what should I ask the vet?

[SnowyShiloh]

Hello! Rory is going to be neutered tomorrow (Wednesday). We're bringing him in at 8 am for a regular check up, then will leave him there to be neutered. The person I talked to on the phone said they'll want to keep Rory overnight afterwards, never heard of that! What do you guys think? Also, what should I ask the vet during the exam? What should I expect her to look at on him? She's a good vet I think and sees my rats and I believe the bunnies of E2 who lives in Fairbanks as well. This is what I was going to ask her:

-how old is he?
-is he full grown yet?
-how much pellets and fresh foods should I feed him (since I know it depends on age)?
-does he have any spurs on his teeth?
-are his eyes okay (I've noticed that the white part of his eyes have a bit of gray on them)?

I'm also planning to ask what kind of sutures, anesthesia and medicine he'll get afterwards. I'll make sure they don't use antibiotics as I read a thread on here where a bunny died after getting amoxicillin orally after surgery. Which sutures are best for bunnies?

This vet neutered my ratty in August and he did great, he had dissolving stitches and I specially requested metacam to give to him afterwards ($40 for the tiniest bottle ever and I only had to give him 2 doses, I love you spoiled ratty man). After my rat's surgery, a vet tech carried him around in a towel until he woke up and she said they do that with all the small animals. I think that's very nice!

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

Do you know how many spay/neuters this vet has done? In this past year how many? Any fatalities? If so, what happened? Those are the questions I'd ask in addition to what you're planning to ask which is also very good.

I'd also make sure they give him somthing for pain after surgery. I do not think he needs to stay over night, he'd be better off at home in his cage where he's familiar and with you.

Since you made no mention of the office telling you to withhold food the night before, that's good. No food or water should be withheld before or after surgery.

Good Luck Rory!

He should do just fine. I'll have him in my thoughts and watch for an update tomorrow.

 

[ra7751]

Hi,

I have been thru hundreds of spays/neuters. Couple of my feeling regarding your questions.

There is usually no need for antibiotics post-op. I have used abx only twice after surgery...one is for a special needs that has leg issues and has some difficulties in his hind quarter. The only other one was already on abx for a severe infection secondary to testicular cancer. Metacam is not my first choice for post-op pain management. It is better than nothing but a couple of days of narcotics really help with the healing. There are several anesthesias being used now. I suspect isoflourane is still the most popular. Sevoflourane is a lot better. Quicker action with fast rebound post-op. Not many vets have access to that gas. We also use injectable anesthesias quite a bit especially with dental surgeries. Can be reversed with an injection. Sutures? Not around here. None of our spays/neuters have ever come out with external sutures....tissue glue is much better. We prefer, and our vets concur, that we should get the rabbits back into familiar territory ASAP....no overnight stays post-op for our buns. I have actually taken a bun directly from the surgery suite and transported and I monitored recovery during the trip. I think AngelnSnuffy offered some excellent points also. Best wishes to Rory.

Randy

 

[AngelnSnuffy]

ra7751 wrote:

I think AngelnSnuffy offered some excellent points also. Best wishes to Rory.

Randy

Thanks Randy.

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Okay, thanks guys! Actually, come to think of it, they did use glue for Colby's neuter. The surgery site looked really good afterwards. Also, I forgot to say that Rory's going to get micro chipped too. My two cockatiels are microchipped and I can add him to their "plan" with Avid. I know it's unlikely that Rory would ever get away especially since he's an indoor bun, but I think I'd feel more comfortable if he were chipped.

 

[ra7751]

Personally, I would highly discourage having a rabbit microchipped. If I have a rabbit come into rescue with one, it will be removed. There are numerous reports of problems with other species. Inserting a microchip can be viewed by the immune system as an invasion by a harmful entity and it might be attacked by the immune system. The immune system in a rabbit seems to work in strange ways sometimes. Just my personal non-professional opinion based on my years of experinece with rabbits. Would be interested in hearing from others regarding this issue.

Randy

 

[Leaf]

I know, in the beginning, there was quite a problem with chip migration in dogs. Have the problems in rabbits included this?

 

[Luvmyzoocrew]

Here are my two cents worth, i agree with everyone else,lol.



They kept my female after her spay , and there was really no need for it, it would have been much better for her to be home and in her own enviroment, so my sugestion is bring your bun home after the nueter. RAbbit will "feel" much more better being home where there are familiar sites , sounds and smells. Pain management is a must, i think, it will help them to keep eating if they are pain free.



Dont let the vet, vet tech or anyone tell you "it is a very less avasive procedure, and is only a little incision and doesnt really hurt that much", you can respond to this in one of the two following responese



1." doctor how about i put a small incision in your ba**s and then tell me if that doesnt hurt" <~~~~ not a really great thing to say to the doc



2. "well that is ok i want pain meds for him so that he is comfortable and able to keep eating pain free, therefore not causing any other problems, thank you" <~~~~~ this is the better of the two responses and you will probablly get farther witht his one



j/k i was told this about both of my rabbits operations and i told them that i WANT pain meds for them to which they obliged me. I didnt use the full supply that they gave me because i played it by pain cues and how they seemed to be feeling, but it was there for when i needed it for them.



Good luck and most importantly try not to worry yourself, i was a mess when Belle was spayed. When she went in she went in for a Nueter,lol, so i was a lot more worried about her surgery after the gender fairy stopped by.

 

[ra7751]

There have also been some overall health problems reported in some dogs recently and there is a growing debate over the use of microchips. I only know of a few places...mostly rescues...that microchip their rabbits. I don't think there have been enough to really establish things properly either way. And I may be totally wrong, but knowing so well how a rabbit's body works and reacts, I would be very cautious about installing a foreign material in a rabbit. That is a topic of conversation and concern with one of our rabbits that is paralyzed and has lost control of his bladder. We are debating on the benefits and his body's reaction to inserting a catheter into his bladder. We are still discussing that issue. I guess that time will tell.

Randy

 

[tonyshuman]

i was told by my rescue that they had microchipped my bun. this surprised me, since he is an indoor rabbit, but i didn't press the point. i was also talking to a volunteer that wasn't really familiar with the rabbits, just the cats. so maybe she was confused.
anyway, if he does have the chip like i was told, he hasn't had any problems. do i need to be looking out for health issues related to immune system rejection of the chip? i've had him for at least 6mo...so i think he'd have had a reaction sooner than that.
personally, i wouldn't have asked him to be microchipped, although he did get off his leash once when i took him outside! i think it depends on how much you plan on walking your inside rabbit. (i'm not walking him anymore because he either sits in the grass and sulks or tries to chew the harness off unhappily) also, if there are people in the house (kids for example) that you can't trust to be 100% good about closing outside doors, or if you bunny has a strong desire to escape (ie waits at the front door until you open it and then shoots out--my tony would do that to get into former roommate's room because she had a shag rug he loved), a microchip sounds like a good idea.

EDIT: I would ask the vet how much he/she thinks Rory should weigh. I wish I had done that with Tony, since now I'm kinda just guessing based on breed standards, which may not be useful because I doubt he's a purebred. I'm not very good at judging body condition myself (ie what is chubby for a bunny?), so it's hard.

 

[gentle giants]

I agree with Randy about not liking the microchips. I know a friend of mine has "lost" one in one of her dogs before. Also, the idea of implanting a piece of foreign material (metal? plastic? not sure even what they are made of) makes me a little uncomfortable. Both of my dogs have chips, butthey are from the shelter and had the chips when I got them. I think tatts are much better fro permanent id, on rabbits as well as dogs.

Randy, for pain management after surgery, you said Metacam would not be your choice. What do you prefer to use? And if using narcotics, does the rabbit get loopy and/or groggy like they tend to do to people?

 

[ra7751]

As far as pain meds...I prefer buprenex. It is a great analgesic. It can be administered orally, sub-q or IM. It is fast acting and long lasting. In a rabbit, it can take effect within 15 minutes, peak within 1 hour and be effective for up to 12 hours. It's initial effect and peak are quicker when injected. I have never had any real problems with being groggy or anything. It is the best for post-op use we have ever used. If there is any downside of this drug as far as the rabbit, there is some evidence that it can slow the gut down a little but we have never had that happen either. It is a little pricey but it's worth the cost. It is also a controlled drug so vets are cautious about sending it out of the clinic sometimes. A good alternative is Tramadol. Upside with Tramadol is that it is not a controlled drug and is available at most any pharmacy (by RX). It is also priced right. Downside is that it only comes in a 50mg tablet which means it has to be compounded....and it should be compounded at a very precise concentration. And as far as Metacam, I am not against it at all as it is a very good drug. But I just don't think it provides the post-op pain control that I like to see. But Metacam is better than nothing.

Randy

 

[SnowyShiloh]

Hi everyone! Well, Rory didn't go in for his neuter today... My BF has been sick and he usually sets the alarm but forgot. We didn't wake up until 9 and his appointment was for 8 am. I could have brought him in for his neuter anyway and had his check up later, but I'd prefer to do them on the same day or at least have the check up first. So he's been rescheduled for Friday, November 2nd at 8 am! About the micro chip, I'm not sure what I'll do. I certainly do not want to harm him. I will talk to the vet about it. I would be maybe interested in tattooing the ear (he'll be out for the surgery already), but what would they write on it? When I was at the shelter adopting Rory, one of the volunteers was upset because a dog had come in with one of their ear tattoos but they couldn't read what it said so they don't know who it belongs to. I probably won't get the micro chip now or the tattoo. Thanks for your input! I will also insist on pain meds, like I mentioned before they weren't going to give me pain meds for my rat, but I wanted them so they obliged. I will ask for Tramadol or Buprenex. I am planning on telling them I want to take him home too because it seems silly to leave him there overnight, especially since we wouldn't be able to pick him up until the afternoon.

Cinnabun was neutered when I was 10 and I did all the research on it and insisted we take him to a vet where we could drop him off in the morning and pick him up in the evening. He did well during his surgery and was VERY glad to leave the vet office that evening. Normally he liked his carrier and it was hard to get him out, but when I opened that door, he came flying out and didn't want to go back in! He would not have been a happy camper if he had to stay overnight and I doubt Rory would either.

I'm going to call the vet back and ask about those pain meds and bringing him home the same day.

 

[gentle giants]

Randy, you have a pm.

 

[BlueGiants]

I am dead set against using Microchip ID's in my animals. I have friends that raise Dairy Goats and they have experienced problems with the two goats that came "chipped". They had them removed. There has been a lot of conflict about whether or not it causes cancer at the chip site in the animals.