spaying a pregnant cat

My neighbour was just getting ready to have her tiny cat spayed. I finally talked her into this after the cat had it's last heat. The cat is extremely small for it's age, (now 6 yrs. and just over 2 lbs!!), and the owner has been terrified of having this tiny girl fixed, because she never felt that the kitty would pull thru, but after my gentle persuasion and some damn fine educating on my part :D , she realizes that she will be doing this as a favour to her cat :p .

The problem lies in the fact that Minou was accidentally let out of the house about a month ago, (she is strictly an indoor cat), by a friend, and she disappeared into the orchard for several days. You guessed it, she was in heat, and in all likelyhood, is knocked up! :eek:

My question is: Can Minou be spayed safely at this stage of the game if she is indeed pregnant? She returned home about 3 weeks ago, smiling I might add!, so I am guessing that if she is pregnant, she would be about one month along or less. The owner is not absolutely sure Minou is pregnant, but thinks with her visible physical changes, that she undoubtedly is. :(

On a funny note, I had suggested that the owner look for Minou at the Animal Control Centre in case she had been turned in, and we went and the owner "found" her cat there! The only thing is that when she brought the cat home, both her husband and daughter told her that she had brought home the WRONG CAT!!! Hahahahaha!!! She kept the new foundling anyway and named it Booboo!! How appropriate!!

oh I love that the wrong cat was brought home, but at least they are keeping it, the name is soooo appropriate

Reminds me of the movie "Meet The Fockers"

I think that your neighbour should wait to be sure that the cat is not pregnant or I believe that she would be aborting the pregnancy.

Maybe she should talk to her vet and find out if the cat really is pregnant. If she is "with kitten" the vet may suggest aborting/spaying at this stage anyway, if the mama is that tiny she it may be possible that she wouldn't survive the birthing process :(

A vet visit would best be able to tell her if the cat is preggers, and being that she is so small, the vet may have suggestions/options for her.

I hope everything works out. :)

Cats are and can be safely spayed while pregnant. If she is that small, she could have difficulties with the pregnancy and/or birth. The vet will be able to tell for certain if she is pregnant and at the same time will mention all the options available. The vet will also be able to say what the risks would be for her to go through the spay (whether she is pregnant or not). She really should be spayed to prevent this from happening again.

The cat can definitely be spayed, and should be, considering the avalanche of unwanted kittens at this time of year.

Thank you for doing your part to control overpopulation!! :thumbs up

I love the story about the womn bringing home the wrong kitten - it is cute and raher touching! Good for her - to keep the cat, it is probably meant to be! :)

I agree with LR - the cat should be spayed, even if pregnant. Whjy put her health at risk. Of course it would be an abortion now as well but the cat's health is far more important!!

And wow, what a tiny kitty! My YY is small but she is not 2 lbs - and she is a growing kitten.

I have a very small cat also, at a year she was 3lbs, I still had her fixed with no problems. So get your friend to get her cat fixed even though she is pregnant it still can be done.

What better time to approach my neighbour about spaying her cat(s) than on PAYDAY!! Strike while the iron is hot! She is in agreement with this and would not want her cat to be put at risk of death during the birth of kittens! So I am gonna drag her butt to the vet post haste! I'm on holidays next week, so will take the cat myself if need be. Thank you all for your sage advice and comments. :o

The last time Minou was at the vet, she was totally ballistic :eek: In all of the years I have handled animals, I have never ever seen a cat freak out as severely as this one. The vet suggested that she be presedated before she ever comes back and when she does, they will take her and put her in an aquarium-like structure and give her a bit of sleepy gas to make her woozy and then they will be able to do whatever is required. The owner was a basket case when we left and this is part of her apprehension around taking Minou back to the vet. My question is: will it be safe and healthy to sedate a pregnant cat just to get her to the vet??

I think sedation might have been a concern if the pregnancy was going to be carried full term but where this cat will be spayed, I don't see a problem. But I am NOT a vet so there could be medical issues involved that I am aware of.