Answer: Almost all the surgical operations on cats are performed under general anaesthesia. (General anaesthesia implies a generalized loss of sensation accompanied by unconsciousness.) The use of general anaesthetic is most important for humane reasons; it prevents fear and pain during the operation, and by avoiding pain, greatly minimizes surgical shock which would otherwise frequently prove fatal. In addition, general anaesthesia relaxes the muscles and avoids the possibility of movement, which is an important pre-requisite for successful surgery, particularly on delicate or complex structures.
Because of the use of general anaesthesia, the normal reflex movements are temporarily abolished, including the coughing reflex. Normally any material which attempts to enter the larynx at the back of throat provokes a violent about of coughing to prevent its passing down any further, i.e. down the trachea.
Under general anaesthesia vomiting can occur if there is food or water in the stomach, and this material will pass up to the back of the throat, where the digestive and respiratory tracts cross each other. Because of the lack of an effective coughing reflex, there is then a grave risk that some of the material may pass through the larynx and down the windpipe to the lungs. Such vomited material, containing acid from the stomach, is very irritant and would provoke a severe pneumonia, which is invariably fatal.
Furthermore the pressure of the stomach distended with food on the abdominal side of the diaphragm can interfere with normal breathing whilst the cat anaesthetized.
It is avoid these potentially serious consequence that food and water must be restricted prior to general anaesthesia. Because food can be retained in the stomach for several hours, an over night fast is usually advised, which means that an animals is not fed after its normal evening meal on the day before it is to be anaesthetized.
Water is removed from the stomach much more rapidly and it is therefore usually sufficient to prevent drinking on the actual day of anaesthesia. In all cases follow your veterinary surgeon’s advice. Longer periods of the deprivation are undesirable because they weaken the cat and reduce his chance of successfully withstanding the stress of surgery.
There are two other important points:
1 Don’t feel sorry for the cat and give it drink against your veterinary surgeon’s instructions, because you may literally kill it with kindness.
2 Tell the vet, or his nurse or receptionist, when food or drink was last consumed. If you know, or suspect, that the animal has in fact eaten or drunk after it was supposed to do, say so, don’t conceal the fact. It is usually better to postpone the operation then to expose the animal to an unnecessary risk.
Q: Are there any operations you would not perform on cat?
Answer: Some veterinary surgeons, especially in Britain, are unhappy about performing operation which will not benefit the animal and are simply for the convenience of the owner, and often described such procedures as mutilations. The two most common examples in the cat are the removal of the claws and of the vocal chords. Many cat owners feel that those operations are utterly appalling.
Q: What operations are commonly preformed on cats?
Answer: The operations of spaying (ovariohysterectomy) and castration (orchidectomy) are probably the most commonly performed. An alternative operation produce sterility in males, vasectomy, is much less often performed.
Also commonly performed are the opening and draining of abscesses, often caused by bite wounds but sometime involving the tooth sockets are mammary glands, cleaning and extracting teeth, suturing wounds and arresting severe hemorrhage, and removing tumours from the skin, mammary glands and mouth. Foreign bodies may have to be surgically removed from the skin, tongue and pharynx and sometimes from internal organs such as the stomach or intestines.
Orthopedic surgery to repair fractures in bones is often necessary. The two halves of a long limb bone are usually secured by a strong metal pin passing down the center of each part.
Fragments are often wired together. At times screws and plates are used to get secure fixing.
Male cats suffering from feline urological syndrome, causing blockage of the urethra, need to be catheterized to withdraw the urine which cannot be passed, or if this proves difficult, to have urine removed via a needle interested through the abdominal wall. At times males that repeatedly suffer from this condition may have the points removed, thereby eliminating the site of the obstruction, and a new opening is created for the cat to pass urine (perineal urethrostomy).
Also commonly performed are the opening and draining of abscesses, often caused by bite wounds but sometime involving the tooth sockets are mammary glands, cleaning and extracting teeth, suturing wounds and arresting severe hemorrhage, and removing tumours from the skin, mammary glands and mouth. Foreign bodies may have to be surgically removed from the skin, tongue and pharynx and sometimes from internal organs such as the stomach or intestines.
Orthopedic surgery to repair fractures in bones is often necessary. The two halves of a long limb bone are usually secured by a strong metal pin passing down the center of each part.
Fragments are often wired together. At times screws and plates are used to get secure fixing.
Male cats suffering from feline urological syndrome, causing blockage of the urethra, need to be catheterized to withdraw the urine which cannot be passed, or if this proves difficult, to have urine removed via a needle interested through the abdominal wall. At times males that repeatedly suffer from this condition may have the points removed, thereby eliminating the site of the obstruction, and a new opening is created for the cat to pass urine (perineal urethrostomy).
Q: How can I minimize the chance of catching a disease from my cat?
Answer: The basic method of controlling the spread of zoo noses to man are the same as for controlling the spread of disease between cats though, with the exception of vaccination against rabies, immunization is not available.
Cats which are discovered to be infected should be treated wherever possible, and/or isolated, depending upon the dangers inherent in the transfer of the disease. With rabies, isolation on suspicion and euthanasia if signs appear are advisable, and in many countries mandatory. Where treatments are relatively innocuous, such as worming, these may be carried out routinely as discussed previously.
Hygienic precautions are also of great important to break the chain of transference at as many points as possible. The hands should be thoroughly washed after handling cats and before putting the hands to the face or in the mouth, for example before eating. This applies particularly to young children. Cats should not be allowed to lick the face, or to sleep with humans or on their beds. Also cats should not be allowed to lick plates and utensils used for human food, and their own feeding bowls should be washed separately from crockery and cutlery used by humans.
Children’s sandpits should be covered not it is use to prevent them being used as a litter trays. Latter boxes should be changed daily and the cat’s faced ideally burned, although this should not be carried out by a pregnant woman. It is advised that a pregnant woman should avoid looking after a cat, and should wear gloves for gardening to avoid possible contact with Toxoplasma. These recommendations may appear extreme, but they have been suggested as measures to reduce the hazards of Toxoplasma infection in pregnancy.
Cats should be fed only dried, canned or cooked meat to avoid infecting the cat with parasites which in turn could be acquired by man. Also to destroy Toxoplasma in its infective form, all meat for human consumption should be adequately cooked, and hands that been in contact with raw meat should be well washed with soap and water. Finally, although it is difficult to destroy the stick roundworm eggs of cats, they can be removed from the environment by thorough scrubbing of effected surface with hot detergent solution followed by a thorough rinsing down.
Cats which are discovered to be infected should be treated wherever possible, and/or isolated, depending upon the dangers inherent in the transfer of the disease. With rabies, isolation on suspicion and euthanasia if signs appear are advisable, and in many countries mandatory. Where treatments are relatively innocuous, such as worming, these may be carried out routinely as discussed previously.
Hygienic precautions are also of great important to break the chain of transference at as many points as possible. The hands should be thoroughly washed after handling cats and before putting the hands to the face or in the mouth, for example before eating. This applies particularly to young children. Cats should not be allowed to lick the face, or to sleep with humans or on their beds. Also cats should not be allowed to lick plates and utensils used for human food, and their own feeding bowls should be washed separately from crockery and cutlery used by humans.
Children’s sandpits should be covered not it is use to prevent them being used as a litter trays. Latter boxes should be changed daily and the cat’s faced ideally burned, although this should not be carried out by a pregnant woman. It is advised that a pregnant woman should avoid looking after a cat, and should wear gloves for gardening to avoid possible contact with Toxoplasma. These recommendations may appear extreme, but they have been suggested as measures to reduce the hazards of Toxoplasma infection in pregnancy.
Cats should be fed only dried, canned or cooked meat to avoid infecting the cat with parasites which in turn could be acquired by man. Also to destroy Toxoplasma in its infective form, all meat for human consumption should be adequately cooked, and hands that been in contact with raw meat should be well washed with soap and water. Finally, although it is difficult to destroy the stick roundworm eggs of cats, they can be removed from the environment by thorough scrubbing of effected surface with hot detergent solution followed by a thorough rinsing down.
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