VERY, VERY NERVOUS!

[zippy-kat]

I'm hoping someone who has been through this before can reply and help me out a bit!

I really want to have my Sophie spayed but I am sooooo very nervous! She was in one time before but the vet decided against the operation; she wanted to wait until Sophie was 9 months or 5lbs...whichever came first. At nine months, we were battling tummy problems and the vet then decided to wait another 3 months. And now the time is quickly approaching....

However, since these incidents, Emergency Vets aired an episode about a bunny who underwent a hairball removal. I distinctly remember one vet stating that rabbits do not do well when put under. And now I am completely terrified to have it done!!!

I have a good vet and asked her if she had lost any while performing a spay/neuter. At that time, she had not. (I haven't contacted her within the last 3 months.) This is comforting but I am still terrified!!

I know that there are many benefits that come w/ spaying but do these benefits out-weigh the chance of an all too early death? :confused:

Maybe I'm just being a wuss or an overly(!) protective mother, but I would GREATLY appreciate advice from anyone who has been down this road before!

[aly]

I don't know too much about rabbits :( I had one named Bugs when I was in juinor high. My cousin rescued him and nursed him back to health from a vet clinic that was going to put him to sleep. Then she gave him to me.

I'll see if I can find any websites that talk about spaying bunnies.

[zippy-kat]

Thanks Aly!

I guess I have the pre-spay jitters that every parent goes through. lol

[TheAntiPam]

At a bunny rescue place profiled on Animal Planet, EVERY bunny was spayed or neutered. They made a big point of that.

Obviously part of their message has to do with pet overpopulation, but I'm sure they would not do that to every animal if it wasn't safe and healthy.

I dunno if that helps, but we'll keep paws crossed for Sophie!

[zippy-kat]

Thanks, Antipam. we could really use the extra well wishes.

I guess I should mention that Sophie is an only bunny and I really don't plan on taking any more buns in at this time.

On the other hand...I'ver heard that rabbits are prone to ovarian cancer. :( And I guess it might be wise to 'nip it in the bud' so to speak. :confused:

Our 3 months of post-tummy problems is not up just yet, but I plan to call the vet and talk things over with her soon.

Doesn't Karen have a bun? Wonder if her baby is spayed/neutered...?

[Daisy's Mom]

I don't have any advice, but if you indeed do go through with the surgery, Daisy and I will keep our fingers and paws crossed for sweet little Sophie!

[zippy-kat]

Thanks Daisy's Mom! I appreciate it!

[Daisy's Mom]

Any time. What are Pet Talkers for? :) And by the way, I have beern meaning to tell you that I absolutely love the picture in your signature!!! Anything with a Basset steals my heart :) Sometimes if Daisy is eating something messy, we put a scrunchy over her ears and they almost look like that :)

[Karen]

Please do have her spayed - my bunny went through it No Problem. Just be sure you have a vet who knows rabbits, and you'll both be fine, and you are right, unspayed females are prone to cancer.

[jackiesdaisy1935]

I don't know very much about bunnies, of course I think they are snuggly and sweet, but I think it is a good thing to have Sophie spayed and I'm sure she will be O.K.
Jackie

[zippy-kat]

Thanks guys! I'm out of town at the moment but I plan on contacting the vet once I get back. I'll keep you updated...

[NoahsMommy]

Hi there,

I just saw this post about Sophia and wanted to tell you not to worry. I also wanted to ask what you feed Sophia? We feed Faith a lot of things to aid in her health and she hasn't been sick once. Poor Sophia! I hope her tummy troubles will be over soon. :(

Here is what we feed Faith every day:
~Rabbit Pellets by Nutrophase
~Timothy hay, you need to use Timothy, because the pellets are almost 100% alfalfa hay. (Timothy hay helps stop furballs)
~Dried papaya (for digestion) 1 tblspn
~Veggie mix (1 tablespoon)
~Alfalfa O's
~Fresh veggies (1 cup), she really like broccoli, apples (this is a treat), carrot greens, flat pea pods, kale, cilantro, kitty grass, etc. Anything that is dark green and leafy. She will eat the tops of the strawberries, but wont touch the red part...silly! :rolleyes:

We also brush Faith and clip her nails once a week. My hubby just brushed her on Saturday and got SO much hair off of her!! Poor thing! :eek:

I hope this helps. I have been learning a lot about bunnies since I have had Faith. (We used to have outdoor bunnies when I was little, but I didn’t really learn that much about them, except that they eat their young!! Gross! :( ) . Does Sophie play with anything? Faith loves to (this sounds bad :o) hump the stuffed-animal-material basketball that my hubby gave her.

She doesn't nest too much and generally plays with newspaper when we give it to her. I wonder why certain bunnies do this, and others don’t as much.

Has her potty training gotten any better? Faith is doing a little better, but is getting a little "bratty", she has been trying to sneak out of her gate lately!

Let me know how things are going when you can!

Take care!

[zippy-kat]

Here's a list of what Sophie eats:
Parsley, Cilantro, and/or carrot tops
Timmy hay
alfalfa based pellets (can't find the timmy based that the vet recommended)
Pineapple juice (1x a wk)
apples, strawberries (both are fed occasionally)
a tblsp or so of pineapple/pina colada yougurt (occasionally)

Sophie gets brushed about once a wk as well. However, she HATES to have her nails clipped (even though we started at an early age!) We let the vet techs take care of that problem for us! lol

Sophie has a set of keys (the kind for teething babies) that she LOVES to throw. She also loves towels and wash-rags. I beleive she suffers from the obsessive/compulsive disorder--she will bunch up a towel then straighten it out, then repeat over and over and OVER again! lol She also has a few 'jingle balls'--that are actually cat toys. She doesn't really care for these but will mess w/ them every once in awhile. Oh and she LOVES boxes!!

Sophie is a nesting maniac! She goes crazy with shredding paper and/or magazines. She also loves to burrow underneath the blankets!

Sophie's potty training is still about the same. She's bein' a bit bratty too--she's PMS-ing. :o lol ;)

We're back in town now and tomorrow I plan on calling the vet to discuss spaying Sophie. YIKES! :eek:

Still very nervous about it...we'll see how it goes!

[NoahsMommy]

What a cutie!! Faith has those keys too!! That is so funny! :p

What is the pinapple juice for? Maybe that could be causing a tumy upset? Because of the acid in it? (Someone here at work cant have any citrus juice because of that.)

Anyway, I am sure Sophie will be just fine after her operation. Bunnies are so frisky and playful, she'll probably be paling with her keys and towel in no time!!

Let us know about what the vet says.

:D

[zippy-kat]

The pineapple juice serves the same purpose as the papaya tablets. There's something in it that aids in digestion! (Makes her breath smell yummy too! lol)

Vet is out lunch right now.
Waiting on her return........

[Corinna]

I have a question for you why have her spay? If you don't have unnertered males around I fail to see why? I have raised rabbits for 35 years I had only the males done and they can do that under a lower dose.I have raised rabbits for commerail use as well as shows and the latest was Angoras for my spinning.
Female rabbits do not have a messy estrusas most animals do infact they is only 4 days a month they are not reseptive to be bred.

[Karen]

Hi! This is from the House Rabbit Society website:

Why spay and neuter rabbits?

Altered rabbits are healthier and live longer than unaltered rabbits. The risk of reproductive cancers (ovarian, uterine, mammarian) for an unspayed female rabbit stands at is virtually eliminated by spaying your female rabbit. Your neutered male rabbit will live longer as well, given that he won't be tempted to fight with other animals (rabbits, cats, etc.) due to his sexual aggression.

Altered rabbits make better companions. They are calmer, more loving, and dependable once the undeniable urge to mate has been removed. In addition, rabbits are less prone to destructive (chewing, digging) and aggressive (biting, lunging, circling, growling) behavior after surgery.

There's more, the FAQ is here: http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/spay-neuter.html

[zippy-kat]

Well, guys...I called back when the answering service told me to and the vet is out of town!

The receptionist that I spoke to was willing to set up the apt. but I explained I wanted to talk to the vet re: the spay. I explained that she (the vet) wanted to wait 3mnths (which are now up) and I didn't know if she wanted me to bring Sophie in for a pre-check-up or if she just wanted me to go ahead and make the apt. :confused:

Sooooo....I'll call next Monday and see what she has to say.

[NoahsMommy]

I still think Sophie is the cutest name! My best friend's cat shares that name.

The vet told us that Faith needed to be spayed to prevent cancer as well.

Let us know what happens on Monday. Take care! :)

[zippy-kat]

Sophie goes in for her spay next Tuesday (9/4) at 8 A.M.!!!! :eek:

[ August 27, 2001: Message edited by: zippy-kat ]

[Karen]

Good for Sadie, I'm sure she'll be fine. And unlike mosty dogs I know, my rabbit, at least, did not insist on displaying her scar for sympathy for weeks afterwards!

[zippy-kat]

Poor Sophie!

Her spay is (almost) right after her b-day! What a b-day present! lol

Karen, if Sophie knew how much pity/sympathy/snuggles she's gonna get, she'd soak it up for all it's worth! lol

I do feel better about it this time around. Still nervous...but I do feel better about it.

[Daisy's Mom]

I have a feeling everything will go fine, and you're doing the right thing! Sophie will thank you for it someday :) Keep us posted on how it goes!

[zippy-kat]

Noah's Mommy~

I found a website re: the spay...Here's the address...

Rabbit Spay (http://www.lbah.com/Rabbits/rabbit_spay.htm)

It has pics of the procedure as well.

[zippy-kat]

Me again...lol
But this time with HAPPYnews! :D
Just got home and called the vet, Sophie's surgery went wonderfully!!! No complications! I'm so happy. I have two hours before I go pick her up; they will--no doubt--be the longest two hours of my life! lol

[Daisy's Mom]

I am sooo glad everything went okay! I just had a feeling that it would :) Kisses to adorable sweert Sophie! Here's to many more happy years with her!

[Karen]

Welcome, Sophie girl, to the world of happy spayed bunnies! (Have momma give you an extra raisin just for being such a good, brave bunny!)

[zippy-kat]

Oddly enough, Sophie HATES raisins!!! But I will give her some extra kissies and a bit of banana!

[tatsxxx11]

Oh Zippy! Just saw this thread about spaying! I was scheduled to have Mr. Squeekers, my guinea pig neutered a couple of weeks ago. I want to get him a "room mate," at the shelter, and she is female! I was so nervous about it. Then the WTC tragedy happened and I completely forgot about the appt. Your discussion here though, has given me the courage to reschedule the appt.! Today is RABBIT DAY!!!!!!!!!!! What a special day is in store for precious little Sophie! I hope she gets lots of goodies today! Have you posted a picture of her anywhere here? I thought there was a thread with her picture but I can't remember where! Love to you and little Sophie girl! So glad the surgery went well!! Love, Sandra and Co.

[zippy-kat]

Uh-oh...the brag book is now open! lol

Here's one of the better pics I have of her:
http://wsphotofews.excite.com/028/Xw/Dn/qT/yR31369.jpg

And here's a link to her lil' piece of cyberspace:
The World According to Miz Sophie (http://www.geocities.com/peaceful_purrs/Sophie.html)

[zippy-kat]

Thank you! :D

[Daisy's Mom]

Sophie is gorgeous! What a sweet face! And I love long droopy ears :)