If you care about cats, you should be getting yours neutered

I am sick of hearing that “every cat deserves one litter of kittens.”

Cat welfare centres overflow with cats in the winter, when they are abandoned as financial burdens or discarded Christmas gifts. Cats overcrowd rescue centres in the summer, too – peak kitten season, when the weather isn’t the only thing in heat.

The cat market is so saturated that charities like SARA Animal Rescue in Redcar have no choice but to turn away animals needing help every day, leaving over 200 cats languishing on their waiting list. The Cats Protection charity alone scrambles to support an average of 157,000 cats and kittens each year. But what’s one more mouth to feed in a sea of animals in need?

Kittens are certainly cute, but each year’s wave of cat litters inevitably creates a fresh batch of unwanted adult cats for rescues to rehome. It’s a merciless cycle. One female cat can have three litters each year – 18 kittens – and what most people don’t realise is that cats can start breeding from as early as four months old.

An estimated 1.4 million cats remain unneutered across the UK, and more people are choosing to let their cats have kittens and giving them away to friends, relatives and rescue organisations.

Many still believe in the outdated misconception that having one litter benefits a cat’s health (spoiler alert: it doesn’t). Spaying female cats increases their lifespan by 39% on average and reduces the risk of mammary cancer, while neutering male cats extends their lives by 62%.

Thousands of cats and kittens across the country desperately need rescue and rehoming. Before deciding that your cat should have “just one litter”, visit your local cat rescue and see the countless cats already waiting for their forever homes. Or better yet, take action now – book that neutering appointment today.