Why Neutering your cats is good idea

 WHY HAVE YOUR CATS NEUTERED

Did you know that…
Neutering your cat is the ‘right’ and responsible thing to do. Neutering a cat will cost you around £30-£50. This is a tiny fraction of the cost of caring for a pregnant cat and her many litters. It is also much less than the vet bills you could face if your un-neutered cat contracts one of the many diseases entire cats are at risk from. If you haven’t got pet insurance for your cat and are ever landed with a vet’s bill at a time when you can least afford it, the vast majority of vets will let you pay in instalments.

Girl cats can have three litters a year (typically 3 -7 kittens per litter); resulting in weakness, thinness and often ill-health. In her lifetime, a single female cat and her offspring can be responsible for around 50 million kittens.

This may seem like a ridiculously high number but consider the facts: a cat can breed from about 4 months of age, a female cat can have 4 litters a year, a single litter usually contains up to 7 kittens, when each of those kittens is 4 months it too can breed etc.
The figure for tom cats is impossible to estimate because there are no limits as to the number of females a single tom can impregnate.

If you're thinking of getting a cat or kitten then go to an animal rescue, (we are always happy to help) and we will advise you on all aspects of caring for your pet. But here are a few practical thoughts:

From birth to around 3 /4 weeks kittens get all their dietary requirements off ‘mum’; so it is essential that she gets the best of everything - forget ‘eating for two’ she’s ‘eating for (typically) three to five’!!!!

From about 3/4 weeks kittens will need to have extra food provided by their human helpers. Kittens have tiny tummies and need to be fed ‘little and often’ generally around a teaspoon of tinned kitten food / cooked chicken (no skin or bones) / cooked fish twice a day in addition to the milk provided by mum puss.

By eight weeks, they will need to be fed 6 - 8 times per day, typically consuming around 200 grams of kitten food per day in addition to the milk supply still being provided by mum puss. Kittens should also have access to a shallow container of fresh clean water at all times.

At 10 / 12 weeks mum puss will be becoming fed-up with the demands her babies are making on her for milk and will start to wean them. (At this time she is also preparing to come into season again if not neutered). Consequently the babies will need 250 / 350 grams of kitten food per day divided between 4 meals.

Follow this advice, and behave responsibly in terms of regular worming, neutering and

vaccination and you can usually look forward to the pleasures and pressures of being owned by your kitten for the next 15 years!!!