Desexing Kittens at 8 Weeks Old
AdminAUSTRALIA: Veterinary researchers say a national rethink on the age cats can be desexed could have a positive impact on the number of kittens being put to sleep in shelters every year, as well as reduce the number of feral cats.
These researchers have conducted a first study in Australia that shows cats can be spayed or neutered safely within the first three months of their lives.
Usually, cats are desexed around six months of age but can become pregnant from just three months of age.
One female cat can have up to 40 kittens per year leaving little wonder why 100,000 cats are taken to animal shelters in Australia alone annually.
The outcome for most cats and kittens in pounds and shelters is being put to sleep.
Cat Protection Society of New South Wales CEO Kristina Vesk said part of the problem has been kittens being born to cats which are under six months of age that have not yet been desexed.
“It is such a frequent occurrence for us to encounter really good responsible pet owners who have a cat who think their cats may be just putting on a bit of weight and growing,” Ms Vesk said.
“They have no idea she’s already pregnant, she’s five months, she’s five-and-a-half months and she has her first litter.” “They’re just genuinely not aware that their cat could have got pregnant so young.”
Educating vets about benefits of early desexing:
In recent years animal shelters and some vets have begun desexing cats when they are two months old.
But Associate Professor of Feline Medicine at the University of Sydney, Vanessa Barrs, said there are still many veterinarians routinely desexing cats at six months.
“Traditionally there were risks associated with doing surgery and anaesthesia in young animals but technology and expertise has changed over the years,” Associate Professor Barrs said.
No increased risk of any complications for cats desexed before 12 weeks has been found by Associate Professor Barrs and her team who reviewed a total of 300 operations.
Armed with this new research, her team is now working with the Cat Protection Society to educate veterinarians across the country about the benefits of desexing earlier.
Ms Vesk believes it will make a significant decrease in the number of stray cats and cats being put down every year.
“It’s really important to stop that cycle of breeding right up front,” she said.
“That’s why early age desexing is so important and I think that responsible pet owners and vets can show the way and lead the way in what this means and we can actually start to tackle the problem because it’s a tragedy that all these beautiful healthy cats and kittens are being euthanized.”