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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / January 2004Timing of Spaying
Our family was a tad short on funds this year so I decided to go the route of a low-cost clinic this time to spay the feral cat we adopted in August. Our other two cats were spayed by the vet. When I called to make an appointment with the nearest low-cost clinic, they scheduled me two months in advance. Now the cat is 7 months old and in heat with the appointment two weeks away. Within the past two weeks our financial situation has improved so I do have the option of taking her to the vet without making an appointment. The difference in cost is still significant: $45 for low-cost clinic, $165 for the vet. We have two other cats, a 5yo male and 3yo female, both neutered. The cats all get along together but aren't the best of friends. So what is the worst case scenario of my waiting two weeks? I've been reading the archives on this group on heat and I understand females can urinate while in heat. Will a neutered male spray if stressed out too much over a female he can't accommodate? I'm looking for all the pros and cons between waiting or going ahead and fixing her immediately. Thanks. Noreen >Within the past two weeks our financial >situation has improved so I do have the >option of taking her to the vet without >making an appointment. I would opt to get her spayed now. You know your vet and the quality of the surgery they do, and your cat will be miserable being in heat. Waiting two more weeks is likely to also frazzle everyone's nerves.;-) Megan  Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray : Waiting two more weeks is likely to also frazzle everyone's nerves.;-) I'm not sure if it is the overcast, rainy weather which has her less interested in going outdoors but she hasn't mewed incessantly in a couple of days. I must admit I used to feel a tad sorry for cats who were deprived of the Joy of Sex but after seeing how hormones take them over so completely, I'm not feeling as sorry for the spays and neuters anymore. Noreen > So what is the worst case scenario of my waiting two weeks? "Nrow! Nrow! NrOw! NroW! NROW!" etc. ad nauseam. All day and all night. Not always fun for you unless you can sleep through it, not necessarily pleasant for the cat either. > I've been > reading the archives on this group on heat and I understand females can > urinate while in heat. Well, I HOPE so, otherwise she'd die! =^^= OK, some seriousness. Occasionally a female will spray while in heat - we had one that did. I don't know how common that is though. > Will a neutered male spray if stressed out too > much over a female he can't accommodate? When you have neutered males amongst intact females, the results can be a little unpredictable. For some reason, before we wrapped up over here, when some of our girls went into heat, one of our neuters would make some of the motions and get as far as standing over her and scruffing her, and the other - he who was our first stud - would sometimes try and go all the way. (I posted a while back on this particular one - to this day, we think Snape was monogamous.) > I'm looking for all the pros and > cons between waiting or going ahead and fixing her immediately. Check with your vet. All the vets we consulted with (about half a dozen) invariably stated that we should spay when the cat is not in heat, not lactating, or not pregnant. You could do otherwise, they say - I don't know why they didn't want to spay with a "hot" girl, but one vet (or was it a tech?) told me that the mammary glands can get in the way during surgery (making it cumbersome, but not impossible, they said), and I think there's the implication that an abortion is riskier than they can justify unless it's an emergency. SignatureDennis Carr - ke6isf@spamcop.net | I may be out of my mind, http://www.dennis.furtopia.org | But I have more fun that way. ------------------------------------+------------------------------- <snip> >Check with your vet. All the vets we consulted with (about half a dozen) >invariably stated that we should spay when the cat is not in heat, not [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >there's the implication that an abortion is riskier than they can justify >unless it's an emergency. What I have heard from several vets is that, as a general rule, it is best not to do a spay when the cat is in heat. I have been told it has something to do with the likelihood of more bleeding, because of the heat status, which makes it dicier. That being said, it certainly can and has been done. I got my last little girl spayed at a low-cost clinic, and her heat cycles were long and close together. I thought we were going to luck out at the appointment time, but she apparently had just started to go into heat again. However, there were no problems whatsoever, and she recovered quite quickly and nicely. Just my experience. Whatever you decide, best to you and your kitty, Ginger-lyn : I got my last little girl spayed at a low-cost : clinic, and her heat cycles were long and close together. I thought : we were going to luck out at the appointment time, but she apparently : had just started to go into heat again. However, there were no : problems whatsoever, and she recovered quite quickly and nicely. This is good to hear, Ginger. I'd rather save the money if the low-cost clinic uses the injection rather than gas to put my cat to sleep. I'm going to call tomorrow to find out what is used for anesthesia. Noreen > This is good to hear, Ginger. I'd rather save the money if the low-cost > clinic uses the injection rather than gas to put my cat to sleep. Even though I had sort of been following this thread, I was a little alarmed when I read the above. I thought, "Wait a minute, I thought she just wanted to have her cat spayed! Not euthanized!" Then I read the rest...:-) >I'm > going to call tomorrow to find out what is used for anesthesia. > > Noreen rona Signature***For e-mail, replace .com with .ca Sorry for the inconvenience!*** :> This is good to hear, Ginger. I'd rather save the money if the low-cost :> clinic uses the injection rather than gas to put my cat to sleep. : Even though I had sort of been following this thread, I was a little alarmed : when I read the above. I thought, "Wait a minute, I thought she just wanted : to have her cat spayed! Not euthanized!" Then I read the rest...:-) I try to walk on little cat's feet when posting here. What a blunder! Glad you read the rest. No, no plans of putting a healthy 7mo cat to sleep. Not at all. She's sitting in my lap right now. I call her my "Little Orphan Annie." Who could imagine a 3rd generation feral could be such a love? Bullseye was raised with her sisters and brothers completely outdoors and now has very little interest in leaving the temperature-controlled inside where food is plenty and the most dangerous animal to face is an overweight neutered alpha male. Noreen > I try to walk on little cat's feet when posting here. That one's kind of funny, too. "What? She walks on cat's feet! How mean!" :-) >What a blunder! > Glad you read the rest. I always read full posts if I'm confused or if I'm thinking of replying. Misunderstandings are a part of life, and an even bigger part of Usenet, I find. Reading thoroughly helps me keep them down to a minimum! >No, no plans of putting a healthy 7mo cat to > sleep. Not at all. She's sitting in my lap right now. I call her my [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Noreen You must've done a great job with her! My own cat was a stray from a humane society. Right now she's staring very intently at me, wanting to be fed. Only problem is, I just fed her two hours ago! She really loves her food, hence her slight pudgy belly... rona Signature***For e-mail, replace .com with .ca Sorry for the inconvenience!*** : Check with your vet. All the vets we consulted with (about half a dozen) : invariably stated that we should spay when the cat is not in heat, not [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] : there's the implication that an abortion is riskier than they can justify : unless it's an emergency. Good advice. I'm also going to call to find out what kinds of anesthesia is used at the low-cost clinic and the vet to help determine whether I should wait or not. Thanks for your detailed post. Noreen Females tend to come into heat promptly at 6 months. Some come into heat even younger (youngest I know of is 3 months). There is no good medical reason not to spay or neuter well before 6 months; shelters have been doing it by 8 weeks for some 20 years now, with no harm done. If you can get that cat spayed now instead of waiting two weeks, go for it! Cats are coming into season as we speak. Sharon Talbert Friends of Campus Cats www.campuscats.org |
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