Not eating pellets 2 days after neuter

[Gilbert and Sullivan]

We had both our boys, Gilbert and Sullivan, (age: 6 months) neutered on Tuesday afternoon. We brought them home Tuesday night and they were being very quiet, not moving much,and not really eating. Yesterday, we noticed they were nibbling a little bit of hay, but no pellets. They are drinking water, but not a lot. They areslowly moving around more. Now today is Thursday and they are still eating hay an okayamount (not their normal amount)but not really any pellets. I was able to hand feed Gilbert a few pellets, but Sullivan won't eat any. It's really only two days since their surgery,but I want to make sure this doesn't sound alarming to anyone. As long as they are eating some hay will they be alright? Our vet is an hour away and I just want to see if this all sounds normal before I make the trip and bring them back. How many days is too many days to be off their normal eating habits after a neuter? They are probably fine and I am just being over-concerned, so any feedback would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Britni

 

[naturestee]

As long as they are eating hay and drinking, they will be ok. It can take a couple of day sometimes to get them eating normally. Did the vet give you pain killers for them?

 

[Gilbert and Sullivan]

No, no painkillers.The boysare being careful with their movement, but they seem able to hop around relatively well. No problems getting in and out of litter box. It seems to me more that their appetite is not normal, vs. being in a ton of pain. But, it's times like these we wish rabbits could talk and tell us what's really going on.

 

[maherwoman]

Fiver didn't really eat his the first couple days after his neuter...he was eating hay and drinking, though. As long as their eating hay and drinking, they'll be just fine, Hun.

Also remember to keep calm, because they'll react to your stress, too. I know it's hard when it's your own buns...but just try as hard as you can, ok?

They're gonna be just fine...

Out of curiousity, how old are they? Fiver's estimated to be about a year old...and it took him about a week to really start moving around and being himself after his neuter. From what I gather, the younger they are, the better they "bounce back" from the surgery. It's now just over two weeks after his neuter, and he's fully back to his lovey-dovey self.

:biggrin2:

Keep us updated, ok?

Hugs to you three!

Rosie*

 

[Gilbert and Sullivan]

They areboth 6 months old. Thanks for your help and support. I will keep you posted!

 

[ra7751]

Hi Britni,

I wouldn't be overly concerned about their eating at this point. Keep offering everything healthy....many times when we have sick/injured/recovering buns, dandelion greens are a favorite first food. But hay is good.

A suggestion, a very intense conversation would be in order with your vet regarding not using pain meds. I will be more than happy to make the trip up to neuter your vet without pain meds....a little demonstration and educational event for your vetfree of charge. Seriously, I would schedule a meeting with that vet and discuss why pain meds were not prescribed. I would go as far as finding a real rabbit vet. It's no secret that rabbits do not handle pain well at all.And remember that they are prey animals and will do anything they can to hidepain..and when they do present that pain, they are usually quite uncomfortable. Not eating is one of the symptoms...and it can get much worse. I am very quick to pull the trigger on giving pain meds. My vets are all teaching doctors associated with a major vet school and teaching hospital. They will also give pain meds at the slightest hint of discomfort. I have no patience and pull no punches when vets fail to provide proper pain control.

At this point in the event, the healing should be about done. With pain meds, most likely they would have been eating within 24 hours. All of our boys have been eating the same day of surgery and sometimes we have to modify their housing to confined them a little...even our girls are generally eating within hours after a spay. Even so, a little analgesic may not be a bad thing even now. Hope things work out...and do have a very pointed conversation with the doctor.

Randy

 

[Pipp]

ra7751 wrote:

I will be more than happy to make the trip up to neuter your vet without pain meds....a little demonstration and educational event for your vetfree of charge.

:laughsmiley:

I definitely agree with Randy on this, as long as they're administered correctly (eg: Metacam must be givenwith a little food to well hydrated bunnies), there is no reason to withhold pain meds, it's cruel and potentially detrimental to the recovery.

sas :bunnybutt:

 

[maherwoman]

Yeah, true...I agree that he should've been given pain meds...poor little guy.

Fiver was given buprenex...it's a synthetic opiate that lasts about 12hrs, and comes highly recommended for neuters. He was quite out-of-it the first night, but the next day, he was moving around a bit, and then moved around a little more each day. Fiver's estimated to be about a year, which means the neuter was harder on him than it would be for your boys, but he still did rather well.

I hope to hear of your boys feeling better soon! :hug:

 

[Gilbert and Sullivan]

Thanks for your feedback on the pain meds. I had no idea that they should have received them. I researched for days and days to find a qualified (and affordable) vet. The only vet who also specialized in exotics in our area was going to charge me $370 per rabbit! So, then I found the vet where we got them neutered on the house rabbit society website:
http://www.njhrs.com/vet.htm
Dr. Zaccheo in Warren County. They were much more reasonably priced, and he took his time with us before the operation explaining everything. Plus, since he is recommended on the house rabbit society website, I trusted that he was experienced with rabbits, and I do still believe he is. Their stitches appear to be healing nicely and they are eating hay and drinking much more. Still stearing clear of the pellets but their movement behavior tells me they are getting back to normal. I do appreciate the responses! Thanks very much and I will still keep you posted!

 

[ra7751]

Buprenex--->:happyrabbit:

Vets that don't offer pain meds--->:soapbox