By Alan
I could do with some advice please, I have a female cat 11 months old, when she was about 5 months old she went to the Vet for a blood test prior to having her spayed, the test came back with a liver infection which was then treated.
After finishing her treatment I decided to wait for her first season to come and go before going back to the Vet for the operation as the Vet didn’t want to operate on a cat in season and I thought she must be about due (I have never had a female cat before), in short I am still waiting.
I have seen no signs of her coming into season yet, my friend has a female cat and I know how they act in season. I don’t really want to put her through an operation if she doesn’t have seasons for some reason. Can they be so mild that I am missing them? She is an indoor cat and I am with her pretty much 24/7. She has no contact with other cats, nor will she.
Response from Michael. Hi Alan. Thanks for asking. I am not an expert on cats in heat! I have a page on it by the way. On that page I write:
“This means that in the Northern hemisphere, the mating season starts in March and goes on until September and in the Southern Hemisphere it is the opposite (October through to April)….Heat lasts for four to six days. The queen calls and does so more frequently. She is louder. There is increased activity. She is more friendly towards people”
You are seeing none of this. My research so far tells me that some females are ‘silent callers’ displaying none of the above signs. That sounds promising in terms of an answer to your query. So is your female cat a silent caller? It looks like that.
However, silent callers are very rare as far as I can tell. I am not sure where that leaves you to be honest, other than to get her spayed after a vet has tested her to see if she is in heat or not. Are there tests to check if a female is in heat? There probably are.
I hope someone else comments to add to my rather feeble contribution. Thanks for asking Alan and good luck to you both.
Good argument Jo. Thanks. I think the vet was arguably at fault here.
As far as I am concerned, unless a cat is a purebred, pedigeed cat that is crucial in a breeding program, it’s much better and healthier for our cats to have them spayed.
Spaying prevents uterine and ovarian cancer since the surgery removes these organs. Spayed females are far less likely to want to roam, and of course are not frustrated since the instinct to breed is very strong.
If this were my kitty, even though she hasn’t yet had signs of estrus I would have her spayed. It’s interesting that your vet didn’t want to spay her since she MIGHT have been in heat- perhaps due to her age. I would definitely discuss this aspect with my veterinarian. Cats in heat CAN be spayed, so do talk to your vet about any risks involved and why he is reticent to perform the operation.
Good luck with your kitty, Alan, and please do keep us updated.