Lillabelle getting spayed

[twistedtiggerz69]

So finally Lillabelle is getting spayed. I know it is very late and I feel bad but we have had to cancel it month on month due to money or health issues.

She gets spayed on Thursday so could you please send some vibes for her.

We have got her protective T-shirt ready. We had a few giggles looking up funny pix of dogs and cats in protective suits. Yes we are very childish!

We are going to ask the vet if they would put the suit on Lillabelle while she is recovering as it seems easier plus we are too scared!

Lillabelle is like a cat when she gets scared growling and scratching and kicking as we found out soon enough She bites aswell so gets a bit scary sometimes. She is best handled with 4 paws on the bed which I know is the best way but we do need to half pick her up to check her properly and she hates it still. She is still pretty nervous.

Chief can be picked up to do his bottom etc as he is very laid back. But Lillabelle is pretty good as long as you don't touch her bottom or tummy. And therein lies the problem of putting on her suit. But I assume we will need at least another suit as back up which we will get at the vets probably?

I will be having a read at posts about spaying which I hope are easy enough to find. But if anyone has useful info they wish to add then feel free. I know you need to protect her stitches and she has to stay in a cage for a while which is 8ft by 4ft. Would that be about right or should we make it smaller? It is made of panels so we can change it. She would try and jump on our bed if we let her out so need to keep her in a cage for now.

I am thinking we keep them both together all the way through her spay process so Chief would need to stay in the cage aswell but we will let him out for a run possibly if he seems like he needs it.

We are steam cleaning the carpet and we have lots of sheets and blankets we can put on thefloor. We keep hay and water on a large tray which has room to lie on. Should we cover that aswell so Lillabelle does not lie on it. I am thinking she will need a soft floor?

And yes could you please send plenty of vibes for Lillabelle and pray we can finally get her sorted. Thank you everybun

 

[Omi]

So finally Lillabelle is getting spayed. I know it is very late and I feel bad but we have had to cancel it month on month due to money or health issues.

She gets spayed on Thursday so could you please send some vibes for her.

We have got her protective T-shirt ready. We had a few giggles looking up funny pix of dogs and cats in protective suits. Yes we are very childish!

We are going to ask the vet if they would put the suit on Lillabelle while she is recovering as it seems easier plus we are too scared!

Lillabelle is like a cat when she gets scared growling and scratching and kicking as we found out soon enough She bites aswell so gets a bit scary sometimes. She is best handled with 4 paws on the bed which I know is the best way but we do need to half pick her up to check her properly and she hates it still. She is still pretty nervous.

Chief can be picked up to do his bottom etc as he is very laid back. But Lillabelle is pretty good as long as you don't touch her bottom or tummy. And therein lies the problem of putting on her suit. But I assume we will need at least another suit as back up which we will get at the vets probably.

I will be having a read at posts about spaying which I hope are easy enough to find. But if anyone has useful info they wish to add then feel free. I know you need to protect her stitches and she has to stay in a cage for a while which is 8ft by 4ft. Would that be about right or should we make it smaller? It is made of panels so we can change it. She would try and jump on our bed if we let her out so need to keep her in a cage for now.

I am thinking we keep them both together all the way through her spay process so Chief would need to stsy in the cage aswell but we will let him out for a run possibly if he seems like he needs it.

We are steam cleaning the carpet and we have lots of sheets and blankets we can put on thefloor. We keep hay and water on a large tray which has room to lie on. Should we cover that aswell so Lillabelle does not lie on it. I am thinking she will need a soft floor?

And yes could you please send plenty of vibes for Lillabelle and pray we can finally get her sorted. Thank you everybun

Firstly, sending loads of vibes for her and really hope it all goes well, plus that her recovery is uneventful.

When I had Tui spayed, I didn't put any protection on her wound and she never attempted to touch it. In fact, I do wonder whether she would have been more disturbed by having a Tshirt on. I also did not attempt to pick her up to examine the wound, as it was possible to do that quite well when she was lying on her side. I kept them together the whole time and made no adjustment to their living accommodation, apart from locking them in their shed (8ft x 6ft) for the first 5 days until she had her review appointment with the vet, who said she could then run about more if she wanted to. I think you'll find that for the first 24 hours at least, she will be pretty zonked out from the GA and operation. I don't think that Tui moved very much at all during that time.

One thing to watch out for is whether she is eating. Tui didn't eat for the first day and I was on the point of starting to syringe-feed her, but suddenly it was like turning a switch and she started to eat and drink normally.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

She also keeps humping Mischief and up til now he has not been bothered by it at all but suddenly she has started humping his head more and biting his fur. We often see white fur dotted about. He hss taken offence by this and they do a frantic circling each other and then she breaks awa and he chases her. He growls aswell.
It usually happens around 2am so we are having to stay awake so I can break it up with a broom if they chase each other too long. I know this is a sign that Lillabelle or even Mischief could get hurt plus it's not fair on either of them. I am so relieved she is getting done soon.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Firstly, sending loads of vibes for her and really hope it all goes well, plus that her recovery is uneventful.

When I had Tui spayed, I didn't put any protection on her wound and she never attempted to touch it. In fact, I do wonder whether she would have been more disturbed by having a Tshirt on. I also did not attempt to pick her up to examine the wound, as it was possible to do that quite well when she was lying on her side. I kept them together the whole time and made no adjustment to their living accommodation, apart from locking them in their shed (8ft x 6ft) for the first 5 days until she had her review appointment with the vet, who said she could then run about more if she wanted to. I think you'll find that for the first 24 hours at least, she will be pretty zonked out from the GA and operation. I don't think that Tui moved very much at all during that time.

One thing to watch out for is whether she is eating. Tui didn't eat for the first day and I was on the point of starting to syringe-feed her, but suddenly it was like turning a switch and she started to eat and drink normally.

Thank you. I am nervous as I read that a bun that got spayed got an infection chewing her stitches and died overnight before they could take her to the vets ☹❤

I totally get what you are saying about the T-shirt disturbing Tui more. We are concerned she will hate it and chew it to bits anyway. We are now wondering whether to use a T-shirt at all now? Especially while she is recovering from a GA. I think she should be allowed to recover as comfortably
as possible.

Lillabelle hardly ever flops on her side though. She is always a little nervous of us when sleeping and tends to sleep in a sphinx position. Her having a T-shirt on would make it even harder to check her stitches then. So I think we will try without the T-shirt to start with. Thank you Omi for your help. We want this op to be as unstressful as possible for her.

I remember Chief was out of it for a good few hours after he was neutered. And I assume the recovery would take longer for a doe as the operation is a bit longer? I'm assuming here though so if I am wrong please feel free to say everybun.

We have some new extra large syringes for feeds left over from when we had to syringe feed Mischief and some small ones for pain relief. We also have powder from the bottom of an Excel bag still for syringe feeds and will get bananas to mash in it as she loves those. Would we be better off getting some recovery feed in though? We have always used Excel and Banana for Mischief.

We are hoping she will eat on her own. We will get some fresh herbs to entice her to eat plus her usual greens, curly kale, Cavolo Nero and spinach. And other fresh veggies aswell. Plus her usual pellets and hay.

We are going to steam clean everything btw like toys and chews. We will get it all done while buns are at the vets for the day.

We will also send them a packed lunch with them for the vets. I assume she will recover seperately from Chief so there will be food to help her start eating without Chief eating it all

Thank you for your post on Tui. It was very helpful Omi

 

[InspectorMorse]

Make sure you are provided with at least 5 days of analgesia to give her after the spay

she will need to be prevented from jumping up onto high surfaces or charging around too much for the first 7-10;days

She should be eating a little for herself, passing poo and wee BEFORE being discharged home

This should continue and improve. If it doesn’t you need to contact a Vet immediately as additional meds are likely to be needed (prokinetics)

Her surgical wound will need to be checked twice a day. If should remain clean and dry with no swellings.

There is no reason to separate a bonded pair, except in exceptional circumstances such as signs of aggression.

Neutering – Castration and Spaying

Discover the importance of neutering, castration, and spaying for your rabbit's health and welfare with RWAF's expert guide.

rabbitwelfare.co.uk

sending lots of vibes for her

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Make sure you are provided with at least 5 days of analgesia to give her after the spay

she will need to be prevented from jumping up onto high surfaces or charging around too much for the first 7-10;days

She should be eating a little for herself, passing poo and wee BEFORE being discharged home

This should continue and improve. If it doesn’t you need to contact a Vet immediately as additional meds are likely to be needed (prokinetics)

Her surgical wound will need to be checked twice a day. If should remain clean and dry with no swellings.

There is no reason to separate a bonded pair, except in exceptional circumstances such as signs of aggression.

Neutering – Castration and Spaying

Discover the importance of neutering, castration, and spaying for your rabbit's health and welfare with RWAF's expert guide.

rabbitwelfare.co.uk

sending lots of vibes for her

By analgesia do you mean something like Metacam? They do include the cost of that in the spay but I don't know how many days they give you yet. I have had discussions with the vet about how much to give a bun but they seem to disagree with my idea that buns need more than dogs and cats. I will be dealing with the most rabbit savvy vet in the practice so I hope he agrees with me as in they need more.

I am worried her stitches will stay clean and dry. We think maybe giving them their dry herbs on their tray as usual will make too much mess so we are limiting it to dry dandelion leaves and plantain (as least dusty) and just putting them in a heavy pyrex dish. We always put their water on their tray with a tea towel under it in case of spillage. We will put a small towel under it for now so the sheets/ towels will stay completely dry. And we will cover their tray (where their litter trays, hay and water are) and their sleeping area with a sheet plus have towels and blankets around. We will change all the bed linen daily plus steam clean their litter trays and everything in their cage.

I am unsure whether to use a t-shirt on her. Do some people use them? It says up to 5.5 kg and she is 5.1 kg and her fur is thick and soft but deceptively thick so I am concerned it would be a bit tight. Our vets said they would order some in extra large for us but I guess they would be the same. I worry should we use the t-shirt or do most people trial without a t-shirt first? Can buns reach their stitches easily?

We are going to keep her in the cage until the vet says she is fine to run around. She will just jump up on the bed otherwise.

Yes we are mindful she needs to keep eating and to syringe feed her if she does not start to eat. I am thinking leave syringe feeding until the morning but check how she is waking up from the anaesthetic and take advice from the vets aswell. I realise they take a while to wake up but we will leave plenty of food choices around her and encourage her to eat. I will probably end up staying awake until I am sure she is eating and drinking by herself anyway. I won't be able to sleep.

Yes we will keep them together in the 4ft by 8ft cage which we know just fits in our bedroom perfectly.

Thank you for the vibes. I will read your link about neutering now. Thank you. Makes my life much easier x

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Sorry everybun for my essays! I will try to be briefer!

 

[Shimmer]

I've never used a tshirt after a rabbit spay. They usually leave the area alone, and it makes it much easier to check on it if it's not covered.
I would keep things as normal as possible at home to reduce stress, although I tend to find it's more difficult to stop them jumping etc than I anticipated.
Fresh dandelions and grass usually go down well to get them to eat again after anaesthetic, but having something syringeable to hand is always a good idea.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I just thought...we usually use wood pellets for litter and we cover the litter with a layer of hay as it seems to stop Mischief standing and sitting in poop or getting it on his legs!

A few times a day I check the hay and shake any poops into the litter tray. Then I add another layer of hay. We give them hay to eat in hanging bags. Phil changes the hay in the litter trays morning and night time so they do not eat soiled hay plus changes the litter every evening. This is the only way we have tried where Mischief does not get dirty. He lies in the litter tray every day as the hay is soft so we have to keep it as clean as possible.

But now I am thinking Lillabelle has to be kept clean. Would lying on hay be a bad idea? I am thinking it could poke hay into her stitches maybe? Should I just use wood litter and change it a few times a day?

 

[InspectorMorse]

The sutures should not be visible, wound should resemble this

yes, by analgesia I mean Meloxicam (Metacam)

I have only used a post spay T- Shirt on 1 Doe, Never as standard post op care though.

info on meloxicam for Rabbits

Drug Focus: Meloxicam

Read Richard Saunders' Meloxicam Focus Piece today. Explore Dosage, Uses, Risks and more.

rabbitwelfare.co.uk

Meloxicam as analgesic for rabbits

Imagine this clinical scenario: you create an analgesic protocol for your clinic to ensure rabbits entering your care receive the best treatment available. Your research indicates meloxicam is the analgesic of choice as in comparison to opioids it has a reduced risk of gut stasis, which is a...

www.veterinary-practice.com

https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/document-library/comparison-of-02-mgkg-vs-10-mgkg-of-oral-meloxicam-for-safe-and/comparison-of-...-oral-meloxicam-for-safe-and-effective-analgesia-in-domestic-rabbits..pdf

use towels for bedding, will just mean extra laundry for a few days



sorry brief post, in a huge amount of pain and on morphine so seeing double

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

sorry brief post, in a huge amount of pain and on morphine so seeing double

ditto...sorry I will have to reply tomorrow. Thanks for your input. I am now able to read up on this without having to use the search engine which has me confused. For another day though. Hope you get some sleep tonight

 

[bunny momma]

Sending lots of positive vibes for Lillabelle's spay.

My does did not wear a t shirt after their spays. My vet used layers of stitches that dissolve inside and surgical glue on the surface, so there were no stitches to pull or remove. I still needed to watch she did not chew her incision. I wonder if the surgical glue acted like a barrier to keep germs out of the incision. Licking a lot may indicate pain or discomfort.

They were very groggy from the ga after their spays. You are right that spays are more invasive than male neuters. Mine nibbled a little food, yet did not each much the first night, so I monitored them to verify they were still passing some poo.

They had a moderately high dose of Medicam for several days.
.
You are correct that the dosage for bunnies is not the same as dogs or cats, so I do not use the pound measures on the dosing syringe that comes with dog Medicam. My vet calculates the dosage in mg and then converts it to the ml to give ( or with my bunnies the fractions of ml) based on the number of mg per ml in the liquid medicine.

Hydration is important too. So make sure she is well hydrated when vet sends her home.

She will need a warm area to recover which should not be a big issue in a cage in your bedroom at this time of year.

Her regular pellet powder should be fine for syringe feeds if they become necessary.

My does were not bonded when they were spayed, so I removed the litterbox entirely so she would not trip hopping in or out until GA wore off. I used towels and fleeces and just shook off loose hay and poos and laundered them. Puppy pads, disposable or washable may help.

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I've never used a tshirt after a rabbit spay. They usually leave the area alone, and it makes it much easier to check on it if it's not covered.
I would keep things as normal as possible at home to reduce stress, although I tend to find it's more difficult to stop them jumping etc than I anticipated.
Fresh dandelions and grass usually go down well to get them to eat again after anaesthetic, but having something syringeable to hand is always a good idea.

Thank you
It seems to be the go to. I wasn't questioning any advice given by Omi btw. I just wanted advice for Lillabelle x

The sutures should not be visible, wound should resemble this View attachment 1664

yes, by analgesia I mean Meloxicam (Metacam)

I have only used a post spay T- Shirt on 1 Doe, Never as standard post op care though.

info on meloxicam for Rabbits

Drug Focus: Meloxicam

Read Richard Saunders' Meloxicam Focus Piece today. Explore Dosage, Uses, Risks and more.

rabbitwelfare.co.uk

Meloxicam as analgesic for rabbits

Imagine this clinical scenario: you create an analgesic protocol for your clinic to ensure rabbits entering your care receive the best treatment available. Your research indicates meloxicam is the analgesic of choice as in comparison to opioids it has a reduced risk of gut stasis, which is a...

www.veterinary-practice.com

https://knowledge.rcvs.org.uk/document-library/comparison-of-02-mgkg-vs-10-mgkg-of-oral-meloxicam-for-safe-and/comparison-of-...-oral-meloxicam-for-safe-and-effective-analgesia-in-domestic-rabbits..pdf

use towels for bedding, will just mean extra laundry for a few days



sorry brief post, in a huge amount of pain and on morphine so seeing double

Thanks for the info. I have read it all and it was very interesting. I will try and get her the higher Metacam dose of 1mg/kg

 

[tonibun]

I am having a girl spayed today so know exactly how you feel. It never gets easier!

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

Sending lots of positive vibes for Lillabelle's spay.

My does did not wear a t shirt after their spays. My vet used layers of stitches that dissolve inside and surgical glue on the surface, so there were no stitches to pull or remove. I still needed to watch she did not chew her incision. I wonder if the surgical glue acted like a barrier to keep germs out of the incision. Licking a lot may indicate pain or discomfort.

They were very groggy from the ga after their spays. You are right that spays are more invasive than male neuters. Mine nibbled a little food, yet did not each much the first night, so I monitored them to verify they were still passing some poo.

They had a moderately high dose of Medicam for several days.
.
You are correct that the dosage for bunnies is not the same as dogs or cats, so I do not use the pound measures on the dosing syringe that comes with dog Medicam. My vet calculates the dosage in mg and then converts it to the ml to give ( or with my bunnies the fractions of ml) based on the number of mg per ml in the liquid medicine.

Hydration is important too. So make sure she is well hydrated when vet sends her home.

She will need a warm area to recover which should not be a big issue in a cage in your bedroom at this time of year.

Her regular pellet powder should be fine for syringe feeds if they become necessary.

My does were not bonded when they were spayed, so I removed the litterbox entirely so she would not trip hopping in or out until GA wore off. I used towels and fleeces and just shook off loose hay and poos and laundered them. Puppy pads, disposable or washable may help.

Thank you for your post. I agree with everything you say. It sounds like your vet knew what to do. I will ask my vet about sutures.

We do have large pads for on the sofa from when my granddaughter stays overnight. She doesn't really need them anymore and I think they will be perfect. How do I encourage her to use it instead of the litter tray please?

As Jane said aswell, I need vet to give higher dose so will ask vet before procedure. He is their main vet for bunnies and the receptionist said he was very good. I will know for sure when I ask him questions. I will ask him for the higher dosage of Metacam and hopefully he will agree it is needed.

I realise she needs to be hydrated and will ask for an additional saline if they feel she needs it during the op.

I feel more knowledgeable after reading those posts. Thank you everybun for your advice

 

[Omi]

Thank you
It seems to be the go to. I wasn't questioning any advice given by Omi btw. I just wanted advice for Lillabelle x

Thanks for the info. I have read it all and it was very interesting. I will try and get her the higher Metacam dose of 1mg/kg

I didn't read it as you questioning my advice based on my experience with Tui. I, too, would want to get very many different opinions before feeling reassured. It's also to be expected that our experience might not be in accordance with that of others. But regarding the Tshirt it appears it is.

Yes, we also had 5 days of Metacam for Tui, which she had until her post-op check at 5 days

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I am having a girl spayed today so know exactly how you feel. It never gets easier!

Best of luck today. Sending you nose bumps from the mob

 

[twistedtiggerz69]

I didn't read it as you questioning my advice based on my experience with Tui. I, too, would want to get very many different opinions before feeling reassured. It's also to be expected that our experience might not be in accordance with that of others. But regarding the Tshirt it appears it is.

Yes, we also had 5 days of Metacam for Tui, which she had until her post-op check at 5 days

I'm glad you understand why I ask those questions. Everybun is different but you all seem to have the same advice which makes me feel more assured. I'm relieved we probably don't have to put the t-shirt on her aswell although my OH said what a waste of £18 x

 

[KCG]

I'm sending a lot of energy for Lillabelle, I hope everything goes well and I want to see her in her clothes

 

[Omi]

Sending lots of vibes for your girl having her spay today, tonibun. And topping up the vibes for Lillabelle for tomorrow.

I hope both their operations go well and that they also both make speedy and uneventful recoveries.