Cat's Surgery Canceled as Vet Makes Shocking Discovery in Viral Clip

A cat foster parent has left the internet in stitches after making a shocking discovery about her pet that even the vet had missed for a long time.

The video was shared on TikTok on Saturday under the username Meowdymonica and already has 1.4 million views. In the clip, the cat owner said that, after taking her pet to the vet to get spayed, the doctor, who had already shaved the animal for surgery, discovered that her animal wasn't female. The male cat just looked like a female because one of his testicles is missing.

The post comes with a caption that reads: "When everyone, including the vet, thought you were a girl so they shave you to be spayed just to realize you are actually just a boy missing a ball." It is followed by: "And no, they did not find Salem's missing ball." In the comments section, the cat owner also added: "Sadly he had to have exploratory surgery to find the other ball and they didn't so he has to go back."

The cat's foster mom, Monica, told Newsweek: "Salem is our foster who we got from a local shelter almost 2 months ago. When he went in for his initial check-up at the vet, we were told he was female. At this time, he was about 5 weeks old, which is usually old enough to tell a cat's sex.

"About a month later, once he had gained enough weight to be spayed, he went in for the surgery. We were told his belly was shaved for the spay before they realized he was in fact a male. When they performed the neuter surgery instead, they discovered he only had one dropped testicle. Because of this, he had to have exploratory surgery in his abdomen to try and find the undropped testicle. They, unfortunately, did not find it, so he will have to go back in when he is about 6 months old to try and locate the other testicle.

"For now, he is recovering nicely and we hope he will be adopted soon! His future owner will be made aware of his situation so he can get the proper future care he needs. Luckily, the name Salem fits both male and female cats alike!"

Neutering a cat is important. Not only does it prevent unwanted pregnancies, but also it curbs unwanted behavioral patterns associated with sexual maturity as well as reduces the risk of certain diseases, according to the not-for-profit organization International Cat Care.

The video quickly gained popularity on social media, gaining viewers and 187,000 likes from across TikTok.

One user, Vicky, commented: "My fur baby Eli was also born with 1 ball. the vet told me he may not need to be spayed bc [because] it may not work. Next thing I know I had grandkittens." And Jesse wrote: "I had the opposite we thought my first cat was a boy until she got pregnant."

Kristen posted: "This happened to me with my cat he looked female outside they opened him up to spay him and realized he was male."

Another user, Quirell, commented: "Why is this such a common occurrence, the same thing happened to my cat Goob and his ball was inside him." And NerdyGamerGirl101 added: "had a friend thought their kitten was a girl until I looked at the underbelly & realized there are 2 little danglers & questioned them on that."

Update 6/22/23 11:12 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comments from the OP, Monica, and new pictures.

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