I recently adopted a one and half year old female MC. She was rescued from a "evil" breeder. The kittens were skinny and small for their age and all were left unaltered. My question is....How will fixing her now affect her personality? She's already been threw a lot. But after dealing with her going into heat, having her spayed is definately something I see in her future. Thanks for ANY feed back, Carrie

-- Anonymous, July 06, 1999

Answers

i would like any info b/c i just altered my 6 mo. old MC

-- Anonymous, July 07, 1999

Firstly, thank you for rescuing the poor cat. I hope she has a happy life with you. I cannot recommend strongly enough that you go ahead and get her spayed as quickly as possible. If you leave her "whole" and she doesn't get bred frequently, you are going to have a very difficult situation several times a year until she dies. She will likely be cranky, whole males will haunt your house when she calls to them (spraying smelly urine around your house if they can't get at her!), and, if she is typical, her calling could lower your property value because of the noise (!!!!!). Additionally, if she is not bred she might develop ovarian cysts and other health problems. For the health of the cat, spaying her ASAP is definitely the route to take. Cats do not "need the experience of having a litter"....they are not human beings who may associate having a baby with an emotional and life-long experience! Cats breed because of the natural sexual urge but are not mentally planning a lifetime's commitment to their children!! Please spay your kitty and enjoy her calmer personality and longer and healthier lifespan. Good luck.

-- Anonymous, July 07, 1999

I agree strongly with LadyB - I wouldn't bother to post, in fact, except that I don't think it can't be said too often - altered cats are happier, healthier pets than "whole" animals. If you don't breed professionally, there are no advantages to not altering. Also, altering usually has a positive effect on personality. The change in personality with spaying is not huge - the cat will basically be the same cat, but less tense. There are sometimes temporary emotional changes in the cat - some cats simply are cranky for a few days or weeks after surgery, as they find the experience of being "under" and waking up in a strange place upsetting and need some time to get back to feeling secure at home. But there are normally no adverse effects on cat personality from being spayed or neutered. Go for it!

-- Anonymous, July 07, 1999