Dr. Cris Bird
Savannah Super Cat
Sorry, I originally posted this as a "reply" to Per's introduction. I was reading replies and didn't see a way to start a new thread. Now that I see the "new thread" option was on the first page, I am re-posting properly.
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Hello Per, I have a question for you. It's pertaining to a Chausie queen, not a Savannah, but the two breeds often have similar issues. This was a young queen that developed a surprising amount of mammary development during a false pregnancy. The mammary glands became swollen and sore. The condition persisted long after the false pregnancy was over. When she became pregnant later, the mammary glands became swollen very early in the pregnancy. By the time the kittens were born, the glands were painful and engorged. I had to hand-feed the kittens until they were weaning age, as it was nearly impossible for them to nurse. I saw the same kind of exaggerated and prolonged mammary swelling several other times. I finally realized it was mammary hyperplasia. My generalist vet had not dealt with that before, but it didn't matter. By then I had decided to spay the queen because it was obvious that it was neither kind nor practical to keep breeding her. By the time I realized what I was dealing with, I had been breeding the queen for 2 years. She didn't suffer anything but some discomfort from the swelling. However, I remember reading somewhere that mammary hyperplasia can lead to mammary ulcers and infections. In the future, if I see mammary hyperplasia in, for example, female relatives of the queen, should they be spayed immediately? In other words, just how risky is the condition? Thanks.
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Hello Per, I have a question for you. It's pertaining to a Chausie queen, not a Savannah, but the two breeds often have similar issues. This was a young queen that developed a surprising amount of mammary development during a false pregnancy. The mammary glands became swollen and sore. The condition persisted long after the false pregnancy was over. When she became pregnant later, the mammary glands became swollen very early in the pregnancy. By the time the kittens were born, the glands were painful and engorged. I had to hand-feed the kittens until they were weaning age, as it was nearly impossible for them to nurse. I saw the same kind of exaggerated and prolonged mammary swelling several other times. I finally realized it was mammary hyperplasia. My generalist vet had not dealt with that before, but it didn't matter. By then I had decided to spay the queen because it was obvious that it was neither kind nor practical to keep breeding her. By the time I realized what I was dealing with, I had been breeding the queen for 2 years. She didn't suffer anything but some discomfort from the swelling. However, I remember reading somewhere that mammary hyperplasia can lead to mammary ulcers and infections. In the future, if I see mammary hyperplasia in, for example, female relatives of the queen, should they be spayed immediately? In other words, just how risky is the condition? Thanks.