Question for when Robyn gets back, or if anyone wants to chime in: we waited until our kitten was 6 months old to have him neutered. Our vet wants him in a cone for **14** days. A kitten. In a cone. I am only asking who else has had these instructions, and of those who did not, did you have problems with the surgery area rupturing?
I’ve never had to cone a kitten for that amount of time since our vet uses surgical glue to close incisions (and I have never had a kitten mess with their incision). Hopefully someone else will chime in here, but if it were me, I’d probably take the cone off after a couple of days and just keep an eye on the kitten. (Okay, that’s a lie – I’d probably take the cone off immediately and keep an eye on the kitten. But I’m a rebel.)
Y’all, please chime in here – kittens in cones? Anyone done it for fourteennnnnnn days?
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(I thought there for a sec you’d gone with a 70’s hair band theme when I saw “Ozzy” and “Sammy”.)
HA. I love that idea!
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Can I just say that it makes me a little sad that, on the social media posts, you have to add something like “I check their collars every day, so they’re not too tight.” But I know if you don’t, you’ll have all sorts of accusatory strangers jumping all over you for kitten endangerment!
I try to remember to include information in the caption that deflects the panicked/judgmental/angry comments because those comments drive me nuts sometimes. And, really, those comments tend to come from people who have no idea who I am or what Love & Hisses is about – they just happened to wander over from someone’s share, and since they’ve never heard of me before then clearly I did not exist until that moment and need to be schooled in how to Do Things Right.
(How I deal with those comments generally depends on my mood – I am doing my best to at least view all the comments and will block any nasty or trollish comments and answer questions (and I have done SO MUCH banning lately), but when there are 1,000+ comments on a single post, I know that I miss a lot of them. I sincerely do not know how Hannah Shaw – The Kitten Lady – deals with all the nastiness that comes her way. She is so much more patient than I could ever hope to be.)
(Also, those of you who answer questions from other people on my social media (usually Facebook) posts – I APPRECIATE YOU!)
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I remember suggesting this theme! I’m a chemist, and I love science names for kitties.
Laura, please take a bow for awesome name suggestions!
(I promise, when you guys suggest great names/name themes I might not use them right away, but I get around to them eventually!)
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Sofia is such a gorgeous slinky thing.
So, so pretty.
And Theo Pesto’s awfully cute too!
(They’re headed home next Wednesday. I’m going to miss that silly duo, but am so excited for them and their new family!)
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I love how this picture of Ozzy…
And also this picture makes it look like he’s wary of me. In fact, that boy is just as friendly as his mama and will climb right into my lap without hesitation.
Maddy is so, so pretty.
Ruthy, however, is not so friendly. She’s not as NOT friendly as Carli, but she does tend to run from me.
So the first order of business when I go into the room is to snuggle with Ruthy for a little bit…
Then I snuggle with Carli for a bit. (Carli would deny it, but she purrs for me.)
Ozzy and Sammy heard Theo outside in the hallway, playing.
Maddy’s all “Why is this child sniffing my paw?”
We have a lights-on-no-one-home situation here with Sammy.
I’m hoping to get the page for this bunch up and running this weekend – including their weight chart. But I can tell y’all that everyone (including mama Maddy) has gained weight, and the tiniest kitten (Nikki) has passed the one-pound mark. (Sammy remains the biggest kitten, at 1 pound, 12 ounces.)
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Oh, that Charlie.
He is just SUCH a good-looking boy!
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Posted on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/Tumblr) yesterday.
I’m out of town for a few days so Love & Hisses social media will be very quiet. Posting will resume when I get back later this week!
Barry Beryllium is all “LADY IT IS TIME FOR BREAKFAST” and Nikki Nickel is all “Ooooh, that’s a good idea!”
It is #Thlurrrpsday, after all. (That’s brown tabby Nikki on the left and orange tabby Ozzy on the right – with mama Maddy just keeping an eye on me in case there’s more food headed her way.)
Sammy Samarium is keeping an eye on me.
Ozzy Osmium is all “Oooh, this smells fabulous!”
Carli, Ozzy and Sammy are enjoying the little cat trees!
Carli Calcium is still suspicious. We’re making headway, though – when I go into the room, I pick her up and cuddle her for a few minutes. She’s not sure what she thinks about that, but she does purr!
Good night innernets. (Theo Pesto likes to sleep under my desk at my feet when I’m at my computer. He makes an excellent foot rest.)
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Previously
2020: Look how PRETTY Wild Bill’s eyes are.
2019: Oh, that Henri. Couldn’t you just kiss him?
2018: Clutch needs a kiss.
2017: “Yes, this one is a real Mama’s boy, isn’t he?”
2016: No entry.
2015: “O Lord, when will this weird lady stop with the camera?”
2014: Wet Wednesday.
2013: Between the cotton candy toes and the Fluff-stuffed head, he would be one tasty little treat.
2012: Percy and Dandelion: Keepin’ it Clean.
2011: No entry.
2010: No entry.
2009: Terry does his road kill impression.
2008: I broke the monkeys!
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Since this is the biggest community of cat people I know – anybody have experience with a hyperthyroid cat (10-11 years old) and the Hills thyroid diet? She’s a little thing anyway and skinny now, and the vet did warn us fixing the thyroid issue might uncover other problems. We are considering tthe radioactive iodine treatment but thought we’d try the food first. Thanks, if anybody sees this. 🙂
My Vet didn’t recommend using the prescription food at all for my 14 year old boy. She thinks they need more protein than it has. I’m using the transdermal ear meds (also comes in pill form). My Vet also didn’t recommend surgery or the iodine radiation treatment even though that’s the only thing that “might” be a one time cure. It’s expensive and a fairly long process….make sure you’re “up for” everything required/recommended.
There is a Facebook group you should join. It’s “Hyperthyroid Cats”. You can get lots of support and information.
thanks!
Re: cones and kittens
I’ve never had any kitten wear a cone after their spay/neuter. My vet has me watch them but they don’t really mess with their incision sites in my experience.
Mine either.
I never had a cone on any of my cats/kittens and I have had cats for over 30 years
If I had to do one now I would be using a baby onesies for sure
Ours is boy so the onesie won’t do, but I would be running over to Target for sure otherwise.
Only had one kitty have a revisit cause of stitches open up. But that cat was one of a pair and they were flyers, would have to put in carrier for fourteen days cause those cones would be off and shredded. We had two arm chairs, they flipped them over like that scene from that musical with Fred Astaire, Ginger Rodgers, Gene Kelly.
LOL – they wanted to say “good morning to you!”
Cones on kittens: We must have the same vet. Ours is a cone enthusiast too. But no, I’ve never done more than just watch them for a bit. Usually by the time they recover from the whole “I’ve been to the vet and they made me feel funny” thing they’ve totally forgotten they have a surgical incision.
How are Molly and the boys doing at PetSmart? Anyone interested in adopting them yet? I still can’t believe that they haven’t been snapped up. Thanks.
*Thank you* dear, cat-loving people Robyn, Anne, BetaLoop, Tricia, Pam and anyone else who chimes in. At 7:45 am this morning, the vet’s assistant returned a call regarding our complaints about how repressed our BAY-bee feels in the cone, and she stood her ground on the two week cone sentence. As I said, I do not come here for medical advice, but sure am taking everyone’s comments “under advisement.” 🙂
Unless your vet had to do exploratory surgery for an undescended testicle, I think you can monitor your boy without the collar. I’m taking my foster for his neuter Monday at the HSPCA, and the cone is totally optional. And our other major spay/neuter clinic doesn’t even offer them!
Keep in mind that erring on the side of caution doesn’t cost doctors (of any kind) anything, and protects doctors from lawsuits. And none of us need to guess how images of a kitten in distress could affect civil damages. The vet may also have suffered through or witnessed an outlier situation and, understandably, is protecting themselves emotionally as well as financially. None of us telling you our experiences are exposed to anything close to the same kind of risk, nor does collected anecdotes constitute data. My advice is to call a spay/neuter clinic and ask flat out: How many neutered kittens per year have they had to treat for complications that could have been prevented with the wearing of a cone. It may be the closest you’ll get to a full-on study.
Thank you for this – makes perfect sense, and it did occur to me that, knowing my vet, she would err not only on the side of caution, but of love for kittens.
So, two girls are not so friendly, but what about Nikki? And Barry (even if he is a boy)? Are they the “medium” friendly/brave ones in the litter?
Sammy and Ozzy always seem FRONT AND CENTER, more bold than the rest, and their coloring certainly make them stand out too.
Honestly my first reaction was “get a new vet” since the whole 6 months old cone for 2 weeks is VERY old school. Like Robyn, I’ve been in rescue for years. We do surgery as early as 2 pounds and I’ve never used a cone
I’ve worked as a vet tech and we never used cones on kittens unless they’d already torn the incision open and we’d repaired that. (And, frankly, he probably doesn’t even have sutures since it’s just a neuter) I’d take it off and just make sure he’s not licking it a lot.
I’ve had male cats my entire life. They never had a cone after being neutered and never messed with their incision. My 6 and 3-year-olds had their incision glued closed. I’d skip the cone and pick one up only if you need it. The only time I had a cone, was a blow-up one. My cat figured out how to get it off. Luckily, I found a way to relieve the itching on his back.