Post-op Neuter care

Hey guys, I wasn't sure where to put this. Our two kittens, Milo and Merlin were just neutered yesterday. We got them home and they were both pretty drugged up...Merlin seemed very confused and wouldn't come out of the carrier for about an hour. Once they figured out where they were, they plopped their butts down on the carpet and started grooming down there...figures, eh? We got the e-collars and boy oh boy do they hate them. If I take the collars off, though they do NOT stop grooming!! They even groom each other! I was just wondering how long I should leave the collars on. They can eat and drink just fine with them on. They just bonk into walls and door frames more often now... lol.

Is there anything I should watch out for? They're being fussy and won't let me see down there, but I'll try to look again in the morning. Both the boys have peed in the litter pan already, which I hope is a good sign. Forgive me, this is the first time for me!

Thanks in advance, everyone!

Little guys normally heal pretty quickly ... just watch out for any signs of redness or infection. I would keep the collars on as directed by your vet to prevent any more grooming though.

They are adorable in your siggy. *grin*

I need to update those pictures LOL! They're 11 and 12 months old now.

Any idea how long to keep the collar on? I'm hoping I only have to leave it on for one or two more days...poor boys hate those darn things!!

How long did the vet recommend you leave them on?

The vet didn't say. We picked them up right before closing and the vet was in surgery so we were speaking to the receptionist. I'm going to call tomorrow morning. I was just hoping for a ballpark guess here, I suppose

I would think at most a week, but do call in the morning and ask.

They do look funny with those things on don't they? I know they have to hate it, but it is amusing to watch them bumbling around the house like they do, poor things. *wink*

Jason got a quick mini video of the poor little guys running around in the bathroom I feel so bad for them!! They look miserable. The second you pick them up and pet them though, they're purring so I know they're not THAT miserable lol.

*I updated my signature with some more recent pics...but even those are 4 or 5 months old! I'll find some better ones tomorrow *

They are still adorable ... I love white cat feet. I just want to grab em up and kiss em. *grin*

I do that every day!!

I'd love to bring in another kitty friend, but we just don't have room. We're in a fairly large 2 bedroom apartment, but I want to move into a house before I bring in another kitty. Hopefully that'll happen here, pretty darn soon!! Then I can get the Ragdoll kitty of my dreams!! With white paws!! lol.

Well, kiss em for me, won't you? LOL And when you do get the ragdoll kitty of your dreams, just make sure you post sweet pictures so we can all enjoy her!

Give those two sweetie boys a gentle chin scritch for me and if no one else has said this to you recently, thank you for doing the right thing and getting them neutered. They will be healthier and happier and so will you.

Night Night!

We tell owners of cats who need e-collars to keep them on until they come back for their recheck appointment which is usually 10-14 days after surgery.

excuse my daftness but what is an e-collar?
Simba didnt have anything on when he came out after being neutered yesterday, and he was out in 4 hours, but i believe it is done quicker here in the uk.The vets didnt say anything about not grooming too much, simba is back to his normal self today jumping around like crazy!

Just keep your eye on them.

Goodness that's a long time to keep the collar on...

Bengalsmum, do you know when a dog wheres a cone like thing on his head to prevent him from biting at a wound? That's what an e-collar is.

The poor boys can't drink with it on but they can eat... I have to take it off for them to drink and get it right back on again. This is really tough

I just checked them over and I don't see any open wounds anywhere! Where all should I be looking, though?

Yesterday their backends looked a lot worse than this, so this is definitely a major improvement!

Sleeves never had to wear a collar...? He never even had to go back to the vet for a check up. Just watch for any agression from your babies though because Sleeves was quite mean once the drugs had worn off, so we took him to a different vet who said he was probably in pain, so he gave him a painkiller and all was well again.
By the way your cats are gorgeous!

Thanks!! I love your kitties, too!

The boys had a pain killer shot before they came home that's supposed to last up to three days.

They were licking so badly when we brought them home and I couldn't get them to stop...hence the collars. I don't know how quickly this will heal. They didn't get stitches or staples or anything.

These poor guys are just so miserable. They're keeping their ears close to their heads and they won't sleep unless they're on my lap or touching me in some way.

Jason's calling the vet right now to see how much longer we have to keep these silly collars on

*EDIT* They DO have dissolving stitches...I love how I didn't catch that the first time around lol. I was too worried about my babies... I was playing with them when the receptionist was telling us stuff (that's why Jason was there, too!)

We were told to leave the collars on for 15 days... only if they are licking. We are going to take the collars off for an hour or two when Jason gets off work and see if they lick themselves silly or not. If they don't I'd love to leave those stupid things off!!!

Bijou had no stitches, no glue or anything. The vet told me they just pulled the incision together and let it heat naturally. They told us to just watch and ensure he wasn't licking MORE than usual. We put no collar on him and he healed just fine. We didn't have to take him back to the vet for a checkup either.

Mika didn't have a collar when she was spayed and she too healed fine. Naturally she did some licking but obviously didn't overdo it. I guess it really depends on the individual vet.

I may have jumped the gun... they were just licking so much I didn't want anything to open up down there.

We're going to try and take off the collars this evening and watch them for a few hours. If it gets really bad again the collars will go right back on.

Thanks for the input and advice everyone!

My Otis was also neutered yesterday. He is in quite a bit of pain...but i think a shot was given to him already. Is there anything else i can do to make him nore confortable? Plus i am having a really hard time getting the econe thingy on...i might have to wait till my husband gets home.

Most cats that are spayed or neutered don't need to wear e-collars after surgery. However, there are a few who lick excessively (Sienna was one of those) and it's essential they wear one. She didn't start to lick a lot until about 2 days after her surgery and I had to get one from work right away.

The healing process and how long they may continue to excessively lick varies somewhat for each cat. Because we don't generally see the kitties until their recheck appointment to determine how each incision is coming along, we tell all owners to keep it until we see them again (10-14 days) as things are usually healed by then...it's just a safety precaution.
All of our surgeries come back for a recheck appointment (free of charge) as we like to see how the kitties are doing in person.

You can take the e-collars off so long as you are able to supervise them and prevent any excessive licking should it occur. If they continue to do so, the collars have to go back on. Even if they don't seem to be licking a lot anymore while in your presence, still keep them on when there is no one there to watch them (when you go to bed or leave the house etc.).