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My cat's spay incision is dry and flaky. Is this normal after surgery?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Female | spayed | 5 lbs

Hi there. My cat was recently spayed. She’s on the fifth day of recovery and I noticed the skin around the incision is a little dry and flaky. Is this normal?

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Rodrigo Roca, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 22nd, 2019

Hello, I am glad your kitten is recovering smoothly from her procedure. It looks like the skin may be a little dry from the cleaning agents used to prep patients for surgery. However, this should resolve/improve within a few days. If at her 10-14 day post-operative, her skin is still not looking healed, your veterinarian may chose to perform additional diagnostics at the site. Alternatively, if your kitten is licking at the area, she may be causing some irritation to the skin there. Please make sure she is not licking the area by placing an e-collar on her if necessary. Monitor the are for any swelling, redness, discharge and contact your veterinarian if you note any as this could indicate a local infection or reaction to the suture material. Hope this helps and best of luck.

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