Help please - recovery time after anesthetic for dental?

Hi
My little girl has been in for a minor dental today to file down some spurs on her back molars. She was spayed and had a dental before I adopted her, so this is the first operation she has had under my care. The dental was finished at around 1.15 and they asked me collect her at 4pm to give time for her to come round. However she is still extremely drowsy, she could hardly walk when she came out of her carrier and has hardly moved since then. She is just not "with-it" - she's just sitting with her head on the floor.

I don't know if I'm worrying unnecessarily - if it's normal for the anesthetic to take so long to wear off? They've given me a post-op care sheet which says she may still appear drowsy and that these signs may persist up to 48 hours. They've also asked me to take her back in two days for a post-op check up. I asked if that was because of a problem, but they said that it's just routine. However, I've taken my cats in for dentals in the past and don't remember post-op check ups for them. Is it different for rabbits?

On my receipt there's a long list of drugs given, which I know includes painkiller, gut stimulant and the anesthetic, but it does seem a lot for a minor dental. It was itemised as follows:

Sedate Rabbit
Alvegesic 10MG/ML
Atipam Injection
Vetalar 100mg
Sedator Injection
Carprieve Injection
Metoclopromide Injection
Dental Exotic (Minor)

Does anyone with experience of rabbit dentals think I should be worried, or is it normal for her to take so long to come round from the anesthetic?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Most of mine return back not too dissimilar from how I dropped the off, but I did have one guy who was ultra sensitive to the GA and took 3 days to come round. I've never seen anything like with him, but it woke me up to a bit more of what they go through.

The most important thing is to get her eating and drinking (with your help if necessary) to help her metabolise the GA.

I would also note this all down and make sure your vet knows and it goes on her records so that they can be aware of this next time. With my guy, Dusk, whenever he needs one now he gets a much more reduced dose which works much better for him

I am very surprised that she has been discharged if she is as drowsy as she sounds :?

Does she feel unusually cold ?

Has she passed any poo or wee ?

Thanks for the replies.

She hasn't done any poos or wees as far as I'm aware. She seems a bit more steady on her feet but is still just sitting staring blankly like she's not "all there".

I couldn't tell she was so bad when I picked her up from the vets her eyes are wide open so she didn't appear to be particularly drowsy as such. I just thought she was still a bit scared from the vet trip.

I've tried tempting her with some of her favourite veggies and herbs but she's not at all interested - I tried to get her to respond by touching her face gently with them, but she didn't respond at all. I have some Critical Care in, so can try her with that.

hellsbells65 said:

Thanks for the replies.

She hasn't done any poos or wees as far as I'm aware. She seems a bit more steady on her feet but is still just sitting staring blankly like she's not "all there".

I couldn't tell she was so bad when I picked her up from the vets her eyes are wide open so she didn't appear to be particularly drowsy as such. I just thought she was still a bit scared from the vet trip.

I've tried tempting her with some of her favourite veggies and herbs but she's not at all interested - I tried to get her to respond by touching her face gently with them, but she didn't respond at all. I have some Critical Care in, so can try her with that.

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It sounds as though she is still far too drowsy to be syringe fed. There is a real risk of her aspirating it (choking) if she is still 'out of it'.

Is she indoors ? This is essential. I would provide her with a heatpad too.

Try offering her some water from a bowl.

Yes, she's an indoor bunny, in a centrally heated house. I won't try syringe feeding her unless she gets more alert. She's drunk a little water from a bowl.

Does the list of medication on the receipt seem normal or excessive for a routine dental from your experience?

hellsbells65 said:

Yes, she's an indoor bunny, in a centrally heated house. I won't try syringe feeding her unless she gets more alert.

Does the list of medication on the receipt seem normal or excessive for a routine dental from your experience?

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My Vet uses a different GA protocol which includes a drug given after the procedure to reverse the effects of the GA. The drug is called Antisedan.

http://www.noahcompendium.co.uk/Jan...an_5_mg_ml_Solution_for_Injection/-30286.html

I dont see anything like that on your receipt so maybe that is why your Rabbit is so drowsy :?

Thanks again for replying.
I've rung the vets and been told it's "quite normal" for some animals to take a long time to recover from the anesthetic. They advised me to keep an eye on her, to keep trying to get her to eat and drink, and to take her back in the morning if I'm still concerned.
She had gone into a corner of the room to be alone, but has come out again - possibly for a drink as she was near the water bowl, which I suppose is a good sign. I can't help but worry though.

I've no additional advice but did not want to read and run. I hope she is feeling better soon.

Most of the time my dental bunny comes back fine, sometimes a little sleepy and once came back almost "drunk" looking but was fine around midnight - early hours.

Depending on the relationship you have with her, I have found that with some of mine (the majority, but not all) if I cuddle them, they tend to sleep for maybe 45 mins to an hour and then wake up much more normal.

Is she a bunny that would like a cuddle and get comfort from you?

Sky-O said:

Depending on the relationship you have with her, I have found that with some of mine (the majority, but not all) if I cuddle them, they tend to sleep for maybe 45 mins to an hour and then wake up much more normal.

Is she a bunny that would like a cuddle and get comfort from you?

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She likes to be loved - head rubs, kisses and strokes, but isn't keen on being picked up and cuddled - I usually just get down on the floor with her. I picked her up when she first came home and she just lay in my arms - which she doesn't normally do.

She seems a little more alert now, thankfully, and she's also eaten a small amount of parsley. I think I probably just need to give her time to come around properly - I'm just a bit of a worrier where my animals are concerned.

How are things this morning?

Hows bunny today?

Thanks again for the messages.

She started to improve last night - I knew she was feeling a bit better when she gave me a little nip to tell me to move out of her way and jumped up on the bed where she likes to sit with her boyfriend!

She's still not 100% though - she doesn't appear to be in pain but she still doesn't have her normal appetite. She's just eating a little now and then. The fact that she wants to be with her boyfriend is a good sign, as if she was in pain she would want to be on her own (I've seen her in stasis before). She's asked to be groomed, and has groomed him.

She's not very happy with me though. I got a little bit of tooth purring from her when I stroked her head but mostly she doesn't want much to do with me at the moment - obviously blames me for putting her through all this, and is suspicious of me in case I do it again!

oh dear

Wrong post

Sounds like she is doing much better. Some rabbits in particular (vs cats and dogs) do take longer to come around from anaesthetic, especially if they have been 'chilled'. This can occur during the procedure, particularly if they got wet from the dental equipment (the drills, burrs, descalers etc spray water to prevent them from overheating during use and to minimise friction) or afterwards if they were not kept sufficiently warm (in an incubator, on a heatpad, etc).

Being cold slows their metabolism so it takes a lot longer for the body to break down and remove the anaesthetic drugs from the system. In future I'd keep any bun like this confined and warm until they look much perkier. Essentially they just need to sleep it off somewhere safe and preferably dark until they are steadier.

Antisedan can only be used to reverse certain sedatives, not all, so even if its not used that doesn't mean it should have been.

Your bun might be still a bit slow because she is adjusting to the new feel of her mouth. That should settle over the next 24-48 hrs, which is probably why your vets have a 48hr check, incase they still arent eating/drinking/ pooing/peeing normally.

Yes, she's doing much better now thanks - she's completely recovered from her ordeal. All was okay when we went back to the vets for the post-op check-up yesterday - her appetite was back to normal by yesterday morning. And we're friends again!