Should a spay be done in the side or the middle of the tummy? Which is best?

I just read in a different post that there is more than one way to do a spay...... meaning that sometimes incisions will be done in the side, other times right along the middle of the belly.
Well, my cats go in tomorrow to be spayed, and I have no clue what would be better to do...
Is one way better / easier to recover from than the other?

Mine have all been done in the middle, and we have had no problems with it...

I've only recently heard of the side incision as well. All of my girls were spayed with the incision in their tummies and there's never been a problem.
I guess with either option you just have to make sure they don't pull at their stitches.

Sending good vibes to your girls.

i am not an expert, nor do i remember what kind of sitches they have! (its been a while since i've needed to spay a cat..) but i would imagine, if they have any type of dissolvable ones. that would be good..i know when i worked at a vet as a kennel assistant a dog came in that had weird bumps along her lower area where she was fixed and i guess the stiches caused some type of scar tissue bumps?? something happened when they were supposed to be taken out or something i forget. most the time when our animals have been spayed i think i remember seeing them down the middle..but maybe its better to be done another way? im sure someone else will be of more help and write something..and if you dont get the info in time maybe the vet can say which way is better? (if there is a big difference between the ways). good luck with it!
as i see i took so long to write this other people have posted! lol good!

I'm pretty sure spays are almost keyhole surgery anyway these days - So the incisions are minimal anyway.

I don't think it would make much difference - It doesn't take too long for the wounds to heal and they mostly use dissolvable stitches so you don't have to go back to get them taken out!!

Blaze was just spayed on Halloween.They used glue on the outside to keep it together and disolvable stitches in the inside.Her scar is SO tiny.....very hard to see if you don;t know what to look at.What caught me of gaurd was her shaved pink belly
here's a pic of her ouchie a few hours after her spay.

If you look on the right side of the pic---sort of 2 inches to the top of my finger---- It looks kind of purple colored.That's Blaze's incision.It's in the middle between her boobs.She did WONDERFUL after her spay.Does your Vet offer the pain shot for afterwards?Our did and it was only $10---I them give it to Blaze.You can't even tell where they cut her now unless you REALLY look.

no matter what, the vet will preform the surgery the way he/she was instructed. asking them to do it a differnt way will only get you to be the butt of jokes for the day. most vets working now preform all spay surgeries on the abdomin, it is easier to dissect out the organs and reduces the risk of puntureing the other organs in the abdomin. i have never heard of an spay done from the side.


please excuse the spelling errors, lack of sleep combined with near freezing temps in the house is making typing and issue

You should ask your vet. If he (she) has been doing mid-line incisions for 10 years, and never did a side incision, mid-line is best for your cat and your vet. If he/she does both, ask which is preferred and why.

As for being the butt of jokes, who cares? Your medical professional is there to care for you and help you learn, and that includes the vet. Even if they aren't doing the side incision, maybe they have read about it and will know the pros and cons.

Originally Posted by HappyViking

that sometimes incisions will be done in the side, other times right along the middle of the belly.
Well, my cats go in tomorrow to be spayed, and I have no clue what would be better to do...

Click to expand...

I've never been asked which kind. It was always the middle. I am guessing which type your cats recieve will depend on your vet's training and what they are comfortable with.

I can't see how it would make any difference. The part that is removed is easy to get to from the middle and that is the only way I know of it being done. Probably whatever the vet prefers. That is really eird that the vet asked if you have a preference.

Serenity was spayed today with an incision in her little tummy. I was speaking earlier today with a UK friend who was quite unfamiliar with the abdominal incision until recently having her purebreed kitty spayed. All of her girls had previously received their incisions in their side, which, similarly, I had not heard of until she shared it with me.

hi - my female had her spay a couple of days ago - this is my first experience of it but it doesn't seem to have affected her at all. We bought her home and as soon as we opened the door she ran out of the carrier and romped upstairs to play with her kittens. We had planned to keep her confined in a room but there seems to be no need as she is as normal as ever.

The spay in the side may mean that the incision is less likely to undergo strain as a result of running or walking, also may mean its less likely to get infected as a result of going to the litter box as its facing away from litter dust and such things..

and btw i contacted my vet about the spay and he assured me that both ovaries and uterus were removed.

I think the type of spay might be something that the vet learns, as the procedure from a side spay is probably different to that of a belly spay. No point asking your vet to do what he may not be comfortable with...

Hope your cat finds the spay easy to deal with!

We do it on the side here in the UK and both my girls were fine

Originally Posted by chupi

I think the type of spay might be something that the vet learns, as the procedure from a side spay is probably different to that of a belly spay. No point asking your vet to do what he may not be comfortable with...

Hope your cat finds the spay easy to deal with!

Click to expand...

Yeah, different vets have learned different techniques, though the side spay seems more common in the UK.

Terese, you can definitely enquire which method the vet will be using but both methods are equally effective and I would just let the vet do what he/she is most experienced with.

Good luck and I hope your cats recover well.

Originally Posted by Jen

I can't see how it would make any difference. The part that is removed is easy to get to from the middle and that is the only way I know of it being done. Probably whatever the vet prefers. That is really eird that the vet asked if you have a preference.

Click to expand...

Well, the vet never asked me, it's just that I myself all of a sudden realized that there's more than one way. And being the little bit of a perfectionist that I am, I just wanted to make sure I knew what to ask for if I ended up having a choice in the matter. But now it sounds like it doesn't matter much, so I'll leave it up to the vet to decide. He'll do what he's the most comfortable with, I guess. I'll be able to tell afterward, what he did, so I probably won't even bring it up. I have enough issues to discuss, anyway, as ALWAYS! No doctor or vet can ever get me just in and out... Too many questions At least I keep myself informed, then, and not ignorant as many others.

Originally Posted by HappyViking

I just read in a different post that there is more than one way to do a spay...... meaning that sometimes incisions will be done in the side, other times right along the middle of the belly.
Well, my cats go in tomorrow to be spayed, and I have no clue what would be better to do...
Is one way better / easier to recover from than the other?

Click to expand...

I took all of my ferals to a low cost spray and neuter clinic just for ferals. The vet made the incisions on the sides of the cats. I was told at the time that he was one of the few vets in the US that made side incisions. I understand that there is less chance for infection and the wound heals faster with the side incision and that's how they do it Europe. A friend of mine went to a new vet last year to have her cat spayed and he made the side incision. She said she could'nt believe how much faster the cat recovered than her cats that had the incision on the belly.

I talked to my vet and he said that side incisions are the "old school" way. He said tummy incisions are newer, and easier. A side incision is nice, and you can access one ovary, but you have to dig through all the guts to get to the other side. He said it's alot easier making the incision on the tummy because you don't have to dig around to find the ovaries.

I don't think one is "better" than the other. But I imagine if someone didn't know what they were doing, they might cause more damage than good going from the side if they were stupid or having a hard time finding the other ovary.

Most doctors in the US do not know how to do a flank (side) spay so I would say the answer depends first on what the doctor knows and is comfortable with. It's always going to be better if the doctor is totally comfortable doing the procedure.

All things being equal, I personally prefer the flank spay. Usually it is a little faster (meaning less anesthesia time and lower risk of complications) and the cat seems less uncomfortable right after surgery. It is also easier for you to keep an eye on the incision afterward and make sure it is healing properly. But I have had many cats spayed through both methods and the differences between the two are pretty minimal for the cat.

The one time I would very strongly prefer a flank spay is for a nursing mother. It eliminates the risk of cutting the mammary glands and means her kittens won't be kneading on her incision when they are nursing, so she will have less pain after surgery.

The one time I would very strongly prefer a flank spay is for a nursing mother. It eliminates the risk of cutting the mammary glands and means her kittens won't be kneading on her incision when they are nursing, so she will have less pain after surgery.

Click to expand...

I didn't know they did spays when kittens were still nursing. That would make sense if you were doing a spay that early to do one from the side... but I always thought you did a spay after weaning [or at least by the time kittens were 8-12 weeks].