Hi All,
The girls are going to the vets in the morning to have their bits and bobs removed. Does anyone know what they will be like when I pick them up? I keep wondering if they will both have pots on their heads - I guess I am really thinking if they are going to have stitches what is the point of the cones - they will lick each others wounds? Any advice on after care (I will ask the nurse in the morning, just trying to prepare myself) - and I'm a bit worried about the whole thing - just hope it all goes smoothly!

I dont have any advice because Willow isnt being done until December - just wanted to wish you luck and hope it all goes well for you

Welcome to the forum btw

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If the cones are quite big they might not be able to lick each others wounds. They also might have special dissolving stitches like my cat did. xx

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Ahhh, worrying times We all do it!

Well your girls could be little live wires when they come home and you wouldn't know they had just had a major op if it weren't for the scar! Or they could be totally out of it like this:



I've had both, Rilly was the live wire ... she was bouncing around completely normal and my two little ones in the video above were out of it for the rest of the day. The next day they were much better though

I would advise taking a cone for each of them when you pick them up. But don't use them unless they start biting at their wounds. My girls all cleaned around their wounds for the first few days, but never actually nibbled Though some cats do so it's best to have a cone just in case ... saves you going to the vets late at night to collect one!

Good luck, and welcome to the club of experienced worriers

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My cat's was a very long time ago (she's 17) but I remember her having some stitches in her tummy and a shaved patch and she was just extremely sleepy and wouldn't come out of her cat carrier. . .she never had a cone on her head but it's likely they will come back with them on

I think the main thing is to make sure they don't have to jump up anywhere e.g. my cat's bowl is on top of the washing machine. . .after an op like that it would be awfully painful for her to jump it

just make sure they have a nice big bowl of water so they can drink plenty and don't worry if they're a bit off their food after the op as long as they start eating again the day after because they might be feeling a bit sickly

keep an eye on their wounds look for signs of infection (swelling, heat localised to that area, redness, weeping) or signs of a haematoma (swelling, a lot of very bad bruising)

I'm sure people will add more to this ETA: and they did whilst I was typing it

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Hope it all goes well tomorrow. My two are only 7.5 weeks (girl & boy) and haven't even come home to me yet and I'm worrying about it already.
I think we just have to keep in mind they will feel much happier in the long term for having it done.

This is all great stuff! The video is good, I have an idea what they will look like now (the shaved bit and stitches).
Right then, I need to keep an eye for nibbling and infection! got it!
Thanks for the well wishing too. I'm sure it will be fine and I will be back on at the weekend telling you all about it!!
Lisax

each is different
tabby was dozy on pick up - purred when home but seemed a bit drunk!!
licked around stiches & ate almost normal amount that night ( not enough to 'catch up' on missing meals)


ginger was her normal (mad) self! but didnt eat much that night
did pull at stitches once - it hurt & she didnt do it again!

cones not used!

and both fine next day.

its a good thing that makes us silly slaves feel bad!!!

awww it's a horrible time, and we all worry


Molly was VERY groggy when we brought her home, actually looked like she was drunk bless her. Took a few hours for her to look ok again, she was then very quiet for a day or so. She didn't take any notice of her stitches so didn't need to be a cone head By the time we had her stitches out she was as right as rain. Took ages for her fur to grow back though!!

Good luck

Attached Images

052.jpg (72.5 KB, 11 views)

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My cat was done just a few weeks ago.

She came back with a shaved patch (quite a big one) and a cone on her head. She seemed okay. She struggled to eat her food though due to the cone and kept bumping into things as her head area was a lot larger.

She did manage to take it off herself on the third day so I just left her and she didn't bite or lick the stitches. They were taken out by the vet 10 days later.

However, the different effects may depend on what your vet does. Mine takes them in around 9am and then you pick the cat up after 4pm, so they are there the whole day. This might be why I missed the grogginess others have described.
My vets also asked me to starve her from 8pm the night before feeding only water. They also advised something light like chicken or fish for when she got back. She wasn't too keen on the fish, so I just gave her the regular pet food with some "assisted" feeding.