Cat not happy after spaying

[BritBratGrot]

My girl got spayed at 5 months old recently but the recovery hasn't gone as expected.

Op on Friday, today is Monday. She was OK Fri eve and first half Saturday, then quieter Sat eve and Sun

We took her to OOH vet Sun eve as she hadn't eaten or drunk anything for ~24 hours. They checked her over, gave anti inflam and sent home - no temp or worries around the incision.

Today she's still been very flat so took her to our usual vet who again sent her home after school a check, no temp and nothing else obviously wrong

She's sat under a table purring on and off with her face resting on the edge of her water bowl looking practically catatonic

If she's not better by tmrw lunchtime they said we should bring her back for an ultrasound

Anyone had anything similar?

I suspect she will rally tmrw but it's been a real surprise. Her brother was fine the second he got home, much easier recovery. Poor girl...

It’s a completely different op for males and females. It’s like comparing a vasectomy and hysterectomy.

it’s completely normal for them to be off colour for a few days as it is a major operation.

On Friday she was probably still doped up.

Thanks @FairyBatman, I appreciate all that but she seems off.

It's been a week since her op now and she's very subdued and spending all her time around water, either drinking or just sitting. She's sitting in the shower tray and getting dripped on.

She's eating meat but very small amounts and isn't at all playful.

Is this within the realms of normal for a previously very energetic and playful 5 month old kitten? Just really not sure what to think as two different vets both said no temp or signs of anything else wrong, and we can't keep taking her back to the vet. I feel like I'm being gaslit :-(

This is not me being an ott cat mum, it's just such a 180 change.

We've booked her in for another check today

Emergency vet here - she needs to have bloodwork at her appointment. I would not expect more than 48 hours of mopey-ness post routine spay with adequate pain relief and no complications. There could be nothing major, or something simple to fix but it definitely warrants further investigations at this point. Good luck!

She's staying in the vets this afternoon for observations and awaiting blood results, so hopefully she'll be sent home at closing time with a prescription etc and will finally be on the mend this weekend

We're all missing her usual energy lots

Yes a few days is different to a week. Glad she’s in the vets though and hopefully it’s not serious.

Animals can react very differently to ops and pain. My first bitch spayed (full spay) shrugged it off in 48hours. My second (lap spay) was a drama queen who moped in her bed for a week. Both had pain relief. This reflects how they are about everything. One hides between my legs in a storm and one can’t work out what the issue is. Get a vet check but hopefully you just have a cat who’s a bit of a flower like my no 2.

Bloods revealed 'acute kidney injury', cause unknown.
She's in hospital for the weekend on a drip and antibx i guess? Then hopefully they'll know the cause, and even more hopefully it can be treated.

All worrying and expensive but we'll see what the news is on Monday. Poor little girl.

Poor little girl. At least she’s in the right place and I hope she’s ok x

Hmm, the kidneys are very close to the ovaries I think? Maybe worth asking them if there could have been some bruising or similar caused during the spay.

Oh gosh, poor love, hope she’s much better very soon.

How’s your little girl op?

Thanks for checking in @RoseInBloome7

She stayed in hospital 2 nights. On admission her 2 kidney indicators were off the chart bad, but they came down very quickly so when she was discharged they were right back at normal.

She's been home 4 days now and tbh she's much better but she's not the same girl she was before. She's not playful, and she's still obsessed with the water and drinks and pees loads

DH took her for stitch removal today and vet said she seemed like a happy and healthy cat, some exploring the room etc.

DH explained I'm worried because of the water and the lack of playfulness compared to before. Their reply is she might just be still thirsty, she's still recovering from the surgery and the kidney thing, and if we're still worried nwxt week to get her bloods checked again - which sounds wise

She's putting on weight again which is good, and having her antibx

Her brother who was much smaller has really bulked out while she's been ill, so he's throwing his weight around and enjoying not being the weakling, which might be putting her off playfighting.

Hard to tell if I'm being OTT but she doesn't seem right to me. Either she'll get there by nezt week or else we'll take her back for more bloods

Thank you for the update . Sounds like she’s on the mend although id have a low threshold for taking her back in if you’re concerned .

Did the vet’s check for diabetes? Just asking with the drinking / water obsession and peeing more .

x

Glad a little better and glad you're being cautious. The water thing is worrying, as well as her being quiet - she's still a kitten.

Sorry, just saw. Any chance they overdosed her with painkiller? Mine was overdosed by vet at 18 months old, 10 times the amount of painkiller which nearly killed her. Left her with kidney failure though, and that was after a week in hospital, flushing them out.

Even a small amount over dosed of metacam can cause issues, cats are very sensitive to it and your girl would've been given some as she came around after her operation.

Sending hugs.

DSister Cat was in the early stage of pregnancy by her brother and spayed as an emergency. She was up, chasing flies at the windows within a few hours of getting home, totally ignoring the vet’s advice to rest! It was like nothing had happened to her! I didn’t understand how she could be like that after major surgery - but she was! All I can say was the incision was pretty high up!

DBrother Cat was neutered at the same time, so I was able to make a proper comparison, between their recoveries.

Before anyone wonders how DSister Cat got pregnant, after throwing herself at her brother. Two words - vet’s advice.

Cat is fine and back to her normal pre spay self!

That’s such good news! My cat had kidney issues at Christmas, didn’t eat for 10 days, nearly died and it took him 6 months to get back to his normal self (under vet care the whole way), I was very surprised how it affected not only his health and weight but also his character . He’s now 100% back to his normal self. I hope your kitty has a speedy recovery!

That’s fantastic news ♥️