Is 6 Months Old Too Long To Wait To Spay?

kttn

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Our kitten is currently 4 months old. We have an amazing vet who we trust completely and would prefer that this vet is the one to spay our kitten, but the vet only spays starting at 6 months old.

I've always had cats desexed at a much younger age (mostly at low cost spay clinics which do it at way younger ages) so waiting this long kind of worries me. I don't want the kitten to go into heat. We don't have a male cat or anything, I just want to avoid it if possible. Do you guys think waiting another 2 months is generally okay? Or should I seek out another vet?

If it matters she's an exotic shorthair persian. Does anyone know when on average they start?

Thank you.
 

1CatOverTheLine

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Anesthetic management in brachycephalic breeds such as Persians is more difficult than in most cats because of reduced airways. Most veterinarians who understand this want the kitten to have every opportunity, and hence they'll delay until the airways are larger than they might be in a four month old kitten.

Edit: a different link:

VetFolio
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StefanZ

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In Sweden the standard now is to desex at 6 months. It was 12 months several years ago. THIS must have produced quite a lot of homeless cats and kittens...

Persians mature later than most others, but a Exotic matures somewhat earlier than a longhaired persian. Also, most cats do mature somewhat later on. So money bet is heavily on its OK to wait a couple of months, esp if you are observant and dont let her out.

But you dont have no safety. The only safe is to spay now as soon you can arrange it.

Of course, you have the compromise, to wait and observe. IF she happens to get mated, then you go to this vet as soon you can and demand immediate spaying...
 

StefanZ

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Aha, I see the post above by 1Catovertheline... Yes, I do buy this argumentation, and thus, I will reconsiderate and change my main recommendation to the next one as the new main:

Wait and observe. IF she happens to mate, THAN you will solve the problem.

If she isnt mated or in any other difficulty, you wait to the 6 months till your excellent vet is happy with the spaying then..
 
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kttn

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Thank you everyone! You all made wonderful points!! I appreciate it.

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Anesthetic management in brachycephalic breeds such as Persians is more difficult than in most cats because of reduced airways. Most veterinarians who understand this want the kitten to have every opportunity, and hence they'll delay until the airways are larger than they might be in a four month old kitten.

Edit: a different link:

VetFolio
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Both what you and stefanz said strengthened my resolve to go with my current vet. I did not even think about the potential issues with having such a flat-faced breed! I spoke to my vet at length today and she is comfortable performing the surgery on our kitten at 5 months old :) She said 6 months is her general guideline but she does not see any reason we can't do it a month earlier.

It's an excellent compromise and I am SO happy I don't have to worry about a later spay date and also that I didn't go with another vet, which was making me nervous to think about.

Thank you again everyone for your input, it really really helped.
 

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FelinskiFamily

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I have an almost 2 months old female kitten and was wondering about how long to wait before having her spayed. The problem is she COULD get pregnant but I don't want to make a decision that will make her have health issues later in life. Is there anyone here with a healthy 15-year-old (or so) cat who was spayed at 6 months or earlier? At the end of the day, I think I'd rather her have kittens than get some incurable disease in 10 years.
 
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kttn

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I have an almost 2 months old female kitten and was wondering about how long to wait before having her spayed. The problem is she COULD get pregnant but I don't want to make a decision that will make her have health issues later in life. Is there anyone here with a healthy 15-year-old (or so) cat who was spayed at 6 months or earlier? At the end of the day, I think I'd rather her have kittens than get some incurable disease in 10 years.
I ended up spaying at a little under 5 months. My vet was confident it was the right time. It's been exactly a month since her spay and it's like it never happened. I'm very very happy I did it when she was so young before she went into heat etc. She was over it in like 2 days.

If you go to a competent vet I don't see the issue with a young spay. All of the issues you're worried about come if you DON'T spay. I've had many older cats who were spayed young, including one who reached her 20s.
 

FelinskiFamily

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I ended up spaying at a little under 5 months. My vet was confident it was the right time. It's been exactly a month since her spay and it's like it never happened. I'm very very happy I did it when she was so young before she went into heat etc. She was over it in like 2 days.

If you go to a competent vet I don't see the issue with a young spay. All of the issues you're worried about come if you DON'T spay. I've had many older cats who were spayed young, including one who reached her 20s.
Thank you, this is what I wanted to know. I wasn't really concerned about her recovery, but whether it will afect her health later on, as I understood they tend to have serious issues if hormonal development is stopped. I will also consult the vet about her other patients that were spayed young, how long did they get to live, and about the quality of life in the second decade...
 

1CatOverTheLine

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I understood they tend to have serious issues if hormonal development is stopped.
FelinskiFamily FelinskiFamily - Serious issues arise only if hormonal development isn't stopped. Please read through this article:

Benefits of Spaying (Ovariohysterectomy) Female Cats

paying special attention to these three paragraphs:

"Mammary cancer: Mammary cancer is the third most common cancer in cats. Reproductive hormones are one of the primary causes of mammary cancer in the cat. Cats who have been spayed have a 40-60% lower risk of developing mammary cancer than those who have not been spayed.

Tumors of the reproductive tract: Tumors also occur in the uterus and ovaries. An OHE would, of course, eliminate any possibility of this occurring. They are not commonly seen cancers in cats, but they do occur.

Infections of the reproductive tract: Unspayed cats may develop a severe uterine disease called pyometra. With this disorder, bacteria enter the uterus and it becomes filled with pus. The normal 6-inch long, thin horns of the uterus enlarge to 10 inches long and can become the diameter of a human thumb. Undetected, this condition is almost always fatal. In rare cases, when the condition is found early, hormonal and antibiotic therapy may be successful. This type of therapy is limited to valuable breeding animals. Generally, the treatment of pyometra requires a difficult and expensive ovariohysterectomy. The toxicities resulting from the infection can strain the kidneys or heart, and in some cases may be fatal or cause life long problems, even after the infected uterus has been removed."

The Veterinary School at The University of California, Davis, during Leslie Lyon's tenure did countless studies on cats spayed after one year, nine months and six month, and the odds in favour of a cat being affected by one of the three maladies cited above are positively astronomical, as opposed to that of cats spayed before the age of six months, where the odds drop down below 15% for even one of three "usual" disorders.

My cats have always been spayed early (beginning in 1958), and not a single female has ever been affected by any of the "big three." Average age over the year falls in the very early twenties. Oldest: 29 years 11 months; youngest: age 16. I currently have eleven cats, two over twenty years, and not a single health concern.

Disclaimer: my cats are seen regularly here at home by their veterinarian - sometimes twice a week if I have rib eye steaks on the grill.

Edit: @Alejandra Rico - feel free to add anything you might wish here, Alejandra. Note that ustedes son compatriotas FelinskiFamily is quite near you geographically, though they're on the east (Mediterranean) coast and you're on the north coast.
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talkingpeanut

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Thank you, this is what I wanted to know. I wasn't really concerned about her recovery, but whether it will afect her health later on, as I understood they tend to have serious issues if hormonal development is stopped. I will also consult the vet about her other patients that were spayed young, how long did they get to live, and about the quality of life in the second decade...
I agree with the above. There are not risks to stopping the hormonal development. There are significant risks to allowing a kitten get pregnant at 4 months, which is possible.
 

neely

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Congrats on your new Exotic Persian girl. Persians are very docile and have a wonderful, loving temperament. :hearthrob: I'm glad that you asked about the spay procedure and age.

Please heed the link that 1CatOverTheLine 1CatOverTheLine referred to in his post. Some vets use a kitty cocktail with Ketamine which should be avoided in brachycephalic breeds. We have had two Persians in the past and presently have our third boy. I would strongly recommend discussing the anesthetic procedure with your vet well in advance and be sure that he or she follows your preferences. Of utmost importance in the above referenced link from 1CatOverTheLine is the paragraph about - Choosing the Proper Anesthetic Agents.
 

abyeb

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I have an almost 2 months old female kitten and was wondering about how long to wait before having her spayed. The problem is she COULD get pregnant but I don't want to make a decision that will make her have health issues later in life. Is there anyone here with a healthy 15-year-old (or so) cat who was spayed at 6 months or earlier? At the end of the day, I think I'd rather her have kittens than get some incurable disease in 10 years.
Here's another article relating to the topic: An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie

I don't know why the link looks so weird, it does work though, when I clicked on it, directing to an article in the Journal of the AVMA.
 
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Garak

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I had a British Shorthair that I couldn't afford to spay until she was 6 years old. She was mostly fine without any weird changes in her lersonality after. She did gain some weight, but not a lot. After a few months she wasn't feeling good and I had to give her estrogen every month. She was fine when she had her pill, but if I was late giving her the next one she made a point to tell me. She didn't have any extended special needs outside the estrogen tablet.
 
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