# 6 hours fasting before neuter/spaying



## Lhucky (Aug 4, 2013)

I was advice by the secretary of our New "best doctor for bunnies" not to mention expensive, to fast them Atleast 6 hours before operation, feed them at night then water only for next day... I've read a lot of blogs saying never to fast bunnies going for operations... what should I do? my bunny needs it badly. we need it badly before we get another batch of litters. 

the vet is considered the best we've found... you think 6 hours fasting is ok? my bunny eats a lot at home...


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## warminwisco (Aug 4, 2013)

Same thing hapened to us 3 weeks ago. Secretary said fast, when we got there vet said not needed. We listened to R/O did not fast anyway. Our vet was 95 bucks, 10 for pain meds did not seem like they needed but we gave anyway. Office was a trainwreck as he is the lowest guy in town. Buns did fine.


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## kmaben (Aug 4, 2013)

The reasons vets tell you to fast a cat or a dog is because they can become nauseaous from the anesthesia and possibly vomit causing problems during the surgery. Rabbits do not have the ability to vomit so this isnt a problem and there is no need to fast them. Fasting them for that long can be dangerous as most rabbits will be off their feed after the surgery. You do not want that additional problem after a spay or neuter. The receptionist may not know this or just have accidentally repeated what she always says in spay/neuter situations.

Feed bun as normal and send them to the vet with a little bit of hay as they can sit around waiting on their surgery time. If the receptionist says anything have the vet clarify to her that fasting isnt needed. If the vet says something about the fasting you may want to find another vet if at all possible.


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## Lhucky (Aug 4, 2013)

also, does taking blood test before the operation gives my bunny more chances of surviving?


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## kmaben (Aug 4, 2013)

It can. Usually vets will do a CBC superchem if you request it. The test checks red and white blood cells, alkaline phosphate, creatinine levels, amongst a bunch of other things. So if he's having say kidney or liver issues the test will show he's in some kind of distress internally.

If the rabbit is over a certain age vets will recommend it. If you're simply worried and dont mind paying for the labs, put your mind at ease.

Even if his labs come back sparkling clean there is always a chance with surgery any animal might not make it. People included.

My bad rabbit got spayed, had an eye removed, and had stitches put in twice from fighting. I was a nervous reck every time so dont feel bad about stressing.


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## Lhucky (Aug 4, 2013)

our bill estimates around 166.67 in USD. 7,500 in PHP. For blood test, said it's complete blood test (although we're not sure what kind of test we'll get), and surgery w/anesthesia. medication after surgery not yet included. maybe another 800 to 1,000 PHP more will be added for pain reliver and antibiotic. that's for each bunny. they don't give discount for groups. it's very expensive! naturally, of course I want my bunny alive after surgery w/o any complications or unwanted incidents that would stress us out... hopefully, tomorrow, my bunny would be fine... we've decided to disregard the fasting. thank you c",$


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## Watermelons (Aug 4, 2013)

Make sure to bring their food with them to the clinic and ask to speak with the vet. Make sure your bunnys have access to their food at the clinics before surgery and after.


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## Lhucky (Aug 5, 2013)

Castration is done... vet put surgical glue without sutures. Is it ok? 

When we talk he said have both sutures and surgical glue... all of a sudden, surgical glue left. 

Thor was given Enorfloxatin shot few minutes after surgery, vet said no need pro biotics when shot. But we we're instructed to give Bene Bac if we give him Enorfloxatin orally. I want to ask if we could skip the antibiotics until we see infections? 

Also, can we wash the surgery with betadine. Vet said leave the surgery alone he will be given antibiotics to care for his surgery.... we plan to skip the antibiotics... 

Now, Thor looks healthy... he run here and there.. nibbles a few strands of hay... haven't seen him pee nor poo since we left home this am around 10. It's already 5:30pm... should I panic now?


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## kmaben (Aug 5, 2013)

That's only about 7 hours. Wouldnt panic just yet as he's eating and drinking. 24 hours is the absolute panic point.


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## JBun (Aug 5, 2013)

It's actually really good that he's already started eating a little on his own, and since he's eating and drinking then he should start pooping and peeing soon as well. It's pretty normal for rabbits not to poop much right after the surgery, and once they do start pooping, it may be smaller than usual or even a little soft at first(but not diarrhea), and should get back to normal in the first day or two. 

Surgical glue is ok. That's how they do it here too- sutures on the inside and glue on the outside, to hopefully minimize the rabbit wanting to chew at the incision. You do want to check the incision twice a day, to make sure it doesn't get red and infected, and that your rabbit isn't trying to chew at the incision at all. There isn't any need to wash the incision site. it's sealed with the glue and should be clean and sterile. You don't want to be putting anything on the incision that is going to draw your rabbits interest to it and may get him started chewing at it.

Normally here in the US, they don't automatically give antibiotics after a neuter surgery usually(though some vets might), but with you being in a different country and the vet also suggesting it, it might be a good idea to just go ahead and let him have it, if it will help prevent the possibility of an infection starting. Enrofloxacin is considered a pretty safe antibiotic for rabbits, and because it is injected, it is less likely to cause stomach upset with your rabbit, so you shouldn't need to use the bene bac.

I'm glad he's already eating and doing pretty good. Getting them to start eating after a surgery, is always the most nerve racking part for me.

I don't know if the vet mentioned this, but your boy bun can still be fertile til 4-6 weeks after the surgery.


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## Watermelons (Aug 5, 2013)

Lhucky said:


> Also, can we wash the surgery with betadine. Vet said leave the surgery alone he will be given antibiotics to care for his surgery.... we plan to skip the antibiotics...


 
Leave the surgery site alone unless you're checking it. Don't wash it with anything at this point.


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## Lhucky (Aug 5, 2013)

Does Thor's testicles looks normal? it looks like very very sore in our eyes


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## Watermelons (Aug 5, 2013)

They look fairly normal. The site will often swell slightly before starting to shrink.


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## Lhucky (Aug 5, 2013)

Yeeey! Good good.... now the only problem left is his appetite... he barely touched his pellets and water. 

He (and Vhiolet) drinks a liter of water daily. Consumes about 1/4 cups of pellets daily. And 4-5 handful of hays.... now, he's pellets barely touched.... water 20 ml less. (I think babies helped themselves on his food and water... babies free to roam around the room, no screen can stop them from entering anywhere) he nibbles few strands of hay. And I can't think straight!

Don't know if we should put him back with Vhiolet ( to see whether his appetite comes back ) or forced feed him first. ( we don't want to cause more stress on him ) he eats on his own, mostly I have to put the hay or celery in front of him to annoy him then he'll eat it. 

I don't know also when to give his pain meds, vet said once daily is enough... but why sudden lost of interest in food? 

He pee and poo already 12 hours after surgery. Last night. Pee looks very sludgy. Poo soft when touch. And very few...


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## JBun (Aug 6, 2013)

The anesthesia from the surgery, can sometimes upset their stomach so they don't feel like eating. As it wears off, he should start wanting to eat more. When I've had my rabbits done, they usually eat very little in the first 24 hours after surgery, but by the next day they are usually eating much better and mostly back to their normal selves, though I did have one rabbit that would eat very little for the first 48 hours, before he got back to normal. I've found that the first thing they are most willing to eat is leafy greens like cilantro, parsley, etc., then they will gradually get to eating a little hay, but they don't usually want to eat their pellets until they are feeling much better. So maybe you could try a few easily tolerated dark leafy greens like cilantro, parsley, and dark leafy lettuce, and the celery is fine too. I'm not sure when you should give his pain meds. Is the pain med they gave you metacam? With my rabbits I've always been instructed to give the first dose the same night.

I don't think it would be a good idea to put him with your girl rabbit. He is still fertile and can get her pregnant for at least another 4 weeks or more. Plus you don't want him trying to hump her at all, as it wouldn't be good for him because of his recent surgery.


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## Lhucky (Aug 6, 2013)

His pain meds is meloxicam. 0.2 ml once daily for 5 days. His not making any grinding teeth pain so far. He was given a shot of antibiotic yesterday and pain meds same time shortly after surgery... then 10am today we gave another dose of pain med. Still don't know whether to give antibiotic or not.. vet removed his testicles from scrotum... no blood so far or pus... ( we did not touch, just look )

Thor weight 2.4 kg. About 6 months old only...

Maybe vet think I know more about rabbit so he didn't really tell me much anymore... we just read our knowledge on the net or from this site... mostly from RO....

I did however touch his tummy when we check him this morning, so far so good... no signs or behaviour of having GI problem... we take it as a good sign. except from food consumption...


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