Getting my bunny spayed.

Question
I have 2 lop eared dwarf bunnies, one neutered male and a female both 1 and 1/2yrs old.  They are bonded and are getting on great although my female is starting to have more and more false pregnancies which i think is affecting both bunnies.  I am thinking of getting her spade although i am very worried about the anesthetic and the operation itself.  Please can you give me advice on this procedure and the best after care i can give her?  I understand i may need to re-bond the pair after the operation, what is the easiest way of keeping then as close as possible during her recovery?  Thanks for you advice and help.

Answer
Dear Rachel,

You are absolutely right that the constant false pregnancies are hard on both bunnies, and they do cause a lot of stress for the female.  The risk of mastitis (mammary gland infections) increases with false pregnancies, and this is NOT a pretty thing.  The best thing for all involved will be spaying your girl, for her health and longevity:

www.rabbit.org/health/spay.html

A good, experienced rabbit vet is the key.  We have vets whoi have spayed hundreds of rabbits without incident.  Although no surgery is 100% risk free, the risk is probably worth the gain in overall health.  A very few rabbits have idiosyncratic reactions to anesthesia, but today's gases (isoflurane; sevoflurane) have proven incredibly safe for rabbits.  You just need a good, experienced rabbit vet who uses all the most trusted protocols to reduce the risk to a negligible level.  You can find a good vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Here is some additional information on pre-op and post-op care:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/opcare.html

If you keep the male nearby and physically able to see/smell her and even touch, if he doesn't try to hump her, you should have less trouble re-bonding.  We often recommend that both members of a bonded pair go to the vet for the surgery, and stay together as long as possible.  As long as the male doesn't mount or harass her, there is no reason to separate them, and she might actually feel better having him there for moral support.  Only if he harasses her should they be separated.

I hope that helps!

Dana