[cah2]

Hi:

I'm a new cat owner, and my 6-month old kitten Pastina (a himalayan) is going to be spayed next month.
I've been reading on the forums here about spaying, and from what I'm understanding, it seems that spaying is a more complicated and potentially harmful procedure than neutering - am I wrong?
Anyway, are there certain questions I should ask my vet prior to her surgery? Anything I should know?
Also, about ketamine: is that always used for this procedure or will vets use something else instead? The breeder warned me about ketamine, but not sure what I else I need to know.
Any advice/sugesstions would be appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[Zalensia]

In a male everything is pretty much on the outside which is much easier. For females its all inside and so is a more complicated operation. Altho frm a vets P.O.V its simple! femles tend to take a lil longer to recover because it is a larger operation. I think i read somewhere on here it take about 15 mins total.
There are others on here who will be able to give you better advice and anwer your questions.

 

[drjean]

spaying

In my prime :wink: , I could spay an 8 week old kitten in 5-1/2 minutes. An older cat took me about 20 minutes. A cat in heat is much more difficult and the potential for complications such as blood loss are *much* higher, so it's definately best to have it done earlier than later.

The time really depends on the vet. Newly graduated vets can take an hour or two for a spay until they get more experienced and confident. So, you might want to ask your vet when she graduated and what is the average time she takes for a spay. Also, make sure that gas anesthesia is also used, and that the gas is either isoflurane or sevoflurane. Anything else is unacceptable. Ask what kind of monitoring equipment they use. Make sure you understand everything, keep asking questions until you do. If they get impatient or blow you off, find another vet!

Almost all vets use ketamine in cats. I challenged this once on a veterinary bulletin board, and one response (from a board certified anesthesiologist) was, "You just have to have ketamine for cats!" No reason, just "have to." I never liked it, and at the second clinic I worked at, we didn't have it (to the dismay of the thieves who broke in for it; they left a note on the board, "No Ketamine??"). There are plenty of alternatives, but again, experience is the key, and if the vet only knows how to use ketamine, then that's what you get. It's a hallucinogen and can alter a cat's personality (not for the better!), though it's rare.

Cheers,
Dr. Jean

 

[kitkat]

Females usually take a bit longer to recover than males. My cat Sugar too a little bit longer and when they come home, make sure you have some comfortable spots for her on the ground and try to get her not to jump around. She will probably be very tired anyways...

 

[cah2]

Thanks for the advice. Dr. Jean: I will definately ask those questions.
My cat will be spayed at 7 months, which my vet said is fine.
Thanks again!

 

[Rayona]

The procedure is easy--it's the after care that canb e tricky! I would urge you to leave the carrier closed for longer than is suggested. I've always opened it at the given time, and found my cats too groggy to function, which makes everybody nervous. And when you do open it, do it in the quietest, most empty room in your house, so kitty won't have much to avoid or bump into.

 

[PeanutsMom]

You might want to check out my "so scared to spay" post. Peanut got spayed at 6mos (Wed) and stayed over at the Vet's.

Well...she looks all skin and bones to me but she's fine! Very active, even though we have to restrict her activity for 2 weeks. I haven't been playing with her, just lots of cuddling.

This probably doesn't answer any of your questions but I just wanted to share since we went through this so recently.