post-op handling question

[agnesthelion]

Oh that's somgood Jennifer I was wondering how they were doing this evening. I bet by tomorrow morning you will see you old buns back again completely

Now the challenge will be keeping them subdued for the next few days. After all the stressing i did, that ended up being the hardest part! But that's a good problem to have.

 

[Imbrium]

they're still not really eating pellets, but I'm not worried about that since they're eating hay and veggies. other than that, they're back to being themselves. by last night, Gaz was hopping away from me again when I tried to pet her (right after the spay and for most of the first day, she'd sit there and let me pet her extensively, which isn't normal behavior for her). Nala's been nomming the heck out of her wicker ball since yesterday afternoon, too.

 

[whitelop]

Aww that is so good that they're getting back to normal and so much poop!

 

[Imbrium]

Gazzles ate pellets

 

[JBun]

Yay!! Yeah, for some reason pellets seem to be the last thing they start eating again. It was the same with my buns.

 

[Imbrium]

they got more metacam and I syringed some pedialyte this afternoon, too. I also treated them to a couple more slices of banana, which they went CRAZY over. just waiting for Nala to eat some pellets and all will be normal again.

 

[Blue eyes]

Sounds like they are doing wonderfully. Yay.
Oh, did I not like reading these posts - it felt like I was going through all the worry and concern too. I didn't even read them between the first day and today so I could rush through to the happy ending. I do not envy you going through that. I'm glad you were able to get them done at the same time. That was a good idea. I imagine you are feeling much more relieved now.

So happy they are eating and recuperating!

 

[Ape337]

Glad to hear your buns are doing well! I realize it's a moot point now but have you tried the apple/banana critical care? My Freckles hates anise critical care. It was a huge battle when I tried to syringe feed that to him. But when I brought the apple/banana out he gulped it straight from the syringe! I only had to point the end toward him and he ate it all by himself, even trying to steal the syringe.
I even gave the stuff to my other 2 buns as a treat a few times to get them used to the taste just in case they ever need it in the future.
The pumpkin is terrific for them too. Gives moisture and fiber.
Here's to de-funkified pee

 

[Imbrium]

I haven't tried apple/banana, though I'm wishing I had... if I ever buy critical care again, I'll give that flavor a try instead for sure. I do have a bag of the critical care fine grind, but I never opened it because by the next night they seemed to be eating plenty on their own.

and yes, it does feel great to have the spays over and done with and have them well on their way to being recovered! I also feel more confident about my ability to force-feed food, fluids and/or meds if I ever have to do it again. I'm really glad I had their first aid/sick bunny kit well prepped long before surgery day - I had everything I needed to get them better again

how long does it take for the pee to smell less anyway? the puddle I cleaned up from beside the pellet bowl smelled really bad. I don't know if their hormones ever kicked in to begin with because they never had a single fight.

oh a side note... dear god, do I feel lucky - all the prep-work I did to make sure I was prepared to house them separately for a month or two and then re-bond them after the hormones subsided ended up being unnecessary! I'm so glad, because I read that bunnies recover from surgery better if they've got a bonded companion to snuggle with afterward and they were able to be back with each other *right* after surgery (the vet put them back together immediately) instead of having to keep them apart to prevent fighting.

 

[JBun]

Yeah, I think the apple banana thing might partly be my fault. I seem to recall recommending not getting it because it caused problems with my rabbit. Sorry :embarrassed: Next time you need the critical care you could maybe try adding your own apple banana flavor to it, that might help make it more palatable. Zeus didn't much care for the regular stuff when I fed it to him, but he would still eat it without too much of a fuss. He was pretty sick though, maybe that makes a difference. I was dealing with stasis too, and adding any extra sugars made me nervous, so I wanted to use the critical care with the least amount of sugar.

I don't know about the pee smell, but I keep waiting for my two spayed girls to start pooping in their litter box better. It's been 3 weeks and has yet to happen. They're still leaving them everywhere :waiting:

 

[Imbrium]

tried adding apple blueberry baby food to it, that was a no-go.

and yeah, my girls are pooping up a storm and it's all over their 2x3x1 grid cage... I've cleaned it at least twice today. they've been spending most of their time sleeping in the litter box, but they save the pooping for when they're wandering around, lol. (man, does the sleeping in the box make me glad mine has a grid to keep them from laying in their waste!)

 

[Imbrium]

some pics from today...

gazzles grooming nala:

snuggling in the litter box:

nala laying on top of gaz to eat hay:

dead bunny flops:

nala's cute little mouf:

 

[HolyHandGrenade]

Imbrium wrote:

after dinner, I also offered them a small leaf each of kale and they nommed that, too (even picky Nala). Gaz was so excited she practically ripped the kale out of my hand and she even ate the stem when she ran out of leaf! I got her a second leaf when she finished it. the kale makes me very happy, since it's got moisture in it and I'm not sure how much they're drinking.

I guess I lucked out with Monty. I was growing kale when I first got her, so I tried out a leaf after I had her a couple weeks. She mowed it right down, stem and all. Now any time we cook with kale, I keep the stems in a bowl in the fridge and give her a chunk every couple of days. She loves that super-hard stem for some reason, but I fully endorse it Gotta keep them teefs healthy!

Glad to hear the girls are getting better and better. Now to finish reading page 2...

Edit: awwwwwwwwww cute pics!

 

[Imbrium]

thanks! and yeah, my bunnies love kale - it's their favorite veggie.