home Audience 12 Does a cat need a blanket after sterilization? Treatment of sutures after sterilization of a cat. Veterinarian tips for caring for a cat after sterilization. Blanket for cats from improvised means

Does a cat need a blanket after sterilization? Treatment of sutures after sterilization of a cat. Veterinarian tips for caring for a cat after sterilization. Blanket for cats from improvised means

Very often, inexperienced cat owners think that a blanket is something complicated and not very necessary: there are a lot of strings and ties, it’s not clear how to put it on, and in general, why make the animal nervous?

He will experience less stress and will recover faster. However, each of these statements is erroneous. Why exactly - you will find out in this article.

What is a blanket?

Wearing a blanket is most often prescribed after surgery. It performs a protective function, blocking the path of dirt and germs to postoperative sutures and wounds after sterilization (and here you can read how). It should not be neglected; it often leads to complications in the form of inflammation of the suture.

How to sew it yourself?

Before you start making new clothes for your pet, check with your veterinarian whether your cat needs a blanket: there are many techniques for suturing and post-operative care, and sometimes a blanket is not only unnecessary, but can also harm the cat. Sterilization also has a huge number of possible options today.

If you still need a blanket, then you still shouldn’t rush to sew it. As a rule, it is very inexpensive and any decent veterinary clinic includes it in the cost of the operation. But if such a need arises, use these instructions:

We make it from improvised materials

To create a bandage yourself, you often use stockings or long sleeves from T-shirts: it is very convenient to give them the necessary head start, and their fabric is suitable in all respects - it tightly covers the wound and allows air to pass through.

To create a stocking or long sleeve bandage, you will need scissors and a stocking.

Instructions for creating a bandage:

Based on the size of the cat, we cut off the stocking or sleeve. Next, if you are using a stocking, you should cut off its toe - this will be the hole for the head.
Now we create holes for the hind and front legs.

Important!

Putting on such a bandage correctly is very simple: stretch the stocking with both hands and gently pull it over the cat’s neck. Then carefully guide all the tabs into the holes. All is ready!

Store-bought or homemade?

However, a hand-made product also has its advantages:

By creating a pattern yourself, you can sew a blanket that is perfect for your cat.
Using a successfully saved pattern, you can, on occasion, sew as many bandages as you like.
if the bandage is made from your clothes, the pet will wear it much more willingly, because it will smell like its beloved owner.

There are several options for blankets:

Features of care with a bandage

Sometimes it is necessary to treat the seam with special solutions and apply a bandage to it, but for this you do not always need to remove the blanket completely.

Sometimes all you need to do is untie a couple of tapes to gain access to the wound. If you remove the bandage completely each time, you will only cause unnecessary stress to your cat and slow down the healing process.

Important!

Make sure that the tightness of the ribbons is always in the same condition - not too loose and not too tight.

In the first case, the cat may scratch the wound or begin to lick it and lick off all the medicine, which will have a negative impact on her body. In the second, you can provoke a lack of air or provoke friction of the seam against the fabric, which will lead to the wound festering.

Sometimes cats recover very quickly after sterilization and begin to lead an active lifestyle. Strictly ensure that the cat's activity during this period is limited - during excessive activity, the seams may come undone, or the blanket may get caught on the protruding corners of the furniture while jumping.

Reference!

When helping a cat relieve itself, you do not need to remove the blanket completely. All you have to do is untie the back.

How to wear a blanket correctly?

The effect of its action depends on how you put the blanket on your pet, so it is very important to do it correctly. It is recommended to do this together (as well as, by the way) - one person puts on the blanket, the other calms the cat and does not allow it to escape. The sequence of actions should be as follows:

Place the product on the table and carefully straighten all the ties.
Next, you need to carefully lay the cat on the product and hold the pet a little. To make the animal a little distracted and less nervous, talk to it, stroke it, but hold it in such a way that there is no interference with tying the blanket and strong pressure on the cat, it is already in pain.
Having laid the cat down, first fix the ribbons in the head and front paws. Tie the back ropes, then the ribbons in the waist area, if your bandage requires them.

When can I shoot?

When can you remove the blanket after sterilization? Here you should follow the recommendations of your veterinarian.

Useful video

You can see how to make a blanket with your own hands in the video below.

You can find out how to tie a blanket yourself in the video below.

Conclusion

As you can see, there is nothing complicated in creating and choosing a blanket. The most important condition for a cat’s speedy recovery is your love and attentive care. If there are enough of them, the cat will quickly recover, feeling the care of its beloved owner.

Sterilization of domestic cats is an extremely important operation that contributes to a steady reduction in the number of stray animals. As a rule, the operation is easy and does not take up much of the veterinarian’s time. The only problem is in the postoperative period. In order for your pet to endure the consequences of surgery without consequences, a cat blanket is often needed after sterilization.

A blanket is a tight “cover” placed over the stomach of an operated cat.

It serves several purposes at once:

Protects the postoperative wound from contamination by pathogenic and conditionally pathogenic microflora.

The blanket prevents the animal from trying to scratch and lick its belly. This is a reflexive behavior of a cat trying to speed up the healing process. But in practice, constant licking of the wound leads to the exact opposite result.

Also, a pressure bandage pulls the edges of the wound together, which promotes healing by primary intention. Simply put, regeneration in this place will go faster, and not so many reserves of the animal’s body will be spent on it.

A properly applied and high-quality blanket does not allow the muscular wall of the abdominal wall to stretch too much and weaken. This prevents the belly from sagging in the future.

Blanket for cats from improvised means

It is quite possible to make a blanket with your own hands. This often does not require special cutting and sewing skills. The thing is that it is quite possible to make a bandage from scrap materials. Below we will look at the main options suitable for owners who are not at ease with tailoring skills.

Advice! Regardless of the type of homemade blanket, there is one proven, reliable remedy that prevents the bandage from becoming contaminated with ichor and other wound secretions. We are talking about ordinary... sanitary pads (without flavoring additives). They can easily be slipped under a blanket. In addition, the gaskets are just as easily and quickly replaced with new ones.

Please note that hygiene products should be changed every day. In addition, it is recommended to carry out air baths daily, freeing the cat's stomach from the blanket. This approach promotes rapid healing of the postoperative wound.

Pantyhose blanket

A tights bandage is the simplest option that does not require any special resources. Please note that you should not use “stale” tights: after all, the postoperative area requires complete sterility.

It is also worth looking for a product with increased density: such a “cover” will fit the cat’s body more tightly. In addition, a blanket made of thick tights will simply last longer.

It’s very simple to make: cut a piece of tights 20 centimeters long and pull it over the cat’s belly. In general, that's all. The technique has its pros and cons.

pros

Any breeder can handle making such a blanket; you don’t need to sew anything.
Many people have tights; there will be no need to spend extra money.
There is no need to adjust anything to fit, no ties or other “fasteners” are needed.
Tights are quite elastic and soft, and therefore many cats quickly get used to them, and therefore do not try to take off unusual clothes every few minutes.

Minuses

Tights cannot be properly secured to a cat’s body; they will inevitably slide down and curl up.
If the animal has at least some claws (and they probably do), it only needs to scratch itself a couple of times for your entire structure to immediately be torn to shreds.
When your pet is young and compact in size, tights may not fit tightly around her belly. This problem can be partly solved by selecting a product with a higher density.
In addition, nylon gets dirty quickly, so the owner will have to either regularly wash the blankets or constantly cut new tights. There is not much convenience in this.

Sock blankets without ties

The principle of sock blankets is exactly the same as in the case of tights. You need to find a sock of a suitable size (given the abundance of sizes, this is quite simple), and then cut off a piece of its front part so that the cat’s body can be inserted into the resulting “pipe”.

pros

There are plenty of socks on sale in all sizes and all qualities. You can choose suitable “clothes” for both adult cats and six-month-old pets that are not large in body size.
Considering the low cost of the original “raw materials,” you can buy new socks every day, and therefore there is no special need to wash them.
The fabric of the socks is quite dense, but at the same time quite elastic. Such a blanket will stay on the cat’s body much better and is less prone to folding.
A bandage without ties is more convenient; you don’t have to constantly struggle with tightly tightened knots.
The socks have quite acceptable strength, and therefore the cat is unlikely to be able to tear them quickly.

Minuses

Still, a sock without ties and Velcro is not the best solution when you need to swaddle a fairly active pet. The cat will probably be able to pull off the blanket, and therefore you will have to carefully monitor it, not giving it a chance to lick and comb the area of the post-operative wound.

Avoid cheap socks, as they are often made from low-quality fabrics and may fade. Getting dyes into the wound channel left after surgery is unlikely to lead to anything good.

Blanket from old children's clothes

If you still have old blouses or vests, you can use them to create blankets. You just need to choose clothes that fit tightly enough on the cat’s body without interfering with the animal’s physical activity.

By the way, a blanket can even be made from the sleeve of a child’s or adult’s shirt. The principle in this case is the same as with a bandage made of tights and socks.

pros

If you can find the right clothes, you won’t have to buy anything either.
Children's clothes for the little ones already have buttons or ties, which will save the owner from the need to make and adjust them independently. It is especially good when the chosen blouse has ties, since you can ideally select the tightening of the blanket, focusing on the size and physique of a particular animal.

Minuses

Not everyone has children, and not every cat breeder will have stocks of old children's clothing. But buying something like that for a cat is stupid.
Dressing a cat in children's clothes can be difficult, and the animal often becomes nervous because it is uncomfortable.
It is unlikely that the owner of a pet operated on at six months of age will be able to find anything suitable.

Advice. If your pet is not particularly impressive in size, you can look for suitable... doll clothes. Of course, it must be of high quality, made from cotton fabrics.

Towel blankets

Perhaps one of the most common and popular options, showing decent efficiency. Note that for making blankets it is best to use simple cotton towels (you can use “waffle” towels, but soft ones).

The method of use is simple: you need to cut holes in a piece of fabric for the cat’s paws, and then bring the edges of the towel together on the animal’s back. To achieve reliable fastening of the blanket, you will need to sew on the ties.

pros

There is definitely a towel in everyone’s home.
Attaching ties to the edges of towels doesn't require any special sewing talent, as it only requires a couple of stitches.

Minuses

The fabric of towels does not always have sufficient elasticity, and therefore the bandage gradually “looses”.
Usually the fabric of towels does not have sufficient density, and therefore it is not always possible to sew ribbons for ties to it well. This leads to the fact that the latter constantly come off. Attempts to replace them lead nowhere, since the fabric is already greatly weakened and torn.

We sew a blanket for a cat with our own hands

Despite all the advantages of homemade blankets from improvised means, they also have quite significant disadvantages. In particular, it can be difficult to choose an individual size, and not everything is good with the materials.

The only way out (unless, of course, the owner wants to buy a ready-made option) is to sew the blanket yourself. This is not difficult to do, even if you don’t have much sewing experience.

Taking measurements for a pattern

To know what size the blanket should be, you must first take all the necessary measurements (using a measuring tape, of course).

The pattern is drawn based on the following data:

Chest volume.
Body length (body only, no need to measure tail).
In addition, you need to take a measurement of the distance between the paws (between the front and between the hind).

Some breeders also advise measuring the coverage of the limbs themselves, but this, in our opinion, is unnecessary. The fact is that this information is needed to accurately calculate the length of the ribbons, but it can be determined by eye.

Below we give an approximate view of the pattern. Using the measurements of your pet, you need to transfer it to measuring paper. The diagram below clearly shows where exactly the ribbons that serve to secure the blanket to the animal’s body need to be sewn. If the owner is comfortable with a needle and thread, he can make a blanket with Velcro. They are much more convenient.

Advice. When copying a pattern, do not forget that you should add about a centimeter to all measurements. This is necessary in cases where the edges will be stitched during sewing. If Velcro is used instead of ties, you need to increase the width of the blanket by about three or five centimeters.

There is no special need for “cross stitching”. If the cat owner does not know how to sew at all, no one forbids simply transferring the contours of the pattern onto the fabric and then cutting out the finished product. Of course, the strength and convenience of such a blanket will be lower, but the finished product will perform its functions in full.

Choosing fabric for blankets

The material for the bandage must meet the following requirements:

You need to choose a fabric that is soft and elastic enough, but at the same time not prone to strong stretching.
Under no circumstances should the material crumble, contaminating the postoperative wound with fibers and other debris. To test this characteristic, you need to take a small piece of material and tie it tightly. Good fabric will not tear and pieces of thread will not fly off.
In addition, we strongly advise against choosing dyed fabrics, since, despite all the assurances of the manufacturers, they can fade.

Velcro or ribbons: which is better?

A separate section should describe the process of choosing between Velcro and regular ribbons. Each owner is free to decide for himself which option is more suitable for his pet, since there is no consensus on this.

We will simply describe the positive and negative aspects of each type of fastener.

Pros of ribbons

They can be made from the same fabric, no need to buy anything extra.
Easier to sew.
The ties are unlikely to unravel spontaneously.

Cons of ribbons

The cat can cling to surrounding objects with them.
If the knot is too tight, it may be difficult to untie the ribbon.

Pros of Velcro

They are very comfortable. “Sticky” fasteners greatly simplify the process of putting on and taking off the blanket.
Such fasteners are very compact, the cat is guaranteed not to get caught on anything.

Disadvantages of Velcro

Additional financial expenses will be required.
Velcro quickly becomes dirty and loses its quality.
The cat can quickly learn how to unfasten them.

How to properly put on and tie a blanket on a cat

The postoperative bandage is worn correctly if it fits snugly to the pet’s body and does not dangle or sag.

Instructions:

The pet needs to be laid on its side (right or left - as is convenient for the owner).
The edges of the blanket are brought together and tied with ties, starting with the head ones.
And now - attention. The second garter is tied diagonally (crosswise) to the corresponding ends of the third. This is necessary for better fastening.
The belly ties are tied as usual.
The last and penultimate (not counting the area for the tail) fastenings are also tied diagonally.

The ties do not need to be pulled tight. The bandage should be worn so that it does not dangle or sag, but you can stick your little finger between it and the body. If you tighten the nodes, you can disrupt the local blood supply. Make sure that the edges of the ties are not too long.

How to remove a blanket and when to do it

The removal process is carried out in the same sequence as putting it on. First, the cat is laid on its side, and then the ribbons are carefully untied. It is advisable that your pet spend about half an hour every day without a blanket. This is necessary so that the seam weathers and dries faster.

The bandage is finally removed only after examination by a veterinarian and his approval. This can usually be done around the eighth day after surgery.

What to do if your cat takes off his blanket

Regardless of the type of blanket used, owners of operated animals often face the same misfortune: their pet takes off the blanket. It is unlikely that it will be possible to constantly monitor the animal, and it will be very tiring for the owner. Therefore, it is better to go the other way.

Physical limitation of mobility

An option ideal for night time. The cat must be placed in a portable cage, basket or box that limits the pet's mobility. Having lost the ability to constantly spin and run, she is unlikely to be able to remove the blanket.

Surgical collar

This one, also called “Elizabethan”, resembles a funnel placed around the neck of a cat. This design reliably prevents all “rash” actions of the animal, preventing the removal of the bandage.

However, this method is not very suitable for young cats, as they can be very nimble.

Medical immobilization

If the cat is overly active, the veterinarian may prescribe mild sedatives. They, having a calming effect, prevent tightening of the postoperative bandage.

Despite all the methods described above, the main role in maintaining the blanket on the animal’s body belongs to the cat’s owner. You need to talk to your pet more often, pet her and calm her down. The faster the cat gets used to the blanket, the faster it will stop trying to remove it.

Update: April 2019

The sterilization (castration) operation is only half the battle (see c). The most important period is the postoperative period, which falls on the shoulders of the cat owner. The veterinarian who performed the operation must provide instructions on all the intricacies of caring for the animal after anesthesia, tell and show how to handle sutures and what to pay attention to when emergency situations arise.

After sterilization, the abdomen should be protected with a special blanket (bandage) with ties on the back. The protective bandage is worn all the time until the stitches are removed, plus another day or two, so that the cat does not lick small wounds from the threads.

A cat blanket is usually made of natural cotton fabric and does not cause physical discomfort to the animal after surgery. But due to the peculiarities of tactile sensitivity, the cat may be lazy to walk in it or have a strange gait. When the bandage is removed, everything falls into place.

You need to be careful that the cat does not cling to anything with the blanket and does not get stuck anywhere.

Eyes

If the cat is handed over to the owners after the operation in a state of anesthesia, then the process of blinking for the pet falls on them. Cats under anesthesia often have their eyes open. To prevent the cornea from drying out, you need to periodically cover your eyes (blink) or drip artificial tears or 0.9% saline solution onto their surface.

General condition of the house

Upon arrival home, the cat should be placed warmly (for example, on a warm heating pad) and on soft bedding, because After anesthesia, the process of thermoregulation is disrupted. Be sure to place it on the floor so that during the awakening process the animal does not fall from a height. It is necessary to lay down a well-absorbent diaper, because... Until recovery from anesthesia, the cat cannot control the physiological needs to empty the bladder and rectum. There may be trembling throughout the body (general tremor) or vomiting.

You need to place the cat on its right side to reduce the load on the heart.

At first, the cat should not actively play, jump, or climb on pieces of furniture. If sterilization was carried out after childbirth, and there are kittens left in the house, you need to limit their contact for the first time. 2-3 month old kittens can suckle a cat for a long time, and this is fraught with injury to the postoperative wound. Sterilization of a nursing cat is carried out for emergency reasons, because... postoperative complications in the mammary gland are possible.

On the first day after surgery, the cat must definitely go to the toilet - it is important not to miss stagnation in urination and bowel movements after anesthesia.
For the first two days, you may need pain relief. Pain is indicated by increased aggressiveness, apathy, meowing, refusal to eat, dilated pupils and reluctance to move.
Antibiotic therapy is not required if the operation is planned and carried out taking into account the rules of asepsis and antisepsis.
Vitamin preparations and restoratives are prescribed only to old and weak cats who have undergone a difficult operation.
In case of urgent need (the suture is bleeding or internal bleeding has been detected), hemostatic therapy may be prescribed.

Coming out of anesthesia

Three types of anesthesia are usually used. After each type of anesthesia, the cat comes to its senses differently.

Muscle relaxants + analgesics. The most effective mixture, used most often. The main disadvantage is the difficult recovery from such anesthesia: from 5-6 hours to a day.
Muscle relaxant + epidural anesthesia. The mixture is slightly toxic, the cat easily tolerates it and quickly recovers from such anesthesia (up to 8 hours maximum). But there is a high probability of complications if the injection into the epidural space is carried out incorrectly - full sensitivity and motor activity in the hind limbs can return up to 2 days. When performing such anesthesia, the qualifications and experience of the surgeon are very important.
Gas (inhalation) anesthesia. A very effective and minimally toxic method, but it is rarely used due to the lack of special equipment and mixtures of substances for anesthesia. The cat comes to its senses almost immediately as soon as the anesthesia machine is turned off.

When recovering from anesthesia, the cat will be out of control for some time, coordination will be impaired, and the cat’s behavior after sterilization may seem inadequate. There are attempts to get up, run somewhere, perhaps meowing, and an obvious lack of understanding of what is happening around. It is important not to let the animal hide in the far dark corner, so that there are no difficulties in removing it. For some time, the cat may not respond to the name, walk slowly, unsteadily and unsteadily. The main thing is that the pet is visible all the time for the first day!

Food and drink

On the day of the operation, the cat does not need to be fed, only watered as soon as it begins to rise after recovering from anesthesia. In the first hours after waking up, it is better to do this through a syringe. Be sure to monitor whether the animal makes swallowing movements so that it does not choke.

Start feeding from the second day with 1/3 of the usual portion. The cat should drink on its own. Food should be easily digestible and low-fat. On the 3rd day, the cat should begin to show independent interest in food, i.e. start asking. All food should be balanced. Portions are increased gradually, but not to the maximum - sterilized cats should be protected from obesity.

There are cases that a cat does not eat after sterilization for 2-3 days, but only drinks. If the lack of appetite is no longer associated with any additional symptoms, this phenomenon can be considered as an individual variant of the norm.

Processing and removal of seams

Throughout the entire postoperative period, the suture should be clean and dry. Any suppuration, inflammation or bloody wetting is a reason to contact a veterinarian.

Depending on the type of operation, the stitches may be on the abdomen along the linea alba, on the side, or in the form of punctures if the operation was performed using a laparoscope.

Sutures are placed on the muscle layer and on the skin (if on the stomach) or only on the skin (with an incision on the side, the muscles are not cut, but moved apart, and during laparoscopy small punctures are made). Internal sutures are applied with self-absorbing threads, external sutures are applied with surgical thread (it must be removed over time).

Until the stitches are removed, the wound is treated daily with any antiseptic solution, but without alcohol, so as not to cause skin burns. There is an opinion that seams do not need to be processed, but to do this, the possibility of contamination of the seam must be completely eliminated. For convenience, it is better to carry out the treatment together: one person holds the cat standing on a horizontal surface, carefully picking it up under the front paws, the second person rolls up the blanket and processes the seam.

There are sprays with which the seam is treated immediately after surgery, and then every few days (for example, Aluminum spray or Chemi spray), and this is an almost 100% guarantee that no infection will get into the wound.

On days 7-10, the sutures are removed (after the 12th day, the threads will begin to grow into the skin). This can be done at a veterinary clinic or on your own.

Seams are made in two ways: stapled or continuous. The staple stitch consists of several threads tied into knots at equal distances. It is enough to pull the protruding threads, separate the knot from the skin, cut the loop and pull out the thread. If the seam is continuous, then the knot is cut off on one side, the seam fastening is on the other, the thread is pulled through the middle and the whole thing is pulled out.
When can you remove a cat's blanket? On the same day as the removal of the suture, it is allowed to remove the bandage, but if the cat does not lick the wound, or when the wound is already densely overgrown with hair, which prevents irritation of the wound by the rough cat’s tongue.

Medicinal support

Painkillers:

Rimadyl (carprofen)– intravenously or subcutaneously at a dose of 4 mg/kg (equivalent to 1 ml/12.5 kg of weight) once a day;
Tolfedine (tolfenamic acid) – 4 mg/kg once a day orally with food;
Ketofen 1% (ketoprofen)– subcutaneously, intramuscularly or intravenously at a dose of 2 mg/kg (or 0.2 ml/kg) once a day and no longer than 3-4 days;
Loxicom (meloxicam)– 0.1 mg suspension/kg orally on the first day once, 0.05 mg/kg on subsequent days.

Seam treatment products:

Chlorhexidine 0.05% ( aqueous solution) - water the seam through a dispenser or drip from above using a pipette until healing;
Dioxidine 0.5% - use similarly to Chlohexidine;
Veteritsin spray - spray the suture area 1-2 times a day before removal;
Aluminum spray - spray on the seam every few days until healing;
Chemi spray - treat the seam once a day until healing;
Levomekol ointment - apply around the wound once a day, under a bandage.

Antibiotics:

Sinulox (amoxicillin + clavulanic acid) – intramuscularly once a day at a dose of 0.5 ml/10 kg for 3-5 days;
Amoxicillin 15% - subcutaneously or intramuscularly 1 ml/kg (in terms of 15 mg/kg) once for 5 days.

General strengthening drugs:

Gamavit - the first 2-3 days at a dose of 0.5 ml/kg of body weight, then up to two weeks at a dose of 0.1 mg/kg.

Hemostatic agents:

Travmatin - intramuscularly or subcutaneously 0.5-1 ml 2-5 times a day;
Etamsylate – 0.1 ml/kg twice a day.

Care: first week day by day

Day 1

After surgery, the cat sleeps an additional 30 minutes to 1-1.5 hours. On the first day the animal is half asleep and lethargic. There is a lack of coordination of movements. There may be hallucinations. Do not give any drugs that speed up recovery from anesthesia without the consent of your veterinarian! For the first 24 hours, you need to be nearby, pet the animal, hold it in your arms, and observe. When leaving, it is better to leave the cat in a small enclosed space and on the floor to avoid it falling and leaving in an unknown direction. Do not provide food or water - there is no need to feed the baby at all during the first day; you need to give it drips from a syringe or pipette.

If there is no blinking, close the cat's eyes yourself to prevent the cornea from drying out. Do this before you start blinking on your own.

On the first day, the animal is disoriented - it can run away in an unknown direction, stop abruptly, run into walls, meow, fall and fall asleep, jump up, etc. There is no need to be afraid. It is better to place your pet in a non-passable room so that no one or anything can disturb it.
Possible involuntary urination. If your cat goes to the toilet on her own, you can support her by placing a full-width towel under her belly for stability and additional bowel stimulation.

There is vomiting. The first sign of gagging is excessive licking of the face. You should not bathe until the stitch heals.

If the cat is in pain, it needs an anesthetic injection, previously prescribed by a veterinarian.

Day 2

The cat gradually comes to its senses and becomes more adequate. You can put water near it and start feeding it a little. The food starts with low-fat chicken broth or kefir with bifidobacteria. Do not overfeed under any circumstances, but give all food in small portions. Only water should be freely available and in plenty! Even if before the operation the cat was only on dry food, you should not start with it - it is better to replace it with similar “wet” ones.

If the animal moves little and the paws are cool, you need to rub them or put the cat on a warm heating pad, promptly removing the cold one. On the second day, she can hide from prying eyes - you must make sure that the animal is always in sight. If you are allowed to hide, then in places where you can easily get it.

The cat's toilet should be somewhere nearby so as not to bother the animal with unnecessary walking after surgery.

If a cat does not walk at all after sterilization, then there are two reasons: the animal is uncomfortable in the bandage or there are problems with the hind limbs after anesthesia (especially after epidural anesthesia). The exact cause will be determined by a veterinarian who can be invited to your home.

Continue to monitor behavior, appetite, urination, bowel movements (should have already appeared) and general condition.

Usually the pain goes away on the second day. If there are still signs of discomfort due to pain, a painkiller is given or injected.

Day 3

On the 3rd day, the cat should fully come to its senses: show activity and interest in what is happening, go to its litter box and start asking for food. You can gradually switch to a regular diet, but the ban on overfeeding remains.

On this day, it is necessary to measure your body temperature. Body temperature is measured rectally (in the rectum) with the tip of a thermometer lubricated with Vaseline or any greasy cream. If the temperature is elevated by two measurements during the day, you need to contact your veterinarian - you may have to start taking antibiotics. The course will have to be completed in full, regardless of which day the temperature drops to normal.

If the temperature does not begin to decrease from antibiotics, you need to take the cat to a veterinarian or call him at home - there is a risk that the infection is viral, and this is a risk of death of the animal due to post-operative weakness.

Also a reason to contact a veterinarian if the body temperature is below 37.5°C.

If there is no bowel movement, you can give mild laxatives based on lactulose (Lactusan, Duphalac). The intestines must be emptied regularly - this must be monitored, because... very often after anesthesia there is a slowdown in intestinal motility.

Day 4

By the fourth day, the animal should actively and independently eat and drink, active urination and bowel movements should be noted.

If there is no urination, you need to give 1/5 tablet of no-shpa or 2-3 drops of valerian tincture diluted in a teaspoon of water. After 15 minutes, do a light abdominal massage at the level of the bladder. Urination should appear. If still not, the cat needs to be taken to a veterinary hospital for bladder catheterization.

Day 5

By the fifth day, you can start letting the cat out of the closed room, because... She can be allowed some activity - walk relatively long distances (between rooms); she can be allowed to walk in the yard (under supervision) if the animal had access to the street before sterilization. You can jump on low surfaces.

By the fifth day, the swelling and redness around the suture should subside, if there were any such signs. Signs of scarring should appear.

Day 6 and 7

The only reminders that the cat has undergone surgery are the blanket (bandage) and the presence of postoperative sutures. By the end of the week, the animal should be fully active, eat with appetite, drink when it wants, sleep in any chosen place, jumping onto the sofa or chairs (it is, of course, still difficult to jump onto the windowsill from the floor).

No pain. Urinate and have bowel movements as usual. If the body's resistance is normal, the sutures can be removed on the 7th day - maximum on the 10th.

The suture after sterilization of a cat should be clean, dry, with signs of dense scarring, without signs of inflammation or suppuration.

Possible postoperative complications

Complications after planned surgical interventions develop extremely rarely and, in most cases, it depends on the individual characteristics of a particular animal.

Main postoperative complications:

Prolonged post-anesthesia hypothermia. If a cat lies for a long time without moving, and its ears and paws feel cold to the touch, it is necessary to check its body temperature. If the readings are below 37°C, you need to put the cat on a warm heating pad, cover it with any natural piece of fabric and contact your veterinarian for advice.
Intra-abdominal bleeding. If traces of fresh blood are detected in the suture area or from the vulva, with obvious pain in the abdomen and pallor of the skin, you should immediately take the cat to a veterinary hospital to stop possible bleeding in the abdominal cavity. If internal bleeding is confirmed, then repeated surgery is performed.
Postoperative hyperthermia. If body temperature is elevated for more than 3 days (above 39°C), it is necessary to consult with a veterinarian or take the cat to an appointment for direct examination by a specialist.
Redness around the stitch and swelling. This condition of the suture is allowed for 3-5 days, provided that there is no discharge from the wound. After 5 days, both redness and swelling will begin to subside and will completely disappear by the time the stitches are removed.
Rotting postoperative suture. If the cat's postoperative hygiene measures are not followed, dirt may get into the seam, causing it to fester. It is imperative to show the animal to a doctor. If the prescribed drugs for local treatment do not help eliminate such signs, the doctor will have to remove the stitches, remove the damaged areas of skin around the wound under anesthesia and re-suture it.
Lump on the abdomen in the suture area. If an enlarged area is detected anywhere around the seam, this is a reason to consult a veterinarian. There are two options for lumps after sterilization - this is post-operative swelling, which may have to be opened, or the growth of granulation tissue (“young” skin), which will go away on its own within a month and a half.

Sterilization (castration) is not a complicated operation, the difficulty lies in the postoperative period. After surgery, you should definitely get recommendations from your veterinarian on how to care for your cat and strictly adhere to them. In any emergency situation, you must consult a specialist.

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After sterilization, there is a seam on the cat’s stomach that needs to be properly treated so that pathogenic flora does not get on the wound, and she herself does not lick the seams; for this, a blanket is put on her; it protects against unwanted interventions from the outside and promotes healing.

You can sterilize a cat using several methods, according to the classical scheme, which is well established, when the belly is cut along the white line; the speed of wound healing depends on when to remove the blanket from the cat after sterilization. If the cat is well cared for, the suture closes quickly, such an intervention causes virtually no complications, and usually the owner knows when to remove the cat’s blanket after sterilization. They can also sterilize through a side incision; this is a less traumatic method compared to the first one, since the muscles are not cut with a scalpel, but are moved apart, and healing is faster. There is another scheme, but today it is rather exotic, this is laparoscopy, it is minimally invasive, practically does not injure the cat, but due to its high cost it is almost never used.

A cat can undergo an ovariohysterectomy, which involves complete removal of all organs responsible for reproductive function, or an oophorectomy, where only the ovaries are removed. But complete removal is preferable, since the uterus left in the abdominal cavity can become inflamed over the years, the operation will have to be performed again, but the old animal may no longer withstand anesthesia. Postoperative care depends entirely on the type of surgery, but in any case, the integrity of the tissues has been compromised, so there will always be general malaise. In the postoperative period, the animal must be provided with complete rest; children or other pets must not be allowed near it; the sutures must be regularly treated. They are applied to the skin, the inner wall of the abdomen, so it is important that the cat moves less, otherwise the stitches may come apart or internal bleeding will begin.

Sutures can be applied to the skin in two ways, as a rule, this is done using a non-absorbable thread, which will have to be removed after a week or 10 days, and an absorbable thread, such a thread will dissolve and fall off on its own, nothing needs to be removed.

After applying sutures, the veterinarian can “preserve” them by treating them with “Aluminum Spray”, in this case no care is required, aseptic treatment 100% protects the wound, dirt and bacteria will not get into it. If this has not been done, you will have to put a blanket on your pet to protect the seam from bacterial contamination. This accessory is easy to put on and can be secured with ties. Typically, cats do not experience pain, except in the first two days after the intervention, and then it is not intense, so there is no need to administer painkillers. If the cat meows, does not touch food, and cannot lie on its stomach 3-4 days after the operation, bleeding into the abdominal cavity should be suspected. This can happen due to improperly sutured internal tissues, poor coagulation of blood vessels in the uterus, and its stump begins to bleed; repeated surgery is required to remove blood clots and fibrin adhesions from the abdominal cavity.

If dirt gets in, the seam can become inflamed and fester. To prevent this, the cat needs a blanket, it is put on immediately after the operation, and it must be kept clean during this period; under no circumstances should it be allowed to go outside. If the wound does become infected, it is necessary to take the cat to the veterinary clinic, since the stitches in this condition do not heal, they will have to be removed, then, under anesthesia, clean and remove the areas of tissue affected by necrosis and stitch the stitches again. If a lump is suddenly discovered in the area of the suture, then this is considered normal, the tissues are healing, granulation tissue may grow, but in about a month it will resolve.

In some cases, when the owner cannot care for the cat on his own due to being very busy, he can go to a clinic where they can take him in for foster care until he recovers; in addition, some of them provide services for transporting animals to surgery and back home.

When a cat goes on a spree, it is not very pleasant for both itself and its owners; few people like constant uterine meowing, refusal to eat and the desire to leave the apartment, so the most humane way out of this situation is sterilization.

It’s not uncommon to see requests on forums for pet lovers that begin with the phrase “The cat took off its blanket after sterilization, what should I do?” To answer, you need to understand what a blanket is and why it is needed. A blanket is a bandage designed to protect a cat's body after surgery, to secure the dressing material to the animal's body. must wear a blanket.

The blankets are available in one universal size, so they are suitable for small and large cats. For almost twenty years now, veterinarians have prescribed blankets as a mandatory means of caring for a pet who has undergone surgery.

The advantages of blankets are obvious:

They reliably isolate the wound, since the blankets consist of two tiers of chintz;
If the blanket is tied correctly, the animal will not be able to pull it off;
The blanket provides convenient, quick access to the seam, which is necessary for treating the wound and changing the pad;
The blanket does not restrict the mobility of the paw joints, since the hip and shoulder joints are minimally constrained.

If the cat removed the blanket after sterilization, then you need to re-fasten the bandage, but now for this you need to study the instructions in order to prevent the next removal. So, spread the blanket, then straighten the ties. First, tie the ties located above your head. Two pairs of ties, between which the front legs will be, need to be tied into a knot on the back.

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The next two pairs of ties are fixed in the middle of the back and on the lower back. The last two pairs of ties are tied into a single knot. Naturally, the blanket should not press or hang or restrict the movements of the paws, otherwise the animal will be uncomfortable. In addition, a sagging blanket can allow bacteria to pass through, and a compressive bandage interferes with normal blood circulation and has a bad effect on the psychological state of the pet.