Medicallly wise to spay your cat

Q:  My pet cat is now about three years old and has not been spayed. She is an indoor cat and seemingly has no issues when she comes into heat. Do you think she will need to be spayed sometime in the future if her cycles remain the same?

A:  There are two main medical reasons for spaying your cat, even at age three.  First, a significant percentage of unsprayed cats will develop a uterine infection termed pyometra necessitating surgery (ovariohysterectomy) on an emergency basis.  The second reason for getting your cat spayed is because the longer a cat is allowed to go through heat cycles, the more risk there is of developing mammary (breast) cancer which is generally deadly in cats.  In addition, since cats are seasonally polyestrus (meaning they continuously come into heat in certain seasons), they will vocalize continuously and attempt to get outside constantly which may be highly annoying to some people.  The bottom line then is it’s a wise decision to have your cat spayed.

Joseph DeSanto, DVM

Dr. DeSanto graduated from The Ohio State University School of Veterinary Medicine and completed an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Oradell Animal Hospital. He then joined the staff upon completion of his internship. Dr. DeSanto enjoys internal medicine and veterinary dentistry. He is one of the founding veterinarians of Bergen County's Animal Emergency Preparedness Program. Dr. DeSanto likes to play softball and enjoys woodworking. He sees appointments at Oradell Animal Hospital, Paramus and in our Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey office.

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2 Comments to “Medicallly wise to spay your cat”

  1. JOE says:
    February 26, 2011 at 4:08 pm

    THIS MAY SEEM LIKE A STUPID A QUESTION, BUT WHY HASN’T VETERINARY MEDICAL SCIENCE COME UP WITH A BIRTH CONTROL PILL FOR STRAY AND FERAL CATS ?..WITH THE STRAY POPULATION EXPLODING, CAPTURE AND NEUTERING IS TOO COSTLY AND IMPRACTICAL..THE PILL CAN BE HIDDEN IN A TREAT OR KIBBLE JUST LIKE THE HEART WORMER PILLS ARE, AND GIVEN OUT IN REGULAR FEED OUTSIDE WHERE STRAYS ARE LIKEY TO SHOW..OF COURSE IT HAS TO BE SAFE FOR ALL ANIMALS TO CONSUME IN CASE THEY COME ALONG..I’M SURE IT WONT BE 100% EFFECTIVE, BUT IT’S BOUND TO MAKE A BIG DENT IN THE POPULATION OVER TIME…THANK YOU,,,JOE

    • Joseph DeSanto says:
      March 4, 2011 at 11:55 am

      There are medications that can stop ovulation in cats but they unfortunately have a high incidence of serious side effects such as diabetes, uterine infections, or tumors. Veterinarins are trying to develop a safe oral contraceptive or vaccine that can help control the feral cat population but haven’t come up with one yet.