Having Your Female Cat Sterilized: What To Expect

Unlike the castration of male cats, having a female cat sterilized is a major procedure that will lead to a significant amount of pain for a few days. There are, however, plenty of reasons to have your cat neutered. The risk of kittens is the obvious reason: Queens are able to have around three nests a year, and unless you have a special cat breed, you are unlikely to be able to find homes for all those kittens. If your cat isn't exclusively an indoor cat, kittens will happen.

If your cat never leaves the house and you don't have intact male cats, you'll still want to consider sterilization very strongly. Your sexually mature female cat will go into heat about once every three weeks if she doesn't get pregnant, and that's accompanied by a very loud "calling" that will keep you (and perhaps your neighbors, if you live in an apartment building) awake all night for about a week. A more serious concern is the possibility that your unneutered cat, never having reproduced, will develop a uterine infection called pyometra or mammary tumors later down the line. 

What To Expect From The Procedure

Most female cats are spayed between the ages of five and eight months in the United States. Contrary to popular belief, your cat does not need to have a litter of kittens before the procedure. As with castration, the sterilization procedure is carried out under general anesthesia, and this means your cat cannot eat or drink during the day of the procedure. Once under, the vet will shave the cat's abdomen and make an incision there. Then, they will remove the complete reproductive tract, including the uterus and ovaries. 

Your vet may ask you to leave your cat in her transporter for a few hours — longer than with tomcats — since she'll be very sore and would only seek out a hiding space where you might not be able to find her if you let her out. Your cat probably won't resume eating and drinking until at least the following day, but you may wet her snout a little to give her a small amount of fluids.

Don't be scared or worried if your cat doesn't do anything but sleep for a few days. On the third or fourth day, she'll be feeling much better and will resume cleaning herself, eating, and being social. The stitches used to close the abdomen up after having  your cat spayed will be taken out after seven to 10 days, at which point you need to return to your vet's clinic. 

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What Else Do You Need To Know?

Tomcats are extremely unlikely to develop complications following castration, but you will want to watch out for a swollen and hard abdomen in your female feline after having her spayed. This signifies an internal hemorrhage, which is an emergency situation for which you'll need to call your vet immediately. You'll also want to keep an eye on your Kitty to make sure she doesn't attempt to remove the sutures herself. If she does, contact your vet.