The Benefits of Spaying/Neutering Your Pet Rabbit
Debra Olon-West
Special thanks to Doctor Richard Orozco of Camboro Veterinarian Hospital Edinboro, PA for his contribution in the writing of this article

You have brought home an absolutely cute baby rabbit and everything goes well until he is six months old.  All of the sudden, with no provocation and despite the best of care, he starts to urinate all over the house, bites you and your family members, and starts doing that to any available rabbits, other pets, or human appendages.

Q. What would cause my rabbit to behave like this?
A. It is very likely that your rabbit’s hormones have kicked in and he is ‘feeling his oats’.

Q. Do bucks display this kind of behavior in different ways?
A.  I have seen them either get aggressive (biting) or spraying (like a male cat).   Some bucks do all right through the ‘hormonal stage’.  I also have seen the behavior correct itself over time.

Q. Can this happen with female rabbits?
A. Yes, but not as aggressively as the males.  I have seen them attempt to mate with a buck to show dominance, nip people, and display kindling behavior (ripping out hair and nesting to show that she wants to be pregnant).

Q. How I correct this behavior?
A. By getting the bunny ‘fixed’ by a qualified veterinarian who specializes in rabbits.

I consulted with Doctor Richard Orozco of the Camboro Veterinarian Hospital outside of Edinboro, Pa. He mentioned that spaying or neutering rabbits have the following benefits:

  There should be less aggressive behavior, such as biting.
  Bucks should stop spraying to mark territory.
  Does should not be having ‘false pregnancies’.
  There is less chance of ovarian cancer in Does and testicular cancer in Bucks.
  Litter habits should improve.

Q. I have heard that it is more expensive to get a bunny ‘fixed’ than a dog or cat.  Why is this the case?
A. Dr. Orozco said that this is because of the anesthesia used for the rabbit.  One also should note that in many cases, the organs of a rabbit are smaller than that of a dog or cat, depending on the breed.

Q. Is there a chance that my bunny would die from this procedure?
A. Yes, but the chances are better, as well as the quality of the anesthesia than in the past.  In most cases, the rabbit survives being spayed/neutered.

I would like to leave you with a few facts:

  A single pair of rabbits can go from two to 2,000 in one year’s time.
  Because of their survival instinct, domestic rabbits have no specific breeding season, but the Does are spontaneous ovulators.  This means that within a short time of mating, the doe becomes pregnant.
  It can take as little as five seconds for a mating to be successfully completed.  This means if a buck and a doe are loose together, she would be pregnant in a very short period of time unless one of them is ‘fixed’.
  We have found that many abandoned or unwanted does that have come to us expecting due to negligence or ignorance on the part of their previous ‘caretakers’.

Please be part of the solution to this problem of unwanted litters; not the problem.  Your rabbit(s)will thank you for it with a longer and more peaceful life.

 

 

 

 

For Education Purposes

For use on Perfect Pets/Gander Gab

2007

 

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