Post-spay care of the Maine Coon cat and KPI 2/2
Channel: Dr David Sing
Date: 2014-03-19

Sharing spay surgery knowledge

Clinical research on KPI (key performance indicators) in spaying a cautering cat at Toa Payoh Vets by Dr Sing Kong Yuen

The caterwauling cat from Woodlands was spayed by me yesterday. After resting overnight, she goes home. Handing over and explanation of post-op care and medication. No blood loss during spaying of a caterwauling cat is evident as the gums are still as pink. In caterwauling cat, more care is needed as the blood vessels are engorged and large. 
A beautiful Maine Coon cat of around 4 kg. I sedated with Xylazine 0.15 ml + Ketamine 0.6 ml IM and spayed the cat within 40 minutes of injection. The dosage is just sufficient for the spay which must be done faster. Otherwise, topping up with isoflurane gas + oxygen would be needed. This spay surgery itself took around 30 minutes as there was some difficulty hooking up the first ovary as the cat had some subcutaneous fat hindering the hooking up of the first ovary. The incision was 1.5 cm long and this is my minimal incision length. 

A 2.5 - 3 cm cm skin incision would make hooking much easier. I closed the skin stitch with two 3/0 absorbable horizontal mattress sutures.     

As an experienced vet with over 40 years practice, a spay surgery should take around 20 minutes if the cat is not fat or caterwauling as hooking up the ovaries will be much easier. A longer skin incision of 2.5 - 3 cm will facilitate easier access to hook up the ovaries.  

Build a professional relationship with the client to retain clientele. This is done by taking time to explain the post-op care and showing the cat is well as evident by the pink gums (meaning no internal bleeding from the spay).