Neutering your cat

What are the reasons for neutering cats?

The main reason for neutering cats is to prevent the birth of unwanted kittens. If un-neutered cats are going out in the same area, they will find each other and pregnancy will be the result. Rescue centres all over the country overflow with unwanted cats already. There are effects of neutering that will make a cat a better pet, particularly in the male cat. Neutering will reduce roaming (to find a mate), fighting and territorial marking (urine spraying). Neutered cats are more likely to stay around their home and so have more contact with the owner. “Kittenish” behaviour, such as playing and affection, are often better preserved in a neutered cat, and such behaviour is usually appealing.

Male Cats: When should castration be done?

Male cats can be castrated as soon as the testicles are large enough for the surgeon to find. This is usually from about 5 months of age. Occasionally a testicle will not have descended into the scrotum by this age, so if this is the case it can be worth waiting a little longer.

What care is required after castration?

Usually a cat only needs to be kept indoors overnight after castration, to allow the wound to seal and full recovery from the anaesthetic. Some cats will lick the wound and if this becomes excessive this can cause a problem, so a special collar may be required if they pay too much attention.

Female Cats: When should a cat be spayed?

Female cats can be spayed from 5 months of age, although a small number of cats will not be big enough at this age. All can be spayed by 6 months of age. Although the average age for a cat to be capable of breeding is about 9 months, it can be a young as 5 months, so it is possible that could be pregnant even if spaying at 5-6 months of age. It is possible to spay a cat when pregnant, but in the later stages of pregnancy this increases the risks with the surgery.

What does spaying involve?

Spaying requires a general anaesthetic, during which the ovaries and uterus are removed. Once under anaesthetic, an area of hair is clipped and an incision will be made either in the left flank or lengthways along the midline of the abdomen. The choice of incision site will often depend on the surgeon, but in ‘colour-point’ cats (such as Siamese) clipped hair tends to grow back a darker colour initially, so it is a good idea to clip midline so this is not obvious.

Once the incision is made into the abdomen, the uterus and ovaries are located, the blood vessels of the ovaries are tied off, the uterus is tied off near the cervix and the uterus and ovaries are removed. The muscles and skin are stitched as separate layers. The stitches used may require removal or may be dissolvable – that will depend on the choice of the surgeon.

What care is required after spaying? It is advisable to keep a cat indoors for 1 week after spaying to reduce the amount of running around and jumping while the muscle layers are healing. Too much pressure on the stitches too early can cause problems. Some cats will lick or chew at their stitches which can cause a problem, so a special collar may be required to prevent this if they pay too much attention.

What risks are there with neutering?

Neutering requires a general anaesthetic and all anaesthetics carry a small risk of the animal not recovering. The risks are very small with modern anaesthetic techniques (less than one in 2,000) and most are now associated with something wrong with the animal. A full examination prior to the anaesthetic by a vet is important as it should pick up many problems, and a pre-anaesthetic blood test will screen for others. Infection of any surgical wound is possible. A long-acting antibiotic injection given at the time of the operation will prevent most infections, but they still occur sometimes. Infections usually show up as swelling and pain at the surgical wound. Further courses of antibiotic tablets will be required.

After spaying, it is possible swelling of the wound or even for the stitching of the muscle layers to break apart, forming a hernia. This is most likely if the cat does a lot of jumping and running around too soon after the operation. Too much licking or chewing at stitches can cause a wound to re-open, requiring the wound to stitched again. A collar may be required to prevent this.