What to expect after a Neuter?

ashley45

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Moses is booked to be neutered later this week (he's 5 mos), what should i expect when he comes home? Will he have stitches? Will he have to wear a cone? Do I have to give him pain meds for a few days?

If there are any vets on this site, I would be interested to know what goes on while they're away. (He'll be staying overnight). How long are they under anasthesia? Will they have him stay in the crate I bring him in or will he be in a cage?

Any suggestions on what could make this easier for my little guy?
 

mooficat

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Well I can tell you what should happen..........

He will have 2 small stitches that will either be dissolvable or you may have to take him back to have those removed in about 1 week.

The vet may give him an anti-bio shot before he leaves and may also give you tabs for about a week. Obviously your vet will let you know.

Most times boys dont need a cone, but he will have a sniff and a wash, keep your eye on him to make sure he doesnt pull at the stitches.

About his over night stay - again depends - ask your vet, they have nothing to hide.

He'll do just great, but I can appreciate why you might be concerned.

Oh the other thing, boys do recover a lot quicker than females for obvious reasons, so he'll be bck to normal after a good sleep to get over the drugs
 

anakat

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Tolly didn't have any stitches, or a cone or painkillers, and after a sleep to get over the anaesthetic he was fine, you wouldn't have known he had had anything done.
Moses will be fine, if you are like the rest of us here you will be more worried than him
 

gemlady

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Originally Posted by Anakat

Tolly didn't have any stitches, or a cone or painkillers, and after a sleep to get over the anaesthetic he was fine, you wouldn't have known he had had anything done.
Moses will be fine, if you are like the rest of us here you will be more worried than him
Same with Aristotle. He slept most of the next 12 hours on my monitor.
 
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ashley45

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Thanks for the replies! I'm probably being too paranoid, he's just never been away for that long!

Should I send along a shirt or something that smells like me in his crate? Or will he be asleep most of the time he's gone?
 

sofiecusion

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Same here. Chevy was around the same age when he was done. No stitches. No Pain killers. He slept for a few hours in a room by himself (more me being worried). He also came home the same day. Is the appointment in the afternoon or something?
 

jen

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That is weird they are keeping him overnight for a neuter. I won't use a vet if they say they want to keep them over nght just because I want him in the comforts of his own home to recover. The first day he ill probably sleep. They don't usually have stitches or if they do then they are dissolvable. No need for pain meds or a cone
 

mom of 4

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My vet kept Ben overnight, on ice packs and pain meds. No swelling, no problems when he came - except keeping him calm for a few days.
He thinks it is easier to discover a problem early and deal with it quickly. And it is very upsetting to the pet and owners to have to take them back in for a problem.
All of the surgery patients go to his home the night of surgery and are observed by a vet tech. (Ben bit her nose as he came out of surgery - should have kept her face away, but he is so cute and sweet).
All of my pets love going to see him - the dogs will pull me off my feet to get inside.

I'm fine with this. If not, I would go elsewhere.
 

epona

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Thank you for being responsible and having your cat neutered
He will be fine, when I took Sonic in he was there for around 7 hours (during which time he went through a pre-op examination and heart-check, anaesthesia, the surgery itself, and observation and care while he came out of the anaesthetic), and when I brought him home he hopped out of his carrier and ran around as if nothing had happened.

He looked a bit sore around his scrotum, but there were no stitches - just tiny incisions sealed with glue, he didn't need to wear a cone, and he didn't need a followup visit to the vet. Kittens heal quickly, and after 2 days you couldn't even see he had anything done down there, it no longer even looked sore.

Even when my other cat Radar was done he bounced back fine, and he had to have his umbilical hernia repaired at the same time (which I have been led to believe is worse surgery than a spay), he had 5 stitches in a 2 inch incision down his abdomen which looks huge on a tiny cat and he didn't need a cone or special treatment either, he was a bit woozy the first night we brought him home because he had to have stronger sedation but the next day he was back to normal.

I'd ask your vet about the overnight stay, mine doesn't do that - it's drop them off in the morning and collect late afternoon, but every veterinary practice has their own way of doing things and it may just be that they like to keep them under observation until they are active again following surgery, but whatever the reason your vet won't mind you asking.

They should have advised you to remove all food and not feed him the night before, this is because the anaesthetic can make them vomit and if that happens while they are on their back under sedation they can choke on it, so make sure you strictly follow the vets instructions about removing food before he goes in for surgery.
 

ryanjay

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have had about 20 (yes 20) boys done...have used the same clinic on all and they do a overnight hold. drop them off 7-9 and by 3 they are waking up pretty well. pick them up at 7-9 the next am and they are fine. vet doesn't stitch the boys justpushes the skin and it holds itself(awesome isn't it lol) they come home and since I have lots of cats I have a 3 foot dog cage set up(hold for another day and when i am sure they can run/jump with no pain I let them back into the clan
but when I only had a couple i'd give them free roam. vet says to wait with feeding( I play by ear now just cause I can tell when they are up to eating) the clinic protocol is 1/3 of reg food and then another meal. never had pain meds for any of them(girls or boys)
 

ryanjay

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ps the clinic i use does the pickups/srop offs like that I am guessing so that a since many are ferals/strays they have more tiem and b to save staff time of staying open so late(5 some would stil be wobbly) as far as the cage my ferals were kept in their cage as were a few times when I brought multiple cats(each in its own cage) the normal vets tend to transfer to a full size cage tho(due to they due surgerys in one time period and its not such a chunk of thier practice
 

urbantigers

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When Mosi was done last year I took him in at 9am, he was done later in the morning and I collected him about 4pm. He came bouncing out of his carrier like nothing had happened. He didn't appear to be sore or in pain. He didn't have any stitches (or they were dissolvable) but I had to take him back a week later for a check up to make sure he'd healed ok. When Jaffa was done I think he was a little sleepy that evening but otherwise no adverse effect at all. Depending on what time your boy has his op, he may be a little wozzy from the anaesthetic, but otherwise he should be acting normally as soon as you get him home. A male neuter is a very simple operation.
 

wildflower79

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Gizmo had that cone thing on his head for a couple days. Although I didn't really think he needed it, at least I didn't have to worry about his bothering anything down there. We took him home that afternoon and the second he was out of his carrier he bolted. Other than running into a few walls and falling down a few times he was fine.
 

isadora44

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I'd assume that if they're keeping him overnight, he should be back to normal in the morning (though he may be moody, depending on his personality).

When I had Isadora spayed, she refused to come out of her cage at the vet when I came to get her the same afternoon (however, she doesn't like to be touched much in general..so this wasn't a complete surprise). She slept a lot when she got home and I noticed when she hopped off my bed that afternoon that her hind legs didn't quite cooperate and she stumbled a little....I think it was just a side effect of the anesthesia or pain from the incision though. She was perfectly normal again by the next day.
 
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ashley45

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Thanks for all the replies everyone! I feel much better now. I'm still a little unsure about the vet (not our regular vet), but I'm sure everything will be fine.
I never had a pet growing up, it suprising how much you worry about a little kitten that you've only known for 3 months!
 
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