Spaying Ferals then releasing them??

We were told that Ferals that are spayed are simply returned to the outdoors the NEXT day?! This seems cruel because they need 7-10 days to heal, not open stitches, get infection etc.??? How can this be okay? No pain meds for them either...can't be good?

I realize it's good to get them spayed but for females would think another option is there to allow them healing time!

Also, if a cat is spayed and is mistakenly taken into a vet for spaying can the vet tell by examining their belly for the scar or ??

thanks!
Lynn

In feral cats they must often be anesthetized before they can be examined to see if they have a spay scar or not. I've fixed many feral, semi-ferals, etc - and they are released the next day. IMO, it's far more cruel (& harder on them) to keep ferals caged - I've seen many of them go ballistic bouncing off the walls after being fixed & bust their sutures open. Whereas outdoors they often recover no problem.

Hi Nat,

I'm still not sure how humane it is releasing them right after surgery with fresh stitches and pain from this major surgery though?

We've spayed many cats/kittens in my lifetime and are always given pain meds for them for a week to ten days..

Lynn

When my pets have been spayed, they have gotten a pain injection before coming home & that was it. I personally tried to cage one true feral once - she split her spay open & died during surgery to repair it. I will never cage a feral/semi-feral after being fixed again.

If they show up at my place, I fix 'em & let 'em go the next day - domestics, semi-ferals, or ferals.

When the alternative is to leave them unspayed vs. spay w/o pain meds - I'd opt for the spay....but others can also chime in on their thoughts here.....

Originally Posted by ElvisCat59

We were told that Ferals that are spayed are simply returned to the outdoors the NEXT day?! This seems cruel because they need 7-10 days to heal, not open stitches, get infection etc.??? How can this be okay? No pain meds for them either...can't be good?

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Here are several factors, both with ferales and with the caretakers, why the successful semiferale do copy with 1-3 days, while a homecat should have 7-10 days recovery.

OK.

First and most important.

Ferales, semiferales, successfull homeless - are made of tough wood. Per definition so: otherwise they would be gone long ago. As we all know most dumped and strays, and many born ferales - do goes on sooner or later... These still alive we can do TNR with are THE survivors.
Thus they are also healing much better than the average home cat.

Next. This TNR-surgery, is usually done on the side (small incision) and with self dissolving stitches.
Thus the wound is much lesser then with the standard kirurgy, heals quicker, and usually dont need any afterwork.

A thrue feral may freak out after the recovery is over. As witnessed. This is perhaps not the most usual, but it apparently happens...

Many rescuers dont have practical possiblilities to hold or watch on a feral. They dont have place, or time or...
So. 2 days are good, 3 days are nice if it is possible and the cat behaves. But often enough, you must do with 1 and be happy you did get a whole 24 hours...


Last. A very practical question. If you really keep the cat 10 days. Chance/risk is rather big the cat becomes almost tame. And what then?? IF you have the resources to foster, and later on adopt out, you do yell a happy Hurray! and proceed with fostering.
But if you dont have the resources, you get yourself a bad conscience....

Very true, StefanZ.

Any cat that is living outdoors and thriving is probably going to make it. Caging them makes them upset, they are used to being outdoors. Although it is possible to get them to stay inside, if they are true ferals they will hate it, and if they are semi-feral, they will become tame. It is easier on them to allow them to go back outside and go back to how they are living.

Although, I have a weird question, but might be totally obvious. Do you spay only the females or do you neuter the males too? I just see it being cheaper to only spay the females since that means that there would be no babies, without any females, chances are no male is going to make babies (haha, you never know). Neutering only males wouldn't make sense because it only takes one to make a million. But do you do whoever you catch or do you pick a certain gender to do??
My grandma's barn is home to a feral colony and she only spays the females because she can't afford to do the males too.

Originally Posted by Zuma-xo

Do you spay only the females or do you neuter the males too?

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AFAIK the usual is to neuter both. Although with males it is no big deal. You can usually let them back to their place as soon they have recovered, ie max 24 hours, usually shorter, perhaps even only several hours. It is also cheapier and easier. This is why the question is almost never discussed as a problem.

Of course, if the budget is REALLY tight, it makes sense to begin with the females.

Why neuter them too although the females are most important? Many reasons, including they will be less of a nuisance to neighbours, and thus, wont drive up waves of hostility against the ferales and homeless.



A important point not to neuter toms is, many believes the males must be whole to have a decent chance to hold on their own and make a life. Being and staying sharp seems to be their only chance: neutered have virtually no chance against aggressive toms.
But the practice shows the neutereds males situations isnt that bad. A recompensation for them is they are instead allowed into the collectives of females.

My personal preference is to hold any female cats for several days after they're spayed, but that's not always practical or in the best interest of the cat. The rescue I work with encourages the release of female ferals the day after surgery provided there are no other medical issues. They're given pain meds after the surgery and it really is less stressful for them to be released into their home environment instead of being caged.

I trapped a beautiful young female cat last fall and held her several days after her surgery hoping for some sign that she wasn't feral. She was scared to death and absolutely miserable, trashing her cage several times and hissing, growling and swatting anytime someone approached the cage. In retrospect it would have been much better for her to just be released the day after her surgery with the colony caretaker keep an eye on her.

While getting the females spayed is definitely a priority, I feel it's just as important to get the males fixed and I'll trap any new additions to my colony regardless. Neutering the males means they won't go wandering into another neighborhood to mate, cuts down on the risk of them fighting and contracting diseases and is likely to keep them from spraying, which creates a huge mess and annoyance to the neighbors. Simply put, it gives them a chance at a better life.

Ahh, I see. My nan has a colony is her backyard. Currently she is at 18 adults and two new litter's of kittens. She's gotten 7 of the females spayed (one is already pregnant and there is no late term spays here (drop off cat) and the other two are still nursing) but the males she hasen't done yet because she is low on funds. Thankfully, the local shelter is helping to provide some of the food which she claims is helping since she can put more money away to be spaying the new additions who will need it soon. What she hates is when people drop off their cats in her backyard thinking she won't notice. And she knows a new face when she sees one and she can tell which one's are dropoffs and which ones were feral to begin with.

And thank you two, StefanZ and eilcon for the replies I appreciate you educating me.

Originally Posted by ElvisCat59

We were told that Ferals that are spayed are simply returned to the outdoors the NEXT day?! This seems cruel because they need 7-10 days to heal, not open stitches, get infection etc.??? How can this be okay? No pain meds for them either...can't be good?

I realize it's good to get them spayed but for females would think another option is there to allow them healing time!

Also, if a cat is spayed and is mistakenly taken into a vet for spaying can the vet tell by examining their belly for the scar or ??

thanks!
Lynn

Click to expand...

I know it doesn't sound right, but this is the most practical thing to do for feral cats. With the 2 week antibiotic injection available these days, they can now be given that shot to ward off any potential infections. They use dissolvable stitches on females so they don't have to return to the vet to have them removed. And they are most often ear tipped, so if they are trapped again, you can easily see that without an exam and can simply release them from the trap immediately. But giving pain meds to a feral cat without sedation is impossible in most cases.

I've been TNRing feral cats for close to 20 years now. When I use my vet, if a female isn't showing signs of major stress, I will ask the vet to keep her an extra night for recovery, but I always release males the next day. The problem is always where to keep them as they recover. A feral cat's instincts to remain subdued while in pain are very good. If you can't medicate a feral cat, and they keep themselves subdued while recovering, what more can you do for them? If they are thrashing around in a cage because they are stressed, it can cause more harm than good.

Another reason to return them as soon as possible to familiar territory is that other cats will take over territory that was formerly claimed by the TNR'd female. She would be in a fight to recover her shelter and hunting if she is gone too long, and that wouldn't be good for a still recovering cat either.