Keeping Cats Well with Spaying and Neutering
When clients bring their kittens to our hospital in the Oxford/Southbury area for their initial visits, we’ll always bring up spaying and neutering as a preventive treatment option. One of the foremost arguments in favor of these surgeries is their ability to prevent the overpopulation of strays. Spaying and neutering also results in several health and behavioral benefits for pets, increasing their likelihood of living a longer life. Your veterinarian will be more than happy to explain the process with you, and answer any questions you have about the short and long-term benefits of cat spay and neuter surgeries. Ovariectomy, an alternative to the traditional spay surgery, differs from regular spays because only the ovaries will be removed, rather than the entire uterus and ovaries. This procedure is widely accepted in Europe and has shown to be equally as effective as a traditional spay. In addition, this procedure is less traumatizing for the patient, requires a smaller incision, and leads to a faster recovery.
The Benefits of Having Your Cat Spayed/Neutered
Spaying and neutering can improve your cat’s quality of life in several preventive ways. These include:
Females
- Unwanted pregnancies
- Reduces loud vocalization
- Prevents cat from going into heat
- Decreases roaming tendencies
- Reduces risk of uterine infections
- Reduces risk of mammary tumors
Males
- Reduces roaming tendencies
- Reduces loud vocalization
- Reduces spraying/marking
- Reduces risk of testicular cancer
- Reduces risk of prostate problems (such as prostatitis, or enlarged prostate)
As indicated above, spaying and neutering cats not only prevents overpopulation, but several cancers and undesirable behaviors, as well. Roaming, spraying/marking, and noisy “caterwauling” may prompt some owners to give up their cats, and we want to prevent this from happening.
When to Spay or Neuter Your Cat
Our veterinarians can perform this procedure in cats as young as 18-20 weeks of age, or around two weeks after they’ve received the last vaccine in their distemper series. However, this may vary depending on your cat’s health, size, and breed. While spaying and neutering are very common surgeries, we still approach them as major procedures and take care to implement all the appropriate safety protocols. If your cat shows signs of illness prior to their surgery, we’ll postpone the surgery and focus on treating the illness first.
If you have any questions about having your cat spayed/neutered and would like to schedule a pre-surgical consultation with one of our veterinarians, please give us a call at (203) 264-2287.