spaying my rabbit

Question
Hi. I have a pet store bought rabbit named Lilly that is about 7 months old now. She is my only rabbit, so her getting pregnant isn't a concern, and she has a very good temperment, but I have heard that female rabbits have a very high risk of several types of cancer if they are not spayed. Also she has stopped using her litter box which she was before quite good about, and I have also heard that spaying helps this problem. I am very interested in having her spayed, as I certainly want her to live the longest healthiest life that she can, however I have several concerns. First of all, is she old enough? I can't be positive of her age, all I know is that she was "about" 8 weeks old when I bought her in March. Also, will she have to stay overnight at the vet? She gets very stressed out even on car rides and certainly in unfamiliar places. Also, what if she rips out her stitches? What can be done to prevent that? I am concerned that she will have a hard time recovering or that she will not eat well afterwards. She gets diarria with even small changes in her diet. Please let me know your opinion, and the average time that it takes for rabbits to recover from surgery. Thank you.  

Answer
Somewhere between 4 and 9 months rabbits do become hormonal and start displaying negative behaviors such as biting, not using the litterbox, and spraying.

I've had a lot of rabbits spayed, even the ones that don't like the car ride or are picky do ok afterwards.

There is a lot of information about spaying at http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rabrefs.html#spay  There is also a list of rabbit-knowledgeable vets at http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/PB_vets.html

You would want to ask the vet if your bunny would need to stay overnight, what painkillers you will get for her to take home, and if they do interdermal stitches (impossible to rip out even for the most determined bunny).

She won't eat well for a few days, but usually within a week they are back to normal.

Kim