Neutering

[Kathy]

I'm curious to know - at what month were your male rabbits neutered?

Romeo is only 15 weeks old but I've been calling around to differentvets already, trying to get a feel on which one I like better foremergencies and stuff.

The first clinic I called said the earliest they would neuter is 5months. I would NEED to do an exam with them before that because I'venever been there with Romeo before.

The second clinic I called said they could do the surgery from 3 monthson. I asked whether they would need to do an exam on him andIwas told it wasn't a requirement.

From the sounds of it, which clinic do you like better and is aninitial exam required? I figured I'd do one for Rome anyway, but justlike to know! Thanks!

 

[SOOOSKA]

Very cute bunny, what kind is he?

Soooska:apollo:

 

[naturestee]

The age really depends on how comfortable thevet is with doing surgery on a young bunny. 3 months+ isusually recommended, and Aurora got her foster boys neutered at 9 weeksand they did fine. A pre-neuter checkup is important to makesure there's no problems that you haven't noticed yet.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

I agree with Naturestee. And I don't believethat just based on what you told us, that we could tell you which oneis best. Are they both rabbit savvy? How many neuters do they do in ayear? Do they keep them overnight after the surgery? I opted to find avet that didn't because I didn't want to stress the rabbits more bykeeping them in a strange place.

Have you checked out the rabbit savvy vetlist on the forum?There are a few members in your area that should be able to help youfind a good one!

I'm always so happy to hear about rabbit owners (especially new ones) taking the time to research these things! Good job.

 

[Kathy]

SOOOSKA wrote:

Very cute bunny, what kind is he?

Soooska:apollo:

Thanks! He's a Holland Lop.

 

[Kathy]

MyBabyBunnies wrote:

Have you checked out the rabbit savvy vetlist on the forum?

Both the vets I contacted so far are from the rabbit savvy vet list onthis forum. It's just very difficult to decide because the first clinicsaid that anything under 5-6 months may be still too young whereas thesecond clinic says as soon as the testicles descend, he's good to go.

I think I'll have it done close to 5 months of age - his litter habitsare very very bad right now and I sometimes clean his cage twice a dayif it gets bad enough. When school rolls around, that's nearlyimpossible.

Thanks for your input guys

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

As Naturestee said, that is just the vetspersonal preference. Some are not comfortable operating on a youngbunny and some are not comfortable operating on a young, small breedbunny. Others who have a fair bit of experience and are reallycomfortable with itdon't care how old they are, just as longas their testicles have descended and he is healthy. My bucks wereneutered at 4 and 5 months old I think.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Oh and I should warn you, just because he'sneutered does not mean his litter habbits will get better. It's stilllarely an age factor. Young rabbits are often pigs (you should see thepictures of Zoey's cage from last winter) so it may take until he's 9months old or older until those get better. They also seem to get worsewhen a rabbit hit's the 'teen years'.

I know that a lot of people have litter trained rabbits but it's mygeneral understanding that for most rabbits, litter trained simplymeans the pee in one spot. Even litter trained bunnies leave poos lyingaround and it does take constant training to keep some of them using it!

 

[Kathy]

How do you actually train a bunny to keep using the litterbox?

Romeo is very good about peeing in his box but leaves pelletseverywhere. He's never peed outside the box and I probably just jinxedit right there, LOL. I've read that even littertrained buns will leavea few poops lying around - what is considered a "few?"

He leaves behind a LOT of poop in his litterbox alonewithinjust a day, is that normal? A lot = enough to cover 80%of his litter pan! I assume it is because I had a hamster once that weall called the poop machine.. he went every few minutes.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

Since mine are all outside, I can't answer thatbut I think it just depends. Some leave a lot of poops outside, someleave a few, and some leave none.

But don't be concerned about a lot of poops, it's a good thing! Rabbitshave a very short digestive tract which is why they have to constantlyeat because the other end is constantly working, LOL.

Just be glad they are round and easy to sweep up.