14/07/2025
Educational Mondays - neutering rabbits and guinea pigs
We had a lovely week of little cuddly patients last week! Blanket the guinea pig visited for his castration, and Nugget and Oreo were spayed. All are recovering nicely.
There are always risks to consider when operating on any patient, but our small furry patients always carry a higher anaesthetic risk. However, neutering also offers many advantages and is often recommended depending on the circumstances.
- Unspayed female rabbits have an 80% likelihood of developing cancer of the uterus
- A female rabbit can have a litter every month resulting in hundreds of potential babies per year!
- Behavioural issues such as fighting can be seen between entire male and female rabbits and guinea pigs, and nesting or aggressive behaviours can be seen in entire female rabbits
- Male and female rabbits and guinea pigs are more likely to spray urine to mark their territory, and are less accepting of being introduced to new animals
We can neuter rabbits and guinea pigs from around 4 months of age. They reach sexual maturity around 2-3 months old so males and females must be kept separate until neutering, and can still be fertile for up to 6 week afterwards so cannot be introduced until after this time!
If you have any questions please give us a call as always : )
