Suppose you don’t say your young cat going into heat—quite often. At least you’ll need to think like that’s the case since frequent heat cycles are a real possibility when keeping an under-spayed cat, says pet expert Margot Hohenwald.
She defines a heat cycle as “a period when a [female] cat ovulates and can conceive.
“So, if you’re wondering how often cats go into heat exactly, then this needs to be thought about seriously by anyone who hasn’t had their female feline spayed yet!
1. How Long Does a Cat Stay in Heat?
Spaying a cat at an early age is necessary for their health and keeping their numbers controlled. Spaying a cat helps greatly control overpopulation because cats can get pregnant as early as four months old!
They will go into heat every two to three weeks, each cycle lasting about three to five days. Your cat’s heat cycles will continue until they are spayed (which we recommend) or get pregnant.
2. What Happens When Cats Go into Heat?
Heat cycles occur when a cat’s body is hormonally ready and receptive to becoming pregnant. During the cycle, your cat may be more vocal at nighttime if she smells potential mates outside.
Also, Hohenwald suggests that your cat may be more willing to have her rear end petted than usual and may even rub it on you during this time.
Some cats on the prowl in heat will mark their territory more often by urinating more than usual or spraying it onto vertical obstacles.
While their behavior may be a bit strange, what’s releasing this scent is a hormone that helps attract male cats.
3. Do Cats Bleed While in Heat?
Unless cats are spayed, they go into heat cycles in which they exhibit behaviors associated with mating.
It is best to keep your cat indoors during their cycle as the behavior of intact cats can be heightened and more aggressive during this time. Best bet if you have a female cat is to get them spayed!
4. Timing the Spay Surgery
If your cat is ready to give birth, and you’ve decided to wait until the kittens are up for adoption and ready to go, then it’s important to keep a few things in mind. For example, (cat) you may want to plan.
Remember that cats in heat continue going into heat until they mate and can stay that way for anywhere from days to weeks after their last mating.
This means if your cat is showing signs of going into heat weeks after the pregnancy was supposed to end, let your vet know as soon as possible so that she can find a good time slot for the spay surgery with your vet before it’s too late!
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5. Spaying a Cat in Heat
When a cat is in heat, the blood vessels that supply the reproductive organs and surrounding tissues become engorged with blood.
In some cases, this can make them more prone to tearing, which requires additional time and attention for the surgery than what is usually required for routine spay procedures. Still, it helps increase surgical precision.
It will be more expensive too because of the extra time and supplies needed. Though the increased risk to your cat is minor, some vets prefer not to complete any surgery on a cat in heat just as a precautionary measure.
