What is involved in neutering my male cat and what are the advantages?
Castration is the term applied to the procedure of surgically removing the testicles. When castration is performed before sexual maturity at 4-6 month of age, it reduces the sex instinct. This tends to eliminate the fighting and night prowling so common in the male cat. Castration also eliminates the very strong, objectionable urine odor of the intact male cat. Castration at 4-6 months of age does not lead to urinary problems later on in life. Castration of sexually mature cats tends to stop them from fighting with other males, but established behavior patterns of night prowling and fighting may still continue. Remember that cats are night hunters by nature and while castration will stop the tendency to compete for female cats, it usually will not diminish the cat’s natural tendency to hunt. The operation is performed under general anesthesia. The testicles are removed through two small incisions in the scrotum. The incisions are left open to heal, so there are not any sutures to remov
