Spay & Neuter!

Now is the “purrfect” time to spay your female cat!! Now is when she will likely be going into heat and spaying her now means two to three fewer litters of kittens to find homes for this year. An estimated 35,000 kittens are born in America every day.

Cats can have two to three litters of kittens per year, starting as early as 4 months of age, with litters averaging 4 kittens but commonly can be 6 or 8 per litter.

Some cats may go into heat and become pregnant again as soon as one week after having a litter!

Heat cycles generally last an average of seven days but may be as long as 21 days. If a female cat doesn’t mate and become pregnant, she may go back into heat repeatedly, with only brief periods of non-heat.

Spaying a cat before her first heat is easier and safer. Recent evidence also suggests that spaying a cat before six months of age significantly decreases her risk of mammary cancer. Spaying in general reduces or eliminates the risk of mammary tumors, ovarian and/or uterine infection or cancer.

By the way, this is the “purrfect” time to neuter your male cat. He’ll be less likely to roam, less likely to spray or fight with other cats and his risk for testicular cancer is eliminated. We can help. Check out our Spay/Neuter webpage (www.cortlandspca.org) for details including pricing.