castration advice

hi:wave:
so steve is booked in for his castration on friday! the vet said that the cost was £53 and included a follow up appointment and pain killers. i thought that that wasa reasonable price, anyhoo.....

ive been given a care sheet type thing, and it says that he should stay inside for the first night, and not be kept on his usual hay bedding.

so, here are a few more questions!

what type of bedding do i give him? will shreaded paper be ok?

obviously he is going to be in pain. do you suggest i ask for something i can give him at home?

and ive got to pack him a lunch box! what do i include? just the dry stuff or hay and dry stuff? some veggies?

CONFUSED!

:wave: Had my rabbit castrated a couple of years ago now! Hope all goes well I'm not an expert but I think just keep him on newspaper for a while. In your post you say the price includes pain killers:? so as long as your vet is rabbit savvy they should give him the right meds.
You can ask your vet if you can give some more at home, they will know whats best.
The packed lunch box is just the normal food he gets at home. So whatever you feed him I suppose.
On the staying in at night, my rabbit lives indoors but I know that putting a rabbit outside after being indoors can have a bad effect on rabbits. Especially as it is getting colder. Maybe post a different thread in "rabbit chat" to ask this as I'm not entirely sure. Anyway you can always call your vet and ask advice as they should know more than me!

If you can get hold of a piece of veterinary bedding (Vet bed) between now and when he comes home that would do nicely for his recovery Or you could use a soft fleecey blanket or some old towels - anything like that is perfect. I woud also recommend a special bunny heat pad (Snugglesafe) or you can also use a hot water bottle or simply some litre bottles filled with hot water so he can lie next to them. Post-op rabbits find heat control tricky. This means he also won't be able to respond if it is too hot - so make sure nothing boiling.

If he's an outdoor bun normally then as long as he's back out again by the end of the wknd or next week (whilst still Autumnal enough) provided he is well enough, then he should be ok. The problem rabbits have is with sudden changes in temperature due to coat growth dependent on the environment they are living in and used to - i.e. they can overheat or freeze. However, post-op buns can't maintain heat so on this occasion being inside even though he is an outdoor bun normally will be fine.

Yes I would ask to take some oral pain relief home with you in the event that he doesn't eat within 8-12 hours post-op. Or the next day. I would also take home some critical care/recovery powder mix (for syringe feeding in an emergency) and some fibreplex or another probiotic. Better to be prepared in advance - but am sure it will all go swimmingly.

Packed lunch - his normal pellets, normal hay, and anything else he likes a lot - special veggies, herbs, bit of fruit - anything that will encourage him to eat when he comes round from the GA. Meanwhile I would stock up at home on some fresh herbs like basil, coriander, mint etc for when you pick him up in case he is off his usual food. Herbs seem to invigorate an appetite quite well. I would also buy a bottle of infacol/gripe water and perhaps a box of herbal tea (fennel/nettle/peppermint) just in case - like I say it is best to be prepared. If all ok then you can have a soothing cup of tea instead to relax!

After operations I have kept mine on vetbed or soft towels and just lined their litter tray with newspaper I have also kept mine in a few days. We have a small bathroom downstairs which we use for the buns if they are recovering, its small enough that they can't run about too much but have room to hop around a little. Like Hancy said its not a good idea for a bun to go from a warm house to being cold outside so maybe just keep the heating off and window open if possible Then use a snugglesafe when he goes back outside

Just take in food he usually gets at home, mine went in with pellets, spring greens and hay cakes

They should give him painkiller before he comes home, it was so long ago now I can't remember if mine came home with any. Just ask when you drop him off

Good luck, I am sure everything will be ok my lad recovered so quickly he was back to himself in a few hours x

Oh just seen you said Friday! :? Er...well in that case you'd better check they have someone in on Saturday and Sundays or a good emergency vet just in case. :wave:

prettylupin said:

Oh just seen you said Friday! :? Er...well in that case you'd better check they have someone in on Saturday and Sundays or a good emergency vet just in case. :wave:

Click to expand...

Yeah thats a very good idea just incase

ooooooh i never thought of he over weekend part!

thankyou fo all the advice i have written it all down!

"In your post you say the price includes pain killers so as long as your vet is rabbit savvy they should give him the right meds." (sorry i dont know how to quote.)

yeah when i called and enquired about it the receptionist said the price, and i followed up with what type of care did that include? she told e about the vet checks and after apointment and then said painkillers are included as well....

that does seem a bit strange now actually. will check up on that, dont want him in pain!