At what age should female Kittens get sterilised?

[3andnomore]

At the moment a purely theoretical question.

It's just, dh and I agreed to getting a male kitten, but I have now fallen in love with a little female kitten.

The reason for us wanting a male kitten is purely born by the worry of the Cat having kittens herself if not "done" early enough...!

However, is it maybe better for a female cat to have at least one litter before getting sterilised...i.e. will it make her a more loving cat or will it make no difference at all?

[Quattrocento]

It makes for a more balanced and happy cat IMO although there is the issue of disposing of the kittens

[whooosh]

My experience (of about 7 females over the years)is that it doesn't make a bit of difference.
We alwasy now get ours done at 6mts on the dot.They can start "calling" at this age and it really isn't good for them to have a litter before they are fully grown themselves.

[3andnomore]

Just to clarify whooosh....so until 6 month they can't fall pregnant and that is then the point to have them done, yes?

I might work on dh to allow a female kitten into the house, lol. The Kitten is so cute, mainly black with white in the face and under the chin and the front paws....!

Just trying to work on the reasoning I could use....

From a financial POV....is having a female cat sterilised more expensive and if so, by how much?

Also, our first cat (a little tomcat) ran away after almost a year with us....is a tomcat more likely to do that than a female cat?

[3andnomore]

oh but quattro.....drowning them would be awful....

[whooosh]

Boys do tend to wander a little more than girls but if they are "done" this doesn't tend to be a problem.

Girly kitten sounds gorgeous.They can (occasionally) get pregnant before 6mts but not much.Many a vet has found kittens when spaying a female cat.

Bad news on the cost fron though-it's about double the cost of castration

[Quattrocento]

Yes it's not something I'd do or had ever previously thought of doing. Except they are a bit of a nuisance, tbh ...

Just wishful thinking ...

[moshie]

Ring around a few vets to get a price for spaying, it can vary a lot. It won't make a difference to how affectionate it is if you let it have kittens, but then you'd have to find good homes for them, and there are a lot of strays out there already.

[3andnomore]

might not mention the costs then...unless he mentions it first.

Our little boy ran just before he was due to be done....little tinker....he must have had an inkling.....

Quattro how old are your Kittens then? And have you got any homes for any of them yet?