worried U/D eating and drinking

gem and poppy was spayed yesterday, they ate and drank at the vets, but i carn't tempt them to eat anything at home, got all their fav herbs, carrot, broc/cauli spring greens i've even treid cucumber but they just wont have a nibble, they have had a tiny drink of cooled boiled water but the only way i could get them to have that was off a spoon, please am i over reacting just want them to eat, i've even tried mushed up pellets

Firstly, do you have pain relief for them? They are very sore after the op and will not eat if the pain is too bad.

They do take a while to start to nibble after spays but they should be at least trying by now. Leave some favourites with them and just let them be nice and quiet and rest. If they are still not eating by morning then they will need to go bak to the vet for a check up.

thank you for replying, yes i've got matacam for them, the nurse said they had an painkiller injection, it's supposed to last 24 hours they have a post-op appointment tomorrow or should i say this afternoon

The painkiller is vital. Are they indoor or outdoor buns? It's important they stay warm after a GA although this is tricky as you don't want outdoor buns to get too used to the warmth. Hopefully they're eating this morning but if not you should take them back to check there's no hernia, for example. Certainly girls take longer to recover than boys. Are they in their normal surroundings? One of my outdoor buns refused to eat indoors post-spay but I let her out and she started eating immediately. :roll: Do stay in touch with the vets.

maggiebuns said:

thank you for replying, yes i've got matacam for them, the nurse said they had an painkiller injection, it's supposed to last 24 hours they have a post-op appointment tomorrow or should i say this afternoon

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I've rarely seen a '24 hour' pain killer actually last 24 hours - rabbits metabolise metacam and other meds so much quicker, which is why they can take higher doses than other animals and are often given pain medication aimed for dogs at a higher dose.

It may be they are both hurting - when are you due to give them the pain relief?

It may be worth consulting the vet to find out if you can give it early, as the spay could really be making them very sore.

Vibes for them both

thank you, i rang the emergancy vet in the end as they were both tooth grinding, gave them a dose of metacam each, they have both had a little drink of cooled boiled water off the spoon and a sprig of parsley soaked in water, they have their follow up app. this afternoon, will ask if they can have another painkiller injection then i've got 2 days supply of metacam at home. tinsel they are indoor buns, thank you all for your advice its much apperciated

Glad they have picked up a bit. Poppy didnt eat for a good 24-48hrs after her op & wasnt really back to her normal eating pattern for a good week. Although far from ideal she was fine, I was worried sick at the time but it is a big op & i know I certainly wouldnt fancy eating straight afterwards if it was me.

Bless them, hope they are picking up a bit now

Sending vibes for them. Try not to let them see how worried you are as bunnies sometimes pick up on our feelings. I hope they are doing a bit better by now. xxx

I'm waiting for a bun to start nomming again after a neuter too, it's so worrying isn't it Hope Gem and Poppy start to feel better soon. Sending lots of vibes xx

thank you not long got back from vets, nurse is really pleased with them, the wounds are really clean, told her my concerns more poppy than gem, she said no 2 buns are the same, it might be that poppy's feeling it more than gem, she said to carry on tempting them with their fav. foods dosn't matter how much they have as long as they have something to keep the gut working and she wants to see them again on saturday just to check the eating, if poppys still being faddy she going to show me how to seringe feed her but she said poppy looks bright in herself, not to concerned now about gem she,s had nearly half a packet of flat parsley this afternoon and she's been hopping about the pen more,
susie you are probably right about them picking up on my feelings, 3 o'clock this morning i was sitting in poppys pen trying to get her to eat but she just kept nudgeing my hand away i got upset going to mush some pellets up in a bit and see if i can tempt them to have some, they've got peppers, spring greens and parsley that the moment but i've just left them alone to let them settle back down after the vets.
helen i hope your bun starts nomming soon, sending yours recovery vibes

just a little update on gem and poppy,

vet nurse pleased with them, wounds are healing well and they look quite bright in themselves, gem is eating veg and hay but not pellets and i'm having to seringe water into her, poppy is eating a little hay but not much else she had a few pellets at 2 this morning but then she stopped, having to seringe water into her aswell, now got some critical care to give them, i asked if they could have a little wonder round as they have both been trying to dig out the pens, nurse said yes as long as they don't jump on the furniture. they are not used to been penned for any lengh of time so i am hoping that with a wonder round they might just start eating a bit more by themselves, they got to go back tuesday to be checked again and see if the eating and drinking is any better, i'm so so tired, not been to bed since wednesday night as every few hours i'm trying to get them to eat, i have found they will eat the parsley soaked in water but only if i hand feed them i know having them spayed was the best thing for them, it just seems as though its taking ages for them to feel better

oh and sorry can i just wish you all a happy new year xxxx

Good to see an update on the girls. It is quite a big op for girls, and some do take longer than others to recover. I hope you have more normal eating soon though.

Sending you and the bunnies best wishes for a happy and healthy 2019. :wave:

Hope they're better still this evening. Returning to their normal routine should help but it's always a worry until they eat properly. Probably after another night's sleep you'l see a big improvement...do keep us updated! And Happy New Year :wave:

Tinsel said:

Hope they're better still this evening. Returning to their normal routine should help but it's always a worry until they eat properly. Probably after another night's sleep you'l see a big improvement...do keep us updated! And Happy New Year :wave:

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thank you so much, after 20 mins of running round last night they both really perked up, left them last night with a dish of veg, dish of pellets and water bowl, went in this morning gem bless her was sitting in her pen when she saw me she head binkyed,i looked in her bowls all three were empty, filled her water back up, gave her her pellets she dived straight into them, poppy had eaten most of her pellets, a bit of veg and drank half a bowl of water, the've both been out this morning for half an hour, about to lose them out again, also caught gem trying to groom poppys ear through the divider, i am so happy, thank you all for your good wishes and advice

Aw great to hear they're properly on the mend. :wave: