What are the side effects and possible complications of surgery for my cat?

The medications that we use to sedate them will lower their blood pressure and heart rate. So, some of those effects we want, but we don't want too much of that. And we are sometimes taking away their ability to feel pain or to do those normal bodily functions. And so, we have to monitor to make sure that they are okay during those procedures and that we're not making them too low in the sedation.

Yes, there can be side effects and complications from cat surgery. Infection is one of the most common complications post-surgery. Cats sometimes lick their surgical sites which can lead to the site opening up, or dehiscence. Inflammation in the form of swelling can also occur. For instance, after a cat's spay operation, there could be seroma, or swelling, if the cat is too active too soon, causing fluid to get into the surgical site. A rare but serious complication is a complete dehiscence of a surgical wound, such as when an incision into the abdominal cavity comes undone. I've only seen this once in my career, it's very rare. But the way we prepare the surgical site and the aftercare your cat receives can help to reduce these risks.