Pet Question

[ExAFO 0]

What should I expect when I pick my cat up from getting spayed next week? Will they give me extra painkillers to give her? Will she have one of those funnels on her head? Will she barf after the anesthesia wears off (like people tend to)?

How does one care for a post-op kitty?

Illinois needs a CCW Law. NOW.

[turtlespeed 212]

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What should I expect when I pick my cat up from getting spayed next week? Will they give me extra painkillers to give her? Will she have one of those funnels on her head? Will she barf after the anesthesia wears off (like people tend to)?

How does one care for a post-op kitty?

The anesthesia wears off long before you get her - that is why you leave them overnight. So you don't hear them scream bloody murder for so long. They can't give them any pain killers because of the anesthesia.

Works the same way when they chop off the first knuckles, or - sorry - I mean declaw the cat.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[labrys 0]

I've never been given pain killers for a cat after she was spayed. They have a very high tolerence for pain. I've also never been given one of those funnels unless the cat persisted in bothering the wound.

I don't remember any of my cats barfing either, although I've geneally left mine at the vet until they're fully awake.

All I've even done is try to keep them contained in an area where they won't want to climb stairs or jump on things for a few days. They're hearty beasts and heal fast.

Owned by Remi #?

[tigra 0]

Last time I had a female kitten spayed, they did send me home with a few painkillers for her. (And they kept her overnight, so if she did barf or spend the night howling in pain, I didn't know about it.) No weird cone or anything. And she was completely back to normal in a day or two. I think I needed to bring her back to remove the stitches or check the incision about a week later.

My male cats I've always picked up the same day, sometimes still a little groggy from the anesthesia, but totally back to normal by the following morning. No pain meds needed.

[Michele 1]

She should be just fine.

In all the spays/neuters I've had done (I make sure all the cats I adopt/rehome are neutered/spayed before going to their new home), I've never had a kitty need additional pain killers. I've only had one need a collar (the funnel-thing) because he wouldn't stop licking his scrot...and it was irritating the incision.

The way it works here at Chez Chat is that once they come home (usually the same day the surgery is performed), I bring them home in a kennel, and leave the kennel closed for the first 45 minutes or so once we get home. Then I open it, and if they want out, they come out. Often, though, as the kennel is dark and snuggly (I put old shirts and blankets in for them), they opt to remain in it until later.

I make sure they are kenneled that night, so that they don't go jumping around and window sill fighting, and then the next morning, the kennel door is opened and will remain so. I'll leave the kennel down until I see the cat returning to normal behavior (usually within 24 hours, but on occasion 48), and then remove it.

Cats are incredibly resilient, and come through this surgery just fine. It's far worse on us than on them.

Good luck, and feel free to pm me with any questions.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[tigra 0]

Do your cats fight over the window sills? Mine do! Even if there's one for each of them, they all seem to want to sit in the same one!

About the kitty vicodins- I was surprised when they sent me home with a few, and I don't remember if she really needed them or not. I might have given her one the first day, but I know she was back to her normal feisty self in no time.

[Michele 1]

Good lord, yes, Tigra, they fight over the window sills. I really only have two that are cat-compatible...the one over the kitchen sink can hold three cats, and the one in the bathroom (the vanity is below it) can hold one at a time...but one can lay on the vanity and "wait" their turn. It's rare that there is an actual hiss/spit/scratch brawl for a window sill, but they *do* happen on occasion...last night Charlotte and Abby were thumping each other for the kitchen window sill...after I called them off (hey, you stupid cats, there's enough room for both of you!) they forgot what they were fighting about, retreated to their separate corners, and hung out for the next few hours. LOL!

One of the issues I have with kitty sedatives is that it really can cause paranoia/fight or flight triggers. I had one cat that didn't travel well. I sedated her for a move, and she was the most vicious, angry, aggressive cat for the few hours she was under the influence. She couldn't understand what was happening, and she was really scared and confused. I had to lock her in the bathroom over night so she couldn't hurt herself/me/the other cats. It took her days to recover from that; startled easily, utterly paranoid, and quite aggressive. Poor thing...I still regret it.

Add to that the trauma of pilling a cat...not something which is readily done (although I can, now...having years of practice there are some tricks to it, should anyone need help. But it sure isn't fun...!!!)

From that one experience, and after talking to my vet, I've decided unless there is significant pain (i.e. howling, crying, or mewling) that can't be petted away by me, I won't use the meds because of the trauma which can occur. Until they come up with kitty aspirin, it's a last resort for me.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[Nightingale 0]

OMG... what are the tricks to giving cats pills?

When I brought Anakin home from the vet after his surgery, he was supposed to take antibiotics. I could not get the cat to take the pill. We even tried putting it in the back of his mouth, holding mouth closed and stroking the throat. We didn't see him swallow, but after about ten minutes, my friend and I were looking at each other thinking "he's got to have swallowed the damn thing by now" so we let him up and a half second later, the pill was out of his mouth and on the floor.

The only thing I've found that works is crushing the pill and mixing it in with the water from a can of tuna.

[Michele 1]

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The only thing I've found that works is crushing the pill and mixing it in with the water from a can of tuna

That's one way...but not the most convenient nor the best if you have a strong smelling pill.

My favorite trick is to get an eyedropper full of water. Grab the cat, sit on the floor with a carpet beneath (and a towel), spread your legs and set him butt to your crotch. Bring your legs around his body firmly but not trapping him, and make sure his paws are on the floor and not your lap. Get the pill, put it into his mouth, hold his mouth closed, slip the eyedropper full of water between his lip and teeth towards the back where the jaw goes, and SLOWLY depress the dropper plunger, getting a trickle of water into his mouth. This will make him swallow, and the water will also help the pill slide down more easily. If need be, repeat the water dropper a second time. Hold him still with your legs, and with your free hand (one hand around the mouth to keep it closed) pet the kitty between the ears towards the eyebrows; that's where the Mama cat stimulates the baby to encourage feeding. Most humans don't take pills without water, so why should a cat?

This trick also works for dogs, but they're generally easier to trick into taking a pill.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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OMG... what are the tricks to giving cats pills?

Get a firm grip on the scruff of their neck, tip their head back until their nose is pointing at the ceiling, their mouth will open, and toss the pill right in (it has to clear their tounge). This works to get small kitty downers into Willard; other cats and bigger pills are probably more difficult.

[bloody_trauma 2]

if your cats starts howling in pain just pick it up by the tail and slam it against the wall, the harder the better


I KEED I KEED... Kats are wonderful... FOR ME TO POOP ON!

Fly it like you stole it

[swedishcelt 0]

[Michele 1]

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KEED I KEED... Kats are wonderful... FOR ME TO POOP ON!

Well, the joke's on you...you *do* realize kitties play with sharp teeth and jaws on anything which dangles...so your manjunk is in significant danger of being amputated...

Just thought I'd let you know.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[SuFantasma 0]

You should expect a sore pussy!

Y yo, pa' vivir con miedo, prefiero morir sonriendo, con el recuerdo vivo".
- Ruben Blades, "Adan Garcia"

[flyangel2 2]

http://www.24hourpet.com/pill-pockets-c-123.html

We sell those at the clinic I work at

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[Nightingale 0]

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http://www.24hourpet.com/pill-pockets-c-123.html

We sell those at the clinic I work at

Those are cool! I've seen them for dogs, but not for cats before. I'll have to check with the vet to see if Anakin can have them. He's on a special low mineral diet (science diet C/D) for crystals.

[Nightingale 0]

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KEED I KEED... Kats are wonderful... FOR ME TO POOP ON!

Well, the joke's on you...you *do* realize kitties play with sharp teeth and jaws on anything which dangles...so your manjunk is in significant danger of being amputated...

Just thought I'd let you know.

Ciels-
Michele

From Reader's Digest:

CATASTROPHES

Cat Claws

Calling in sick to work makes me uncomfortable because no matter how legitimate my illness, I always sense my boss thinks I am lying. On one occasion, I had a valid reason but lied anyway because the truth was too humiliating to reveal.

I simply mentioned that I had sustained a head injury and I hoped I would feel up to coming in the next day. By then, I could think up a doozy to explain the bandage on my crown.

In this case, the truth hurt. I mean it really hurt in the place men feel the most pain. The accident occurred mainly because I conceded to my wife's wishes to adopt a cute little kitty.

As the daily routine prescribes, I was taking my shower after breakfast when I heard my wife, Deb, call out to me from the kitchen. "Ed!" she hearkened,"The garbage disposal is dead. Come reset it."

"You know where the button is." I protested through the shower (pitter-patter). "Reset it yourself!"

"I'm scared!" She pleaded. "What if it starts going and sucks me in?" . . . .Pause. . . . . "C'mon, it'll only take a second."

No logical assurance about how a disposal can't start itself will calm the fears of a person who suffers from "Big-ol-scary-machinephobia," a condition brought on by watching too many Stephen King movies.

It is futile to argue or explain, kind of like telling Lloyd Bentsen Americans are over-taxed. And if a poltergeist did, in fact, possess the disposal, and she was ground into round, I'd have to live with that the rest of my life.

So out I came, dripping wet and buck naked, hoping to make a statement about how her cowardly behavior was not without consequence but it was I who would suffer.

I crouched down and stuck my head under the sink to find the button. It is the last action I remember performing. It struck without warning, without respect to my circumstances. Nay, it wasn't a hexed disposal, drawing me into its gnashing metal teeth. It was our new kitty, clawing playfully at the dangling objects she spied between my legs.

She ("Buttons" aka "the Grater") had been poised around the corner and stalked me as I took the bait under the sink. At precisely the second I was most vulnerable, she leapt at the toys I unwittingly offered and snagged them with her needle-like claws.

Now when men feel pain or even sense danger anywhere close to their masculine region, they lose all rational thought to control orderly bodily movements. Instinctively, their nerves compel the body to contort inwardly, while rising upwardly at a violent rate of speed.

Not even a well trained monk could calmly stand with his groin supporting the full weight of a kitten and rectify the situation in a step-by-step procedure. Wild animals are sometimes faced with a "fight or flight" syndrome; men, in this predicament, choose only the "flight" option.

Fleeing straight up, I knew at that moment how a cat feels when it is alarmed. It was a dismal irony. But, whereas cats seek great heights to escape, I never made it that far. The sink and cabinet bluntly impeded my ascent; the impact knocked me out cold.

When I awoke, my wife and the paramedics stood over me. Having been fully briefed by my wife, the paramedics snorted as they tried to conduct their work while suppressing their hysterical laughter. My wife told me I should be flattered.

At the office, colleagues tried to coax an explanation out of me. I kept silent, claiming it was too painful to talk. "What's the matter, cat got your tongue?"

If they had only known.

[AggieDave 6]

Naw, you'll get a cat that's feeling groggy and sort of confused. She'll recover in a couple of days. Get her some nice food for a treat. We feed our cats dry food daily, for treats we'll get canned food. So we gave Katie canned food for a treat when she got home.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[ExAFO 0]

Kitty is thru w/the surgery. She's very dopey and a bit groggy. She's spent 15 min cleaning off the betadyne(sp?) of her belly.

I'm happy to have my baby back.
Thx all.

Illinois needs a CCW Law. NOW.

[Michele 1]

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I'm happy to have my baby back.

It's hard, isn't it? I'm such a pest when I need to leave one of my herd there...calling regularly, checking up on them...

Glad to hear she came through well, and she's home now. Any questions or concerns, call your vet; they're used to pet parents like me...and you're no-where near as bad as I am. LOL! And, as always, if I can help, let me know.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[ExAFO 0]

Holy shit, I just googled the drug they gave me to give to Neko:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buprenorphine

Friggin Heroin...

Illinois needs a CCW Law. NOW.

[Michele 1]

Yep, which is why she's "nodding off" and why I caution keeping her where she can't get into trouble by jumping, moving, or falling...

The good thing is it works wonderfully, and she can't get more of it so she will detox easily.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~