Young cat - stomach surgery - recovery time?
Discussion
Hi all, my 1 year old tabby/white mix Bertie fell ill during the week. He had a blockage in his stomach and the vet decided to open him up. Inside was a big lump of fur and fabric.
The op was yesterday midday and he came home late afternoon. He's a bit out of sorts today but walking around fairly normally and jumping up and down onto chairs and surfaces(!). BTW he doesn't normally jump onto surfaces - he was starving and looking for food.
I'd expected him to be bed bound for days but he seems half-way fixed already. Is this normal?
Pic of Berts before the op
The op was yesterday midday and he came home late afternoon. He's a bit out of sorts today but walking around fairly normally and jumping up and down onto chairs and surfaces(!). BTW he doesn't normally jump onto surfaces - he was starving and looking for food.
I'd expected him to be bed bound for days but he seems half-way fixed already. Is this normal?
Pic of Berts before the op
Beautiful cat.
I am not a vet but I would say that is fairly normal. When both of mine had the girl snip they were a bit tired that night then back to normal the next day. You can’t tell a cat to take it easy so just need to keep and eye on any stitches to make sure they are still secure.
I am not a vet but I would say that is fairly normal. When both of mine had the girl snip they were a bit tired that night then back to normal the next day. You can’t tell a cat to take it easy so just need to keep and eye on any stitches to make sure they are still secure.
AC43 said:
The op was yesterday midday and he came home late afternoon. He's a bit out of sorts today but walking around fairly normally and jumping up and down onto chairs and surfaces(!). BTW he doesn't normally jump onto surfaces - he was starving and looking for food.
I'd expected him to be bed bound for days but he seems half-way fixed already. Is this normal?
sounds as good as could be wished for!I'd expected him to be bed bound for days but he seems half-way fixed already. Is this normal?
To be honest he will be feeling soooo much better since the blockage was removed so as long as the intestine wasn't too damaged by the blockage (which I assume not, as he is home already) he will hopefully continue to bounce back quickly, which is the best result you could hope for, the outcome could have been far more dire had he not been operated on quickly enough!
May need to start grooming him daily and maybe ensuring he has a food that can help with keeping hairballs at bay in future.
The hardest thing is keeping them rested for the stitches to heal when they themselves feel better (ie not jumping on surfaces
) .
May need to start grooming him daily and maybe ensuring he has a food that can help with keeping hairballs at bay in future.
The hardest thing is keeping them rested for the stitches to heal when they themselves feel better (ie not jumping on surfaces
) . gr1340 said:
Beautiful cat.
I am not a vet but I would say that is fairly normal. When both of mine had the girl snip they were a bit tired that night then back to normal the next day. You can’t tell a cat to take it easy so just need to keep and eye on any stitches to make sure they are still secure.
Thanks.I am not a vet but I would say that is fairly normal. When both of mine had the girl snip they were a bit tired that night then back to normal the next day. You can’t tell a cat to take it easy so just need to keep and eye on any stitches to make sure they are still secure.
I went to vey myself yesterday to have him checked up. He said we should try to keep him ideally for 4 or 5 days to give the incisions time to heal strongly and minimise any damage caused by excess stretching.
The only caveat was that if he's getting bored/distressed it might be better to give in.
He does get bored but having a bit of company cheers him up and being able to roam around the house seems to distract him for a while.
bexVN said:
To be honest he will be feeling soooo much better since the blockage was removed so as long as the intestine wasn't too damaged by the blockage (which I assume not, as he is home already) he will hopefully continue to bounce back quickly, which is the best result you could hope for, the outcome could have been far more dire had he not been operated on quickly enough!
May need to start grooming him daily and maybe ensuring he has a food that can help with keeping hairballs at bay in future.
The hardest thing is keeping them rested for the stitches to heal when they themselves feel better (ie not jumping on surfaces ) .
Well he certainly wasn't in a good way when it happened.May need to start grooming him daily and maybe ensuring he has a food that can help with keeping hairballs at bay in future.
The hardest thing is keeping them rested for the stitches to heal when they themselves feel better (ie not jumping on surfaces
) . Yes, we'll need to try harder to groom him. He's not a massive fan but will grudgingly let one of us get a few goes every now and then. I presume it's becuse he's still young. He's only just over a year old. And will look into the food.
Re jumping - it's a nighmare. The very first thing he did the following day was jump onto a kitchen worktop. He wouldn't normally do that (in front of us anyway) but he was absolutely starving.
We'll try to keep him for the rest of the weekend. Might buckle tomorrow. Or he might succeed in escaping. He's very determined.....
shep1001 said:
My kitties were a nightmare, trying to keep them calm after an op proved difficult.
One had a lampshade on to stop her licking the wound last time so she would walk in the lounge, flop down and make a chirping noise and the other cat would pile in and lick it for her!
LOL.One had a lampshade on to stop her licking the wound last time so she would walk in the lounge, flop down and make a chirping noise and the other cat would pile in and lick it for her!
He tends to go berzerk in the morning, yowling, mewling, pawing the windows, etc.
Then, when his hunting instincts subside, his body tells him to sleep. A LOT.
We're about to exit the sixth full day of lockdown for him.
Will try to keep going Tues/Wed/Thu then at 4.00 on Friday he has his stitches out anyway.
Then end is in sight.
Update; the frantic appeals to get out are subsiding; at least part of him must realise that rest & sleep are going to help his recovery. He's doing a LOT of sleeping.
Hopefully he'll be out and about as normal in Saturday. Which in turn means we can get away for a few days next week and have a friend stay & cat sit.
Hopefully he'll be out and about as normal in Saturday. Which in turn means we can get away for a few days next week and have a friend stay & cat sit.
bexVN said:
AC43 said:
Postscript; finally caved in on the Thursday. So managed to keep him for nine days.
He was fine and so we were able to get away on holiday.
He's back on top of his game now.
Great result He was fine and so we were able to get away on holiday.
He's back on top of his game now.
Well done on managing to keep him in, not always easy I know!!
Gassing Station | All Creatures Great & Small | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff