Conference misery::feline_v1

    Are they old enough to spay?  I would certainly think this would
    make life much calmer.
    

    re -1,  If they're old enough to have come into heat, they're
            old enough to be spayed, I would think?
    
    Your females should be spayed as a matter of course, unless
    they're purebreds and you're a breeder, which I don't think
    is the case.  It will 'probably' alleviate your problem, but
    you can never be entirely sure.

re: Old enough to be spayed...

My recommendation is to delay spaying until the cat is at least 8 months 
old.  I've known some cats who've been in heat at 4 months, and I think 
that's a little too young for them to be spayed.

Ray

    Is that unusual Ray, to go into heat at 4 months?  What
    would you say is the average age females go into heat?
    I imagine our breeders would know this?
    
    Donna

    Pandora was spayed at 5 months, which I think is usual in the UK.
    
    Helen.

    Adrienne had kittens when she was quite young. She was the perfect
    mother, always there, always concerned. Then, when the kittens were
    finally weaned (we kept all three kittens), Adrienne did a complete
    turn-around. She wouldn't let those kittens near her! If she was
    curled up on a chair, and even one of the kittens tried to get up
    with her, she would either hiss and swat at the kitten, or leave
    the chair. If Adrienne was walking through a room, and one of the
    kittens came too close, she would hiss and spit until the kitten
    moved away. She just didn't want anything to do with them. She actually
    became downright mean to them!
    
    Through all this, Adrienne still stayed quite affectionate to Sly
    (the kittens' Dad). Her attitude toward the people in the house
    did not change, either. It was only her attitude towards the kittens.
    
    A few weeks ago, I had Adrienne and the three kittens spayed. Within
    two days, Adrienne's attitude totally changed! She became quite
    affectionate towards the kittens. Now, she cuddles up with them, she
    grooms them, and she plays with them. A real change!
    
    I am sure that it was the spaying that did this. Although that was
    not the reason that I had them spayed (I just plain old believe
    in spaying/neutering), it was definately a side benefit. Maybe it
    would help your cats in the same way.
    
    Marleen

    I think that I will probably have them all spayed.  Momma Kiwi is
    about 3 years old and Tigger and Hitla are just over 1 year old.
    Should I get them all spayed together, or wait till each one recovers?
    Any comments?
    
    
    Pam

    I got all four spayed together. The expense was horrendous (I charged
    it on my MasterCard!), but doing it that way meant that all four
    felt not-so-great together. No one was feeling spunky enough to
    bother anyone else. The only well cat in the house was Sly, and
    he didn't bother anyone because he was too busy being mad at them
    for smelling like the Vet's office. He just stayed clear of all
    of them.
    
    If I had it to do over, I would _still_ get them all spayed at once.
    
    Marleen

    RE: .4
    
    Donna, I think going into heat at four months isn't that unusual.
    My aunt got two cute little tiger kittens, a boy and girl. They
    were littermates, and they are indoor-only kitties. At six months she
    brought them in to be fixed. She called at noontime to see how they
    were doing after surgery and was told that the little boy was doing
    fine but the little girl was going to be a mother and so they did
    not do the spaying at that time.
    
    Deb

    I vote for all at once.  Otherwise you'll go thru the "this must
    be a _strange_ cat, she smells weird, I guess I'll attack" each
    time one comes home from the vet's office.
    

re: Usual age for first heat

This varies by breed.  Also, the first heat usually doesn't last very long, 
like maybe a day, as opposed to four or five days for older cats.

re: starting a family early

If they go into heat, they can get pregnant.

re: When to get them spayed

People pretty much have to trust their vets on this.  Breeders tend to be 
more picky than average folks about the vets we'll use, because we tend to 
know more about our own cats than some vets do.  So, for my own cats, I 
know what's best, and I know what vets have the information I don't have.  
But, for J. Random Cat, the vet's opinion is worth more than mine, so my 
recommendation is "If you're comfortable with your vet, listen to and act 
upon the advice you get."

Strangely enough, breeders tend to use the same vets.

Ray

    Well, Saturday I brought all three females to the Vets to be spayed.
    All was pretty calm over the weekend, because they weren't really
    with it.  Let's hope this is an indication of the future.  I'm glad
    it's all over!
    
    
    Pam
    

    Can anyone tell me what I should do?  Tabbatha is being spayed next
    month.  Silver will not be spayed because we plan on breeding her.
     Silver LOVES to attack Tabby and Tabby loves to attack back.  What
    should I do to prevent Silver from attacking Tabby while she is
    "Not feeling so good" after her operation?  Any advice?
    
    Holly

    You probably don't have to worry, I agree.   Sliver will
    sense that Tabby isn't quite normal (strange Vet scent, and
    unusually tired), and Tabby will not want to "attack back".
    She will most likely sleep a good 2 days away, and still be
    groggy/sore after that.  
    
    Note:  Just be careful to check her stitches regularly - she
    will lick them, that's OK, but she may also start to pull on
    them.                      
    
    Good luck, all should go well.
    
    Pam
    

Spay and MOST of the problem will disappear...HOWEVER, there will be
"spitting contests" occasionally to work out the pecking order and
although they sound terrible, noone will be hurt - except for a little
dignity here and there.  Young ones will try to "take over" favorite
spots, etc. and older ones will have to "knock" some sense into the
kids...well, you know how it is.

Keep in mind that although cats will play together, most cats
in the wild are solitary creatures by nature (lion prides are the
exception, not the rule) who "push" the young away when they reach
sexual maturity.  Non-related adult cats are not real friendly
in the wild in most of the cat or feline family tree.
We are setting up an environment in
which cats must share space when we have more than one as a resident
companion....there will be some pushing and shoving occasionally
no matter what we do.  I think its worth it because they have someone
their own size to play with and it keeps them active to have a
little challenge in their lives.

    Before anyone contemplating getting a second cat gets the idea that
    it's all mayhem, however, I should point out that once the dust
    settles there's infinitely more playing, romping, cuddling up together
    and so on than warfare.
    

    RE .7
    
    I have found that after weaning takes place the "mom" has to remain
    mean and feisty towards the kittens because if she doesn't, they
    will try to nurse again.  Joui had to keep her distance from the
    litter for about a month before they finally gave up and left her
    alone.  Once they stopped trying to sneak in and nurse, she became
    friendlier.  Those kittens were so tricky, they would come up like
    they just wanted to cuddle next to mom and when she would finally
    relax and allow them to, they would dig frantically at her stomach.
    And this when they were four months old and almost bigger than she
    was.  Now we only have one of the kittens with us and she is 5 months
    old.  She and Joui get along great.
    
    Another strange thing I have found in my household is that being
    in heat or being pregnant elevates a cat's status in the pecking
    order.  So when another cat comes into heat, or gets bred, there
    is some squabling until the new pecking order is worked out.  It
    is also a good way to find out who is in season since Birmans are
    pretty quit when in heat.  I just look to see who is beating on
    everyone else and I know that cat is in season.
    
    jo