approx. rates on neutering?

[RaVeRiNaBuBbLe]

i know every vet is different, but i was wondering if anyone knows an approximate price for neutering degus/small animals.

i do realize death could result from this, but in other cases where they've survived, have any of your males chewed their stitches? do they need to be separated with small cage confinement for a while? if so, how small of a cage?

i really should get the boys in soon, i separated them from my female, but she is quite lonely and would love to have her brothers back to play with. once neutered, they will no longer fight over a female, right?

i figured it'd be easier to ask these questions before hand, as well as ask those with experience in this situation, whereas most vets will not tell you everything....or in my case, the receptionist at the office is an idiot who doesn't know what a degu is, and doesn't seem too concerned with finding out if the vet knows either. anyway, enough ranting. once i'm feeling more informed, i will go on the hunt to find a reputable small animal vet in my area. unfortunately my squirrel vet has retired, so i must find someone new.


ahh....so sorry for the rapid-fire questions....i just feel i have a lot of info to learn...thanks in advance for any and all responses.

[sarah]

Our Buddy was neutered on November 10, and I think the cost was around $100. The vet said he didn't need to be confined, but we did anyway. We put him in a cage right next to her cage so they could touch noses and make little cheeping noises. Luckily, we had their old cage which was an aquarium with a cage topper. He wasn't running around much, so I don't think he required much room.

We tried to put them back together after 24 hours but they started fighting again, which was part of their mating ritual (I think he wanted to, but she didn't...) We separated them again and I called the doctor and he said that the testosterone would stick around for a few days. I think we were able to reunite them after 2 or 3 days.

He seemed a little cross and groggy when he first came home. He puffed himself up into a round degu ball and closed his eyes halfway. He did accept treats, however. He did not chew his stitches. The doctor said he buried them enough so they wouldn't stick out.

He healed up very quickly and they are very happy now. Blossom may be pregnant, but that's another story!

Let me know if you have any more questions. We were very hesitant about going through with the procedure, but we really didn't have much choice. We had a long talk with the doctor beforehand and he was confident that there wouldn't be any complications, even though he hadn't neutered a degu in several years (he mostly does rats and chins).


Sarah

[RaVeRiNaBuBbLe]

thank you so much. I will start making phone calls tomorrow!