spayed female, acts like she is in heat?

[raficat]

I have a 7 year old female cat who was spayed at about 6 months. The past few months she has started behaving strangely, almost like she is in heat. When I pet her, she assumes a mating position, with her rear up and her tail bent to the side. She also likes to position herself so that her rear is pressed against something. Now she is getting into spats with the other cats whenever they come near her (they are all males, all neutered). She seems fretful and irritable.

Is it possible she has a hormone imbalance or something? Did they not do a complete spay? Has anyone else had this problem?

 

[ritz]

Yes it is possible that a spay was incomplete, but you would have noticed signs years ago. (Am I correct in my interpretation that your cat was spayed 6.5 years ago, not six months ago?)
Yes it could be a hormonal inbalance.
In either case, I think you should take your cat to the vets. I believe a relatively simple blood test would answer/eliminate some of the possibilities.

 

[raficat]

Yes, she was spayed at 6 months old. I can't afford to go to the vet, I barely make rent each month. She's always been a little high strung, but this strange behavior has started in the past year or so. I'm hoping she'll get over it, if her hormones are out of whack, perhaps they'll stabilize. She was under a great deal of stress last year while staying at a friends house while I was living in my car. But she's been back with me for a year and half so maybe that isn't it. But thank you for your input.

 

[catwoman707]

This is not uncommon but should have been noticed years ago, so not sure it applies, but whenever a cat is spayed the vet must check that all of her ovarian tissue was removed, otherwise this tissue will cause her to continue producing hormones and she will go into heat regularly, although won't be able to actually conceive.

 

[raficat]

Thanks , I agree, this seems unlikely, since it is new behavior. And she isn't really in heat, not yowling or frantic like a true heat. She just seems to have some sort of vague need... Hopefully it will pass, and if I ever have the money I'll take her in to the vet. And if I find out she isn't fully properly spayed, I am going to be mad as hell.