Why neuter your cat

The surgical neutering procedure is done in a vet's office under general anesthesia. Your vet will explain it to you and give you specific instructions for pre- and post-operative care. Expect to withhold food and water from your cat the night before surgery and to bring your cat to the veterinary office by a particular time.

During surgery, your cat will be given an anesthetic so they won't feel or be aware of what's happening. For male cats, a small incision is made on the testicles, and the testicles are removed.

The incision is closed with either dissolvable sutures or surgical glue. Male cats can usually come home with you the same night unless there are complications or special concerns. If so, your vet will tell you if you can pick your male cat up the same evening. Because this is a larger incision in the abdominal cavity, she's are usually kept overnight for observation. Your cat can usually go home the next day.

Some vets fit the cat with a cone or Elizabethan collar, a paper or plastic sleeve that fits around the neck like a funnel. This keeps your pet from scratching, biting, or licking at the surgical site while it's healing. Most cats do not need special medication or after care. If your vet wants to see your cat again after the surgery, however, be sure to bring her in on time. Probably not. After neutering, your cat will return to her old, playful self very quickly.

Rest assured she'll still be the same cat you've always known and loved. Some cats gain weight more rapidly after neutering, so it's important to make sure kitty is kept active and fed right. The benefits of neutering a cat far outweigh any drawbacks. Yes, it can be scary to bring your beloved pet in for surgery, but your concerns going in are small and well worth it when you consider the higher risks of unwanted kittens, escaping outdoors and getting into trouble with other animals.

If you haven't already done so, talk to your vet about having your cat neutered. Jeanne Grunert is a book author, blogger and freelance writer from Virginia. She cares for six rescued cats and a rescued dog named Shadow on her 17 acre farm in Virginia. Select Your Region. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram Youtube. As used herein, denotes registered trademark status in the U. Your use of this site is subject to the terms of our Legal Statement. About our Ads. Cookie Consent Tool.

Belgium - Belgique. Brazil - Brasil. Canada English. Costa Rica. Croatia - Hrvatska. Denmark - Danmark. Finland - Suomi. It can also minimize howling, the urge to roam and fighting with other males. In both cats and dogs, the longer you wait, the greater the risk of the surgery not doing the trick because the animal has practiced the behavior for a longer period of time, thereby reinforcing the habit.

Also, while having your pets spayed or neutered may help curb certain undesirable behaviors, it will not change their fundamental personalities. Caring for a pet with reproductive system cancer or pyometra can easily run thousands of dollars—five to 10 times as much as a routine spay or neuter surgery. In cases where intact dogs and cats may fight, treatment of their related injuries can also result in high veterinary costs.

Rabbits reproduce faster than dogs and cats and, in some regions, are the second most frequent species surrendered to shelters. Neutering male rabbits can also reduce hormone-driven behaviors such as lunging, mounting, spraying and boxing. And as with dogs and cats, spayed female rabbits are less likely to get ovarian, mammary and uterine cancers which can be prevalent in mature intact females. By spaying or neutering your pet, you can help protect them against certain illnesses, perhaps address certain unwanted behaviors and save money.

Your pet's health and longevity The average lifespan of spayed and neutered cats and dogs is demonstrably longer than the lifespan of those not. These are the best general recommendations that can be drawn from a thorough analysis of research currently available: Owned cats should be altered before they are 5 months old as they can become pregnant at 4 months of age and older.

Owned female dogs should be spayed before they are 5 months old. Owned small, medium and large breed male dogs should be neutered before they are 5 months old. Owned giant breed male dogs who are house pets should be neutered after growth stops, between 12 to 15 months of age due to orthopedic concerns. Owned giant breed male dogs who roam freely should be neutered before they are 5 months old due to the population concerns of unintended breeding.

By spaying your cat, you can prevent several unwanted behaviours including spraying and hours of yowling and you will not have to confine your cat for several weeks out of the year. Male cats that have not been neutered are also more difficult to care for. Sexually mature male cats often feel a need to mark their territory. Also the mating instincts in unneutered cats cannot be curbed or controlled and often these male cats will wander off for days at a time in search of a female that is in heat.

Sometimes when male cats wander they get lost and do not come home. By neutering your cat, you can prevent this. Often full toms wander just a bit too far and cross too many roads to become just another road traffic casualty.

If they are not killed outright by a car then they may have wandered so far from home that you are unlikely to find them to do something about their injuries. It is much better for your cat's health to be spayed or neutered. For example, female cats that are spayed before their first heat will have a much reduced chance of mammary cancer and will be unable to develop pyometra which is a serious uterine condition, both of which are main causes of death in cats.