Sorry - more spay questions! Prevention of stitch chewing/pulling

Hey all,

Our vets used staples and glue to seal the wound after Valentine's spay yesterday (I stupidly didn't ask beforehand whether they would do intradermal stiches ).

I am now getting pretty worried about the possibility of her pulling/chewing on the staples, and have a couple of questions...

Firstly, I realise that if she does at any point start to pull her staples or aggravate the wound in any way, that we will need to get to her to the vets immediately. Should this become less of a worry as the wound starts to heal? or will she be more likely to chew on the wound as she starts to feel better and it gets itchy? I'm trying to figure out how closely I will need to watch her over the next week or so. I have not booked any time off work next week at the moment, but am now wondering whether I should ask to work from home or take holiday to make sure I can watch her throughout the whole day rather than just in the morning/lunchtime/evening and overnight.

Secondly, I have read in a few places about wrapping bandages around the abdomen to prevent rabbits from chewing on/aggravating the wound. Does anyone have any advice on when to start doing this (if at all)? Should I wait a while, or is it best to do this straight away to be sure that she cannot get to the staples? Don't want to cause her any more stress than is necessary by wrapping her up if she doesn't need it :?

Hmm, feeling a little confused about what is best, and would really appreciate any advice!

ask about a collar,[Daisy had a real go at her stitches when she was spayed and she had to have a 2nd op to restitch her and get rid of necrotic tissue].She had to have a collar for 12 weeks-bunnies hate them but she had to have it.My vet now offers a collar after spays /castrations.

Buster collars in my opinion should only be used in rabbits as a LAST resort, and alternative options should be pursued first such as abdominal wraps using vet wrap or elastoplast sticky wrap if bunny starts to chew stitches and pull them out. Buster collars make it very difficult for bun to access caecotrophs and water/food and the risk of dehydration and anorexia post-op which is already a risk due to GA and pain is high.
If Buster collars are to be used they should be removed for several hours a day under supervision to make sure bun doesn't chew stitches and to allow bunny to access caecotrophs and water bottle/bowl. Please use with caution.

Wigs said:

Does anyone have any advice on when to start doing this (if at all)? Should I wait a while, or is it best to do this straight away to be sure that she cannot get to the staples? Don't want to cause her any more stress than is necessary by wrapping her up if she doesn't need it :?

Hmm, feeling a little confused about what is best, and would really appreciate any advice!

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I would just wait and see for now how she goes! Try not to worry too much, I would not leave her all day unsupervised however. Wounds tend to get itchy around day 2 or 3 and when bun is more alert post GA.

Thanks for the replies. Sorry to hear that Daisy went through such an ordeal - that must have been horrible. Though to be honest, I wouldn't use a collar unless there was no other alternative and we had already tried the ab wrap. She hasn't shown a huge amount of interest in the wound yet, so feel that it would be a lot of unnecessary stress for her (and me)!

She is definitely a lot perkier today, so will keep a close eye on her for the next couple of days to see if she starts to show more interest in the wound/staples. I do have a supply of bandages on hand, so will try the abdominal wrap if she does start to chew on them. Will wait and see (and keep my fingers crossed!) for the time being though