Urgent help please, re spayed cat

magnumlady

I got my cat spayed yesterday and to my horror when I came into the kitchen late last night I discovered she had removed her stitches.
So back I went to the vet today and she got re-stitched, they gave us a collar and told me to keep her in her tiny cat carrier for 2 days to stop her removing the stitches again.
I don't want to keep her in the carrier because I think thats just cruel, when I asked about her going to the toilet the vet said she could do it in the carrier! She's now out of the carrier, but she keeps getting out of the collar and it was the smallest one they had.
Any advice would be great. She's very distressed and wants to go outside.

luckat

Ask the vet to sedate the cat for a couple of days, maybe, until the stitches stop itching?

Going to the toilet where she is doesn't have to be as cruel as it sounds if you change the bedding regularly.

But it sounds to me like a case for sedation. Not an expert, mind! Take the vet's advice.

Oh, and if you want her to keep the collar on, may I suggest that you attach it to a harness, rather than just a collar?

magnumlady

I asked the vet about sedation but she said she wouldn't recommend it. Good idea about the harness, I'll have to try that. I really don't like the toilet idea, would have thought that was very bad for a wound and also the carrier is so small.
Thanks for your fast reply.

Rancid

So take her out of the cat-carrier every couple hours and give her some time to use her littler box and have a drink of water and eat. Give her some attention and she'll relax and purr and pay less attention to the stitches.

Tbh, if you have the time to be with her over the weekend, does she really need the cat-carrier? By Monday she'll be well on the way to being healed.

undecided

think of it this way if she was a child with a bandage that shouldn`t come off!

for every moment you are at home watch her like a hawk and give lots of attention and only when out put her in carrier.

sounds mad but just a suggestion would u try the shade of a small bedroom lamp punch some holes in it and attach to collar never done it before but worth a try i think

magnumlady

Thanks for all your advice, I stayed with her all of last night and she was fine without the collar, she's also been fine today.
I think one of the problems yesterday was that the vet told me to keep the kitten away from her (kitten is 9 weeks old but still feeding) and she only settled when I let the kitten back with her again.
I didn't think a spayed cat could still feed? Or maybe its a comfort thing?

Rancid

Afaik, a spayed female will continue to feed her kittens though she may well produce less milk. Given the kittens are 9 weeks old, it's as much for comfort as nourishment at this stage from the kittens' point of view, but it's instinctive in the mother cat to take care of her kittens while they're near her, so I guess she could well be stressed if she knew they were close by and she couldn't get to them.

Anyway, I think you did the right thing letting the kitten back with her, both will be happier and mom will recover faster.

magnumlady

Thanks Rancid, she certainly seems a lot happier now she's back with the kitten. I just have visions of the kitten being a fully grown cat and still feeding!

Rancid

Haha... mother cat will see to it that that doesn't happen, don't worry!

How are the stitches holding out?

magnumlady

The stitches are holding out fine thanks, she hasn't even bothered with them this time thankfully!

Ruu_Old

We have gone through it a number of times and it is difficult. Most of the time, they would just try and comb over the hair they had to cover the shaved spot and if they went to pull at the stiches then we put the cone on the head to stop them pulling at it. After a few times doing that, they would realise it was wrong.

whisht

Same here. We used cones even though they didnt like it, but after one of them pulled out her stitches, we didnt want it to happen them all, but regarding keeping them in a carrier, thats just cruel and not fair to the cat. Even with a cone/collar, they are happy enough if allowed to move around. Just keep an eye on her and hope all goes well

magnumlady

Thanks so much for the replies, I'm glad to say she's fine now and the stitches have been removed, so very pleased about that.