4-Feline House:
Actually, my cat has indeed been spayed! She was spayed before I adopted her, though. Are spayed cats less likely to have bad reactions to anesthesia? I was just concerned because I remember hearing about someone's cat who took a long time to come out of anesthesia. That sounded kind of scary. But maybe reactions vary from cat to cat...

kmwright:
Thank you! What you wrote rang a bell. I think my cat's vet (who is a strictly kitty-vet, by the way) was talking about exactly what you wrote -- pulling the retained primary teeth. Now I remember. Okay, I feel less hesitant now about taking my cat in to have those teeth removed. No big deal, right?

Thanks to everyone for all of their feedback and advice!