Cat owners sometimes have to deal with the fact that their pets need surgery
. The procedure may be needed to treat a disease or correct a congenital defect that prevents the animal from leading a full life. Also, quite a few domestic cats undergo neutering surgery.
Any surgical intervention is a serious stress for the body and may be accompanied by complications. In order for your cat to recover as quickly as possible, you need to provide her with rest and proper care during the postoperative period. Sometimes veterinary clinics offer owners to leave the animal in the hospital for some time after surgery. But if the cat’s condition allows you to take it home, it is better to do just that, because for a recovering animal, a familiar environment and the care of a loving owner are extremely important.
Typically, after an uneventful operation, special care is required for 10-14 days, although in some cases recovery may take longer.
We will talk about the basic rules for caring for a cat that has recently undergone surgery.
The first hours after surgery
When taking a cat home after surgery, the owner needs to check with the doctor what features of the animal’s behavior should be paid attention to. The period of reversion (return) from anesthesia can proceed differently for each animal: much depends on the choice of anesthesia. At home, the animal must be placed in a carrier or a closed house: this is required in order to avoid injury. It is advisable that the room where the animal is located is quiet and dimly lit.
During recovery from anesthesia, the cat may experience unsteadiness in its gait and disorientation. In addition, the cat may not hold its head well and may experience incoordination. Until the animal’s condition stabilizes, it is necessary to control its movement around the apartment.
Don't be surprised if your pet suddenly shows causeless aggression - it happens in this state.
Care instructions
Important symptoms to watch out for after surgery:
- temperature (if it rises, then this is a serious signal);
- refusal of water and food for more than a day;
- lethargy/apathy for a long time;
- rapid heartbeat and shortness of breath;
- difficulty urinating, lack of bowel movements;
- purulent discharge from the wound.
As long as the cat leaves after castration, he should remain in constant view for as long. We'll give you some advice on care immediately after you bring your animal home.
How to feed?
Pets may not only refuse to eat on their own, but also experience symptoms of nausea and vomiting. This is indicated by frequent licking. The vomit contains foam, bile, and mucus. Additionally, convulsions and excessive salivation may occur. It is better to give only water at first.
Your veterinarian will prescribe a detailed diet for you. Usually, you need to feed a cat after castration every other day (6-24 hours). It is better to give the usual semi-liquid food in small quantities (1/3 of the usual norm). Fractional feeding is required to prevent stomach upset.
Approximately 5-7 days after complete recovery, you can switch to new food for sterilized cats. Consult with a specialist which one is best to choose. After surgery, the animal needs vitamins and a special diet according to its age, as changes occur in hormonal levels. He may eat more than usual and gain weight. Feeding from the table is completely contraindicated! This must be monitored so as not to harm the health of the pet.
What to do if your cat is marking his territory?
Owners of cats, and not only neutered ones, often complain about this problem. You must be prepared for the fact that surgery is a huge stress for the animal. In addition, some of them still have reflexes for reproduction and high levels of sex hormones. Gradually their number should decrease - after 3-4 weeks.
Other reasons for the tag include:
- sexually mature age;
- old habit;
- cryptorchidism;
- diseases of the urinary system, etc.
If more than a month has passed and the cat is marking its territory after castration and does not want to give up its habit, contact a veterinarian or animal psychologist.
The main advice is not to scold the four-legged dog, on the contrary, give it more attention and care. Try changing the tray more often, and also use special products that scare animals away from the tag.
What to do if a cat licks its wounds?
After the operation, veterinarians dress the cats in special blankets and collars. They protect the animal from the desire to lick and scratch.
After castration, a cat may deliberately show its dissatisfaction with the new “clothes”: walk backwards or refuse to move at all in them. The collar prevents them from orienting themselves in space, eating and drinking. He can touch the corners with it and try with all his might to get rid of it.
During this period, under no circumstances allow your pet to remove the equipment on its own. It can cause infection, which will lead to swelling, inflammation and a longer recovery period. Maintain the cleanliness, integrity of the bandage and the overall comfort of the animal in it.
After surgery, daily care and suture checking are required. Treatment of wounds is carried out by the owner independently, at home. If for some reason the animal does not allow you to do this, then veterinarians will handle it.
For the procedure, use antiseptic preparations without alcohol, for example, chlorhexidine (0.05% aqueous solution) or dioxidine (0.5%). After this, the seams are usually lubricated with levomekol ointment, and a small bandage/cotton pad is applied on top. During this procedure, it is better not to remove the bandage completely, but only to open the required area.
If you notice pustular inflammation or bloody smudges, this is a bad sign. See your doctor immediately.
When to drink?
Water can be offered as soon as the cat wakes up. At first, a few drops will be enough to moisten the oral mucosa. It is important to remember that you should not place a bowl of water in front of your cat: it may choke if it falls into it with its face. In addition, she will not be able to drink normally from a bowl until her swallowing reflex is restored.
Natural bowel movements, appetite and thirst
It is necessary to ensure that the cat goes to the toilet on the first day after surgery. Frequent trips to the toilet should also alert you, as should the complete absence of bladder and bowel movements. In case of reflex postoperative constipation (no bowel movement for up to 3 days), you will need to give a laxative, after consulting with your veterinarian.
Normal active appetite and thirst should return on the second or third day. By this time, the cat is already showing a normal interest in food and drink, so it is already asking for food and drinking on its own according to its needs. Important: it is not recommended for a cat to eat a lot after sterilization. What to do if he asks to feed often? It is enough to reduce food portions. Neutered cats are prone to obesity due to increased appetite due to hormonal changes, so their diet and feeding regimen will have to be monitored more carefully than before surgery.
Sterilization and castration: what is it and why are they needed?
Technically, spaying and neutering are two completely different procedures. During castration surgery, internal organs responsible for the production of sex hormones are removed from animals:
- in a cat - the ovaries (sometimes the uterus is also cut out);
- in cats - testes.
After this, the pets lose all signs of sexual behavior and the ability to reproduce.
After castration the cat becomes calm
The sterilization operation involves less drastic measures, consisting only of ligation (cauterization, cutting, etc.) of the fallopian tubes in females and the spermatic cords in males. Sexual activity with all the ensuing unpleasant consequences (the cat is in heat, marking territory, restlessness, screaming at night, etc.) is preserved. Only the opportunity to produce offspring is lost.
In practice, animals are most often subjected to castration, since as a result of this procedure, pets do not experience severe stress associated with hormonal storms, get sick less often and live longer, and also cause much less anxiety to their owners.
There are many good reasons to spay or neuter animals.
Like any surgical intervention, these operations pose a certain danger for pets due to possible postoperative complications (formation of adhesions, infection, accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity, etc.), as well as individual reactions to anesthesia (anesthesia).
Video: the difference between castration and sterilization
How long does the recovery period last and what does it depend on?
The rehabilitation period for pets under favorable circumstances usually does not exceed 1.5–2 weeks . The following factors can directly influence the recovery process:
- Age. The older the cat, the more difficult it will be for surgery.
- Pedigree. The more purebred the cat, the longer it will take to recover from surgery.
- Food quality.
However, complete rehabilitation may take a month or even longer.
It is better not to sterilize or castrate older animals unless absolutely necessary, as they may not survive it.
How long does it take?
How long it takes for an animal to wake up depends on its age and body characteristics. Typically, recovery from anesthesia is observed four hours after surgery. According to experienced breeders, pets that are very active wake up earlier. Already 60 minutes after castration they begin to get up or try to climb onto the bed. On animals that have a phlegmatic temperament, anesthesia lasts longer. The pet often wakes up after 6 hours, but the effect of anesthesia sometimes lasts up to 24 hours.
Castration of cats
Castration of a cat is one of the simplest, fastest, and most uncomplicated surgical operations. During surgery, general anesthesia is used for pain relief. Some veterinarians practice combined anesthesia (general, local), using short-acting drugs that reduce the sensitivity of animals for a certain period. In addition to injection drugs, special gas and ethers are used.
After administering the drugs, it takes some time for the cat to fall asleep. Time intervals depend on the individual physiological parameters of the mustachioed pets’ body.
The anesthesia drug and dosage are selected by the veterinarian taking into account the individual characteristics of the body, age, and weight of your cat.
After the injection, before putting the cat into a narcotic sleep, the pet may feel sick and vomit. This is normal. This is how the animal’s body reacts to the administration of the drug. Therefore, before castration, veterinarians recommend keeping your pet on a starvation diet .
Before the operation, the surgeon examines the animal, measures the temperature, heart rate, and determines the cat’s weight. Castration is carried out only if there are no contraindications and all vital signs are normal. The duration of castration ranges from 15-20 minutes to an hour. During the operation, the veterinarian surgeon makes thin incisions and through them removes the testes that produce sex hormones.
Recovery from anesthesia and possible complications
After surgery, the cat can sleep for 2-20 hours. If the veterinarian independently removes the pet from anesthesia, the interval will be shortened. While your pet is sleeping, you need to monitor the condition of his eyes. Cats do not close their eyelids reflexively after using anesthesia, so you need to do this yourself. Otherwise, the mucous membranes may dry out.
You should not worry if the cat comes out of anesthesia, relieves itself and refuses food. This is a normal reaction. At first, urine may have a strong, unpleasant odor because it contains hormones. Later the condition stabilizes. Sometimes after surgery there is pain in the heart area, rapid pulse and mood swings. The most serious complications include kidney failure, intellectual decline, suffocation, cerebral swelling and circulatory problems.
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What signs should alert the owner
The cat lies for a LONG time and does not try to get up - the help of a veterinarian is required
Even though castration is a simple operation and often does not harm the animal, sometimes things can go wrong. The entire time the pet is recovering from anesthesia, it must be closely monitored in order to notice alarming symptoms in time.
A veterinarian's help may be needed if:
- lies motionless for and does not even try to get up;
- the animal has a rapid heartbeat and rapid breathing ;
- You can determine the cat’s condition using a regular flashlight: if you direct a stream of light into his eye, the pupil should narrow ; if this does not happen, it’s time to call a doctor ;
- has not gone to the toilet for a day or more or makes a plaintive meow while urinating.
If the owner notices at least one of these symptoms, he should immediately contact a veterinarian, preferably the same one who performed the operation, because only he knows what type of drug and in what dosage he administered to the cat.
Seam processing
Until the stitches have healed, the cat should be temporarily isolated from other animals and children, and, if possible, not allowed outside. In the first case, it will be possible to avoid damage to the seams from outdoor games, in the second - their contamination and, as a result, infection. It is also not recommended to wet the seams with water.
During the recovery period, your cat may require dressings. They can be carried out at home. Bandages must be sterile. Before applying the bandage, you need to treat the seam with an antiseptic, which will be prescribed to you by your veterinarian. Most often this is an aqueous solution of chlorhexidine. It is highly undesirable to use iodine and brilliant green for processing.
