Worried about my neutered kitten who seems depressed

Hi, this is the first time I post here, and it's the first time I own a cat alone (as in, not with the help of my mom).

I adopted Poe at 2 months old, the vet told me it was best to get him neutered early and at the same time as the vaccines he needed (rabies and 3rd distemper). He's a little over 4 month old and got neutered a week ago exactly. He was very upset when he came home from the vet, he was hissing a lot, meowing (he never does except when I cole home or when he's ready for me to get up in the morning) and even shaking a little. He was given pain killer for 3 extra days,  he healed fast and seemed much better, but he's usually pretty crazy and playful, he usually sleeps a lot but tries to stick around me. Lately he barely plays, stays in a different room then me when he sleeps (most of the time), seems to prefer darker rooms then he did before and doesn't have much interest in his wet food (he still eats all his dry food).

I'm worried that he might be feeling depressed or if there s something wrong with him. I was pretty young when my other cats got neutered so I don't remember how the recovery went. Maybe he's simply still recovering, and need a quiet and dark place to get full rest, but I'm worried it's something else, please share your experience with me!

I think this might be worth a call to the vet. I've never had a cat react that way to being neutered. Mine was back to normal within a couple of days. I know some cats have reactions to the vaccinations but don't know how long those reactions last. Mine were always fine.

Had a cat with a severe reaction to a vaccine but it was over in 24 hours.

My initial reaction to your story is that he just needs a little more recovery time than most.  It may be that his surgery didn't go exactly as planned or that the anesthesia didn't last long enough.  One never knows because we just have to leave them in the vet's care.  If he's not his old self in three weeks from surgery, I would see about a new vet.

Thank you!! I will give him a few more days before calling the vet.

I never though of that but it's a good point that the anesthesia might have not lasted long enough, I was expecting to pick up a groggy kitten but instead he was agitated, angry, scared and defensive. I also found it weird that they gave me pain killers for 3 days but didn't think to ask why because I was in such a hurry to take him home.