how soon past birthing to spay?

[thixle]

No flames, please. I'm trying to do better for my kitties and y'all have the knowledge

... How soon after giving birth should a mama cat be spayed? My poor kitten (she's only 14 months herself) is pregnant again. The first time, she had 3 very healthy babies. I made the appt to have her spayed when the kittens were 9 weeks old, but she was already "too pregnant" for anyone to feel comfortable spaying. So... she is eating kitten food and gets a kitty vitamin every other day. She looks very healthy, not too fat or thin. Her eyes are sparkly, her ears are clean.

I want the kittens to be able to nurse and be socialized... and I want mama to be healthy and spayed before she can get pregnant again! How do I work this magic? When is the magic time? No vet will spay or neuter before 6 months here, either. Which is part of the reason for litter #1...

[sonicfrost]

If she's already pregnant right now, you should do the spay after the kittens are weaned and her milk dries up. Just to be on the safe side, to avoid yet another litter after this one, keep her in the house until then.

[Nicole915]

She should be ready to spay 5-6 weeks after she delivers the kittens, which is about when she'll wean. Just make sure to let the DVM know, as the tissues will be more vascular due to her recent pregnancy, and so they'll probably do a few things different. I was just reading an article the other day about doing flank spays on mama cats who recently delivered, but I can't really imagine being able to visualize all the structures as well that way, much less ligating. Because they do SO many of them, you might call up your local humane society and see what they charge. I have no doubt that for a routine spay, their vet can do as good a job as I could, just because of volume. Just make sure that they have good analgesia and anesthesia protocol, and you're good to go.

Anyway, good luck with the kittens! Hope mama cat responds well!

Nicole

(I'm not your vet, and this isn't medical advice)

[MsVyky]

oops, nevermind!

[thixle]

Originally Posted by sonicfrost

... keep her in the house until then.

Boy, I wish it were that easy! With a 4yo and renovations on the house, I'm lucky the baby hasn't gotten out by herself yet

[thixle]

Originally Posted by Nicole915

She should be ready to spay 5-6 weeks after she delivers the kittens, which is about when she'll wean.

This is where I'm uncomfortable. weaning at 5-6 weeks has been discouraged by everyone I've talked to... Several people are saying don't separate the babies from mama until 8 weeks at the earliest. These are the same people that said I should clean her ears every month, so maybe too cautious?

What is the "MDC" take on early weaning? I'm assuming mama shouldn't be around babies while healing, but for how long?

I would love to be able to just keep her housebound. I've tried. Our floorplan is such that the only decent space to keep her locked up is the utility room and has 2 exit doors *sigh*

[greenmagick]

Originally Posted by thixle

Boy, I wish it were that easy! With a 4yo and renovations on the house, I'm lucky the baby hasn't gotten out by herself yet

Can you get a large crate to keep her in when you cant actively watch to make sure she isnt escaping? Not ideal, but at least until she is spayed?

Put locks on the doors so only you can open them during the day? Put her in a bathroom?

[weliveintheforest]

Originally Posted by thixle

This is where I'm uncomfortable. weaning at 5-6 weeks has been discouraged by everyone I've talked to... Several people are saying don't separate the babies from mama until 8 weeks at the earliest.

I think the problem is by 8 weeks she could very well be pregnant again, and like you said it's hard to keep them in. I think in many cases the lesser of two evils is to wean them a bit early. If you keep them they will still have access to the mama for cuddling and learning about being a cat, so it's not like you gave them away at 5 weeks.