Advice after spay

Morning guys,
Well after a couple of months of Ludo spraying everywhere and her making it difficult to be affectionate towards her, we got her spayed yesterday.
I know its better for her in the long run but I feel evil. She is not happy at all bless her. She has eaten little amounts since she came round after surgery but drinking has been minimal. Im going to sit with her in a little while with a bowl of water and see if I can get a bit more in side her. While she was at the vets I cleaned out her hutch and made it all cosy for her. I am now worried that I should have made provisions for her to be inside...... I have a loony three year old and a husband who doesnt know how to talk quiety so I really don't know what to do for the best. The vet said to check on the wound daily.... how? She wants affection but she wont let me pick her up. She growls and boxes me out the way. I really don't want to distress her anymore and I certainly dont want her making sudden movements.
I want my baby girl back! I hope she will forgive me. Ludo is so precious and I only want to do what is best.
Any reassurance and advice for someone who emotionally isn't in a good place anyway at the moment

were you given pain relief to take home? also, not sure if you have done already but you should take out any shavings/hay/straw from the floor of the hutch (obviously make sure she still has hay to eat!) as it can irritate the wound keep tempting her with her favourite foods and herb and hopefully she'll be feeling better soon! when are you back for your post op check?

I felt the same after getting my female speyed...she was in pain and so grumpy. I collected her loads of dandilions/grass/bramble and also got her some herbs...offered her all of her favourite foods. She didn't seem interested in her pellets. I actually ended up syringe feeding her some recovery as well but if Ludo is eating a little on her own I wouldn't worry. Also has she been given any metacam for at home and if so what dose? Make sure her hutch doesn't have sawdust or hay on the floor so it doesn't stick in her wound. A nice fleecy blanket or towel is best.

God no one mentioned no hay, straw or shaving and I haven't been given any pain relief. Right now im really upset, poor little love is probably in agony. Im going to call the vets, I also don't know how im going to check her wound. What the hell have I done sending her to that place x x x

You weren't to know, don't feel so guilty. However, it doesn't sound like your vet is very rabbit savvy if he hasn't mentioned anything about the bedding or given Ludo any pain relief IMO. Where are you? If you post a new thread in Rabbit Chat with something like 'Urgent Rabbit Savvy Vet needed in <location>' then someone may be able to suggest another vet that is more knowledgable?

ETA: was Ludo even given an injection of pain relief after her op? Did the vet mention anything? If not then I'd really recommend insisting that you take her back ASAP or to another vets and get some pain relief for her as soon as you possibly can, as sadly, I'd bet that she will be in pain right now. This isn't your fault though, the vet should have definitely given her some, don't feel guilty x

I think she will feel happier back in her own hutch and we have to take rabbits back on the second day for a check-up. So if you can't handle her it is best not to and wait until tomorrow as dropping her could be more damaging than leaving her be.

I have just had 2 girls spayed. It does take a day or so before they really get their appetite back and it is worrying. Hope she recovers well.

gosh don't feel guilty you weren't to know. I would ring the vets and ask for metacam...also ask them to make sure the dosage is high enough...rabbits need a very high dose as they have a fast metabolism. Also ask them why they don't prescribe pain relief for rabbits after surgery? Its like is having a hysterectomy with no after pain relief. Hope Ludo feels better soon x

I have just spoken to the vet that did the op, feel very foolish as I burst into tears as he got on the phone! He is not happy with the veterinary nurse I dealt with and the phone call way reassuring.

The whole experience was horrible from the word go. When we walked in the nurse said "oh someone's overweight" errr no Ludo is a french lop and she is squashed again the back of her carry cage because she has just come face to face with a dog who barked at her. She then told me i had ruined her teeth because of the type of food I give her. Dont know how she knew that, she didnt look in her mouth.

Anyway the vet said straight off Ludo is very fit and healthy and her teeth are perfect. He said she was given pain relief after the op which should last up to 36 hours. He doesn't like giving pain relief to take home as administering it after a stressful experience doesn't do the bunny any good. He said being on shavings, hay and stray is perfectly ok providing it is fresh and clean. He then asked when my post op check was........ I wasn't given one. Something else to make me upset! He is seeing us at 10am tomorrow and I think someone will be getting a bollocking in the meantime.

definitely don't feel guilty! your vet sound much better than the nurse you saw! but i'm afraid i definitely disagree with him about hay and shavings, bunnies shouldn't have woodshavings anyway as they can cause respiratory problems but after an op they (and hay/straw etc) can stick to the wound and scratch it. we always use carefresh bedding after ops, also oft blankets and towels or vet bed are good. i would also ask for some pain relief when you go back for your post op check, 36 hours is good but i had mufasa on pain relief for a week and for girls the pain is much worse. it's not that stressful to administer as most buns like the taste of it, or will take it when its on a treat :thumb:

glad you feel a bit more hopeful after speaking to the vet....Most vets give you pain relief to take home. I expect the injection she received has worn off as they process it very quickly. Plus I like to always have some metacam in in case of am emergency (they normally sell you a full bottle). Anyway hope she is perking up....has she eaten anything at all?

She had a bit of food and is munching on a bit of hay. I will ask about the pain relief and I wish I could pick her up and bring her in the kitchen for the day. Really dont know how im going to get her in her carry cage in the morning :-/

Your vet does sound a lot nicer than the horrible nurse, but I really don't agree with the shavings being ok, as they could very easily irritate the wound. My vet is 100% rabbit savvy and only sees rabbits. Pippa went in with her partner, who was even held by her until she was asleep because Pippa is a 'special needs' bunny, and then when she woke up the nurse already had Dipsy in place next to her, and he made a really big fuss of her My vet told me to provide towels for their bedding so that it was really soft and wouldn't irritate her wound at all, but she also had a newborn t-shirt put on her, as he said the females worry at their tums more, and this was to stop this happening. Pippa had a long lasting pain killer injection, along with an anti-biotic one and gut stimulant. She had the gut stimulant because apparently females don't tend to start eating again as quickly as the boys do, but having said that Pippa was eating some parsley and nibbling at hay the same night, and drinking ok. She went back for 2 post-op checks and has been absolutely fine with no problems, and the following morning she was eating really well and seemed completely back to normal. I did have to confine her more because I thought she was too active and racing around, binkys etc, and the vet did say to keep her quiet and try to discourage any jumping up onto things, but the only way I could do that was to physically keep putting her back in her enclosure after her and Dipsy had had some time out, as they do free-range during the day. I really would remove shavings and straw as I really think they could irritate her wound and make it very sore

Rather than disturbing her shall I just put a towel down over her normal bedding? Im annoyed that my vets rabbit savvy vet was away. If I had known I would have delayed Ludo having the op. We live in a farming county so there are not many rabbit savvy vets and traveling isn't really an option when you have a three vyear old. Im sure Ludo wuthh be fine in no time. She is a tough cookie and isnt short of love and affection

BeccyTune said:

Rather than disturbing her shall I just put a towel down over her normal bedding? Im annoyed that my vets rabbit savvy vet was away. If I had known I would have delayed Ludo having the op. We live in a farming county so there are not many rabbit savvy vets and traveling isn't really an option when you have a three vyear old. Im sure Ludo wuthh be fine in no time. She is a tough cookie and isnt short of love and affection

Click to expand...

Yes I would just cover the bit where she sits with a towel..she may move it if she doesn't like it so if she does I would just remove it. If she is eating little then I wouldn't worry too much. Can you get her some dandilions and grass to nibble on they seem to like that best when not feeling to well.

It's a big op for a little animal so will take a while for eating and things to get back to normal. Also around 6 weeks for the hormones to die down completely.

Pain relief lasts 24 or 48 hours but they really need some to take home. Doctors don't usually leave women in the hospital bed after a hysterectomy without medication do they?

When you clean her out I would definitely remove the woodshavings altogether, as other people have said they can cause respiratory problems, I certainly wouldn't like to live on them! Newspaper and hay in litter trays is easier, cleaner and better for them or megazorb/auboise/fitch Fitch is very good, a 20kg bale (huge!) for £15 inc delivery, it's basically cheaper carefresh.

Keep hay elevated in hay racks, you could use a towel in the litter tray so you can see what's coming out. I cut up an old litter tray so a big jump wasn't needed to get into it.

Get some treats she likes, herbs, bit of veg or something. Poppy didn't eat anything until 3am after her spay.. I woke up to an empty bowl and poo everywhere.

She had some dandelion leaves this morning. She is dozzing now. She have a big run that attaches to the front of her hutch. Im tempted to put it up so if she wants to venture out she can. She always has access to outside so want to keep things the same. She is on a clean patio so there isnt anything that could get on the wound.

I wouldn't give her a lot of space atm. It could agitate the wound in itself if she binkies and runs around a lot. I kept Lola in a 6 panel puppy pen for 5 days after the issue I had with Poppy.. I increased her space too much too quickly and it went towards her wound opening! So she spent 2 weeks in a small space because of it.

Aly&Poppy<3 said:

It's a big op for a little animal so will take a while for eating and things to get back to normal. Also around 6 weeks for the hormones to die down completely.

Pain relief lasts 24 or 48 hours but they really need some to take home. Doctors don't usually leave women in the hospital bed after a hysterectomy without medication do they?

When you clean her out I would definitely remove the woodshavings altogether, as other people have said they can cause respiratory problems, I certainly wouldn't like to live on them! Newspaper and hay in litter trays is easier, cleaner and better for them or megazorb/auboise/fitch Fitch is very good, a 20kg bale (huge!) for £15 inc delivery, it's basically cheaper carefresh.

Keep hay elevated in hay racks, you could use a towel in the litter tray so you can see what's coming out. I cut up an old litter tray so a big jump wasn't needed to get into it.

Get some treats she likes, herbs, bit of veg or something. Poppy didn't eat anything until 3am after her spay.. I woke up to an empty bowl and poo everywhere.

Click to expand...

Fitch bedding, is that like paper? I take it it doesnt matter if they eat it? Ludo is 15 months and I only started using shavings when the spraying got out of control. Only way I could keep her underneath dry between changes. Any advice is greatly recieved. Thank you

BeccyTune said:

Fitch bedding, is that like paper? I take it it doesnt matter if they eat it? Ludo is 15 months and I only started using shavings when the spraying got out of control. Only way I could keep her underneath dry between changes. Any advice is greatly recieved. Thank you

Click to expand...

It's like care fresh only more absorbent Someone on here uses it and said it's fab but I can't remember who.. As with anything, newspaper, shavings etc, its not amazing if they do eat it. As long as you cover it with hay so they can't get to it, they'd probably ignore it. With anything new mine have always nibbled it to test it, but ignored it afterwards.

I'd just use newspaper and hay, I have a rabbit who drinks nearly 2 bowls of water a day so pees a lot, the newspaper and hay works well for him, very absorbent

I strongly recommend megazorb or something similar. I used to use just straw and newspaper but now use newspaper covered with magazorb and then some straw and have hay in racks above the trays. It means I only have to change the litter trays every 4-5 days rather than each day. I was worried about them eating it but they don't seem to bother plus i cover the megazorb with straw anyway.