OVARIOHYSTERECTOMY (SPAY) AND CASTRATION (NEUTER)

We recommend that all male cats six months and older be castrated. Male cats make better pets when they are castrated for several reasons. They are less likely to have behavioral problems, including spraying and aggression. Castrated cats get in fights less often, which decreases their risk of contracting viruses such as feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus. Fighting less often also decreases a cat's chance of developing an abscess from bite wounds, which is painful and can be costly to treat. Intact males have a very pungent, unpleasant odor. Castrating your cat is a responsible step to help control the pet population and decrease the number of unwanted kittens.

As long as both testicles have descended properly, castration is a fairly simple procedure. If one or both of the testicles is retained, a condition called cryptorchid, abdominal surgery is required, which is a much more complicated procedure. Even for a routine castration, general anesthesia is used, which does carry certain risks. An IV catheter is placed in all animals undergoing general anesthesia. Once the cat is anesthetized and the catheter is placed, the fur is plucked from the scrotum and an incision is made. There are several different methods of castrating, all of which involve tying off spermatic vessels and the vas deferens and then removing the testicles. Your cat will be given an injection of pain medication once the procedure is complete. No sutures will be placed. If there are no complications, your cat should be able to come home the same night with pain medication to be given over the next several days.

We recommend that all female cats six months and older be spayed. A spayed cat makes a better pet for several reasons. A spayed cat will not go into heat. Intact females can go into heat for three days out of every two weeks, and some cats can go into heat indefinitely. Some cats will never show signs of heat, and cats generally do not have a bloody discharge when they are in heat. Spayed females will generally try to get out of the house less.

There are many health benefits to spaying your cat. Cats who are not spayed are at risk for developing a life threatening condition called pyoemetra, an infection of the uterus. Every heat cycle your cat goes through increases her chance of developing mammary cancer; having her spayed before her first heat cycle greatly reduces her risk for that. If your cat is not spayed, she may accidentally become pregnant which can bring many complications, including calcium deficiency and the need for cesarean section. Spaying your cat is the responsible thing to do to help control the pet population and decrease the number of unwanted kittens.

Spaying is a sterile procedure which requires your cat to be under general anesthesia. All cats undergoing anesthesia have an IV catheter placed. We offer the option of using the LASER for the procedure. We recommend the use of the LASER because it decreases pain to the cat by sealing off nerve endings and decreases bleeding by cauterizing small blood vessels. Once your cat is properly anesthetized and the IV catheter is in place, the abdomen is clipped and scrubbed. An incision is made using either a scalpel blade or the LASER. Once the abdomen is open, the doctor will locate the uterus and ovaries and tie off the uterine and ovarian vessels and the uterine stump. Once they are tied off, the uterus and ovaries are removed. If the cat is in heat at the time of the operation, the uterus and uterine vessels will be enlarged and more fragile, which will result in a longer, slightly riskier procedure. Unfortunately, there is often no way to tell at home whether or not your cat is in heat.

Once the uterus and ovaries are removed, the incision is closed in three layers. Most cats will have a layer of skin sutures which will need to be removed 10-14 days after the surgery. When the procedure is complete, your cat will be given a shot of pain medication. If there are no complications, she should be able to return home the same night with oral pain medication to be given over the next few days.

Even though spaying is a very routine procedure, there are some slight risks associated with any surgery. Any time general anesthesia is used, there is a risk of complications. With any surgery, there is the risk of infection, but because sterile technique is used, the risk is very low. Very rarely, a blood vessel breaks, or a tie on a vessel breaks which results in bleeding in the abdomen. In these cases, the abdomen has to be explored to locate the vessel and stop the bleeding. Occasionally, if there is a cyst on the ovary, it can rupture and "seed" the abdomen, causing more ovarian tissue to grow. Both of these risks are very rare. It is also possible that the incision line could start to open up and would need to be reclosed.

Spaying is a routine practice, and, while possible, complications are very rare. In most cases, the benefits of spaying your cat far outweigh the risks.