Sterilization: health benefits statistics?

[Norachan]

How old is your kitten Renne ? Shelters usually spay and neuter as soon as the kitten weighs more that 2lbs, but you don't have to do it that early. Around five months old is the best time.

Vets will usually give an injection of long lasting antibiotics and a painkilling injection at the same time. The antibiotics are good for about 10 days, the pain killer lasts around 24 hours. It's not common to give cats pain killers for long periods of time because it's so easy to cause liver damage or other health problems. I really doubt any vet would suggest pain killing injections daily after spay surgery. This would be too much for your cat.

Actually, feeling a little sore might not be a bad thing as the kitten is less likely to rush around and hurt herself. If your worried about her being too active you could prepare a room with no furniture she can try and jump or climb on, so she stays on the floor and doesn't go too crazy.

The incision for a standard abdominal spay is only about 5 cm long. Once the fur grows back you can't even see the scar. If you're happy with your regular vet there's no really any need to find a different clinic.

 

[Uncled]

My two cats are the result of a friend cat who bolted out the door at 3am when she went into heat, Thankfully he found her a few days later, but she had four kittens as a result, her first and last litter now that she is spayed!

 

[Renne]

My two cats are the result of a friend cat who bolted out the door at 3am when she went into heat, Thankfully he found her a few days later, but she had four kittens as a result, her first and last litter now that she is spayed!

Many people consider spaying for this reason, but my situation is different. I live on the 5th floor and there are many doors between us and the street, and the entry door to the house is always locked. Even if the kitten bolts out of the apartment door, she wouldn't make it out

 

[2 cat house]

I don't mind my kitten meowing for days, once she's going to start, her voice is very quite. But I've heard that sterilization helps a cat avoid many serious health issues like cancer of breast and womb.

Is there reliable statistics of cats with and without sterelization having these diseases?

I can search online, of course, but there are many articles that copy info from each other, and in the end you don't even know the primary source. I'm looking for something scientific or academic, and I thought that people here would know where to find that.

I wish I had my little girl spayed sooner. I had to let her go through one for lack of funds at the time. And then when I got her in 2 weeks later (had her done today)she had something the vet called pyametria. It almost killed her. I'm still not out of the woods with her yet. I would definitely recommend spaying if you don't intend to breed her.

 

[sivyaleah]

My vet only does major surgery, it's a small clinic without much in terms of medical devices. I'd have to go to another for laparoscopy or even side entry (she doesn't practice that, either).

What about after care? I assume the kitten would have to have injections of a good painkiller a few times per day for a few days?

And what about prolapse? Highly active humans have a chance of developing it. A kitten is highly active, and unlike a human being, you can't explain to a kitten that she can't run around crazily anymore. So how do you even prevent that!

The kitten will be given an injection of a long term painkiller and antibiotic before leaving the vet that day. It will work for about 24 hours or so. Most people don't even want to give more drugs after that because you don't want a drugged kitten navigating around the house plus other health risks. As it is, those first hours can be "interesting" to watch because the anesthesia wearing off effects them in varying ways; some cats get really hyper active, overly hungry and excited and others just want to sleep. Our kitten fell somewhere in the middle of all of that. She basically slept on me for the first 24 hours straight when not in her playpen with periodic sudden wake ups where she was filled with energy - then would plop right down again.

Cats normally recover extremely well and fast from their spay/neuters. In fact, it can be very challenging keeping them quiet the first few days because they are not like humans, and don't fret over whatever residual pain they feel. We kept our little girl in a large playpen the first day to contain her while she was still a bit loopy from the anesthetic (with a litter box, water/food of course) and the next day when we were not able to be with her too. By the 2nd day she was getting antsy but we kept her in our spare guest room to limit her somewhat from running all around the house, and also did not give her any of the toys which would make her too active. Day 3 she was released from the room and we kept a good eye on her. She was a bit slower than normal so that helped but certainly didn't appear to be in any pain at all.

FYI just keep an eye out for what is known as a "seroma" - a swelling under the incision site which may or may not happen. They are harmless but look scary sometimes. If it happens just call the vet, have them take a look to make sure that's what it is but you'll be told it will dissipate over time, and it does. It doesn't hurt them at all, it's just a collection of debris fluid that will level out but can take a few weeks to do so.

 

[She's a witch]

You can also talk with the vet about what kind of procedure they perform, ovariohysterectomy (removing both ovaries and uterus) vs ovariectomy (only ovaries). In the US the first one is most common, but I know in some European countries they would only do ovariectomy. Most cat owners tend to prefer ovariohysterectomy (as why would cat need uterus if ovaries are taken away) while some veterinarians vote against removing an organ that doesn’t have to be removed.

 

[Renne]

I have an additional question: if there's a suspicion for Brachycephalic syndrome, is general aneathesia safe or unsafe? My respiratiory system was checked before surgery, but mine is fine. But does that mean that a cat with a potential breathing problem has surgery (or rather general anaethesia) risks, too?

In a kitten it's hard to diagnose precisely at an early age with no exteme symptoms and without using sedation for invasive examination. My kitten shows some symptoms of a mild condition, though, like occasional noisy breathing, breathing with her mouth during playtime, sneezing, and very frequent sighing (as if she doesn't get enough oxygen). She's in a risk group, too: her mother was a mix of two breeds that tend to develop brachycephalic syndrome.

 

[kittenmittens84]

I have an additional question: if there's a suspicion for Brachycephalic syndrome, is general aneathesia safe or unsafe? My respiratiory system was checked before surgery, but mine is fine. But does that mean that a cat with a potential breathing problem has surgery (or rather general anaethesia) risks, too?

In a kitten it's hard to diagnose precisely at an early age with no exteme symptoms and without using sedation for invasive examination. My kitten shows some symptoms of a mild condition, though, like occasional noisy breathing, breathing with her mouth during playtime, sneezing, and very frequent sighing (as if she doesn't get enough oxygen). She's in a risk group, too: her mother was a mix of two breeds that tend to develop brachycephalic syndrome.

I’m confused. Is your cat a flat faced breed?

If your vet did an examination of the airway, said she was healthy, and cleared her for surgery (and you trust your vet obviously) then I think you should try not to worry about it. Obviously there’s always a small risk but it’s a very safe procedure that cats tend to heal well from

 

[sivyaleah]

Renne Additionally to what K kittenmittens84 wrote, the surgery is fairly short so she won't be exposed to the anesthesia for longer than necessary. As with any other surgical procedure, the patient is monitored constantly in a very precise way. The procedure is truly routine these days.

 

[Renne]

If your vet did an examination of the airway, said she was healthy

I asked my vet about her breathing and there was only as much she could say just looking at the kitten. She said that examining her further requires invasive manipulations done under heavy sedation. At the time I was at the vet with another problem (ear fungi), breathing was just a side question, and naturally I didn't want any invasive examination and anesthesia without necessity, so I let it go.

Honestly, it's just now that I remembered about it and thought of possible surgery risks.

On another hand, two days ago my kitten ate a button and it still didn't go out, so now it's possible that she'd have to have surgery anyway! Right now she's fine, but if she gets worse abruptly I'm afraid there'll be no time for examining anything, be it her respiratory system or heart. Besides, if she gets worse she'll have to have surgery regardless of any possible risks.

I wonder now, if it comes to that and she has to undergo surgery, is it possible to sterilize her at the same time, so that she wouldn't have to have surgery twice? Or is it too much for a 3 month old kitten?

 

[kittenmittens84]

I asked my vet about her breathing and there was only as much she could say just looking at the kitten. She said that examining her further requires invasive manipulations done under heavy sedation. At the time I was at the vet with another problem (ear fungi), breathing was just a side question, and naturally I didn't want any invasive examination and anesthesia without necessity, so I let it go.

Honestly, it's just now that I remembered about it and thought of possible surgery risks.

On another hand, two days ago my kitten ate a button and it still didn't go out, so now it's possible that she'd have to have surgery anyway! Right now she's fine, but if she gets worse abruptly I'm afraid there'll be no time for examining anything, be it her respiratory system or heart. Besides, if she gets worse she'll have to have surgery regardless of any possible risks.

I wonder now, if it comes to that and she has to undergo surgery, is it possible to sterilize her at the same time, so that she wouldn't have to have surgery twice? Or is it too much for a 3 month old kitten?

Is the kitten a brachycephalic breed though? Like a Persian or something? Maybe i’m wrong but it’s my understanding that cats with non-flat faces don’t just develop brachycephalic syndrome issues, it’s something that has to do with the cat’s anatomy. What you describe as far as breathing could very well be normal - it’s 100% normal for kittens to pants during and right after intense playtime, I don’t believe sighing is related to not getting enough oxygen (it’s basically them releasing a deep breath), and slight noisy breathing could be a little congestion or the cat’s body position could be causing it. That’s not to say these things cannot be a sign of something wrong but they can also just be normal kitten things

 

[Renne]

Is the kitten a brachycephalic breed though?

Her mother is half-British and half-Scottish Fold. Both breeds are known for running a risk of a Brachycephalic syndrome. It isn't limited to cats as flat-faced as Persians, defects of anatomy aren't necessarily the nostrils, there are three other types of defects that lead to it, but those can't be visually examined and require invasive examination.

What you describe as far as breathing could very well be normal - it’s 100% normal for kittens to pants during and right after intense playtime, I don’t believe sighing is related to not getting enough oxygen (it’s basically them releasing a deep breath), and slight noisy breathing could be a little congestion or the cat’s body position could be causing it. That’s not to say these things cannot be a sign of something wrong but they can also just be normal kitten things

I agree that technically it could be normal. Or it could be not. I didn't mention that I've seen the kitten have an apnoe episode during sleep, too. All that taken together is enough to have a mild suspicion, I think. I'm not saying she has the syndrome, but she might have a mild respiratory issue, and as far as I know, it's not very good in terms of general anesthesia.

 

[Norachan]

Renne I think the best thing to do would be to find a vet that specialises in feline medicine and keep them as your regular vet. If you're worried that your cat may have underlying health conditions that could become more problematic in future it's important to have a good vet who knows her history. In some cases cats can't be spayed because of other health risks, but this is quite uncommon. The only way you will know for sure is if you have her examined before you go ahead with any surgery. None of us on TCS are vets, and even if we were we couldn't give you medical advice over the internet. A vet will need to examine your cat before they can do that.

If the vet does decide it's too risky to give her anesthetic (fingers crossed that's not the case ) there are oral or inject-able contraceptives available. However, these contraceptives increase the risk of diabetes, uterine infection, and mammary tumors. They should really only be used if spaying a cat would really put her life at risk.

Cat Birth Control: Why You Should Use it & Alternatives to Spaying

Could you Google feline vets in your city/country and take it from there? Talking to a vet will put your mind at ease much more than we can.