Bonding and spaying (question)

[LolaE]

False pregnancys can be hard to watch, but it's not traumatising. It's normal rabbit behaviour, homones taking over, demanding to do what rabbits evolved to do. They can be like on remote control then. (My sweet, little Fury in that state: )
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Others may differ, but to me that sounds like messing with their social instincts. They never can sort things out when you intervene, and with seperating everything starts from square one again, and imho it promots territorial issues. As I said, I would adjust their space with some cardboard boxes and stuff to give him places to retreat to, and give it a go and not seperate unless the boy gets really annoyed.

Rabbits are social animals, male-female bonds the most likely successful - I think you can go a step further.

Thanks! And sorry for the delay.

I took your advice the last couple weeks, gave them extra room to run around together. I was following bonding instructions I'd read online to increase their space gradually, so they were only running around in about a 4x4 feet or 5x5 feet area. I let them have the run of the whole room, and they were perfectly fine together! Every now and then she nips at him, but they sort it out themselves, and mostly they're back to loving each other. Always lounging together, et cetera.

 

[LolaE]

So, a quick update:

I took Drusilla to get her spayed on Tuesday (two days ago). I took Onyx with her to the vet, and he's been attentive at her side the whole time--he's very attached! I do have her temporary recovery area separated from him by a bar just to be safe, since it was a slightly complicated procedure (due to them trying before, and she was quite slow to recover from the anaesthesia ), but they can still see and touch each other through the bars, and they're always lounging next to each other with their backs touching.

She seems to be doing well. Eating some hay and moving around, grooming, lounging. Only wants to eat pellets out of her special bowl, ha. The vet gave us painkiller medication through today, so we'll see how she does tomorrow without it... Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery.

 

[JBun]

That's great she's eating! You'll probably need to request more pain meds for her, usually meloxicam dosed at the upper end(0.5-0.6mg/kg, twice a day). Usually they need at least 3-5 days worth. It's a major surgery for does. I certainly wouldn't want to be without pain meds in her place.

 

[LolaE]

Thanks, JBun. I was wondering about that myself. Last time, when they attempted the spay but didn't go through with it, we had her on pain medications for a week straight. Today's her first day without pain medications; we've just passed the 24-hour mark where it's supposed to wear off, and she seems fine so far, eating and moving around. But I managed to find my extra pain medication from last time, so if she starts to seem at all in pain, I'll use it.

My meloxicam I have on hand is from October last year. It's been in a very cold place (in the cellar all winter). Is it still good to use? I'm assuming it is, but just checking, as there's no expiration date.

Also, she keeps making this weird noise (in groups of three, every 12 hours or so). It's like a guttural honk or grunt, but harsher, sounds like when the bunnies scrape their teeth against wood--very distinct. I saw her do it again just now; she was eating hay, looking perfectly normal, but then gave a weird shake of her head and made this sound. Then went back to eating hay, drinking water, etc. Any thoughts on what that is? Is it some kind of gag reflex or something? Never heard it before.

Thanks.

 

[JBun]

Should be fine. I've used meloxicam stored in the fridge for more than a year, and it's worked just fine(not that I'm suggesting or recommending any one else do this).

Is she grinding her teeth, or is she vocalizing something?

 

[LolaE]

Should be fine. I've used meloxicam stored in the fridge for more than a year, and it's worked just fine(not that I'm suggesting or recommending any one else do this).

Is she grinding her teeth, or is she vocalizing something?

Okay, thanks. She actually has seemed perfectly perky today, not in pain at all and more back to herself every day, so I didn't give her anything yet, but I'm glad to have it on hand in case her progress dips.

She's not grinding her teeth. It is more of a vocal sound, as if it's on the back of her throat. I called the vet today and asked about it, just because it seemed so strange. She said since she knew the procedure might be difficult, she intubated Drusilla, and that this weird coughing/hissing sound, especially with the shaking of the head, is probably related to that. Apparently it's pretty common, especially in cats, and she said it shouldn't be too much of an issue, just some irritation that should go away by the time the week is out. So I'll keep an eye on it, but since she seems normal and happy otherwise, I guess it's nothing to worry about?

 

[JBun]

That's actually the next thing I was going to mention. Intubating could definitely cause some irritation to the throat. If you think it's causing any eating or breathing discomfort, tell your vet about it, and it would probably be good to ask your vet about giving meloxicam for a few days, to help reduce any inflammation in her throat caused by the irritation from the tube.

 

[LolaE]

That's actually the next thing I was going to mention. Intubating could definitely cause some irritation to the throat. If you think it's causing any eating or breathing discomfort, tell your vet about it, and it would probably be good to ask your vet about giving meloxicam for a few days, to help reduce any inflammation in her throat caused by the irritation from the tube.

Thanks! It doesn't seem to be causing her any discomfort apart from the scratchiness, but I will definitely look out for that. She actually seems to be recovering really well, much better than her "attempted" spay, to my surprise (I'd think the full spay would be a harder recovery).