Spaying after kittens

[GirondeDeb]

Quick recap: one of the village cats, Gaia, had her kittens in my friend's barn 25 days ago. She has three surviving kittens...they're doing well, and so far we've got homes for two of them.

We are determined that this is her last litter...she has had 8 according to her owners!!! So we are going to take her to our vet to be spayed (at our expense) and deal with the owners afterwards.

My vet says she wants to spay her as soon as possible, as she says she could go into season straight away. However, I am concerned that the kittens are still suckling, so it could be pretty traumatic for Gaia and them if she were to have an operation now.

When do you think we should have her spayed? I would appreciate your opinions and experiences as this is a completely new situation for me.

[alexgirl73]

hmmm, not sure tbh, I think I'd rather wait another week as the kittens are still suckling. Are they eating any food at all yet?

[angieh]

Has the vet not offered any advise as to when would be best? I've only had experience of my adopted cat Smudge who was spayed after having kittens but it was a long time ago and I can't remember how long afterwards it was.

[Elaine]

Unless you can keep her safe and securely away from any entire male male cats then she really should be done asap. I understand your concern but she will be pregnant again before you know it.

[GirondeDeb]

Thanks for your replies. I really appreciate it.

hmmm, not sure tbh, I think I'd rather wait another week as the kittens are still suckling. Are they eating any food at all yet?

As of yesterday, the kittens hadn't eaten any food. They don't seem to be interested in kibble or wet food. That's what worries me...when Gaia has the op she'll be away from them from a day, and then she'll probably be quite sore, so might not want to let the kittens suckle. I don't think we should risk the kittens not being able to feed for a few days.

Has the vet not offered any advise as to when would be best? I've only had experience of my adopted cat Smudge who was spayed after having kittens but it was a long time ago and I can't remember how long afterwards it was.

The vet said ASAP, as she is worried about her getting pregnant again....as Elaine says below.

Unless you can keep her safe and securely away from any entire male male cats then she really should be done asap. I understand your concern but she will be pregnant again before you know it.

There is no guarantee...she is not in a securely locked house, and there are several entire males around (including her own offspring, sigh). If we leave it another week to make sure that the kittens can feed independently, will the op be much worse if the worst case has happened, and she is pregnant again?

If we do take her in now, how can we feed the kittens without their mother? Sorry to be so ignorant, but this situation is all new to me.....

[Elaine]

If she does get caught out, she can still be spayed but best to talk with the vet about that.

[angieh]

I've Googled this and it seems that with a cat who is at risk of getting pregnant again, which Gaia is, she can be spayed as soon as the kittens are beginning to nibble at food and can be left by mother cat for a few hours. Evidently the cat can still nurse the kittens after spaying but I would question whether any anaesthetic in her body would pass to the kittens through her milk. Ideally I suppose it would be better to wait until the kittens are weaned, but the risk may outweigh this. As Elaine says, cats can be spayed even if already pregnant but it is up to the vet and can be more expensive.