Many veterinarians have been practicing early neutering for years, since there is an incredible range of ages when puppies and kittens reach sexual maturity. Even before concerns for the burgeoning population of unwanted pets raised our collective consciousness, there were many scientifically documented reasons to spay and castrate.

1) Spayed females are protected against mammary cancer and uterine infections.

2) In males, castration reduces the risk of testicular cancer and enlargement of the prostate and related infections.

3) From the pet owners point of view, the spayed or castrated pet is a much better companion. They are less aggressive and more affectionate than their unaltered counterparts. Since they are not driven by the urge to reproduce, they are less likely to roam and fight.

4) You save the cost of future surgeries, the cost is included in the price of your kitten.

5) Kittens surgeries are straightforward and uncomplicated, and kittens recover way faster than adult cats. Our babies come home and within an hour of surgery are racing around chasing, playing and rabbit kicking their playmates as if they never left home. Cats 6 months to adulthood are in tremendous pain and can take 1-4 days to feel well again.
 

6) Increased long bone length was observed in both males and females who had been spayed/neutered before 16 weeks of age. This is due to the fact that physeal closing (closure of the bone growth plate) was delayed because hormonal changes that come along with sexual maturity did not kick in to tell the kitten to stop growing!!!!!. This explains why cats neutered and spayed as kittens are frequently larger (longer and taller) than unaltered cats or cats altered later in life. This seems to be particularly true for males.

7) Contrary to popular opinion, neutered animals are as active as their unaltered age mates.

8) Because of the enormous popularity of the Bengal cat, many unsavory people have tried to obtain pet kittens, and breed unregistered Bengals in filth and squalor in order to turn a quick profit. They are flooding the market with unhealthy, unregistered, and a lot of the time mixed breed mongrels. They are only helping to burden an already over-populated shelter system, and we are constantly receiving calls from people who have bought these kittens and now turn to us for advice on how to solve these kitten's behavioral and physical difficulties. We want to ensure that no ABUNDADOTS baby will live in such conditions.

9) Concerns have been raised that early neutering would result in smaller diameters in the urinary tract, resulting in an increased incidence of cystitis and related problems. This is not the case.  Observations of urinary tract development showed no differences in kittens neutered early in life. Concerns that development of the urinary tract might be arrested or impaired by early spaying and neutering proved unsupported.

For the reasons we have outlined above, I think you will see why we here at ABUNDADOTS have chosen to have our kittens done before they leave our home. They recover swiftly, they recover in a familiar environment, and they leave prepared to meet the world! There will be NO EXCEPTIONS to our early spay/neuter policy.