Spaying 13 weeks kitten

[ElenaD]

HELLO DRs Jeff, Christina, Jean

Im going to bing home a new Abyssinian kitten In September. The breeder informed me she would spay/neuter her kittens before they were going to their forever homes.
Is it normal and healthy to alter the kittens that early? Will this procedure conducted at the early age influence the kittens future health ?
what can I do to remediate this issue if I get the kitten 2-3 weeks later? Thank you.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Congratulations on your upcoming new bay Elena!

Is it normal and healthy to alter the kittens that early?

It is common, but not normal.

Will this procedure conducted at the early age influence the kittens future health ?

Possibly, yes. Enforced menopause on a young animal of any sort is potentially quite harmful.

It might help you to take the HA! course about neutering to get more info.

And @Dr. Jean Hofve may have other thoughts to share.

Dr. Roberts will be a speaker in the HA! cancer month of November and probably would also have a lot to say:

What is Spay Neuter Syndrome? How it Could Harm Your Pet's Health

Read to learn about spay and neuter syndrome, its impact on your pet's hormonal balance, behavior, and long-term health risks.

drruthroberts.com

 

[Dr. Christina]

If you can still get your lovely kitty without spaying her at this age, PLEASE DO NOT SPAY.
Maybe you can offer to sign a pledge to have her spayed, or have an ovary sparing spay done when she is at least 6 months old (or older).
You will learn a lot more from the section in the library on neutering, which has the course at the bottom of the page.

If the breeder insists on this early spay, there are many things (that you can learn here at HA!) to possibly prevent the potential repercussions.

So exciting for you to have a young kitten in the house. They are so much fun.

Dr. Christina

 

[GinnyW]

Do folks really do OSS's on cats? Of course, I can see the health perspective, but are not the common problems that an OSS does not change, with yowling, carrying on, etc. and the other hormonal symptoms that are so hard with which to live, an obstacle for most folks?
I agree, of course, that spaying this early is particularly inadvisable.

 

[Dr. Christina]

You are right, Ginny, only a few people I know have intact females. They use a glass wand to induce ovulation to temporarily stop the heat symptoms.
Dr. Christina

 

[Dr. Jeff]

I have an intact 15 year young kitty.

She no longer has heat cycles (no, cats don't typically ever stop going into heat).

When she did cycle however, she just yowled for a few days (every few weeks in spring and summer) and was normal otherwise.

 

[Dr. Jean Hofve]

Shelters have been spaying and neutering at 8 weeks for decades. They do it because too many people are too irresponsible to trust to have it done later. I'm not a fan of it (particular in male kitties), and if you can wait until 12-16 weeks that's much better. However, cats will come into heat as early as 4 months of age, so bear that in mind if you prefer not to deal with those repercussions (howling, urine spraying, potential escape/pregnancy--cats can be very resourceful at getting out!).

 

[ElenaD]

Thank you all!
So far I was unsuccessful to convince the breeder not to spay my baby girl kitten at 14 weeks of age. The only relief i have for now my kitten won’t be vaccinated with rabies and I still have another 4 weeks to work on the breeder.