How to Prevent Cancer In Rabbits?

Do you have an unspayed (not neutered) female rabbit?  Did you know that studies have shown that 70-80% of unspayed female rabbits develop uterine cancer after the age of three years? Did you also know that this rabbit cancer is completely preventable by spaying (removing the rabbit’s ovaries and uterus) before cancer develops and spreads elsewhere in the body? While once a very risky procedure, rabbit spays are now commonly performed much more readily with the advent of very safe drugs and anesthesia. While no surgical procedure is risk-free, spaying rabbits is a common surgery at the Veterinary Center. At the Center, we have taken several steps to minimize the risk associated with surgery in rabbits, including using a special fiber-optic endoscope to allow us to see in the back of the rabbit’s throat to pass a breathing tube into the rabbit’s airway. We also now have special breathing tubes (Vgel tubes) that we can place over the open end of the rabbit’s airway (the glottis) in the back of its mouth in a matter of seconds without having to use the endoscope. This tube enables us to breathe for the rabbit if it stops breathing suddenly, and we only have seconds to save it. In general,  having a breathing tube in place, rather than just a mask over the rabbit’s face, enables us to assist in breathing during surgery even if the rabbit is still breathing on its own but the breathing has become irregular – a critical factor in helping to ensure a good outcome.

Rabbit Surgery at our Veterinary Center in NY

In addition, to minimize risk associated with surgery in rabbits, we generally perform only one rabbit surgery per day at the Center, ensuring that each rabbit spayed gets the full attention of our entire staff (veterinarians and licensed veterinary technicians), all of whom have extensive experience treating rabbits. In addition, as we do not treat any dogs or cats (predator species) at the Center, bunnies (prey species) are much less likely to get stressed out than they would if there were barking dogs or meowing cats nearby. Certainly, no surgical procedure is without some risk, but at the Center, we have taken every step we can to lessen that risk. Given the incidence of this horrible, completely preventable fatal disease in rabbits, why would you not spay your bunny? It’s generally never too late to take this crucial step in preventing cancer in your rabbit. So, what are you waiting for? If your female bunny isn’t yet spayed, call the use today at the Veterinary Center for Birds and Exotics in NY