Does she have an outbreak of Herpes right now? If so, wait on the spay because of that. Many cats have been exposed to and carry the Herpes virus - but is she has an outbreak, that's different - you might just want to get her on some Lysine , and make sure she's in good shape before any surgery.
And if she's Persian, I'd wait. If Persian, she probably also has "Persian eyes", meaning some drainage and staining below her eyes which is typical of the breed, because of the smallness in the flat facial area. I've just gotten real cautious about Persians. I'd probably let her get a little older anyhow. Cats that have had kittens get spayed all the time, that's not a concern. BUT Persian cats require special attention re surgery. They have small airways, and some people prefer intubating them for surgery rather than just using anesthesia alone. When they're out or groggy from anesthesia, the tissue in the throat can cover the airway and they can die if they're not watched carefully, and seems like many vets/vet techs don't know that. I've had that happen. Another thing is that Persians may have different sensitivities to anesthesia than other cats, so make sure the vet is sensitive to Persian issues. One link is here, with a quote: ================================== http://www.vetinfo4cats.com/canesthesia.html "Ketamine causes hypertension during anesthetic recovery and it is possible that the detrimental effects attributed to ketamine may be due primarily to cases of undiagnosed cardiomyopathy in cats undergoing anesthetic procedures. These cats would be especially sensitive to hypertension and the increase in blood pressure induced by ketamine is supposed to be pretty significant in some cats. If this theory is correct it may make sense that Persians are more sensitive to ketamine than other cat breeds since cardiomyopathy is supposed to be a problem in the breed. Another potential problem with Persians and ketamine is that many vets using ketamine anesthesia (included me when procedures are short) do not routinely intubate cats to provide a patent airway since they are not anticipating having to use gas anesthesia. In pets with short noses, both cats and dogs, intubation during any anesthetic procedure is best since these pets can develop airway obstructions much more easily than longer nosed pets. I think almost all vets do intubate pets when they are doing dental procedures other than very simple extractions, though." ================================== Hope this is helpful. Gloria On Jun 21, 2008, at 9:42 AM, Lynne wrote: > Here I go again, waffling about neutering my cat. I need some > honest advice here. Don't just tell me what I want to hear but what > I must hear. > > I haven't owned too many cats in my life, 3 to be exact because they > all lived very long lives. Then came BooBoo and all the tragedy > associated with Feline leukemia, FIP etc. I still say I shouldn't > have neutered him (age 5) and that stress contributed to his very > quick demise. My other cats have always been neutered before we got > them (from the humane society.) Now we have Snowy, the 3 and a half > year old rescued cat who was very ill with feline herpes virus. It > caused some scarring in one eye and apparently it took 2 months in a > foster home to get her eyes and respiratory tract infection > treated. She is seemingly very healthy, the vet says she has a > strong heart. What I did learn about her though was that she did > have a litter of kittens at one point and they all died. I have > read that it can be complicated to spay a cat that has had a litter > and that is why it is best to do it at a young age. I have her > scheduled to go in this Tuesday and I'm petrified. I would > absolutely die if something were to happen to her. I worry about > the stress and her history of Herpes virus. She's such a happy and > loving little girl but becomes very aggitated over having her eyes > cleaned daily and being brushed, necessary things for a persian. > When we got her about two weeks later we discovered she had a very > horrible ingrown nail and took her to the emergency vet to have it > surgically removed. It was a horrible sight. She had to be put > under she was so hysterical. The vet even told us we had a bad > kitty because I guess she put a job on him. From what I can tell she > has not gone into heat during the time we've owned her which is > around 4 months now. She's an indoor cat but is allowed to go > outside with us and Lenny for fresh air and nature. Neither cat is > ever let outside without at least one of us in the yard with them > and both stay very close. It is impossible for either one go get > out of the back yard, but yes, it is possible for an agile male to > find his way in. Like I mentioned, they both are supervised > diligently and only let out for a short time. 90% of the time they > are inside or in the screened patio. > > I know ultimately this is my decision but I would truly appreciate > any thoughts you wonderful people might have on the subject. > > Many thanks > Lynne > _______________________________________________ > Felvtalk mailing list > Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
