How do you know if a cat is in heat and

rachelinaz

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How do they act? How long does being in heat last? Any information you can pass on would be great.

Pretty sure Mew is in heat... she is acting all lovey and friendly with ppl. Rolling on the floor... rolling in my husband's shirts...

She is an indoor cat and no chance of getting pg unless she gets out of the house. Which we are all extra careful going out... cats in heat or not so they don't get out.
 

GemsGem

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Yep sounds like she just starting :D Just wait till she's in full calling mode :lol3:

Rolling around, very fussy and crouching with butt in the air are some of the signs. The big one is the shouting and calling ( especially in the middle of night when you trying to sleep ) at the top of her lungs to attract all the males in the area :lol3:
All the local tom cats to start hanging around your home trying to get in ;) Expect them to spray urine on and around your property too
 
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rachelinaz

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How long does this last? Can they be fixed while in heat?

She has been doing the calling (she never talks but wow... Today... She is loud) and rolling and butt in the air. We have 2 more who will be in heat in 2 weeks.
I have always heard it was better to let them go through a heat... But dang!

Yep sounds like she just starting :D Just wait till she's in full calling mode :lol3:

Rolling around, very fussy and crouching with butt in the air are some of the signs. The big one is the shouting and calling ( especially in the middle of night when you trying to sleep ) at the top of her lungs to attract all the males in the area :lol3:
All the local tom cats to start hanging around your home trying to get in ;) Expect them to spray urine on and around your property too
 

GemsGem

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On average about 10 days - some go little longer some a little shorter ;) But they come back into heat every 2-3 weeks

I think you can have them spayed while in heat but I think most vets prefer to do it once they have finished.
 

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How long does this last? Can they be fixed while in heat?

She has been doing the calling (she never talks but wow... Today... She is loud) and rolling and butt in the air. We have 2 more who will be in heat in 2 weeks.
I have always heard it was better to let them go through a heat... But dang!
It lasts at least 3 days, but seldom more than one week.   Although in some it may recur every third week...   Yes, it takes a deep toll on them.

Observe, she will do everything to try and sneak out.  So do have double watch now, so she cant sneak out, even if she were Houdinis instructor.

Btw, some are silent heaters, humans dont notice anything if they arrent very observant.  But toms around of course do notice.   Such isnt yours, yours is rather clear.

She can be fixed while in heat  it its necessary to do it now.  Its more difficult and more dangerous, her tissues are more fragile and have easier to bleed.  But an experienced vet do manage this without problems if forewarned.

If you can wait, do so.   But if your vet is experienced and agrees,you can let her be spayed.

Most people try to endure and survive, and takes her to a vet as soon she is done.  
 
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rachelinaz

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Glad I asked! We never fixed our animals as a kid and our last set were "fine" until 7 months old. Either they didn't go into heat until then or we didn't know it.
But then their brother started acting "weird" and all 3 got done at once.

I will be setting the girls up this week if possible.
I just need to keep Walter away from them! He terrorizes them in play. Quite rough if it was a human. They know how tell him to knock it off.

StefanZ StefanZ When should the boys be done? Does it affect how big a cat might be... getting it done sooner or later?
 
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Willowy

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Male cats neutered very early tend to be taller/ganglier. The hormones affect how soon their growth plates close and so if they don't have the hormones the growth plates close later so they get taller. In cats it's not real noticable. Once they're over 6 months or so it doesn't make much difference.

Personally, for females I like to spay at 14 weeks (I don't think there's any benefit to letting them go into heat) and for males neuter at 5-7 months.
 

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I have always tried to get my females done before their first heat, but I have always lived in places where vets will not do early spays, so it is a fine line sometimes trying to time it. Two of mine did go into heat before being spayed, but I also think there is no advantage in that, it just happened. Some authorities say that every heat can increase the risk of mammary cancer, though I think that is probably over-cautious. The real risk is an early pregnancy!
 
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rachelinaz

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My girls are 16-18 weeks (Mew), 12-15 weeks (the sisters) and then we have Wally who is appx 8 weeks old.
 

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We prefer to spay/neuter between 5-6 months of age (and prefer them to be 5 lbs.) We just feel safer putting them under anesthesia at this age (plus, it's easier to intubate them and their veins are larger, so easier to insert catheters.) It is also MUCH easier to keep a 5/6 mo old calm for a few days post-op than it is a 12 wk old kitten. =)
 

Willowy

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We prefer to spay/neuter between 5-6 months of age (and prefer them to be 5 lbs.) We just feel safer putting them under anesthesia at this age (plus, it's easier to intubate them and their veins are larger, so easier to insert catheters.) It is also MUCH easier to keep a 5/6 mo old calm for a few days post-op than it is a 12 wk old kitten. =)
The problem with this policy is that it results in a TON of unwanted pregnancies :(. Females just go into heat so early and it's so hard to keep a cat in heat from escaping. Hopefully the OP's vet does not have such opinions.

Make an appointment now for next week sometime. That should be the safest. Even if your vet will do a spay while she's calling, it would take a couple days for her to stop calling after being spayed so it wouldn't really make any difference. If your vet is OK with it you could get the younger ladies in at the same time. And avoid going through this with them :tongue2:.
 

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Ours are spayed/neutered before they leave us.  The earliest our vet does them is 8 wks/2 lbs.  (they must be at least BOTH of these things)  It seems a lot easier on the small ones, but it does take a vet experienced in this young age group, because the pre-op and post-op instructions differ  The tiny ones get fed at 6:30 on the morning of surgery but only half their usual ampount.  They also get fed as soon as you get them home (that varies depending on the spay/neuter load fort= the day, but usually around 4 PM.  ANDthey watch carefully because they can go hypoglycemic quickly and get in trouble.  One did it the other day andthey gave nim a bolus of nutrical to get his blood sugar up.  Vets who are not used to doing pediatric spay/neuter should wait until they are older and bigger.
 

catpack

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I guess we have been "lucky" in the 6+ yrs we have been doing the rescue. No unwanted pregnancies. (I don't mean for that to sound rude.). We follow-up AND schedule spay/neuters if the cat is adopted out before 5/6 months of age. They NEVER go past 6 mo without surgery. Females are done close to 5-5 1/2 months.

This works for us. No, it absolutely does NOT work for everyone, especially if the rescue/shelter is unable to follow up on each individual adoption.
 

Willowy

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Every cat I've let go past 16-18 weeks has gone into heat :tongue2:. So I'm probably a little biased there. I'm always so surprised when someone says they have a 6-or 7-month-old female who hasn't gone into heat yet. My vet says he prefers to wait until 5 months but I usually sneak them in right before 16 weeks and tell him they're "around" 5 months. He's never objected so I guess he just wants them not to be tiny. Which is fine by me; I do think 8-10 weeks is too young/small (of course shelters do what they have to do). I've just never had a female make it all the way to 5 months without going into heat so naturally I think that's too long to wait.
 

Willowy

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Any vet can do shots.

I didn't realize you hadn't found a vet yet! Hope you find one soon. . .hate to think of you with all 3 of them in heat at once! :lol3: :eek:
 

jennyr

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You should be able to find on in the phone directory, or online through the Vet association. Or ask your local chamber of commerce. Anyone who calls themselves a vet will be licensed, though you might like to ask first what kind of animals they specialise in. Some rural vets are much better at farm animals or horses than domestic pets.
 
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