Can Cats Nurse After Being Spayed – Here’s The Details

If you have just gotten a new female cat or are helping take care of a neighborhood stray, you may be looking into getting them spayed. Spaying is always recommended when taking care of neighborhood strays to help lessen the number of stray kittens produced. It is also highly recommended for new pets to maintain peace in your home with other animals and to ensure your cat’s comfort. But what if your cat just had kittens? Do you have to wait a certain amount of time? Should you spay them right away? Can cats nurse after being spayed?

Yes, cats can nurse after being spayed.

It is safe to have the mother cat spayed about five weeks after the kittens are born. Even after she is spayed, she will most likely continue to lactate and can nurse her kittens for however long they need to be nursed.

How Long After Spaying Can A Cat Nurse

Mother cats can be returned to their kittens to continue nursing roughly 12-24 hours after being spayed. They will have recovered enough to care for their young within this period. Traditional spaying techniques tend to work fine for all cats, and most recover quickly. Your veterinarian may perform a flank, or side spay, where the incision is made on her side instead of her belly. This helps the incision to avoid irritation from her kittens kneading her belly as she nurses. 

You should try to return her to her kittens as soon as possible. If she needs some aid in her recovery, she can be given subcutaneous fluids post-operatively. Once back with her kittens, she will begin to nurse and take care of them. If you are returning the cats outdoors, return them to the same spot you trapped them so they can be in a familiar area. 

Why Is My Cat Lactating After Being Spayed

The hormones that cause a cat to lactate begin the process about a month before they give birth. Spaying a cat does not eliminate or interfere with this process that has already been in motion for a long period.

They will continue to lactate until their kittens are weaned off of their milk. They will either do this independently or with your assistance by introducing canned food and kibble. Typically at about 5 or 6 weeks, the kittens will be weaned off their mother’s milk. Around this time is when your cat will stop lactating, and it will become very rare for them to lactate in the future. 

Can A Spayed Female Nurse Kittens

A spayed female can nurse kittens. You may want to spay your mother cat while their kittens are still nursing to ensure another pregnancy won’t happen. It takes roughly five weeks for kittens to wean off their mother’s milk. About five weeks after giving birth, a cat can also go into heat and become pregnant again.

To make sure this doesn’t happen, you can have your cat spayed right before that 5-week mark hits. Within 12-24 hours of the procedure, your cat can be returned to her kittens, where it will be safe for her to nurse and continue to care for them. Then once they have been weaned off of her milk, you won’t have to worry about her becoming immediately pregnant, and she can take her time to recover.

Can A Cat That Has Never Had Kittens Nurse

Surprisingly enough, a cat that has never had kittens actually can nurse. This is called pseudopregnancy, and cats who have been spayed and have never had kittens will begin to lactate. This is because hormones in their bodies that are causing an excessive amount of hormones to develop. Try to ensure they don’t nurse on anything like socks or toys because this behavior will prolong the pseudopregnancy.

Your cat may grow out of this, or it may continue to frequently happen; it just depends on your cat and the hormones they are developing. If you also have other kittens that nurse on this cat, even though she is not their mother, she may continue to produce milk for them. Keep your cats apart until the kittens are old enough not to nurse, and your older cat should not experience lactation. 

Why Does My Cat Nurse On My Other Cat

Your cat may nurse on your other cat because they find the action comforting. They may find it mutually comforting, and if they are close to each other and have spent a lot of time together, it will make it even more likely for them to feel this comfortable with each other. This is a more common behavior in households where a kitten has been introduced to an older spayed cat.

If the older cat has had kittens before, she may be more inclined to allow the kitten to nurse with her because it will feel like when she had her litter. Even if she hasn’t had kittens before, some cats just find it comforting to allow other cats to nurse. Kittens taken from their mothers too soon may look for other cats to nurse on to feel some comfort themselves.

There is no harm in allowing your cats to nurse each other. As long as their stomachs and teats are not getting red, dry, or irritated, they are fine to continue nursing. 

Do Spayed Cats Still Have Maternal Instincts

Spayed cats do still have their maternal instincts. Not many cats change after being spayed and will still continue to have whatever maternal instincts they had before, especially if they have kittens themselves. Even after being spayed, they will still want to nurse and care for their kittens. They will still have maternal instincts if they haven’t had kittens after being spayed. These instincts are just natural in female cats. If you have an older female cat and you introduce a kitten as a new pet, your older cat will likely start to care for this kitten.

Things To Consider

It is important to consider that the safest period for a cat to be spayed after giving birth is at about five weeks. Around five weeks is also when her kittens should be weaning off of her milk. Five weeks is also when she can enter heat again and become pregnant. You must be mindful of this timeline to ensure your cat’s health and safety. Keep them indoors if you can so you do not run the risk of them becoming pregnant at that 5-week mark.

Schedule the appointment to have them spayed ahead of time, so you don’t have to worry about the veterinarian’s office is too busy. It is unlikely your cat will even need to continue nursing her kittens after being spayed, especially if you introduce canned food and kibble to their diets. Then you don’t even have to worry about her nursing after being spayed. However, if her kittens are not ready to be fully weaned, she will nurse them for however long they need.