Broken Femur

Question
My rabbit is going in for surgery today because she has a broken femur.  I was told that because of the anasthetic there is a high risk she could die.  Have you heard of many rabbits that have survived this operation?  

Thank you

Answer
Dear Ellie,

If the proper anesthetic is used, and if the veterinarian is experienced with rabbits, then the risk should be no greater to repair a broken femur than for any other type of surgery.  The anesthesia of choice for most rabbit-expert vets is isoflurane gas along with appropriate pre-anesthesia (different vets use different sedatives), which has proven quite safe.  Unless your bunny has some hidden, idiosyncratic problem, the risk is not terrible if the vet is experienced.

However, the very fact that the vet suggested that rabbits don't do well under anesthesia makes me wonder just how experienced s/he is with rabbits.  If this is a dog/cat vet, then s/he might not be as experienced as one of the vets listed here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

I have heard of *many* rabbits who have not only survived surgery to repair a broken femur, but have healed well and gone on to live normal lives.  But it's good to be aware that any broken bone can be a nidus for infection, and that appropriate post-operative medication is *very* important for you to give, as per the vet's instructions.  Please ask about post-op antibiotics, and make sure anything prescribed is safe for rabbits (for example, amoxycillin, commonly used to treat dogs and cats, is deadly to rabbits).

Pain management is also important.  Please ask the vet about that before you bring bunny home.

I hope all goes well, and that the leg heals without incident.

Please write back if you have any other questions.

Dana