Cat Neuter?

[Ch98579]

I’m really happy I found this community after years of dealing with sub par big box companies BUT…….let’s get down to brass tax. My daughter got a rescue kitten this summer. He’s really sweet, fits right in with our family and it’s almost time to get him neutered if we’re going to. We’re hesitant to do it just because but wanted to see what others thought. He stays inside and is our only cat (also have one small dog). We don’t want to do it if it’s just to make him a calmer cat. Does anyone have experience with this? Any advice would be helpful. Thanks y’all.

[IjustFeltLikeRunnin’]

Welcome! And kudos for the rescue kitty. I have 2 of my own.

In response to your question: In all honesty, if you plan on keeping him a fully indoor cat, neutering him is a must. The need to reproduce will eventually drive him to do everything in his power to get outside and find a mate. He will also become very territorial once he’s reached sexual maturity, and will probably start “marking” around your home. Male cats have a much stronger scent to their urine, and it’s damn near impossible to get that smell out once it’s on something.

When you referred to making him “just a calmer cat”, it’s more about taking away the tunnel vision of a sexually mature animal driven 100% by testosterone, who has a vendetta to make babies, beat out any and all competition, and protect its domain, and turning him into a companion with the potential to live a longer and healthier life.

When we got our first puppy, a female daschshund, I too felt wrong in taking away an animals ability to reproduce. Well, when she was 7 she died horribly of Pyometra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyometra). Something that was completely and easily preventable if we had just spayed her. We had no intentions of breeding her, so no real legitimate reason to not do it.

All of our pets since have been “fixed”.

In short, you are absolutely doing him, and yourselves a favor by getting it done.

[herbalhippie]

All male cats should be neutered, unless you're going to breed them. Anything else is just asking for headaches.

Good on you for the rescue!

[Ch98579]

Welcome! And kudos for the rescue kitty. I have 2 of my own.

In response to your question: In all honesty, if you plan on keeping him a fully indoor cat, neutering him is a must. The need to reproduce will eventually drive him to do everything in his power to get outside and find a mate. He will also become very territorial once he’s reached sexual maturity, and will probably start “marking” around your home. Male cats have a much stronger scent to their urine, and it’s damn near impossible to get that smell out once it’s on something.

When you referred to making him “just a calmer cat”, it’s more about taking away the tunnel vision of a sexually mature animal driven 100% by testosterone, who has a vendetta to make babies, beat out any and all competition, and protect its domain, and turning him into a companion with the potential to live a longer and healthier life.

When we got our first puppy, a female daschshund, I too felt wrong in taking away an animals ability to reproduce. Well, when she was 7 she died horribly of Pyometra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyometra). Something that was completely and easily preventable if we had just spayed her. We had no intentions of breeding her, so no real legitimate reason to not do it.

All of our pets since have been “fixed”.

In short, you are absolutely doing him, and yourselves a favor by getting it done.

Wow Thank you so much. That settles that. I’ll be making the appointment soon. Sorry to hear about your dog that’s heartbreaking. Thank you again.

[SeventhHeaven]

* What herbalhippie said *

Yep. Yep. Yep.

And I worked for a veterinarian for a few years in my youth, plus I bred and showed Abyssinian cats many moons ago.

Congrats in the new kitteh!

[IndelibleDotInk]

You could wait for him to pass adolescence before you neuter him, the testosterone will help his body develop, but a lot of vets will tell you to neuter as early as possible. It's great that you will get him snipped, like ^ said, it's way more practical and will help you and the cat out immensely. Kudos for being so responsible.

ps you should let him get used to a toothbrush daily and pushing pills down his throat at this early age so you can easily do it in the future. It takes a minute or two to brush, but lots of infections of the gums and teeth are avoided. I did this with my dog and it worked great.

[Ch98579]

You could wait for him to pass adolescence before you neuter him, the testosterone will help his body develop, but a lot of vets will tell you to neuter as early as possible. It's great that you will get him snipped, like ^ said, it's way more practical and will help you and the cat out immensely. Kudos for being so responsible.

ps you should let him get used to a toothbrush daily and pushing pills down his throat at this early age so you can easily do it in the future. It takes a minute or two to brush, but lots of infections of the gums and teeth are avoided. I did this with my dog and it worked great.

Really valuable info. Thank you