Neuter, cat, what to expect?

[Paige]

My cat is nearly a year and is getting neutered tomorrow. After some research I decided to leave it a bit longer to do like I did with Bandit. I haven't ever had a male cat before nor have I dealt with a neuter since Bandit got chopped so I want to know what to expect.

Do I feed him before? After I pick him up what do I do? I currently am staying at a place where they have another cat who is getting along with him pretty well but she will still swipe and growl at him a bit. Do I keep him separated from the rest of the house?

 

[Panzerotti]

A cat neuter is a relatively quick and simple procedure. However, he will be anaesthetized so take his food away before you go to bed. Water....some people take it away before bed as well, but I personally don't like to limit a cat's water intake. I'd advise asking your vet their opinion on that.

I would keep him quiet in his own room for a few days when he gets home to let him recover. Keeping him isolated for a least 48 hours will also let you monitor his food and water consumption and litter box usage, making sure he returns back to normal. It's recommended to try to keep cats quiet and from running and jumping for about a week, but ummm.... good luck with that. Most places leave the incision open so there are no stitches or anything, just keep your eye on the incision to make sure it doesn't get infected. You can also use a litter like Yesterday's News to prevent any small litter particles from entering the incision.

 

[Paige]

He only eats when I feed him and so does the other cat. Same with the dog. So no worries there. I will pick up some better litter as at my mom's she uses special kitty and that crap is dusty!

He's a pretty hyper cat so I think keeping him calm will be the hardest part.

 

[Maxy24]

As far as I remember we had to stop feeding before some time the night before and could give water until the morning of. Afterwards they were sent home with no cones. They slept. Neither messed with their incision and they had no stitches. I believe it was Willie who developed a bad cough afterwards, I assume from having the tube down his throat.

 

[skittledoo]

Question. Why did you decide to wait longer? We mayyy end up keeping this male kitten that I found since my husband really wants him so I'm looking into when is a good time to neuter. My biggest thing is not wanting him to end up spraying.

 

[*blackrose]

If you wait too long, spraying is a concern...but if they aren't spraying, waiting isn't an issue. I had Apollo done around five months, I think. Mikey wasn't done until around eight or so months. Both are nice, solid cats structure wise. Mikey has a much better temperament than Apollo, but that is just their genetics speaking. LOL It did screw up Mikey's coat, though - he had this gorgeous, plush, thick coat (he was long haired) and when he was neutered it is how I think of a typical cat (MHD).

Honestly, for a pet cat, six months would be a good time. Cats aren't like dogs...leaving a male intact can cause huge behavior issues. Aggression, spraying, NASTY smelling urine, etc.

We didn't monitor activity level at all after their neuter...JJ was an outside cat and was right back outdoors afterwards, Mikey spent some time inside recovering (and is now an outdoor/indoor cat LOL), and Apollo was kept contained that night, but let to do what he pleased the next day. Never had any issues.

Oh, and you get to take pictures like this ^^:

 

[Lyzelle]

Pretty much agree with everything else that has been said. But I just wanted to add...

Make sure there are 2 of them. Seriously.

Went in for roommate's appointment and they said they couldn't neuter him because both hadn't descended. Why they didn't check this the week before during his check up, no clue...but yeah. Just to save you the trip, gas, and pain in the rear.

 

[Paige]

He very cleary has two big, dropped balls.


I waited because he is a very clean and happy cat and I have had no ill effect from him staying intact so I thought why not leave him a bit longer? At first I wanted to get him done RIGHT away but he is a kind natured and very clean boy so the reason behind getting him neutered is literally just to desex him. Not change behaviors.

 

[skittledoo]

Ya with this kitten I'm sort of leaning towards doing it around 6 months old if we end up keeping him. Though with my last cat I did it around a year old and he had no complications. Though his case was similar to yours where he wasn't spraying or anything so I figured I'd wait a little longer.