAH) who was pregnant when she came in. She had a litter of 4 and we adopted the babies out. We got a phone call from the gentleman telling us he'd been to the vets and they told him we had mis-sexed his bun. The bun was a boy. It was my dep who dealt with the adoption and she was mortified that she had mis-sexed a rabbit (she has 12 of her own).

The vet the gentleman was using had been and gotten a colleague to come and confirm that the rabbit was female not male so 2 vets sexed this rabbit. They booked the rabbit in for a SPAY.

Before the appointment for the spay, we got him to bring the bun in so we could check our mistake............it turned out the rabbit WAS male and WE had been correct.

If you get your vet to check the sex of your bun, make sure it's a savvy vet!!

Yeah I used to go to a non-rabbit savvy vet :evil: was a total moron he dealt with one of my guinea pigs once with mites (won't go into the detail, I searched for a better small animal vet and got it sorted) so people should deff look for bunny savvy vets! I think it's a disgrace that there aren't more bunny savvy vets out there I mean look how many people have buns!! :roll:

sidereus7 · Jul 19, 2009

Getting rabbits from rescues in general should help this, as most rabbits that get rescued are past 4 months old. It's hardest to sex a baby rabbit, as male/female can look very similar until a major change. Even my rabbit savvy vet was shocked and apologized profusely for not being able to tell earlier. Testicles can drop on a rabbit between 9 and 16 weeks. I learned this the hard way myself, and now I'm forced to give up one of my rabbits due to a failed male/male bond.

Definitely err on the side of caution if you're uncertain about the sex of your rabbit.

kerry-123 · Jul 19, 2009

sidereus7 said:
Getting rabbits from rescues in general should help this, as most rabbits that get rescued are past 4 months old. It's hardest to sex a baby rabbit, as male/female can look very similar until a major change. Even my rabbit savvy vet was shocked and apologized profusely for not being able to tell earlier. Testicles can drop on a rabbit between 9 and 16 weeks. I learned this the hard way myself, and now I'm forced to give up one of my rabbits due to a failed male/male bond.

Definitely err on the side of caution if you're uncertain about the sex of your rabbit.

Yeah it was more aimed at people who have maybe just got buns from a pethshop and have taken their word for what sex they are. I wish I had some rescue buns

I was convincing my mum to let us adopt a bun, until Scooch had her litter.

honeybunny · Jul 19, 2009

Yep only today I was talking to a lady who had bought a bunny at a small local pet shop..she wanted a doe to go with her boy bun..the man in the shop assured her it was female..he said he had checked them all that morning..

Two days later the lady..who wasn't confident on sexing youngster before...notice what she thought were testicles on this bunny...and yep it was a boy
This particular shop is dreadful and will say whatever sex the shopper wants:evil:

Best option is always go to a rescue

Snowberry · Jul 19, 2009

Strawberry was meant to be female- I got him as a rescue through RU. Both the person who rescued him, her vet and me sexed him as being female. I booked her in for a spay. It wasnt untill she was under the GA that they discovered she was a he!

Turns out Strawberry was a late developing male!

devoted2buns · Jul 19, 2009

this happened to me when i bought my first bunny, I was told I was having 2 females from a pet shop and I was not :shock: I also had 7 babies and a mild heart attack (joke) Learnt allot from then on really -had to. I look back and I was never given any advice on how to look after rabbits, its appauling pet shops can do this, poor rabbits dont stand a chance.

kerry-123 · Jul 19, 2009

Rosie_Rabbit_Rescue said:
this happened to me when i bought my first bunny, I was told I was having 2 females from a pet shop and I was not :shock: I also had 7 babies and a mild heart attack (joke) Learnt allot from then on really -had to. I look back and I was never given any advice on how to look after rabbits, its appauling pet shops can do this, poor rabbits dont stand a chance.

I know! Now some are good I must say but I really don't think pet shops should have the right to sell livestock at times it's just too easy to sell them onto anybody:evil:

The importance of proper sexing (Pet shop buns)

kerry-123

Mama Doe

doorkeeper

Mama Doe

kerry-123

Mama Doe

Lspacehopper

Wise Old Thumper

kerry-123

Mama Doe

sidereus7

Mama Doe

kerry-123

Mama Doe

honeybunny

Wise Old Thumper

Snowberry

Wise Old Thumper

devoted2buns

Mama Doe

kerry-123

Mama Doe

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