Feline Neutering and Spaying

Spaying is the removal of the uterus and ovaries. This offers several advantages. The female heat period results in about one to three weeks of estrus when they are sexually receptive and they can have multiple cycles year-round. Common behaviors include excess affection, aggression, loud vocal changes, or marking (spraying urine) to attract males. Intact male cats will go to great lengths to mate with females in heat, and despite your best efforts, accidents often happen. Your cat can have a heat period about every two to three weeks until she is bred. Spaying means that your cat's heat cycles will no longer occur and unplanned litters will be prevented.

It has also been proven that as the unspayed (intact) female gets older, she has an increased chance of developing breast cancer and uterine infections. Spaying your cat before she has any heat periods will virtually eliminate this possibility.

Your cat can be spayed any time after four months of age.

Neutering is the removal of the testicles. This offers several advantages. Male cats go through significant personality changes as they mature. They become very possessive of their territory and mark it with their urine to ward off other cats. The intact male cat’s urine develops a very strong odor that will be almost impossible to remove from your house. They will also constantly try to enlarge their territory, which means frequent attempts to fight. Fighting can result in severe infections and abscesses or other injuries and is ideal to avoid.

We strongly encourage you to have your cat neutered around four to six months of age. If he should begin to spray his urine before that time, he should be neutered immediately. The longer he sprays or fights, the less likely neutering will prevent that behavior in the future.

We are very confident in the safety of all our anesthetic procedures. We use anesthetics that have minimal cardiovascular side effects compared to other commonly used drugs. All cats are intubated and placed on oxygen. We use only isoflurane as our inhalant anesthetic along with oxygen.

We take no chances with your cat's safety. All patients are monitored by a skilled technician for the length of the procedure and post-operative recovery period. An EKG monitor is used to assess the cat's heart rate and rhythm and a pulse oximeter is used to assess the oxygenation of the blood while he/she is under anesthesia. We also monitor blood pressure while they are under anesthesia.

Finally, we feel strongly that pain management during and after the procedure will decrease your pet’s stress level, contributing to a calmer and more rapid recovery.

The latest in pet retrieval and identification is microchipping. Many owners elect to have this done at the same time as the spay or neuter. The chip is implanted with a needle, so the process is much like getting an injection. Our scanner, as well as scanners at humane societies and animal shelters across the country, can detect these chips. A national registry permits the return of microchipped pets throughout the United States and Canada.