What age to spay a cat

Female cats are most often spayed or neutered from the age of 6 months. But juvenile sterilization (from the age of 2 months) can be practiced. It allows to avoid unwanted litters before the sterilization and to reduce kittens abandonment.

If you don't want your cat to reproduce, then it is highly recommended to have her spayed.

Sterilization has several benefits, it allows in particular:

- avoid unwanted litters
- reduce the risk or avoid certain medical problems. For example, spaying females before the age of 6 months reduces the risk of mammary tumors by 91%.
- avoid certain undesirable behaviors: excessive meowing and marking during heat periods, fighting...

 

Spay a cat

Female cats are most often spayed or neutered from the age of 6 months.

It is also important to know that even if cats generally have their first heat around the age of 6 months, some cats can reproduce as early as 4 months old!

Spaying female cats at 6 months of age does not allow you to 100% avoid a litter before the first heat.

Juvenile sterilization of female cats (from the age of 2 months) is therefore a solution to avoid unwanted litters before sterilization and thus reduce kitten abandonment.

Juvenile sterilization is widely performed in England and in the United Kingdom but still little in France. For the moment, it is mainly requested by breeders or shelters. The kittens are then placed in their new families identified, sterilized and vaccinated.

It is important to know that juvenile sterilization has no impact on the growth of kittens.

Regardless of the age at which spaying is performed, it is important to monitor the weight of the female cats. Indeed, spayed cats are prone to overweight: their energy needs are reduced while their appetite is increased. With an adapted diet, it is possible to maintain your pet at a correct weight.