Rabbit hitting maturity

Question
Hi.  I have a female mini lop who is about 5 months old now. Although she is very friendly and comes running toward me the second she sees me, it is impossible to play with her without her beginning her circling and humping behavior.  She has not been spayed yet.  Is there anything I can do prior to her getting spayed to reduce this urge of hers?

Answer
Dear Dana,

The simple answer is:  No.  Until she's spayed, she will be crazy horny.  She's still a little young for spaying, but if her behavior is really nuts, then a very experienced rabbit vet should be able to do the spay without leaving behind any of the young, friable uterine tissue that could later become cancerous.

You can find a good rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

One drastic option, if you're really not keen on spaying her this young, is to ask the vet about taking a soft cotton swab lubricated with warm KY jelly, and performing a false mating.  It doesn't have to be deep or violent.  But sometimes just the physical sensation can send her into a false pregnancy.  This will make her grumpy for a while (about 2 weeks), until she builds a nest and gets all cuddly for a few days.  But she won't circle while she's having a false pregnancy.

You just have to decide whether you prefer circly or grumpy.  :P  Not a great choice.

Dana