Thinking Of Spaying My Cat

I am thinking of spaying my cat, shes over 2 years old i think, she hisses, and scratches if she is angry, and she gets angry easily when she gets touched, especially by strangers, theres a few questions crossing my mind.
1. How will the doctors spay her when she starts attacking? (do they do something that makes her fall asleep, or something that makes her numb, or something else)
2. How long does the procedure take?
3. When theres stitches, do i just leave them alone?
4. Will she mellow out? (less running around, and causing chaos)
5. She doesnt like being hold, will she be okay and let people hold her?
6. what are the bad things about it?
7. My cat went out today, and left the house, then about 30 min or so, we found her, but my brother said that there was 2 other cats around her, and when she came home, she started to lick her butt i think it was, i was upstairs so i couldnt see where she was licking. She was in heat for 4 days a week before last as i remembered, and was wondering if it was possible that she "did it" with the two cats, and not sure if she is pregnant, what are the signs? and what are ways to find out for free? because i want to get her spayed right away.
Thanks In Advance

She Prob got Preg being outside. When you have a Cat fixed they have to stay inside. You need to watch them and make sure they dont pull the Stitches out. My Lucy did and got infected years ago. I put them in the Bathroom for a few days after and watch them. some Cats get nicer after. I have had Cats liek yours and they stayed mean. Vets know how to handle mean Cats.

She will probably become a much nicer cat when you get her spayed, as she has all these hormones rushing round her body. She is also at risk of an infection that could be fatal, as well as certain types of cancer, so it is much better for her health to be spayed. The vets will give her an anaesthetic to spay her, and she will come home with stitches - she needs to be kept in until they are taken out, and she should be kept in till the vet appointment to be on the safe side. Good luck with her.

is there any signs to know if she is pregnant, and is it bad to get her spayed like a week from now if she ended up being pregnant?
watching her might be a problem, i have school, and my parents have work, whats the best way to keep her from touching the stitches, and how long should the stitches stay in?

No, it is probably best all round if she is spayed regardless, there are too many unwanted cats in the world anyway, and it will cost a lot to raise the litter.
In the UK, cats are sent home with a plastic collar when they are spayed, I keep it on when I am at work, and then give them an hour out in the evening, strictly supervised. STitches are normally kept in for 10 days.

I've had many female cats spayed and none of them bothered the stitches apart from licking, which doesn't hurt anything. You don't have to 'watch' her all day, just keep an eye out and be sure she stays in a place safe from other animals, along with her water bowl, litter box and dry food, plus a soft place to sleep and something to play with. Even if she was pregnant for a few days before the operation, she can still have it done. Your vet will answer any questions you have before the appointment or surgery. It's important that you try to keep her inside ALL the time afterward - as a full time house pet forever, rather than letting her roam outside, not because of being spayed, but because it's much safer in a lot of ways. She can get used to it - all of mine did.

Definitely get her spayed. And, if she is already pregnant, you can discuss the options with the vet. We got our girl kitten spayed about two months ago, and I was worried that she might have got pregnant, and our vet laid out some options. In the end, she wasn't pregnant, but like I said, your vet will tell you what they can do.

As for your other questions...the vet will put her to sleep in order to perform the spay surgery. Our kittens are former feral kittens, so I just informed them before hand that she would be difficult and they got a special cage (which pushed her to one side so they could inject her) and we took special care in transferring her from our carrier to their cage. Just let them know your concerns and about her behaviour and they can determine the best way to proceed.

Spaying is more complicated than neutering, but it is still very routine. As for how long it takes - I'm not quite sure, but we took our girl in at 11:00 am and picked her up at 7:00pm. Some vets like to keep them overnight, but our vet just monitored her throughout the day and then released her to us.

Don't worry too much about the stitches. I know some cats do get them infected through too much licking, but there is not a whole lot you can do. You could ask your vet to do dissolvable stitches externally (like they would do for a feral cat), so you don't have to bring her back in to get them removed. We did that, and it was great. You need to watch her with her stitches, but really don't let it stress you out too much because you can only watch her so much. My vet recommended we leave her in her carrier for 24 hours after the surgery - this was so we could watch her and also so she didn't get harassed by her brothers. We would let her out in the bathroom for food, water and toilet, and then when we let her go, we just watched her. She will be scared, but at the same time, she will know her own limitations. Are you over in the UK/Ireland? I know over here they tend to perform a spay on the side (above the leg) rather than on the stomach. My vet said it's location is less bothersome to cats, and they lick the area less. I know they don't tend to do it this way in North America, so if you are there, never mind - but just one thing to keep in mind if you are on this side of the world. Also, because she is a bit older, her recovery time might be a bit longer than for a kitten. Talk to your vet - they will advise you!

She will mellow out a bit. It does take about 30 days for all the hormones to work their way out of her system, but you will notice a slight change. Our girl is still crazy and dominates her brothers, but she is much, much more mellow than she was before the surgery. She is not a lap cat by any means, but she doesn't mind being scooped up to be moved and she is much more cuddly than before. Obviously it varies from cat to cat, and while her personality will stay the same, she will just be more relaxed.

There are very few negatives about spay surgery. It prevents a lot of diseases and illnesses. Obviously, there are potential complications, but you can ask your vet to do a blood test to see if she will react negatively the stuff they use to put her under. It will cost a bit more, but if you are concerned, they can do it.

Good luck - and it is great you are getting this done!

Originally Posted by wendyr

I know over here they tend to perform a spay on the side (above the leg) rather than on the stomach. My vet said it's location is less bothersome to cats, and they lick the area less.

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Flank speying is common over here too, apparently it doesn't stretch and pull like the traditional midline while healing so it's more comfortable for the cat.

I hope you do desex your cat, she'll be much happier and healthier for it.

Get her spayed now - whether or not the toms might have gotten her. She will make a much nicer pet after being spayed. There are NO cons - only pros in spaying.

She will be healthier, happier, and live longer. The longer she goes in and out of heat, the higher the chances of pyrometria (uterus infection and death) or cancers.

They put them under and do the surgery - only takes about an hour. She will usually stay overnite at the vet's and the stitches may have to be taken out about 10 days after spaying (at the vet's) You need to keep her from jumping and running around after she's spayed - put her in a bedroom for a day or two.

Your vet will explain all the post-care you need to know.

But PLEASE have her spayed within the next week.

Agreed...Spaying is *good*. =) you can look around in your area for low-cost vets if that is a concern for you. I know that Animal Shelters are lower-priced and can also refer you to other low-cost places. Well, everything else I had to say has already been said so... Good luck.

Are you going to get her spayed??

How wonderful you are thinking of doing this! There are only good things to say about spaying. Your pet will be happier and live a healthier life.

My Daphne went into heat at 4 1/2 months, way before I thought she would. I got her spayed right away and am happy I did. She was one of the few who did not like her stitches and always tried to pull them out. She had to wear the "cone" until the stitches came out. Now, though, she is over a year old and perfectly healthy

Please let us know how it goes for you!

If you don't get her spayed, she'll keep cranking out kittens for the rest of her life (which will not be all that long), kittens which you will have to either find good homes for or take care of. The only way of preventing her from having litter after litter will be keeping her confined during heat, and that will be very unpleasant for both of you. A spayed female will live a longer, healthier life than an unspayed one. Not only will she be spared the physical stresses of pregnancy and kittening, and of the hormonal fluxuations of heat and pregnancy, but she will be very unlikely to get breast cancer (yes, cats can get it; all mammals can get it) and definately won't get uterine or ovarian cancer (you can't get cancer in an organ you don't have).

Spaying and neutering is what responsible pet owners do.

Maybe this is anecdotal, but female cats that aren't fixed tend to get a little, um, "demented" as they get older. That many years of going through heats just seems to affect them mentally.

There's just no good reason to not get your cats fixed, unless you're going to breed them, and that's a whole other can of worms.

I have a 16 Year old Cat that could not be fixed because it was not safe. she still goes in Heat and she can be loud. I am getting a Kitten from a Breeder and it will be fixed before I get it. When my Brothers cat was fixed the stitches were put inside and it worked out well.

Mews, please do monthly breast checks on your cat, I lost a 14yo to mammary cancer cos her owner had never had her spayed - the average age is 10. Why does the vet say she can't be spayed?