25/10/2024
THIS IS DEFINITELY A GOOD READ! SPAY & NEUTER THEM EARLY PEOPLE!
Saved by Early Spay Neuter
Before low cost spay/neuter was available in the Puget Sound area, most rescuers I knew took their cats to their personal vets for spay/neuter. My vet was in his early 60’s and suggested 6 months as the minimum age for spays. I didn’t question his reasoning, but it was neither practical nor in the best interests of kittens to hold onto rescues for months. So I was delighted when Feral Cat Spay Neuter Project opened its doors in the late 1990’s and had weight limits of 2 pounds for boys and 2.5 pounds for girls. Now the lower limit is 2 pounds for both genders at Feral Cat Spay Neuter Project and 1.5 pounds at the shelter clinic we use.
At first I was horrified at the thought of subjecting a 2 pound kitten to surgery. But I warmed up to the idea quickly when my little charges returned from the clinic ready to play and acting as if nothing happened to them at all. The incision size was so small and their recoveries so fast I stopped worrying at all. But the thought of early spay / neuter is still uncomfortable for many.
Is early spay neuter safe?
The American Association of Feline Practitioners, American Veterinary Medical Association, Canadian Veterinary Medical Association and the Association of Shelter Veterinarians support the spaying and neutering of animals as young as 8 weeks of age. According to a UW Shelter Medicine article by Dr. Bridget Holck, “there is currently no research to suggest that spaying at 6 weeks is poses a greater risk than spaying at 8 weeks.”
What are the benefits of early spay neuter?
1. Reduced exposure to infectious disease. The longer the stay in a multi-cat rescue, shelter or foster home, the greater the risk of infection.
2. Faster recovery. Smaller kittens have fewer complications compared to kittens spayed and neutered at over 3 months. The small incision size, reduced amount of fat tissue and faster surgery all play a factor in this.
3. Reduced time in foster or shelter. This increases the likelihood that they will even be rescued at all. Shelters and rescues have limited space and resources. When they are full, they have to say no to new kittens needing rescue.
4. Improved socialization to new home environment. Early spay neuter gets kittens into homes during their peak socialization period.
Recently, a volunteer who fosters for a local rescue criticized early spay neuter and said that she preferred to wait for 3 + months of age. Given my early anxiety about pediatric spay neuter, I understood, but here is the reality. This group of 7 kittens would be growing up feral and awaiting TNR if early spay neuter was not available. And living outside in a high coyote population area, it is unlikely that they would have all survived long enough to be TNR’d. At the time, no shelter or rescue was available to help with fostering and a prior out-of-state committment meant that the rescuer wouldn’t be able to take them at all unless they could get altered and into homes or a rescue at around 8 to 9 weeks.
Even if you don’t like early spay neuter, it is hard to argue that early spay neuter is worse than being homeless and living outside. These kittens will be cherished family members instead of a neighborhood nuisance because of early spay neuter. Independent rescuers and shelters are always limited by space and resources, so early spay neuter gets kittens altered and into homes so more cats and kittens can be saved.
https://www.sheltermedicine.com/library/resources/what-is-the-ideal-age-to-spay-neuter-adopt-shelter-kittens
https://www.alleycat.org/resources/protocols-pediatric-spay-and-neuter/
