I adopted my two cats, Zeus and Apollo, from a rescue when they were 6 months old. I had them neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated by a vet affiliated with the charity, whom I didn't know.
They’re a year old now. This morning Apollo went missing (they’re allowed out during the day) and I found him with a female cat in heat. Since he’d wandered quite far and the road is busy, I brought him back inside, but now he’s calling for her and attacking his brother... Is this normal for a neutered cat, or is it possible the operation wasn't done properly?
Translated from French
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Has anyone ever had to have their cat re-operated on? Did you have to pay to get the problem sorted? In my case, the vet performed the op on my girl but only removed one ovary. Because she only has one kidney, he assumed she only had one ovary too and couldn't find the other one. The issue is that she’s now in heat and it’s bad—she’s howling and constantly trying to get outside. I’m actually heading off quite soon and I can’t leave her like this. She seems to be in so much pain, and she’s still just a kitten. Since she travels with me from house to house, it’s a real nightmare. But my vet says it’s going to cost about £800 to go back in and try to find the remaining ovary. Personally, I feel it’s the vet’s fault for not finishing the surgery properly. I don't think I should be the one paying for it.
I’ve spoken to the vet on the phone and we’re going to check that both testicles were actually removed, but if there’s still one there, I’ll have him re-operated on. I don’t want him wandering off after the first female he comes across. On top of that, he’s calling out for them all day and night—it’s becoming unbearable.
I’VE ONLY GOT neutered males and it’s happened before where one male mounts the other even though they’re both snipped
no it’s not down to dominance because the one getting mounted is the most well-behaved and gentle one, unlike the one doing the mounting who has a really strong personality and he kept that despite being neutered (but I already knew neutering wouldn't change a cat’s temperament)
I’ve read that if even a tiny bit of hormonal tissue is left behind, because sometimes it’s hidden away, it can cause mating behaviour or it could be a retained testicle that stayed inside when they thought there was only one
the vet isn’t to blame because the tissue is sometimes so hidden that it’s not accessible, but if there is a second testicle then I reckon that would show up on an X-ray
you’d need to get a hormone test done, it’ll be a blood test to check his hormone levels and see if it’s down to the neutering or not
personally I’d just leave it as it is, I’m not having the cat put under the knife again
Hi there,
This kind of behaviour is rare but not unheard of; having said that, it’s often the case with cats that were neutered later in life.
There’s also the possibility, as you’ve mentioned, that the neutering wasn't done quite right. This can happen if your cat had an undescended and/or atrophied testicle that the vet thought they’d removed but didn't actually manage to. It’s worth getting the necessary checks done to be sure, as a retained testicle could lead to serious health problems for your cat.
