I'm trying to find a good home for my 2, 3 week old kittens. Well, I've been conversing with a woman these past 2 days who "claims" to work at a vet clinic in Chicago, but I don't see her listed in the staff on the webpage, so I doubt it.
Anyways, I told her that I'm going to get them spayed, etc... before I adopted them out and she them asked if SHe could get them sayed. I, of course, said "no". She then asked if she could take them NOW(only 3 weeks old) and finish hand-raising them because she works at a vet and can get everything done for free. Again, I said "NO!".
Well, I had also told her how I need to get a minor surgery done(the tail-tip needs to be amputated) on Yang's tail and that my vet should be able to do it without putting the kitten under(to read the details, go here: )
Then she emailed me back with this: "Thanks, Nicole. I appreciate the time/energy involved with caring for the kittens and the advise youâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]re receiving. I am a licensed wildlife rehabilitator and know the time and commitment it takes to hand raise the little ones without their Moms. (Also I am a board certified veterinary anesthetist, just so you know my back ground in this quest.) In all honesty there is no reason for a kitten to not be anesthetized if properly supported on IV fluids, heat and appropriate anesthetics provided. Many shelters do the spay and neuters on young animals of 4 weeks of age. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s easy (of youâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]d like for me to) to find that info for your vet and give it to them if they are interested.. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s called preadolescent gonadectomy. Its standard and accepted practice so the offering would be to have the tail and amputated and removed young (within the two week window you speak of) and have her spayed at the same time. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s not really to save you money although its an added benefit…. but to allow the kitten to have proper anesthesia and analgesia for removing her tail segments which are cartilage/bone. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s hard because a lot of vets thing because something is small they donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t feel pain or are more susceptible to anesthetic risks. I do open chest anesthesia on 3 week old puppies and kittens regularly with very low mortality rates to correct congenital heart/pulmonary defects and if those guys can be anesthetized, pretty much anything can with care and conscientiousness.
For me, the issue isnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t about money itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s about the quality of life for the animal long term. It is best to remove the tail I am sure due to tissue necrosis but also because of increased pain thresholds proven in the literature on young animals (Dobermans, rottweilers, etc) who have tail docs and dewclaw removals without anesthesia/analgesia and their lower pain threshold scores later in life. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s been proven if theyâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]re sensitized to it early, it has lifelong effects on them.
And also, the FELV/FIV test is not worth spending the money on until they are 16 weeks old. This is because the tests will yield false positives if the kittens have an upper respiratory infection or have an exposure to FelCoV (which is any virus in the distemper family) so it will not prove they do or do not have the diseases.
Just trying to offer the best possible options and help you make the best choices with all the options that are available."
I'm sorry, but who in there right mind would regularly spay 4 week old kittens?!?!?!?! That's horrible! That is NOT a "standard and accepted practice". Why do youthink so many vets and shelters make it very clear that kittens are required to be 8 weeks old and weigh 2lbs before getting spayed?!?!
Oh yeah, about the FIV, the first thing this person asked me was "are you going to test them for FIV, cause that's my #1 requirement in order to adopt them". It seems to me like this person is just looking to get some really young kittens to do who knows what with! She is officially checked off my list!
Anyways, I told her that I'm going to get them spayed, etc... before I adopted them out and she them asked if SHe could get them sayed. I, of course, said "no". She then asked if she could take them NOW(only 3 weeks old) and finish hand-raising them because she works at a vet and can get everything done for free. Again, I said "NO!".
Well, I had also told her how I need to get a minor surgery done(the tail-tip needs to be amputated) on Yang's tail and that my vet should be able to do it without putting the kitten under(to read the details, go here: )
Then she emailed me back with this: "Thanks, Nicole. I appreciate the time/energy involved with caring for the kittens and the advise youâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]re receiving. I am a licensed wildlife rehabilitator and know the time and commitment it takes to hand raise the little ones without their Moms. (Also I am a board certified veterinary anesthetist, just so you know my back ground in this quest.) In all honesty there is no reason for a kitten to not be anesthetized if properly supported on IV fluids, heat and appropriate anesthetics provided. Many shelters do the spay and neuters on young animals of 4 weeks of age. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s easy (of youâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]d like for me to) to find that info for your vet and give it to them if they are interested.. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s called preadolescent gonadectomy. Its standard and accepted practice so the offering would be to have the tail and amputated and removed young (within the two week window you speak of) and have her spayed at the same time. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s not really to save you money although its an added benefit…. but to allow the kitten to have proper anesthesia and analgesia for removing her tail segments which are cartilage/bone. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s hard because a lot of vets thing because something is small they donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t feel pain or are more susceptible to anesthetic risks. I do open chest anesthesia on 3 week old puppies and kittens regularly with very low mortality rates to correct congenital heart/pulmonary defects and if those guys can be anesthetized, pretty much anything can with care and conscientiousness.
For me, the issue isnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t about money itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s about the quality of life for the animal long term. It is best to remove the tail I am sure due to tissue necrosis but also because of increased pain thresholds proven in the literature on young animals (Dobermans, rottweilers, etc) who have tail docs and dewclaw removals without anesthesia/analgesia and their lower pain threshold scores later in life. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s been proven if theyâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]re sensitized to it early, it has lifelong effects on them.
And also, the FELV/FIV test is not worth spending the money on until they are 16 weeks old. This is because the tests will yield false positives if the kittens have an upper respiratory infection or have an exposure to FelCoV (which is any virus in the distemper family) so it will not prove they do or do not have the diseases.
Just trying to offer the best possible options and help you make the best choices with all the options that are available."
I'm sorry, but who in there right mind would regularly spay 4 week old kittens?!?!?!?! That's horrible! That is NOT a "standard and accepted practice". Why do youthink so many vets and shelters make it very clear that kittens are required to be 8 weeks old and weigh 2lbs before getting spayed?!?!
Oh yeah, about the FIV, the first thing this person asked me was "are you going to test them for FIV, cause that's my #1 requirement in order to adopt them". It seems to me like this person is just looking to get some really young kittens to do who knows what with! She is officially checked off my list!