Cat Instructions

Your cat or kitten will need special care during recovery from surgery. Please keep your cat in a warm, quiet and safe place indoors tonight, away from other pets, children and the activities of the household. Please keep your cat away from stairs until fully awake. Be sure your cat has easy access to a litter box. Watch your cat carefully to detect any potential problems.

Restrict your cat’s activity for 7 days following surgery. Discourage running, jumping, climbing and chasing toys. Excessive activity can lead to tissue swelling, fluid accumulation under the incision or the incision opening up. These conditions may or may not require additional surgery at your expense.

Tonight, you may offer your cat small amount of food and water and a litter box. Don’t be alarmed if your cat has little or no appetite. Remember, your cat just had surgery! Your cat’s appetite should return to normal tomorrow.

Some cats take longer to recover than others due to age, weight or metabolism. Your cat may be groggy for the rest of the evening but should be acting normally tomorrow. Artificial tears have been applied to your cat’s eyes before surgery to protect them from drying out during anesthesia. Call the MN SNAP veterinarian at the number listed below if your cat doesn’t seem normal after 24 hours.

Monitor your cat’s incision daily. A small amount of swelling, dried blood or bruising around the incision may be normal the first few days following surgery. Keep in mind that green tattoo ink has been placed in or near the female’s incision to indicate that spay surgery has been performed. You may also see dried glue on the incision; this will flake off in a couple days. Some cats develop a firm, non-painful lump under the incision. This is inflammatory tissue forming around the suture buried under the skin. This will go away by itself in 2-3 weeks. If your cat seems unresponsive or in excessive pain after you take him home; or if you are seeing signs of excessive redness, other discoloration or discharge around the incision; contact the MN SNAP veterinarian immediately at 612-759-0880.

The MN SNAP veterinarian on duty will monitor her phone for messages from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., every day of the week, and will return your call. She will evaluate your cat’s condition over the phone and will provide follow-up care if needed. If you choose to seek emergency veterinary care without consulting the MN SNAP veterinarian, all charges associated with that visit will be at your personal expense.

NOTE: If you allow your cat to resume too much activity after surgery, or to lick or scratch at the incision, your cat risks developing a scrotal hematoma (swelling of the scrotum), a seroma (fluid accumulation under the incision), infection or dehiscence (opening of the incision). If your cat’s over-activity results in the aforementioned complications, any further treatments or medications will be your responsibility.

Sutures: DO NOT need to be removed in 10 days.

Pain medication information: Your cat received a dose of meloxicam prior to discharge. This is an anti-inflammatory/anti-fever medication that is effective for up to 24 hours in cats.