My kitties belly tattoos are visible without shaving. You have to really look on the black one, but it is clearly there if you even halfway try to find it.
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Ear Tipping & Tattoing????????
- Thread starter prncss89
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I asked this same question after Marlee came home with me! She also has a blue/green "tattoo" on her belly. Its no numbers or anything, just a blue/green line where her incision was (atleat I think its over where the incision was). I think its great! It did not color her fur, but its easily seen if you are looking at her precious little belly. I would be a little wary about getting a cat "tipped". That just sounds to me like it would hurt them more! But I guess it just depends on the vets' practice....
To me ear tipping is for livestock, or for ferals you can't get near. I feel it is a little barbaric for housepets
Oscar wasn't tattooed, but his vet did ask for my permission If I want to, I said no since Oscar is already an indoor and neutered cat, and he didn't come from the sanctuary so I don't see the need, I had chips implanted on him though, just in case, but I am certain he won't stray as I have installed pet screens on our outdoor lawn and garage, plus, my retired dad, a cat lover too, takes care of him when I am at work.
Shadowsoul
Shadowsoul
The one on Abby is discreet, but Chynna's is quite noticeable when you look at her. Dark blue on a pure white cat, smack in the middle of the inside of her ear.
I see people saying that their pets have a tattoo of a symbol. That's good as an indicator if the pet is picked up, but a symbol doesn't really help with reuniting lost pets with their owners.
Where I live in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, they use numbers which are cross referenced to the owner so that if the pet becomes lost somehow, provided you have kept your address current with the Humane Society, they can look up the unique tattoo number and reunite you with your pet. I suppose it works the same way as those micro chips do, only tattooing is an older method. I don't think they had microchips when Chynna was spayed, and when Abby was done 7 years ago I opted to just do a tattoo.
While my cats are indoor kitties, I'm still happy that they are both tattooed because you never know what can happen during a move or travel or something. At least this way I know that if they are taken to the Humane Society or Pound here, that it will be visible that both have a home and I can get my babies back.
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When I was a kid, we adopted a couple cats from a local rescue over the years. One of them had been a stray that had taken up residence in someone's backyard. Her tummy was so fat that her rescuers assumed she was pregnant, but after several weeks of waiting and no kittens appearing, they took her in to have her spayed. When the vet shaved her, he discovered an old spay scar! I guess a tattoo of some sort would be helpful in situations like that if the scar wasn't visible.
Honestly though I have never heard of anyone tattooing housepets around here. Mine are microchipped, and I know the local shelters and rescues heavily promote the chips. Is there some sort of central database for tattoo registration? I guess I don't understand how the tattoos would work for finding a cat's owner. I can't imagine trying to register that info with all the shelters and vet offices in our area.
Honestly though I have never heard of anyone tattooing housepets around here. Mine are microchipped, and I know the local shelters and rescues heavily promote the chips. Is there some sort of central database for tattoo registration? I guess I don't understand how the tattoos would work for finding a cat's owner. I can't imagine trying to register that info with all the shelters and vet offices in our area.
My cats are from the local Humane Society to begin with, and if they were ever caught or turned in that's where they would be taken. The tattoos are in the shelter database with my contact information.
Ear tipping is normally done when releasing neutered ferals, although I do know of at least one person who doesn't do it. I have seen dogs with ear tattoos, but no cats on the mainly UK forums I use.
I have a neutered male that I adopted from a shelter and he has a blue/green line on his tummy. It's not hurting him or hideous or anything, but I was curious about what it was.
My kitten was spayed by a feral cat rescue (even though she wasn't feral and was just brought in by a foster mother). They tattooed an S on her for spayed. This tattoo isn't visible with fur since she is black, but it would be when she was shaved which would save her an unnecessary surgery.
While they shouldn't have done it without your consent, look at it this way. If the cat were to ever get out it would be very apparent that it belongs to someone or did at one time. In the case of worst possible scenarios this isn't really THAT big of a deal. BUT I do agree that if you didn't consent to it, it should not have been done. Personally with the large number of strays in the world and that I have personally seen come through the shelters or dog pounds (which often don't even hold cats but immediately euthanize) I think it is an excellent idea.
I can see having a universal sign for TNR kitties, but I'm surprised tattooing is so popular with pets (not judging or anything, just surprised!) My kitten will get a microchip when she's spayed
In my town if your cat is spayed or neutered, they give them a tattoo on their belly. My little baby Rayne came back from the vets with a tattoo when she got spayed, but when i asked the vet they said "It's so we know your cat is spayed! We can scan it and it'll come up with your information" and I don't really understand how that works. If it's just a tattoo, how can they scan it? I think it's actually kinda like a chip. I really wished they'd at least tell you beforehand though. In the end I guess it doesn't matter though because her fur grew over it O:
Frost's tat.
Yep, that's a neuter tattoo. It has become fairly common practice in the US especially at low-cost, high-volume spay/neuter clinics. This identifies your cat as fixed. If he ever shows up at the vet again, shaving his tummy for a tattoo will tell them he's a neutered male and not an intact bilateral cryptorchid--rare, but it happens.
In my opinion it's a lot more useful for the girls, because a spay done at 8-10 weeks leaves such a small scar that it can be hard to find later in life. And the belly has to be shaved for surgical prep for a spay anyway.
Neuter Scooter in our area does ear tattoos; I prefer the tummy ones. Yes, they're simple, just a bluish green line. The vet makes a fairly superficial dermal incision, inks it, and then glues it up. The skin grows back but the ink stays (although my little Oh Henry licked his glue off and the ink off right after his neuter...)
Because it's done under general anesthesia along with a surgery that requires pain meds, it shouldn't have hurt him at all. And in most cases the fur grows right back over it and it'll take some searching to find it in the future.
In my opinion it's a lot more useful for the girls, because a spay done at 8-10 weeks leaves such a small scar that it can be hard to find later in life. And the belly has to be shaved for surgical prep for a spay anyway.
Neuter Scooter in our area does ear tattoos; I prefer the tummy ones. Yes, they're simple, just a bluish green line. The vet makes a fairly superficial dermal incision, inks it, and then glues it up. The skin grows back but the ink stays (although my little Oh Henry licked his glue off and the ink off right after his neuter...)
Because it's done under general anesthesia along with a surgery that requires pain meds, it shouldn't have hurt him at all. And in most cases the fur grows right back over it and it'll take some searching to find it in the future.
I'm so glad I saw this! My two little guys got neutered yesterday. I already knew about the tattoos (my babies are tatted like mama now!) but when looking today, couldn't figure out why it was all goopy there. Then you mentioned glue - NOW it makes sense.
