Can a spayed cat go into heat? At first, this may sound like a truly ridiculous question, because spaying is irreversible surgery. But if your spayed female cat suddenly begins to act like she is in heat, it becomes more a matter of logical reasoning.
Is your cat meowing, rolling on the floor, calling for a mate and showing other signs of being in heat even though she is spayed? There may be two plausible explanations for this behavior.
- Some of the ovarian tissue is left in your cat’s body. Most of a female cat’s in-heat behavior is due to the hormone progesterone. Its production is induced by the ovaries, and even a small amount of ovarian tissue left over after the surgery may trigger it.
- You are mistaking signs of something else with being in heat. Maybe your cat is just loud because of boredom or is stressed by something. Restlessness and extreme vocalization can point either to medical or to behavioral problems.
So what should you do? Your veterinarian should run a test for the hormone progesterone to confirm whether your cat, even though she is spayed, has come into heat.
If the test says no, the progesterone is low, then your cat is NOT in heat. Your veterinarian should look for other causes of the odd behavior exhibited by your cat.
In the test says yes, the cat appears to be in heat, then you will need to discuss possible future steps with your veterinarian. Most likely, this will involve a repeated surgery to remove the leftover tissue.
In many cases, however, it may not be so easy to explain. If your spayed cat appears to be in heat, talk carefully to your veterinarian about this, and don’t be shy about asking for a second opinion from other veterinarians, too.
Find more information about cats in heat here.