Neutering your kitten

Many veterinary surgeons believe that spaying or neutering not only helps solve the serious problem of a burgeoning population of unwanted cats but also makes for friendlier, easier-to-live-with pets. Spayed female cats are more relaxed, playful and affectionate, while castrated males are calmer and less likely to 'spray' or urine-mark their territory, wander away from their home or fight. Plus, sterilisation has health benefits - it minimizes the risk of mammary cancer in females and reduces the incidence of prostate problems in males.

Spaying removes the uterus and ovaries of a female cat, usually around the age of six months. A major surgical procedure, it is performed under general anaesthesia. Complications are rare and recovery is normally complete within ten days.

Castration, also carried out under general anaesthesia, removes the testicles of a male cat. The small wounds that result usually heal in about a week. Less complicated than spaying, it is often performed when the cat is 6 to 12 months old.