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veterinarian may believe an ear notch is the same thing as an eartip. Even if they doknow the difference, an inexperienced veterinarian may take too much or too little off thetip of the ear. Don’t take chances when a simple photograph or drawing will prevent amishap.• Arrange for emergency post-surgery veterinary careWith veterinarians experienced in spay/neuter, the incidence of post-surgicalcomplications is very low. Still, it’s best to plan what you would do in the rare eventsomething does go wrong after the cat has been returned to your care. You want to makethese plans before the cats are returned to you, not afterwards when you’re in the middleof a crisis. First, see if your spay/neuter provider will be available at all times after thesurgeries. If not, locate any 24 hour or other emergency care veterinary facilities in yourarea. You can also try to arrange for another veterinarian, even if he didn’t perform thespay/neuter surgery, to be available in an emergency.Two situations which could require post-surgical emergency care are pools of bloodor prolonged unconsciousness. Drops of blood around the scrotum for males or the spayincision for females are normal, as is urine tinged with blood for the first day or two afterthe procedure. A pool of blood, even 1/8 th of a cup, is not normal and requires immediateattention. Likewise, if a cat is not fully conscious a couple of hours after the surgery, thisis cause for immediate action. Usually, a clinic will not return the cats to you until theyare fully conscious, but sometimes it isn’t possible for them to hold or observe them forthat long. In particular, some mobile spay/neuter clinics – van or MASH-style - mayneed to return the cats to you earlier than is ideal. Types of veterinary treatmentThe standard treatment for feral cats being returned to their colonies includes (1)spay/neuter, (2) eartipping and (3) rabies vaccination when required by law or when it’sknown rabies is present in the local environment. Some clinics may also include in theirstandard feral cat package an FVRCP vaccine, flea treatment, ear mite medication and/orworm medication. A few will also do dental work. Normally, however, these additionaltreatments are considered optional and will cost extra.Parasite medication (fleas, ear mites and worms) is not usually part of the standardtreatment because it’s normal for a healthy cat living outdoors to have a certain, tolerablelevel of parasites present. If medication is applied, the parasites will return when it wearsoff. This makes investing limited funds in these treatments of questionable utility. If aninfestation is severe, treatment should be sought and the extra cost incurred. In theseextreme cases, the parasites could cause serious health issues, such as fleas causinganemia, worms causing weight loss or ear mites resulting in wounds from the catscratching behind his ears. Be aware that when parasites rise to this level, it can be a signof another underlying health issue such as a weakened immune system. Often, if effortsare made to upgrade the cat’s shelter and nutrition, a recurrence of the infestation can beavoided.115