Cat has pulled her spay stitches for 2nd time - Help!

Hello,

I know you have many questions about cat spay wounds and stitches but we are at our wits end with our cat care problem. I live in Uganda and 11 days ago we had our 11 month old cat spayed. She was sent home with a soft cat collar and was back to her usual self straight away. We were told to keep her quiet, which we did as best we could.

6 days after my cat was spayed, she managed to pull out a stitch. I took her back to the veterinarian who said it was fine as it was just a surface stitch. I was told to keep an eye on it and keep it clean. 2 days after that (8 days after the cat operation) she jumped up and managed to totally open the wound! It didn't seem to have healed at all. It didn't bleed and there was no sign of stitches underneath, just shiny pink skin. The hole was quite big though, so I took her back to the veterinarian 2 days ago and she re-stitched the cat wound and sent her home with a hard collar.

Yesterday she was cleaning and a stitch came out, I think the hard edge of the collar might have rubbed against it. This morning it is slightly bloody around the area where she pulled it and looks like the wound is opening again. I just don’t know what to do. I can take her back to the veterinarian but am worried she didn't do such a great job with my cat care in the first place and there aren't many vets to choose from here. Will it heal on its own and, if so, should I use iodine or something to keep it clean?


We try to keep her quiet but if we shut her in the utility room she cries and jumps up and down trying to reach the door handle.

Thanks so much. We are so worried!


Without knowing how many layers of sutures are there or seeing your cat’s incision, unfortunately, I cannot safely say whether or not your cat’s surgery wounds will heal on their own. Most cat wounds will heal on their own, but considering the location of your cat’s incision, the number of layers of sutures is very important. Even though you may not be able to see sutures in the lower layers, there should be some, and verifying this with your veterinarian will be very important to determine what is best for your cat care.

My biggest concern would be that if your cat can pull out or access the sutures in the deeper layers, she could potentially expose her intestines and other organs in her abdomen. Keeping in touch with your veterinarian about your cat care problem is critical.

Ultimately, you may need to try to contact another veterinarian if you are not satisfied with your cat’s care. If you could ask your veterinarian how many layers of stitches there are, and if you would like to submit a photo of your cat’s wound and send it to me, I would be happy to try to provide more of an opinion about the likelihood of her wound healing on its own.

Best wishes,
Dr. Neely