Kitten Getting Spayed This Thursday--nervous Mama Here!

[TobiDaDog]

Well, I FINALLY found a vet that's willing to spay Reese before 6 months! That was...surprisingly difficult. It might sound kind of funny, but I've never really owned or spayed a female cat before. All of my kitties have been boys aside from two farm cats that I had when I was a little girl. I don't know much about this procedure and I'm nervous for Reese. Especially after a friend of mine recently took their (younger) kitten in and had it die under anesthesia.

• The appointment is at 7:30 AM. Should I just withhold her food overnight and in the morning? I usually feed her at around 8 PM.
• Should I keep her collar?
• Should she be wearing a cone afterwards? She's a wild turkey and loves to run around and play. I wouldn't want her to pop her stitches.
• Will she even have stitches? How do they seal her back up?
• Will she even want to play?
• How long should she be separated from my older cat?
• Do cats stress after surgery? Will she be groggy? (I had one male kitten who refused to lift his face from the floor for 2 hours after he came home)
• How soon after getting home can she eat?
• How long does it take for a cat to become 'normal' again after a spay?
• Will they give her pain meds? (I know I would want pain meds if I was having all of my insides scooped out)
• Will they keep my carrier? If so, I was thinking of putting a shirt of mine or something inside for her to smell because I thought it might be comforting, but if they're just going to give the carrier back to me, then I won't bother.

 

[Kieka]

1. The appointment is at 7:30 AM. Should I just withhold her food overnight and in the morning? I usually feed her at around 8 PM. The newest standards are that kittens under 4 months old should have a meal about four hours before surgery. Kittens older than 4 months old should be fasted overnight. Verify with your vet.
2. Should I keep her collar? I would. I've had some vets remove collars and some vets not. When the vet does the removing there is a risk of it getting lost.
3. Should she be wearing a cone afterwards? She's a wild turkey and loves to run around and play. I wouldn't want her to pop her stitches. A cone doesn't limit activity; it prevents overgrooming of the sutures. A kitten or cat who messes with their surgical site should be kept in a cone. My personal opinion is that if the cat or kitten isn't messing overly much with the surgery site it is less stressful for them to not be coned. But you have to be diligent and ensure the wound heals properly if you don't cone. Some people cone when they can't be there only. Others cone 24/7 to be safe. It is very much a personal choice, IMO, because you take the risk if you don't cone. I would advise finding a soft cone or inflatable neck tube instead of the standard ecollar as these tend to be less stressful. Someone recently got one on Amazon that was a super cute floppy flower.
4. Will she even have stitches? How do they seal her back up? Depends on your vet. Some use stitches, some use internal dissolving stitches and glue. From my understanding, it is a personal choice. My vet did stitches,
   

   20150908_191928.jpg

   • Kieka
   • Mar 23, 2017
5. Will she even want to play? Yes, exhibit A, Rocket shortly after her spay. View media item 420581 As soon as the medication wears off your kitten will likely be back to normal behavior.
6. How long should she be separated from my older cat? Depends on how they get along. I didn't separate my girl from the boys after her spay. I did monitor play to make sure Link didn't do any bunny kicks while she was healing but Rocket was pretty good at yelling at him if he got to close to her tummy. I'd monitor to make sure there are no recognition issues, which can happen after vet visits, and that your older cat doesn't go near the tummy. Most cats are protective of their stomachs anyways so I doubt your older cat would try to groom the area.
7. Do cats stress after surgery? Will she be groggy? (I had one male kitten who refused to lift his face from the floor for 2 hours after he came home) It tends to be a reaction to the medications or generally vet anxiety. From your cats perspective they went to a place, got poked or had a mask put over their face, woke up with a sore spot and feeling funny. My boy has a horrible time with medications and is a downright grump for a few days. Rocket has only had the spay surgery and the moment the medications were fully worn off she was back to normal.
8. How soon after getting home can she eat? Unless your vet says otherwise, most cats should eat as soon as they get home. Especially with younger kitten blood sugar drops are a risk and cats in general don't do well with more than 24 hours of not eating. I've had a few times of a cat being reluctant to eat so I tend to keep human meat baby food on hand for those situations.
9. How long does it take for a cat to become 'normal' again after a spay? Most cats are 12-72 hours after surgery assuming you aren't giving pain medications. Pain medications will prolong that time.
10. Will they give her pain meds? (I know I would want pain meds if I was having all of my insides scooped out) My vet does a pain medication as part of the surgery medication and a take home pain medication. I personally don't give pain medication unless there are definite signs of pain. My logic being a) that cats are hardwired to handle pain better then humans. They don't respond to pain or obsess on it unless it is severe. This isn't to say they don't feel it but I think in human terms they'd be considered having a high tolerance. b) Your cat doesn't know what happened. The pain medications will numb the pain and they may hurt themselves by not realizing the limits. c) I hate taking pain medications unless I really really need to. I didn't take it for my wisdom teeth (all four) removal and I have never finished even the small bottles of aspirin before they expire.
11. Will they keep my carrier? If so, I was thinking of putting a shirt of mine or something inside for her to smell because I thought it might be comforting, but if they're just going to give the carrier back to me, then I won't bother. They will keep the carrier. She likely will recover in a recovery cage, although some places use the carrier instead. I have a carrier bed and will sometimes add towels, blankets or toys if I am leaving the cat at the vet.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Kieka gave you a rockin' good response, as always ....since I was typing at the same time I'll go ahead and post...

Ask them if they'll be doing stitches and/or surgery glue.

It sounds like she may need containment to try and slow her down, and keep her from jumping. There's been at least one member who used a small room, and lots of pillows and folded stacked up blankets to try and avoid jumping. You'll only need a cone if she licks the incision a lot.

Keep her collar, and if the clinic is large enough and not super busy, they should have room enough to be able to put her in one of their cages, so you will probably get the carrier back, --I've had both where they kept it and where I got it back.

Best of luck to you and your baby!!

 

[TobiDaDog]

1. The appointment is at 7:30 AM. Should I just withhold her food overnight and in the morning? I usually feed her at around 8 PM. The newest standards are that kittens under 4 months old should have a meal about four hours before surgery. Kittens older than 4 months old should be fasted overnight. Verify with your vet.
2. Should I keep her collar? I would. I've had some vets remove collars and some vets not. When the vet does the removing there is a risk of it getting lost.
3. Should she be wearing a cone afterwards? She's a wild turkey and loves to run around and play. I wouldn't want her to pop her stitches. A cone doesn't limit activity; it prevents overgrooming of the sutures. A kitten or cat who messes with their surgical site should be kept in a cone. My personal opinion is that if the cat or kitten isn't messing overly much with the surgery site it is less stressful for them to not be coned. But you have to be diligent and ensure the wound heals properly if you don't cone. Some people cone when they can't be there only. Others cone 24/7 to be safe. It is very much a personal choice, IMO, because you take the risk if you don't cone. I would advise finding a soft cone or inflatable neck tube instead of the standard ecollar as these tend to be less stressful. Someone recently got one on Amazon that was a super cute floppy flower.
4. Will she even have stitches? How do they seal her back up? Depends on your vet. Some use stitches, some use internal dissolving stitches and glue. From my understanding, it is a personal choice. My vet did stitches,
   

   20150908_191928.jpg

   • Kieka
   • Mar 23, 2017
5. Will she even want to play? Yes, exhibit A, Rocket shortly after her spay. View media item 420581 As soon as the medication wears off your kitten will likely be back to normal behavior.
6. How long should she be separated from my older cat? Depends on how they get along. I didn't separate my girl from the boys after her spay. I did monitor play to make sure Link didn't do any bunny kicks while she was healing but Rocket was pretty good at yelling at him if he got to close to her tummy. I'd monitor to make sure there are no recognition issues, which can happen after vet visits, and that your older cat doesn't go near the tummy. Most cats are protective of their stomachs anyways so I doubt your older cat would try to groom the area.
7. Do cats stress after surgery? Will she be groggy? (I had one male kitten who refused to lift his face from the floor for 2 hours after he came home) It tends to be a reaction to the medications or generally vet anxiety. From your cats perspective they went to a place, got poked or had a mask put over their face, woke up with a sore spot and feeling funny. My boy has a horrible time with medications and is a downright grump for a few days. Rocket has only had the spay surgery and the moment the medications were fully worn off she was back to normal.
8. How soon after getting home can she eat? Unless your vet says otherwise, most cats should eat as soon as they get home. Especially with younger kitten blood sugar drops are a risk and cats in general don't do well with more than 24 hours of not eating. I've had a few times of a cat being reluctant to eat so I tend to keep human meat baby food on hand for those situations.
9. How long does it take for a cat to become 'normal' again after a spay? Most cats are 12-72 hours after surgery assuming you aren't giving pain medications. Pain medications will prolong that time.
10. Will they give her pain meds? (I know I would want pain meds if I was having all of my insides scooped out) My vet does a pain medication as part of the surgery medication and a take home pain medication. I personally don't give pain medication unless there are definite signs of pain. My logic being a) that cats are hardwired to handle pain better then humans. They don't respond to pain or obsess on it unless it is severe. This isn't to say they don't feel it but I think in human terms they'd be considered having a high tolerance. b) Your cat doesn't know what happened. The pain medications will numb the pain and they may hurt themselves by not realizing the limits. c) I hate taking pain medications unless I really really need to. I didn't take it for my wisdom teeth (all four) removal and I have never finished even the small bottles of aspirin before they expire.
11. Will they keep my carrier? If so, I was thinking of putting a shirt of mine or something inside for her to smell because I thought it might be comforting, but if they're just going to give the carrier back to me, then I won't bother. They will keep the carrier. She likely will recover in a recovery cage, although some places use the carrier instead. I have a carrier bed and will sometimes add towels, blankets or toys if I am leaving the cat at the vet.

Thank you so much, this answered all of my questions! And now for one more...will I need to be careful with picking her up?

 

[Kieka]

Thank you so much, this answered all of my questions! And now for one more...will I need to be careful with picking her up?

Just don't lift from the rear abdomen for a few days. I tend to pick up by the front legs if lifting off the ground so it didn't impact me much.

 

[Furballsmom]

LOL, that is a darling video by the way

 

[1 bruce 1]

TobiDaDog when I took Baby Girl in for spay I swear the vet staff wanted me committed or dead or something. I was a pain in their ass. I've been through the spaying cats route and am very familiar but this little one was *my kid* and I made sure they knew it. They were very kind and answered all my questions, but when we pay someone for a service, we hire them and therefore they owe it to us to answer questions and deal with our nerves. I'm sure your nervousness is nothing they've never seen before!
Also, Kieka , wonderful advice and that video with the little hopping kitten and her little Snowshoe butt is just so adorable!

 

[Furballsmom]

...with a hand under the front legs/ chest?

 

[1 bruce 1]

...with a hand under the front legs/ chest?

Yep, an arm under their chest, and your other arm behind their rear legs/butt area, lift up and transport.
Just avoid the incision site for a week or so and avoid lifting them by the armpits (puts pressure on the midsection.)

 

[TobiDaDog]

Well, off she went this morning! I'm still pretty nervous. Probably more than she was. She cried a bit in her carrier but for the most part just wanted to get a good look at everything.

I got a pretty good laugh though...the lady who was checking me in asked what color she was. I said 'torbie' automatically and the lady gave me the weirdest look. She asked me to repeat myself and I started to, then just said calico. She ended up writing down 'tabby' on the paperwork.

It's only been a half an hour since I've been home without her and I already miss my kitty! You have to be really careful picking up her toys if you don't want to play because she KNOWS. I picked up a bell toy and there was no speedy pawsteps right behind it.

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[Kieka]

Well, off she went this morning! I'm still pretty nervous. Probably more than she was. She cried a bit in her carrier but for the most part just wanted to get a good look at everything.

I got a pretty good laugh though...the lady who was checking me in asked what color she was. I said 'torbie' automatically and the lady gave me the weirdest look. She asked me to repeat myself and I started to, then just said calico. She ended up writing down 'tabby' on the paperwork.

It's only been a half an hour since I've been home without her and I already miss my kitty! You have to be really careful picking up her toys if you don't want to play because she KNOWS. I picked up a bell toy and there was no speedy pawsteps right behind it.

You should see the looks I get when I say bicolor seal pointed. I then try to clarify as seal point with white. Still blank most times, so then I try brown, tan, black and white. When I get my paperwork back after it will usually say Siamese OR color seal and breed Siamese.

for a smooth and speedy procedure.

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[TobiDaDog]

she's home! And doped up pretty bad. I gave her a tiny dollop of 4health turkey (because it's the softest food I've got) and it took her a half an hour to figure out how to get it all into her mouth. She can barely walk straight but she has insisted that my lap is where she wants to be to sleep it all off. And she isn't taking no for an answer.
I was really surprised about something...I asked them to give her rabies shot too while they were at it and they did, but said they don't distribute tags like you would for a dog?

 

[Kieka]

Baby girl! The whole drowsy and wanting to be with Mom (or Dad) is perfectly normal. So is having trouble figuring out how her mouth works. Just keep offering food frequently until she is eating regularly again. The good news about wanting to be with you is it is a sign she is well and truly bonded with you. Cats find a safe spot when they don't feel 100% and you are that safe spot. Congratulations!

The rabies tag, it varies by cities. Many cities will have specific regulations just for dogs but very few for cats. Your area is probably part of the majority that treats cats as a wild animal if seen on the street and doesn't require proof of ownership or shots on the cat. You need the records but the tag isn't needed.

 

[TobiDaDog]

Baby girl! The whole drowsy and wanting to be with Mom (or Dad) is perfectly normal. So is having trouble figuring out how her mouth works. Just keep offering food frequently until she is eating regularly again. The good news about wanting to be with you is it is a sign she is well and truly bonded with you. Cats find a safe spot when they don't feel 100% and you are that safe spot. Congratulations!

The rabies tag, it varies by cities. Many cities will have specific regulations just for dogs but very few for cats. Your area is probably part of the majority that treats cats as a wild animal if seen on the street and doesn't require proof of ownership or shots on the cat. You need the records but the tag isn't needed.

The fact that she feels bonded to me makes me happy, thank you!! I'm glad to know that I'm her safe spot. Now for another question...gosh I'm full of them haha!

Because she absolutely insists on being in my lap or on my chest, I noticed that she shivers ever so often. My vet told me to keep her warm, and I guess I'm doing just that by letting her snuggle with me...but I have to go back to work in an hour and I was wondering if I should get out my late dog's bed warmer?
It's a pad that's activated by body pressure, it gets gradually warmer before stopping at a 'safe' temp. It was great for a senior pup with aching bones. Would she be fine without it? I just want her to be comfortable even if I'm not there for her.

 

[Kieka]

No harm in putting it out for her to snuggle with if she wants to. But as long as she was some blankets to snuggle with she'd be fine without it too. I'd probably put it under a blanket to give a little insulation so she doesn't get too warm.

 

[Kieka]

How is she doing today?

 

[TobiDaDog]

How is she doing today?

I was just coming with another question hah! She's doing fantastic today. Alert and active and making me nervous with her need to play, but still incredibly clingy. I slept on the floor with her last night because I couldn't stop her from trying to climb into bed with me.
Last night and this morning I gave her a bite to eat and she set into it like it was her job.

And that leads me to my question. I tried for her first feeding to limit her intake so she didn't throw up. This morning I fed her a regular amount of wet food, then two hours later again because she was acting starved. That was about hour ago. I fed her again a few minutes ago and she practically choked, she was eating so fast. When she was done she immediately began searching for more. I heard some crunching and found her eating the dogs food. It seems like no matter how much I give her today, it's not enough! Now I would not call her a delicate eater, but she's usually satisfied after a meal. In fact I recently cut how many times I feed her down a while ago because she had on her own stopped eating as often as little kittens do. She's generally pretty regular about when she wants to eat. But even now she's at my feet crying for food. Is this normal?

 

[Kieka]

I'd go ahead and feed her more. She's still a kitten and growing so she needs enegery for that to begin with. Add on healing from the surgery and her body probably wants more right now. Try putting a foil ball in her food dish to slow her down (ping pong ball size so she doesn't try to eat it, or ping pong balls if you have them). Her eating some dog food won't hurt her but you wouldn't want her to eat too much of it since it's nutrition balance is a little off for cats.