DO MALE CATS CALM DOWN AFTER BEING NEUTERED? TRUE?
Do male cats calm down after being neutered? Many of you wonder if it is true that male cats calm down after being neutered, and if so if it is the case to get it done. Let’s find out.
In most cases, male cats do calm down after neutering, but this does not necessarily happen in every case; cats’ personalities are not dramatically changed. Neutering can, though, avoid behaviors dictated by sexual instincts, one of these being aggressive sometimes.
In Fact, removing testicles from cats to remove hormones’ creations will affect the change in cats’ behavior.
Let’s dive into it.
DO MALE CATS CALM DOWN AFTER BEING NEUTERED?
Male cats that do not get neutered are subject to hormonal behavior; it is like a teenager becoming a man. There is no way to control him or make him reasoning; they can go wild, rebellious against the parents, and do all things that teenagers do. With cats is basically the same; they are subject to react to the hormone level that makes them act wildly at times.
Therefore, in neutering a cat, what we are doing, is to take off the hormones from the equation of your cat behavior. It doesn’t change any training or education; if we want to call it like this, it doesn’t change your cat personality.
Hormones can make your cat run away to find a female cat, cry at night because he is in heat, and sometimes become aggressive if he doesn’t get what he wants. Some cats spray around the house, making the owner’s life a living hell.
Therefore neutering a cat can reduce those problems with cats, but it is not certain or assured that all of them would disappear. Therefore while it is a good practice to make sure cats do not continue to make litters of kittens over and over, it is not a 100% guaranteed practice to make your cat becoming calmer and less aggressive.
In most cases, it makes male cats calmer, reduces the spraying and aggression, but again remembers every cat is different and can have different personalities.
So, Do male cats calm down after being neutered? Sometimes a cat shows behavior induced by testosterone, like spraying and aggression; however, if the cat continues for too long-acting in this way, it may become a habit for him, meaning he starts to react and live based on that behavior. Therefore neutering may not be enough to change such behavior; the cat may need to be trained or educated otherwise.
DO CATS GET NICER AND MORE AFFECTIONATE AFTER NEUTERING
Most cats become more affectionate after neutering; they would come and cuddle a bit more and ask for you to pet them. Male cats do not react as strongly as before to the female cat scent. Some cats will be way calmer and be keener to spend time with you and endure your affection.
This is due to the lower amount of hormones in their system; however, if you expect a normally very independent cat and not so much affectionate to turn to the opposite after neutering, you may be displeased.
Neutering a cat to change his behavior is not the purpose in the first place. I can see why, though, in some cats, that would be necessary. If you already know my brother’s cat, Alvin’s story, you may know what I am talking about. That cat was having attacks of pure “evil,” and he was spraying a lot.
I believe part of the problem is that no one really trained him or spent enough time with him when he was younger; he was left alone at home a lot. He wasn’t neutered, and I believe he should be based on what I saw.
MALE CATS BEHAVIOR AFTER NEUTERING
So, what are the things to expect have changed in your cat after neutering? Do male cats calm down after being neutered? Well, you should not expect an entirely different cat. He is still your cat as before.
He will be less likely to run out and cry at nights; he will be less likely to be attacked by female scent, even though he will still feel a little bit of attraction, hopefully; if he was spraying before, now he will stop doing it.
Normally male cats would be more aggressive toward other male cats. A neutered cat would be less likely to get into a catfight over territory with another male cat. There are reports of cat urine being less intense in neutered cats.
Also, do not expect your cat to change immediately; he may need a month or two to adjust his personality.
Here some toys ideas to keep your cat happy
MALE CAT NEUTERING SIDE EFFECTS
It is not all honky dory when it comes to male cat neutering. There are side effects to it. One should know them to balance the life of the cat to adjust to it.
Here some side effects to neutering:
- CATS CAN GET OVERWEIGHT
After neutering, cats are more sedentary and less active; this may bring them to gain weight. I believe it can depend on the hormone unbalance created by removing those parts that create those hormones in their body. This situation can be resolved by changing the cat diet, maybe more wet food instead of dry to give him fewer carbs.
- STUNTED CATS GROWTH
I do not think there has been enough said about this particular side effect in cats. Cats can experience dwarfism and stunted growth. What is stunted growth?
Stunted growth is a reduced growth rate in human development. (Ref. Wikipedia)
Applied to cats means they are likely not to grow as normal, it is not a common thing, but as a pet owner, you need to know that it is a possibility. Ask the vet about it; normally, one should wait longer before neutering a cat to avoid this situation.
- CATS LACK OF ACTIVITY
Cats may become less active and like to lounge and sleep much more than in the past. They may become a couch potato.
- CANCER
It is more and more apparent that neutering can increase cancer chances later on in a cat’s life. How many chances there are for cats to get cancer following neutering is unclear. It is a very debated subject, and most likely, we are not going to resolve this point now. However, as a pet owner, you have to know that this is a side effect of this procedure.
- URINARY BLOCKAGE
There are reports that cats neutered too early or neutered at all can get a urinary blockage later on; therefore, if your cat is neutered, you want to make sure that he has a diet that prevents this blockage, like drinking a lot of water and food that is specifically aiding the care of the urinary tract.
- BONES PROBLEMS
A too early neutered cat can develop what is called capital physis fracture or slipping. To make it simple the bones are not forming fully creating a situation of pain and difficulty in moving.
The growth plate, or physis, is the translucent, cartilaginous disc separating the epiphysis from the metaphysis and is responsible for the longitudinal growth of long bones.
In cats can also mean that they have a problem of fractures in bones without having any trauma. It is important to make sure that cats are not neutered too early to avoid this problem. Even though the neutering is delayed, it is not sure that this situation is not presenting anyway. You can read a veterinarian case study here.
It is better to know what one is going into when it comes to neutering, so one can make and informed decision.
- SOCIALIZATION PROBLEMS
Sometimes cats or kittens neutered too early are found to have problems socializing with other cats or are too shy. It can happen sometimes, so it is better to know that you can behave in this way.
- REDUCED BODY MUSCULATURE
When a cat is neutered, he doesn’t have anymore more organs that are creating testosterone. This hormone is responsible for the increased muscle size and development and reduced body fat. Overall the testosterone makes male cats to to “male” and has that extra strength they need.
Neutering a cat too early can make a male cat have less muscle mass, less strength, and overall, cats will be smaller and looking like kittens later on.
- REDUCED HUNTING DRIVE
Cats neutered too early can become less prone to hunt mouses and other small animals. Some people have cats around them to keep the environment free of those other animals; standing to those pet owners, they will not neuter their cats to prevent them from stopping hunting. It is not very well documented, but if people living with cats have observed them stopping hunting after neutering, the chances are that it can happen.
- COST
It may cost a bit too much, so people decide not to do it at all. There are places and animal organizations with reduced costs; one can find out if any such organization is near them. However, neutering a cat can sometimes be expensive.
RELATED QUESTIONS
Here some related questions to “Do male cats calm down after being neutered?” and related answers:
- When to get kitten neutered?
Most veterinary recommend to do it between four to six months. However, if you have seen the big list of side effects above, one may wait a bit longer to prevent many problems from developing later on in cats. There are huge debates about this point.
As a cat owner, you need to be informed with all the data and information about doing one thing or doing the other to make a good decision. If waiting a little bit more, it is not a problem; maybe it is better so that your cat is less likely to develop any problem connected to it later on.
Some vets say that waiting for the 12 months mark to neuter may not affect a cat’s behavior too much. On the other side, doing it too early can create another entire series of problems that may cost you a lot in terms of vet bills and pain for the cat. In the end, you know your cat; you have all the information to decide and make the best decision for the cat.
- How long after neutering will my cat calm down?
One should not expect a cat to change all his habits overnight. Removing the organs that create testosterone makes your cat free of impulses derived from it. It may take a while for the testosterone level to decrease. Some cats are affected by these changes much faster than others, but give it from one week to four to reasonably expect a change.
- At what age do male cats calm down?
Coco (my cat) is not neutered; so far, I managed to spare him the procedure. I personally do not like surgeries and veterinary manipulation on my cats, even though he is more vaccinated than me. He has been a normal kitten running like crazy around the house, and I can say he calmed down around 1 year of age and has been very sweet all along.
I am lucky with him because he doesn’t spray; he never pees in the house. Since he has been with me, he has been very educated, always used the litter box, and scratches the scratching post most of the time. I gave him plenty to use since he was very young.
Therefore wait for the one-year mark or possibly a bit longer to see an overall calm down in your cat.
- Do cats get depressed after being neutered?
This is not something that is being discussed much, but as we mentioned above, neutering too early a cat can create a shyness prone kitten. The cat can be afraid of everything and anxious suddenly; know that it can happen when cats are neutered too early.
- What to expect after neutering cat?
As a point of logic, your cat has been under anesthetic; imagine waking up after that, a cat can feel dizzy, disoriented. They may not understand what happened to them. They may feel weird. Therefore a cat may like to have a quiet place, maybe around his favorite toys or things, to recover. He should not be let outside, and you should watch that he doesn’t do anything too active for at least 14 days.
CONCLUSION
Do male cats calm down after being neutered? Neutering a cat is an easy procedure these days; however, you have to be informed about side effects and what it entails. Once you know everything, you can make an informed decision about it. If you want to add anything or ask a question, leave it in the comments below.
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