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Rabbit cold after spay

chareg96

chareg96

Young Bun
hi everyone, i'm new here but i really need some help. my 6 month old bun called phoebe had her spay yesterday and the vet gave me no aftercare advice at all. i've resorted to google and have had to get everything from there. i'm a new rabbit owner (4 months) so all of this is new to me and i don't know what to do.

she came home yesterday about 3pm and then i put her in a cage so she can't injure herself (she's normally a house bunny). i've lined the cage with newspaper as i read you shouldn't put chippings in or hay in case it infects the incision line. she was quiet as expected after the op, but then about 7pm i went to check on her and noticed she was really cold. so i put a towel in the tumble dryer to warm it up and wrapped her in that which worked for a while. and then i put a hot water bottle in under some towels so she wouldn't burn herself. i went to pets at home this morning as she's still cold and i bought a little bed with a microwavable wheat sack in. she's not sitting on it so she's still a bit chilly. is it because she isn't moving around so much, is that why she's cold? sorry if it's obvious but with being a new owner i just need some reassurance.

also i'm not sure how to check the incision line? what should i be looking for? she has an app tomorrow at the vets where they will check the incision themselves and then they will do another one 10 days after. she doesn't seem to be bothered about the incision but she is licking her back legs a lot to the point where it is visible that the fur is wet. i wasn't told anything by the vet, not told how they stitched her up, to check the wound or anything. they also didn't give me any pain relief because they said they'd given her an injection which lasts 48 hrs, is this normal?

i know rabbits bpm is higher than humans but i can see her belly moving really fast as she breathes, should she be breathing really fast?

sorry for all the questions but i'm just worried about her.

oh and she's been nibbling away at some parsley, basil and timothy hay so all is well there. she doesn't seem to be drinking much from her bowl though.

can someone please just explain what's normal after a female spay please :(
 
I have no advice to offer, since my boy is unneutered, due to health issues. What I can say though, is that you should not hesitate to ring your vet. You trust your friend's life in his hands after all.
 
Hello and welcome. Bunnies can't regulate their own temperature as well as normal after an operation. so this is why she was feeling cold. Normally females are a little slow to eat, especially their pellets but grass or something similar is the first to be eaten. The incision should look dry and pink, not red or swollen. If she is easily picked up you could check it but if she doesn't like being picked up you could hold something high up on order to get her to stand on her back 2 feet so you can have a quick look. Normally everything is fine. Some Vets don't send you home with pain relief and although her injection is meant for 48 hours, rabbits metabolise the analgesia very quickly, so the cover could have ran out and if you feel she is not happy then you could ask your Vet for some Metacam.

She should start taking more of an interest in her food today. :thumb: Well done for being a caring owner!
 
I would ring your vets today. I would tell them that she is cold. I would also query the pain relief that she had, as I have not heard of pain relief injections lasting 48 hours :?

It is good that she is eating something though, as normally rabbits in pain will not eat. Is she weeing and pooing OK. Again this is information to be giving your vet.

I hope you get some reassuring information from your vet.
 
chareg96 said:
hi everyone, i'm new here but i really need some help. my 6 month old bun called phoebe had her spay yesterday and the vet gave me no aftercare advice at all. i've resorted to google and have had to get everything from there. i'm a new rabbit owner (4 months) so all of this is new to me and i don't know what to do.

she came home yesterday about 3pm and then i put her in a cage so she can't injure herself (she's normally a house bunny). i've lined the cage with newspaper as i read you shouldn't put chippings in or hay in case it infects the incision line. she was quiet as expected after the op, but then about 7pm i went to check on her and noticed she was really cold. so i put a towel in the tumble dryer to warm it up and wrapped her in that which worked for a while. and then i put a hot water bottle in under some towels so she wouldn't burn herself. i went to pets at home this morning as she's still cold and i bought a little bed with a microwavable wheat sack in. she's not sitting on it so she's still a bit chilly. is it because she isn't moving around so much, is that why she's cold? sorry if it's obvious but with being a new owner i just need some reassurance.

also i'm not sure how to check the incision line? what should i be looking for? she has an app tomorrow at the vets where they will check the incision themselves and then they will do another one 10 days after. she doesn't seem to be bothered about the incision but she is licking her back legs a lot to the point where it is visible that the fur is wet. i wasn't told anything by the vet, not told how they stitched her up, to check the wound or anything. they also didn't give me any pain relief because they said they'd given her an injection which lasts 48 hrs, is this normal?

i know rabbits bpm is higher than humans but i can see her belly moving really fast as she breathes, should she be breathing really fast?

sorry for all the questions but i'm just worried about her.

oh and she's been nibbling away at some parsley, basil and timothy hay so all is well there. she doesn't seem to be drinking much from her bowl though.

can someone please just explain what's normal after a female spay please :(
Click to expand...

Hello

I am unaware of any pain relief that gives 48 hours cover, so I would call the Vet now and question this. Ask the name of the drug given.

Well done for acting so promptly on the fact that she was/is (?) cold. A GA will lower a Rabbit's blood pressure and make it hard for them to regulate their body temperature.

It's good that she is eating a little. Has she passed any poo ? That is very important and if she has not done so that is another issue that should be raised with your Vet this morning.

The wound should look clean and dry and there should not be a lot of inflammation of the skin around it. The area should not be lumpy either.

It should look something like this :



I would pop an old towel down for her to rest on if all there is down at the moment is the newspaper. Dont worry too much about the lack of drinking at this stage, she probably had additional fluid therapy during/after the GA. Also, she will be getting some water from the parsley and basil.

You may find this useful to read

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/opcare.html

I hope that your Rabbit makes a good recovery xx
 
What's her demeanour like? Is she bright and interested in her surroundings and nibbling food (sorry, I've re-read and see you said she's nibbling) or is she flat and uninterested?

As Tonibun said pain relief won't last for 48 hours so she should ideally have some today especially if she isn't looking bright. If she is in pain she is unlikely to eat and that will cause a lot of new problems, potentially fatal ones so pain relief is essential.

Did your vet issue any instructions about contacting them if you are worried or monitoring her eating behaviour? This is so essential to have.
 
Bunny Buddy said:
What's her demeanour like? Is she bright and interested in her surroundings and nibbling food (sorry, I've re-read and see you said she's nibbling) or is she flat and uninterested?

As Tonibun said pain relief won't last for 48 hours so she should ideally have some today especially if she isn't looking bright. If she is in pain she is unlikely to eat and that will cause a lot of new problems, potentially fatal ones so pain relief is essential.

Did your vet issue any instructions about contacting them if you are worried or monitoring her eating behaviour? This is so essential to have.
Click to expand...

she's very interested in things, she's been tearing up the newspaper and attempting to dig, she's been hopping around the cage at her own pace. i think i'm going to give the vet a ring and write these questions down so that i don't forget! thanks for the advice :) they did say i could call them so i will do that now :)
 
Hello and welcome :)

I too would definately get some painkillers. My Guinea Pig was spayed and, although she had had an injection of painkiller after the op, I was still given Metacam to administer.

She was also cold after her spay, so I put a hot water bottle under a pet carrier that she uses as a bed, together with a blanket over the top. I also held her, wrapped in a blanket, against me for an hour or so to give her my bodily warmth.
 
she is eating fine and also weeing and pooing normally, should i still contact the vet about medication?
 
I'm sorry, but yes, I would still ask about pain relief. Rabbits are very, very good at hiding pain. When I had my 2 girls done, they came home with enough pain relief (to be given orally) for 5 days. It is a major operation for a female rabbit to go through and in my humble opinion she will need pain relief.

Don't let her jump up/stretch/go up ladders for a week if you can. Our girls are outdoor bunnies but on vet advice we had them indoors for 2 whole weeks to make sure they were fully healed before they went back outside and up their ladders again. Err on the side of caution and all that!

I wish you bunny a speedy recovery :)
 
chareg96 said:
hi everyone, i'm new here but i really need some help. my 6 month old bun called phoebe had her spay yesterday and the vet gave me no aftercare advice at all. i've resorted to google and have had to get everything from there. i'm a new rabbit owner (4 months) so all of this is new to me and i don't know what to do.

she came home yesterday about 3pm and then i put her in a cage so she can't injure herself (she's normally a house bunny). i've lined the cage with newspaper as i read you shouldn't put chippings in or hay in case it infects the incision line. she was quiet as expected after the op, but then about 7pm i went to check on her and noticed she was really cold. so i put a towel in the tumble dryer to warm it up and wrapped her in that which worked for a while. and then i put a hot water bottle in under some towels so she wouldn't burn herself. i went to pets at home this morning as she's still cold and i bought a little bed with a microwavable wheat sack in. she's not sitting on it so she's still a bit chilly. is it because she isn't moving around so much, is that why she's cold? sorry if it's obvious but with being a new owner i just need some reassurance.

also i'm not sure how to check the incision line? what should i be looking for? she has an app tomorrow at the vets where they will check the incision themselves and then they will do another one 10 days after. she doesn't seem to be bothered about the incision but she is licking her back legs a lot to the point where it is visible that the fur is wet. i wasn't told anything by the vet, not told how they stitched her up, to check the wound or anything. they also didn't give me any pain relief because they said they'd given her an injection which lasts 48 hrs, is this normal?

i know rabbits bpm is higher than humans but i can see her belly moving really fast as she breathes, should she be breathing really fast?

sorry for all the questions but i'm just worried about her.

oh and she's been nibbling away at some parsley, basil and timothy hay so all is well there. she doesn't seem to be drinking much from her bowl though.

can someone please just explain what's normal after a female spay please :(
Click to expand...

Hello and welcome to the Forum :wave:

Rabbits can often be cold for a day or so after their spay, whether or not they have pain relief. If you haven't already, it might be a good idea to ask your vet about it when you next see them (tomorrow?)

If she's still eating and drinking etc fine, then I should just wait until your vet's appointment and talk then. It will be after hours now anyway ..
 
Thanks for the advice :) I've kept her in her cage inside since she came home. I was wondering how much space I should give her so that she can hop about a bit? Because the cage is only about 3ftx2ft, but we do have an exercise pen which I might attack to the cage so she can hop in and out just for a bit more space. We have a ramp so that she can get in and out without injuring herself :)
 
I think the 3ft cage would be ok as long as she can lay down comfortably and isn't frustrated. Make sure she has some "out" time; attaching a pen to the cage is ideal so she has the option to come out for a wander.
When I had Shadowfax done she was in a 4ft cage but I opened the door for her to come out whenever I was in. Tbh, for the first 3-4 days she barely moved except to eat, drink and poo/pee...however, I think the spay bothered her more than most buns. Pain relief is a MUST so make sure you get plenty.
It took Shadowfax over a week to get over it fully and start eating properly and moving about again. It was even longer before I could put her back in the Wendy house she was in at the time because there was a shelf she would jump up and down from (despite a ramp).
 
Just been to the vet for a check up and everything with the wound is fine. She said there's a little bit of discharge but that's because she used a bit of glue for extra protection. Also I mentioned the pain relief and she said she didn't need any. Even though I asked for some "just in case" she declined. But Phoebe seems fine all in all, she's eating & drinking and hopping about her cage and pen absolutely fine, I know you mentioned rabbits hide pain well but I think as long as she's eating/pooing/weeing normally then everything is ok. I've attached the pen to her cage but I do have concerns that she will try to climb it because it's a metal one from Argos which she has climbed before. I've cut up some idea bags and attached them to the bottom so she has nothing to climb on but the only problem now is that she can't see out of the pen and I don't want her to feel like we're forgetting about her :/ any suggestions?
 
Glad your bun is doing well after her spay. I think the best thing is to be a meany for another couple of days then she can have more space, but not to jump over or onto anything, so if you can arrange more space if you feel she needs it then that should be fine. Lots of bunnies have to recuperate in their hutches so a couple of more days is not a lot for her to endure.
 
chareg96 said:
Just been to the vet for a check up and everything with the wound is fine. She said there's a little bit of discharge but that's because she used a bit of glue for extra protection. Also I mentioned the pain relief and she said she didn't need any. Even though I asked for some "just in case" she declined. But Phoebe seems fine all in all, she's eating & drinking and hopping about her cage and pen absolutely fine, I know you mentioned rabbits hide pain well but I think as long as she's eating/pooing/weeing normally then everything is ok. I've attached the pen to her cage but I do have concerns that she will try to climb it because it's a metal one from Argos which she has climbed before. I've cut up some idea bags and attached them to the bottom so she has nothing to climb on but the only problem now is that she can't see out of the pen and I don't want her to feel like we're forgetting about her :/ any suggestions?
Click to expand...

I agree with tonibun, I would keep her confined. It's not worth risking the complications of her jumping around after a spay - a hernia for example - for the sake of two or three days cooped up :D:
 
i gave her an hour in the pen and now she's back in the cage, can't help but feel bad for her but i know it's for the best and not long term :) at least now we can look forward to getting her a wee buddy to play with!:)
 
can i just say thank you to everyone who's taken the time to reply to me because it's nice to have that reassurance and advice! :)
 
Sounds like you're a very good bunny parent ��

I'm getting my conti female spayed on Tuesday and I've always kept males so this is all really helpful to me too! I'll be sure to keep an eye on her temperature now as nothing I've read before this has mentioned that. This forum is brilliant and people seem really nice.

Wishing your girl a speedy recovery x
 
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