On average early neutered cats grow an extra 2%. Kittens recover much quicker than older neutered cats. Go for it.

 

On average early neutered cats grow an extra 2%. Kittens recover much quicker than older neutered cats. Go for it.

Great, thanks! It just surprised me that they could be done so early! I'll speak to vet when he goes for his check next week

 

On average early neutered cats grow an extra 2%. Kittens recover much quicker than older neutered cats. Go for it.

oh wow do you mean height wise?, I know neutered young dogs tend to be taller and less bulky. I didn't know it applied to cats too. im getting my girl done as soon as possible once I've got her

 

Great, thanks! It just surprised me that they could be done so early! I'll speak to vet when he goes for his check next week

Sadly some vets are still not aware of this and won't neuter/spay until 5 or 6 months. It may be worth checking the CPL website for a vet in your area that does early neutering, just in case

 

I got Rocco neutered a bit later than his 4 months of age (he's a rescue) by our vet. I've heard that it depends a lot on the vet's experience, so I would talk to your vet to see how he feels.

Males stay under general anestesia for very little time, something like 5 minutes, the vet nurse told me, so the risks are very reduced. No stitches either.

Rocco had a great recovery. I left him in the vet in the morning and picked him up in the evening. He was absolutely normal. He wasn't even shaved. For those reasons for while we had doubts that the surgery had been really done He is 14 months now and still growing. Such a healthy boy that in all this time he never had any health issue and hasn't been to the vet since his neutering and microchipping (the vet suggested having him microchipped while under the general anestesia for his comfort). He also didn't develop the large face of male cats. I presume it's because of the early neutering.

Go for it.

 

Male cats, especially, will grow a lot bigger and sleeker if neutered early. Testosterone inhibits the production of growth hormone, so in neutering early, before the start of testosterone production, you ensure a tom will be producing more growth hormone for a longer period, and will therefore grow bigger.

He will not develop these typically masculine secondary characteristics like a short, sturdy, muscular body and a broad face, though. He will be sleeker, less like a boxer or weight lifter and more like an athlete.

None of this has any adverse effect on his health,it is just that he will develop in a different way due to the higher level of growth hormone and the absence of testosterone.

 

I have friends who've been early neutering their litters for 15-20 years with no issues. My oldest early neuter pets are 7 and no problems with them or any of my litters.

I get mine done at 10-11 weeks

Size also depends on genetics, one EN boy has a large head coming from lines of the same, my other boy from smaller lines has a finer head type.

 

Hmm, have to say that in my experience the complete opposite is true and early neutering *inhibits* growth.
Cats neutered early tend to be smaller than those left intact past puberty.


I have 2 adopted males who were neutered at 11/12 weeks old, and 2 female adopted cats, one was spayed at 12 weeks, the other at around 1year, after her litter of kittens were grown.

They are all the same size now and are relatively small cats, but the one spayed later I personally feel is small because she got pregnant when she was still really a kitten herself. I think it could possibly have had an effect on her growth.

The rescue I foster for nueters at 10 weeks+ (once they are over 1Kilo).

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered. But I understand that the rescue do it to reduce the number of stray cats and unwanted litters.

But, a responsible owner could keep the cat indoors until they are over 6 months old and then spay before letting the cat outside. None of my cats (that I had from being babies) went outside until they were over 6 months old anyway, so they could have been neutered later.

 

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered. But I understand that the rescue do it to reduce the number of stray cats and unwanted litters.

When I looked into it, I found that most of the research coming out of Australia (early neutering has been done for a long time over there, and I was actually quite surprised when I moved to Europe that it wasn't more common place here), shows that the opposite is true. In the short-term younger kittens had better recovery times and less complications than those neutered later, and long term there seems to be no real difference between the groups.

That being said, my two weren't done until 6-6 1/2 months, as my vet didn't do them younger than 6 months.

Like anything this is one of those issues where, in my opinion, there is no right or wrong answer, just so long as people get their cats done.

The main advantages I see with early neutering, is that it gives breeders and rescue organizations the piece of mind of knowing it is done and they are not relying on the new owners to follow through (many people believe that letting a cat have 1 litter is the right thing to do, or just want kittens etc or end up with an accidental litter because their cat called early or they waited too long).

 

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered

Assuming puberty means a heat cycle for girls, and ability to mate for males - in my breed that's 14-16 weeks of age. Those few weeks don't matter at all, far healthier to get them done before the first heat cycle, why let them cycle through several heat cycles to 6 months? Or have the boys being sexually frustrated

The research and breeder friends experiences with EN, along with my experience is enough for me to know I'm doing the right thing. It also guarantees that my kittens will never be used by bybs

 

I didn't know about early neutering until I became a member on here, all cats I've owned have been rescues and always neutered before I adopted them.

My Seb was neutered at 10 weeks by the rescue, he came home at 11 weeks. The rescue said he was fine and recovered well

He will be 2 years old at the end of July, he's a healthy boy, long, slender and lean. He's not a big boy, like most ginger toms I've seen or known, but that may not be down to to him being neutered early, could in his make up.

 

Hmm, have to say that in my experience the complete opposite is true and early neutering *inhibits* growth.
Cats neutered early tend to be smaller than those left intact past puberty.

I have 2 adopted males who were neutered at 11/12 weeks old, and 2 female adopted cats, one was spayed at 12 weeks, the other at around 1year, after her litter of kittens were grown.

They are all the same size now and are relatively small cats, but the one spayed later I personally feel is small because she got pregnant when she was still really a kitten herself. I think it could possibly have had an effect on her growth.

The rescue I foster for nueters at 10 weeks+ (once they are over 1Kilo).

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered. But I understand that the rescue do it to reduce the number of stray cats and unwanted litters.

But, a responsible owner could keep the cat indoors until they are over 6 months old and then spay before letting the cat outside. None of my cats (that I had from being babies) went outside until they were over 6 months old anyway, so they could have been neutered later.

This is one of the reasons I questioned it- with my dogs I generally prefer them to grow up first and then neuter them (I've just had my 14 month old dally done this week). Cats are a completely different kettle of fish though! I would like him to be able to go out and about, but wouldn't even consider it until he's neutered.

 

Thanks guys, will definitely be having a chat with my vet next week and see where we go from there. I'll look into other local vets if unavailable at my normal surgery

 

The Wikipedia article references the relevent research and summarises, and it's all good news for early neutering of cats. The catch in my view is you need to find a vet who is doing it regularly - not one that will do is as a favour to you - so they and their team are practised in getting it right.

Pediatric spaying - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

PS - I did check the references and several of them are to Susan Little who is a very well respected DVM in the US.

 

oh wow do you mean height wise?, I know neutered young dogs tend to be taller and less bulky. I didn't know it applied to cats too. im getting my girl done as soon as possible once I've got her

Just in general all over.

 

IT doesn't we EN our foster kittens and all the breeders I know EN their kittens at 10-14weeks of age

On average early neutered cats grow an extra 2%. Kittens recover much quicker than older neutered cats. Go for it.

All of the kittens we see are double the size of their parents! Being EN and the breeders we spoke to, the un-neutered ones they keep to breed are smaller than the EN litter mates!

Hmm, have to say that in my experience the complete opposite is true and early neutering *inhibits* growth.
Cats neutered early tend to be smaller than those left intact past puberty.

I have 2 adopted males who were neutered at 11/12 weeks old, and 2 female adopted cats, one was spayed at 12 weeks, the other at around 1year, after her litter of kittens were grown.

They are all the same size now and are relatively small cats, but the one spayed later I personally feel is small because she got pregnant when she was still really a kitten herself. I think it could possibly have had an effect on her growth.

The rescue I foster for nueters at 10 weeks+ (once they are over 1Kilo).

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered. But I understand that the rescue do it to reduce the number of stray cats and unwanted litters.

But, a responsible owner could keep the cat indoors until they are over 6 months old and then spay before letting the cat outside. None of my cats (that I had from being babies) went outside until they were over 6 months old anyway, so they could have been neutered later.

Sorry but this isn't true, they may just be small cats, not all cats are huge! HOWEVER! You do realise that some cats don't actually mature until 2-4years of age, so why neuter at 6 months? Even 12months old then? That isn't teenage phase end of puberty for them? So makes no sense to me, sorry!

Plus you CANT compare dogs and cats with EN, they are totally different

 

Hmm, have to say that in my experience the complete opposite is true and early neutering *inhibits* growth.
Cats neutered early tend to be smaller than those left intact past puberty.

I have 2 adopted males who were neutered at 11/12 weeks old, and 2 female adopted cats, one was spayed at 12 weeks, the other at around 1year, after her litter of kittens were grown.

They are all the same size now and are relatively small cats, but the one spayed later I personally feel is small because she got pregnant when she was still really a kitten herself. I think it could possibly have had an effect on her growth.

The rescue I foster for nueters at 10 weeks+ (once they are over 1Kilo).

Personally I believe it to be too young and feel it is healthier for an animal to go through puberty/maturity before being neutered. But I understand that the rescue do it to reduce the number of stray cats and unwanted litters.

But, a responsible owner could keep the cat indoors until they are over 6 months old and then spay before letting the cat outside. None of my cats (that I had from being babies) went outside until they were over 6 months old anyway, so they could have been neutered later.

The trouble with waiting for maturity or puberty - is that this differes in many cats and dogs - when is maturity? - the first call? - this can range for 4 months old to 18 months old. Cats that are neutered at 6 months are, in the main, early neutered - they won't have had their first call nor be mature. To wait until fully mature - in some slow growing breeds this can be at 4 years old - is just too late - for girls they will have called themselves to death (every 3 weeks for a week, not eating most of that time, and/ or developed pyometra. Their risks of getting mammary cancer will has greatly increased etc. Males will now be full of aggressive testosterone, spaying and fighting - habits not easily broken by late neutering.

The 2% statistic is from a series of proper studies - not anecdotal evidence. Personal belief is great - but the studies just show there is NO detrimental effect.