Care the day of neuter

[Madelyn L.]

Patches just got neutered. We are driving home with him right now. Anyways, I have few questions that I am unsure about. And advice will be appreciated!!
-will he be scared of me after the neuter?
-how long until the anesthesia wears off?
-how can I get him to eat?
-how many days until he gets back to normal?
-is there anything special I need to do (special diet, cleaning cage more?)
These are all off the questions. Thanks in advance for anyone who answers!

 

[Mariam+Theo]

I'm glad he did well in surgery!
-He shouldn't be scared of you. Since you will/should be keeping him in an enclosed area while he heals, you can sit in the area and read a book. He will probably want to be comforted after surgery.
-What time was he neutered? The vet normally doesn't send animals back home until they are fully awake so that they don't get hypothermia.
-Offer him lots of veggies and hay. I would stay away from pellets and treats just until he has gotten lots of hay back in his system.
-He should be completely back to normal in 1-2 days. Sooner than that if the vet gave you pain meds.
-Nothing special that you will need to do. Just don't overwhelm him. Stress only makes things worse. As long as he stays warm, isn't in too much pain, and is eating at least once every 6 hours he will be fine.

When I got Theo neutered I did nothing different. The vet didn't give me any pain meds and Theo did fine. He wasn't in pain and went right back to being normal. There is no reason Patches shouldn't spring right back too.

 

[JBun]

Depends on the rabbit, for how long til the anesthesia wears off. Some, only a few hours, but I had one it took 2 days until he was not nauseous from the anesthesia and started eating normally again on his own.

Keep him warm, provide a rabbit safe heat pack or heat source if needed. They usually get a little hypothermic after anesthesia, and a cold rabbit is less likely to want to eat.

With mine, usually the first thing they will start eating is their leafy greens. So try offering ones he is already accustomed to eating, freshly rinsed and not dried off. The extra moisture from them helps.

Make sure to give pain meds at the times the vet prescribed.

Keeping his area clean will help minimize chances of the incision site getting infected.

Monitor him to make sure he doesn't mess with the incision area. I carefully check the area to make sure it's not getting chewed at. I like to set up a pen next to the area where I am for most the day in the house, to more closely monitor the rabbit. Though if this would be stressful for your rabbit, then probably not a good idea.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/opcare.html

 

[Madelyn L.]

The good news is that he’s drinking. He is hopping around right now, which I think is good. But he hasn’t eaten anything. Should I be worried? He is also laying down a lot. It looks like he’s flopped. How can I get him to eat?