Neutering for $35?

[Thumperina]

The lady who adopted two of our boys just got them neutered. She has a lot of animals and lives in the country. She has a vet who neutered her rabbits for 35 each.... Sounds attractive to me, as I paid 140 (and it was the cheapest in the city!!!). I have one more buck to neuter.
Some details, though, got me worried. This is what she wrote

I held them off of food overnight and took them in at 8:30 this morning. Luckily the vets were not too busy and so were able to do the surgery right away. They won't get fed until later this evening but are allowed water [which they are ignoring]. They are staying in the house overnight just for precaution. They seem to be fine.

I didn't understand if fasting them was her idea or doctor's requirement.
Do you think this animal clinic is worth trying? Of course, I wouldn't keep my bun off food.

 

[Bunnylova4eva]

I really don't like the sound of that whole thing. I like the 35 dollar part, but not the keeping them off food. I'd give the clinic a call and talk to them your self and see what they say when you ask them.

 

[Imbrium]

yeah, definitely find out who the fasting idea came from (her, the actual vet or just a receptionist at the vet's office) - if it came from the vet, I'd stay the heck away. I'd also confirm whether or not they get offered food immediately after the surgery, as they should.

 

[Apebull]

I say call and find out. I got Twigs neutered at a clinic that does rabbits and they (the receptionist) told me no food the night before. I just completely ignored her and fed him like normal. They did have me bring food for him to eat right after. It worked out great and only cost me $55.

Also ask how many rabbits they do. IF they only do a couple a year that would worry me.

 

[MiniLopHop]

I agree that there is a huge difference between the receptionist and the vet telling you that. When I scheduled Sophie for her spay the receptionist said no food, but when I brought her in I checked to make sure she wouldn't be fasted and the vet said, of course not, rabbits should never be without food. The receptionist is just used to saying that for cats and dogs.

I would ask about what kind of anethetics they use. The IV is cheaper, but they have less control. The isoflorine gas is more expensive, but they have much more control during the procedure so they don't have too much or too little based on the individual.

Also, if pain control for after surgery is included? Particularly for females it is very important to have pain control after so they continue eating. We use metacam because it also helps with the swelling.

Sometimes a lower cost is very tempting, but you have to make sure what sort of skill and care they will be getting. Rabbits are exotics, so it can be a little different than cats and dogs.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:yeahthat: Pretty well covered already. That is a great price, but, the fasting doesn't apply to bunnies. Ours went in with their regular hutch so they had all their comforts.

 

[Thumperina]

wow, I wish I could take him with the hutch (but the hutch is rather large and heavy).
Yes, I was thinking about possible difference in anesthesia. As for the surgery itself, is there only one possible way to do it, or there are also variations?

I hope the rabbits didn't die after being without food. I should ask her.
I can't believe that 35 can cover even the materials needed.

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

I'd really be wary of a cheap vet. While some vets do cost less than others, it can be suspicious when one vet charges so much less than others. Many vets are not rabbit savvy and that can be dangerous to the rabbit. Fasting before and after surgery can be deadly for a rabbit, but is common for a dog or cat. I don't know too much of the medical side, but rabbits tend to be more sensitive to drugs, so the vet and techs needs to know what they are doing.
I know someone who went to a cheap vet to get her rabbit neutered. She was told to fast and the rabbit didn't have food for something like 24 hours and only a bit of water. This is what the vet told her to do. I am sure that if she had followed the vets instructions, her rabbit could have died due to an inexperienced owner and a vet who doesn't know rabbits.

Even without the fasting part, I still want a vet I can trust that is competent with rabbits. Willing to do a spay/neuter on a rabbit and knowing what they are doing are 2 different things.
Unless my regular vet was offering some coupon or discount, then I would not just go the cheap route.
A spay or neuter may be a routine surgery, but it is still invasive (more so with spays) and there is always a risk of complications. I'd rather pay more for a good vet than try to save money and have my rabbit die due to a vet who doesn't know what they are doing.

 

[missyscove]

I would definitely double check with any vet whose clinic asked you to fast your rabbit. Yes it's important with cats and dogs, but rabbits physically cannot vomit so it is not a concern with them. Fasting a rabbit for 24 hours sounds like a good way to cause GI stasis problems, especially if there are no post-operative analgesics on board.

 

[Sweetie]

I agree with everyone on here. It sounds like this vet isn't really experienced with rabbits. I would double check with the vet before proceeding.

When I had Sweetie spayed, I had two choices but could only afford one option. My vet truthfully told me that he never done a rabbit spay before, that Sweetie would be his first. He recommended me to another vet, but found out that they were more expensive, so I had to go with my vet because I had the money for my vet. My vet did extensive research before doing Sweetie's spay. I was so nervous and my vet knew it and understood it.

I like a vet that tells the truth to their clients. While $35 is a great deal, check it out thoroughly. If you feel any doubts, don't go through with it.

 

[Thumperina]

I haven't talked to the clinic yet but I got some details from the lady.
First of all, she didn't get any pain meds after the surgery. I guess I can always ask for metacam.

I think they schedule so many surgeries a day and get to them whenever they can during the day. It is a 'walk-in' clinic. No appointments except for procedures and then just what day, not what time. I got lucky because they were able to get right to the boys. Because their prices are so reasonable [and they are really good vets] they get extremely busy sometimes. [Also they close from 11:30 to 1:30 and the doctor's are not there Thursday afternoon]. They have 4 vets.

Still unclear about their experience with rabbits but I don't feel comfortable to ask her (I'll ask them instead)

 

[Imbrium]

boys often don't get sent home with pain meds, I believe, since the procedure isn't very invasive and they get a pain shot that covers the first 24h. it never hurts to get some just in case, though, and it's great to have around in a first aid kit.

 

[Thumperina]

I contacted them through web site form and got a very brief reply from the vet himself that he does neuter but doesn't spay. He asked to call the clinic about other questions I had.
I called. They use isoflorin which is good. When I asked if food can be offered after the surgery she said that normally they don't offer food as owners pick up pets pretty quickly. On the question how often they neuter rabbits she said - for example we neutered two last week, which wasn't informative as this were bunnies I used to own.
I didn't ask who requires to fast. Then, later, I called again to make an appointment. Receptionist told mechanically to give no food since midnight. I didn't feel like arguing or asking anything -- I know not to do this. I guess I will bring my boy and ask there if staff (not receptionist) minds offering my food after the surgery. If they say it can't be done, I will just leave. I also hope to pick him up enough soon, in case they don;t offer food like promised.

I still have a question that is very important - is surgery always done the same way? Is there variations - some more savvy, some not?

 

[MiniLopHop]

The mechanics of a neuter is relatively simple. They make an incision on the scrotum, pull out the testicle, cut, tie off the vasdeferins, and sew or glue shut the incision.

 

[Thumperina]

Thanks!
Got him neutered today for $35.
People in the clinic were nice. I didn't ask about fasting, I just brought my food and hay and they gladly took it with the rabbit. Nobody also told me anything about no food after the surgery so I am figuring out that fasting was just that lady's idea (who adopted two of my bunnies)
While he was there, I remembered that another clinic told me they inject pain killer (metacam?) along with the gas that makes them sleepy (isoflorin?). I asked after the surgery today if they used any injections along with isoflorin. They said no.
My bun looked pretty much OK, but he doesn't eat still. No tooth grinding. Just sitting and not eating.
He touched veggies just a bit, touched the hay. Ate 2 raisins. Is it OK for the first day after the surgery?
I also brought in another male rabbit to cheer up the one who got neutered. But looks like the recently neutered bun avoids his old friend.
I did NOT get any metacam as they said it's not needed.

How long do I keep bun indoors?
How long to limit jumps and running?
How long to keep him separately from females?

 

[Imbrium]

not sure about males... it's 7-10 days for females depending on what vet you talk to (mine said 10).

it can take 6-8 weeks for the hormones to be totally gone, so he shouldn't be around any other bunns right away... he can also be fertile for up to two months and it only takes a couple seconds to knock a girl bunny up, so definitely keep him away from unspayed females for two months to be safe.

keep a close eye on his eating... better safe than sorry, imo, so if you're worried feed some critical care or pellet slurry. to make pellet slurry - take some pellets and add water or pedialyte; microwave. let sit for 5-10 mins so the pellets can "fluff", then mix together (breaking up the pellets as much as possible); add more liquid if needed to get it to a good pudding-like consistency for syringe feeding. critical care will work with a syringe as-is but with the DIY slurry, you may find it necessary to cut the tip of the syringe off and wiggle something slightly larger around in the opening to make it larger. if you happen to have a mortar and pestle, grinding up the pellets before you start will help.

when my girls weren't eating after their spays, I was told it could take up to 24-36h for the anesthesia to fully wear off/stop making them nauseous and to "let them eat whatever they want, just for today" so don't be afraid to let him eat a little extra fruit if he's willing to eat that on his own (banana, canned pumpkin (NOT the pie filling kind, just plain) and fruit flavored baby food are big hits with my two).

 

[random faerie]

Hi guys. I'm licensed nurse. Although I know it might be different between animals (rabbits) and humans, I want to share that pre-surgery and post-surgery, we are supposed to fast for a number of hours. This might be the case here.

I am no expert as I just got my first bunny, so please feel free to correct me. I've never had a bunny spayed or neutered so I don't know if they are actually supposed to fast.

It is quite strange to me though, because it is so cheap! And it seems that many of you guys never experienced a request like this before.

 

[JBun]

random faerie wrote:

Hi guys. I'm licensed nurse. Although I know it might be different between animals (rabbits) and humans, I want to share that pre-surgery and post-surgery, we are supposed to fast for a number of hours. This might be the case here.

I am no expert as I just got my first bunny, so please feel free to correct me. I've never had a bunny spayed or neutered so I don't know if they are actually supposed to fast.

It is quite strange to me though, because it is so cheap! And it seems that many of you guys never experienced a request like this before.

No, you actually don't fast a rabbit before a surgery. Rabbits need to have food in their stomachs at all times, and fasting them can cause problems and possibly make them sick.

 

[Imbrium]

rabbits also don't need to be fasted like other animals/people because they lack the ability to vomit.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Ours always went with food, hay and water--under no circumstance are you supposed to fast a rabbit.