What can you do if spaying doesn't work?

[KatyG]

My rabbit was spayed at the beginning ofnovember 2005. It seemed to have worked fine and for the pastsix months she has seemed calmer and lost some of the bad habits shehad before she was spayed.

However about two weeks ago I started to notice her behaviourchanging again. She has begun to chase my other bunny againand shows sexual behaviour towards her like she used to before thespay. Especially if she is excited or happy, like if I havejust taken the bowls out to fill them up, she won't leavesnowball alone and will be jumping on her every few minutes.

I thought spaying got rid of the hormones so why is she still wantingto do this? Also any ideas why she stopped it then it hascome back again?

 

[peapoo_bunny]

is your other bunny fixed to? if only one of them is spayed maybe getting the other spayed would help:dunno:

 

[bunnybunchof4]

Hmmm, well sometimes spaying doesn't always fixthe behavior. It may not be hormonal, maybe she is showing herdominance over snowball, it's just a guess. Espeically during a timelike feeding time, showing her that she's in charge! She's the "top"bunny between them.

I knew someone who spayed her rabbit because she kept spraying overeverything. It was a female too, and pee would just be everywhere. Shecouldn't keep up with cleaning. So she had her spayed, waited like 6months for it to improve. The rabbit never stopped though. She ended uphaving to house it outside in a hutch it was so bad. So yeah sometimesit just isn't a hormonal issue, and sometimes spaying just doesn'twork. Sometimes it's just the individual rabbit I think. Same goes foraggressive rabbits, it doesn't always work.

 

[KatyG]

Hi Yes snowball was fixed a few months ago and we have had no problems with her.

 

[bunnydude]

Has anything in her environment changed?

 

[maherwoman]

To quote the following site, "Because there is asocial as well as a sexual component to many of these behaviors, andbecause it takes time after surgery for the hormones to stopcirculating (usually two weeks for males, as much as six months forfemales), surgery is not an instant cure."

The site I got it from: http://www.rabbit.org/journal/2-9/rebel-with-paws.html

Hope that helps! I had no idea how to answer your question,except that I'm currently reading that exact article to get betterinformed about some of my four-month-old Maisie's behaviour, and therewas the answer to your question!! Cool!! Lol...

 

[naturestee]

It does sound like a dominancebehavior. I've also heard that even spayed/neutered rabbitscan get more excited with spring.

Sprite used to mount a lot too, even after she was spayed andespecially when I was rebonding her with Fey. She had tolearn that it was inappropriate and that Fey didn't like it.

Is there a way you could change your routine when you feedthem? Maybe have an extra set of bowls so you fill up the setthat's not in with them and then switch them with the empty bowls?

 

[maherwoman]

I'm such a dork...I just realized that I misread your post a bit...

Sorry for the totally non-helpful reply! lol...

 

[KatyG]

Hi thanks for the adviceeveryone. Nothing in her environment has changed as far as Ican tell but I had wondered about it being spring because it has sortof started since the weather got warmer. Even though she is an indoorbunny I am sure she would be able to tell it is sunnier and the daysare longer



Also I have a second question. Is vaccination effectiveimmediately? I am going out tomy parents house next weekend to look after things while they areaway. I thought it would be nice to take thebunnies as there is a big garden they can have a runin. However the house is on a farm with lots ofwildlife around.They need myxomatosis vaccinations and if Igot them done this week would it be effective by the time we went outthere?

 

[Maureen Las]

I can't answer your concerns about myxomatosisbut I can relate something that I've experienced with my buns. I have 4bunnies rescued from different shelters at different times. They areall males and were not neutered. I have had them all neuteredat various times and ages but none of them were under 1 year. I haveheard (and found this to be true) that if they are neutered at an olderage they sometimes maintain the same behaviour that was present beforealtering. I have a holland lop (neutered) that will mount andpester both female and male rabbits to the point that I had to separatehim from the others. I was told that it had to do with being neuteredat an older age...maybe something to do with an establishedbehaviour rather than hormones..I'm not really surewhy? Was your rabbit spayed at an early age or is she older?

 

[KatyG]

hi She was spayed at around six months. Is that too late?

 

[Maureen Las]

No 6 months is a perfect age for a spay. Maybe she will outgrow some of her behaviour.

 

[peapoo_bunny]

how late do you think is to late? just curious because peapoo isnt spayed yet

 

[naturestee]

Peapoo, Fey and Sprite were about 1 1/2 years old when they were spayed. They did just fine.

 

[Maureen Las]

peapoo_bunny wrote:

how late do you think is to late? just curious becausepeapoo isnt spayed yet

I'm talking about behaviour issuesingrained in the bunny brain...physically I think it is safe to spay amiddle-aged bunny..peapoo is young

 

[peapoo_bunny]

angieluv wrote:

peapoo_bunny wrote:

how latedo you think is to late? just curious because peapoo isnt spayedyet

I'm talking about behaviour issues ingrained in the bunnybrain...physically I think it is safe to spay a middle-agedbunny..peapoo is young

oh sry...i was talking about behaviorto...but i just realised she doesnt really have any BAD problems, so ihave nothing to worry about:wink:

 

[Maureen Las]

You know I think that I really did know that Peapoo had no psychological problems.....she's just a real sweetheart:inlove:

 

[peapoo_bunny]

angieluv wrote:

You know I think that I really did know that Peapoo had nopsychological problems.....she's just a realsweetheart:inlove:

oh thats what she wants you to think!sometimes she does some of the craziest things! before she destroyssomething (shredding or eating etc) she sits there and stares at it forawhile, then looks at me, and then back at it...like she's sittingthere making her little plans on how to make mommy run over there soshe can binky :bunnydance:away laughing..lol..gotta love her!!

 

[Maureen Las]

Peapoo knows that her mommy loves her and she can do what she likes if she pleases. Peapoo has it made

 

[peapoo_bunny]

angieluv wrote:

Peapoo knows that her mommy loves her and she can do whatshe likes if she pleases. Peapoo has it made

you got thatright!! guess who's the boss of the basement? lol