Spay Day

TBT:  HURRAY, THE OPERATION IS DONE! 😺

I delivered her to the Vet at 8 am.  They called at 1:30 to let me know the operation was a success and I could pick her up at 3 (she was still a bit woozy).  Got her settled into The Mews Room with a litter box.  She hates being closed in the room.  Plus, the 1st thing she did was slide the inflatable collar off.  I put it back on and she slid it off again.  Well, she has never had a collar, so the feeling must have been very annoying.  I'll try again once per hour.

The collar worked fine for LC, Ayla, and Iza.  I may have to go back and get the dreaded plastic cone.  At least she has dissolvable sub-surface stitches, so there is nothing to bite on and pull.  I'll have to watch her frequently to make sure she isn't licking or biting at the site.

Either my Vet is unusually cautious or the post-op rules have changed since Iza was spayed.  I was given a long list of Dos and Don'ts which seems excessive based on past experience.  I've noticed these new Vets  are a lot more financial careful and legalistic than "kindly old Dr Miller" was.  Things like being 15 minutes late for an appointment or failing to cancel one 24 hours in advance can generate a 10% charge of the estimated visit fee.  And there are all kinds of "it's not our fault" clauses in the visit document I sign before leaving a cat.

I don't know what the Ownership/Management structure is, but there has to be a lawyer with an MBA involved, LOL!  On the other hand, they sometimes do or give free stuff.

So, The List (briefly):

1.  No contact with the other Mews for 24 hours and no "excitement".

2.  1/2 food and water until Wensday am.  And it warns that Lori's appetite may decrease permanently.

3.  Not much exercise, no rough play, and no stairs for 10-14 days (yeah right).  

4.  She should wear an isolation collar 10-14 days .  I think I've already lost that battle, perhaps persistence will work.

5.  Oral pain medication 5-7 days (oh joy).

6.  A warning that the sedatives and anesthetic can cause Ileus (basically, "all sorts of digestive issues").

7.  And then at the bottom of the page it says "Special Instructions:  None Needed".  What was all that stuff above?  ;)

I think a lot of the instructions are aimed more at dogs.  "No exercise or rough play", for example, seems more like a dog thing.

The important thing is that the platelet "problem" was cleared up and Lori has had her operation.  It was a close thing though.  The Vet had mentioned that she prefers not to do a spay until 4 weeks after a last heat.  Well, Lori had 3 heat cycles in 7 weeks, so that was never going to happen.  And never while a cat was in heat.  But she admitted that she had done sone spays on cats "still with swollen organs" (her words, not mine) and that Lori was an unusual case so she would.

In fact, she was in heat all last week and even last night was still having some infrequent calling sessions.  Her last Yowling was after midnight and I was worried the Vet would refuse to operate yet again.  But she was quiet this morning and I was very careful to not mention the most recent cycle.  By 11 am today, I decided they would have called by then if refusing to operate, so I cheered silently to myself, sure that the operation was over.

So it seems everything has gone OK.  Thank you to all the cats and people (and a couple of doggies, I think) who have commiserated or wished her (and me) well these past 2 months.  LC and Iza got their spays without problems.  Ayla and Lori didn't.  Not their fault of course.  Spay operations aren't exactly "natural events".

Time to visit Lori again in the Mews Room...  Assure her everything is OK, and she probably will never have another operation.  That she is OK and will feel happier the rest of her life.  Tell her I'm sorry she had to feel some pain.  Give her a couple of spoons of her favorite food (Fancy Feast chicken in creamy sauce) and promise more later.