Pros and cons of spaying?

[alex17]

Hi everybody. I've always been a huge advocate of spaying and neutering but since getting my little Tabitha I've been questioning that. The reason I am trying to decide whether or not I should spay is because surgery makes me nervous. I don't like the idea of putting her through a surgery that is not absolutely necessary. I am not planning on breeding what so ever and my cars are strictly indoor kitties. I do have a male but he was neutered so that is not happening.

Would Caspian show male mating traits to her while she would be in heat even though he is neutered? Also what are the behavioral pros and cons to spaying? I know s spaying is a fairly common procedure, but to me surgery is surgery and I don't want to take unnecessary risk. What are your thoughts on this?

 

[jcat]

There are health risks involved in not spaying your cat, including tumors and infections of the ovaries and uterus and mammary cancer:
Spay and Neuter Your Cats
DISEASES OF UN-SPAYED DOGS AND CATS: SERIOUS POINTS TO PONDER
Why You Should Spay or Neuter Your Cat

 

[Norachan]

An unspayed female cat will do everything possible to get out and find a mate. No matter how careful you are she will find a way out, disappear for a few days and then come back pregnant. You'll then have to decide whether to spay-abort or to bring another litter of kittens into the world and add to the huge number of unwanted kittens in shelters. What's more she'll put herself into danger of being injured or getting sick or even killed while she is outside.

I know that the thought of surgery is scary, but for Tabitha all it will mean is a car ride to the vets and back, she won't know anything about the actual surgery and she'll soon recover.

Think how sad it would be if she got out while she was on heat and never made it back. It's really not worth the risk.

Please get her spayed.

 

[irinasak]

I really understand how hard it is to think about putting your cat through surgery. Before I had Sophie spayed I went to talk to my vet and had a nervous breakdown there, I was crying like a baby at the thought of putting her through pain. She was spayed and although the first night I slept on the floor with her, I am absolutely sure that spaying is the most humane and resposible thing to do.

Some time after I came across a colony of ferals. Those cats are constantly in heat, pregnant or giving birth. I have had kittens taken from there and adopted, I have had a kitten die almost in my arms and kittens dissapeared. It is not fun. I now spay and neuter every cat I can.

Two of the kittens from that colony I have adopted myself, Harley and Amelie. Once you get used to the spaying/neuter routine it gets much easier for you (stress wise) and for the cat, who senses your fears. Amelie was climbing the drapes in less than 48 h after her surgery, you can see a photo of that in my signature. With Harley, being a boy, it was even easier - he was neutered and in an hour we were home and he stepped out of the carrier and went straight to his food, cause all that commotion made him hungry.

Basic line is I would never put my cats through the pain and discomfort and risks of not being spayed/neutered.

 

[emandjee]

Hello Alex17,

I think folks really underestimate the power of determined kitties who are literally run by hormones.

There's too many cons of not spaying:

1. Your female cat will go into heat every 2-3 weeks, and her "calling" will drive you mad in all hours of the day!

2. A female in estrus will also attract neighboring toms from all over your neighborhood, and they will do everything possible to get inside your house.

3. The neighborhood tom cats that hang around outdoors will stress out your male indoor cat, which will likely cause him to start inappropriate urination to mark his territory inside your home. He'd do this because he'd feel threatened by the intruders outside, as cats are very territorial creatures.

4. Outdoors, the toms will also get into fights and urinate outside your home as well. 

5. The stress levels for all, cats included, will also go up.  It will not be peaceful.

6. Your female becomes an escape artist and may or may not return. 

7. If she returns, she's going to be pregnant with kittens, which you'll be forced to care for, costing you more money to feed, time to care, litter to clean, get treatments, etc.

8. The pregnancy itself can strain a young female a lot because all the nutrients she'd normally get for herself would be going to the fetuses instead.

9. If a female kitten makes it to full term, her babies can get stillborn, or get stuck in the birth canal, putting both momcat and litter in an emergent situation.

10. If situation in 9 occurs, you'd be forced to pay for an emergency vet to perform a surgery to save your female cat, a very costly endeavor.

11. For each heat she goes through and does not get pregnant, the chances of getting pyometra increases.

12. The female is likley to get mammarian cancer or ovarian cysts if not spayed.

13. Unspayed females who get pregnant are at risk for FIV and FeLV.

14. You'd be contributing to the overpopulation of cats who are often euthanized by the millions each year.

 Versus the Pros to not spaying:

1. Your cat will be able to reproduce. (But again, this is often looked at a negative, because of the cat overpopulation issue worldwide!)

Many dog owners believe they can control their cats, but that is often a fallacy they recognize only too late. Cats can become like ninjas and escape in a flash! Powerful hormones at work! Hope you don't let that happen to you, please get her spayed. 

 

 

[pinkdagger]

^ @EmandJee's 11th point: I have a friend who had a dog who spent her life being perfectly healthy, and at 10 years old, she was unspayed, never bred, and since she was a dog, she was very controllable because she was always leashed and/or diapered and with her people. One day, she suddenly fell incredibly ill, not eating, not even moving, and barely opening her eyes. Had they not gotten her to the vet immediately and been a couple hours late, she would have died from a massive infection in the uterus (pyometra). It's sadly not uncommon and life-threatening.

Cats in heat will yowl like crazy, and toms will most definitely swarm your home. You can do your best to keep your cats inside, and other cats outside, but they're cats! They'll usually find a way - a very quick way. If they can't find a quick way, they'll make sure you know - pawing, clawing, howling, marking... You cause yourself and your cats far less inconvenience getting her spayed.

Spaying is such a common procedure, the incision is small, and the surgery is relatively quick. Unless your cat has a special condition or reaction to anesthetics or anything, the surgery is low risk, and as long as she can relax afterwards, recovery can be very swift! As others have said, there are more risks in not spaying than there are in spaying.

This page has a list of pros and cons too, but the cons are so superficial and misinformed: http://www.pet-informed-veterinary-advice-online.com/spaying-cats.html#pro-spay

 

[Willowy]

For cats there are no cons to spaying (besides the slight risk of surgery, but this is VERY slight if the cat is generally healthy). A cat in heat is miserable and will make sure you're miserable too :lol3:. And will try everything in her power to get outside. Reproductive disease is common in unspayed cats, especially those not allowed to breed (and for those allowed to breed, of course pregnancy/birthing have their own risks). I would recommend having her spayed before she goes into heat. The older they get and the more heats they have, the more painful it is and recovery is harder.

I may in the future allow a dog to fully mature 2-3 years before spaying (there do seem to be benefits to waiting a few years for dogs) but cats I will always spay/neuter young. Cats don't do well being intact, really.

To set your mind at ease, have bloodwork done first, do research about anesthetic techniques and ask your vet one they use, find the best vet surgeon in your area, etc. But for her health and comfort she really should be spayed.

 

[alex17]

Wow so many replies. Thanks for all the great answers. I wasn't really thinking about the health risk involved with not spaying.all I could think about were the immediate risk of the actually surgery.I will be spaying. I think it's the best choice for her happiness and overall health. Thanks again.

 

[seiiannakyuako]

Wow so many replies. Thanks for all the great answers. I wasn't really thinking about the health risk involved with not spaying.all I could think about were the immediate risk of the actually surgery.I will be spaying. I think it's the best choice for her happiness and overall health. Thanks again.

You made the right choice. My poor cat has mammary cancer because my parents didn't want to spay her. I wish you luck on the surgery!

 

[weldergirl]

PLEASE PLEASE spay your animals. My ignorance almost killed my fur baby. I too was very concerned about the risks of surgery. I never knew that not spaying a female could lead to serious complications. I learnt the hard way. My little jinx got pyometia which is basically the inflammation of the cervix of a unaltered female. My girl had closed pyometia which means the pus secretions have no where to go but fill the uterus with pus. She became really sick so I brought her to the vet, for the first time ever. I was afraid of the vet for her. But if I wasn't for them and there quick diagnoses, she wouldn't have made it another day, even if she did she would have been too far gone to help. Her uterus had a small hole and was causing pus and toxins into her abdomen. If I dint bring her in when I did she would have got septic. PLEASE get your animals spayed. It would have saved my little one and myself so much grief and pain. The signs are there but I didn't know.
-slight discharge around vagina when in heat ( this mean the infection still has a way out)
- increase in water intake. She always drank more water than any cat I knew.
- she would spray. ( I thought this was behavior, but it was a cry for help.)

By the time I knew something was wrong she was near death.

PLEASE...take what I'm writing with consideration. We were lucky that she was saved.
It was a lot more stress for her than I could have ever imagined. And it put my back in the poor house. A spay with these compilations is 10x more expensive than a standard spay.

Weight the risks for yourself. But I would never wish this on anyone's animals. My fear of the initial spay almost killed her I hope this helps someone else make choice to spay, rather than wait for something serious as this to happen.

Thank you for reading.

I wish the best to all of your animals