When do cats start spraying?

Question

I have a kitten that I think is around 3 months old and the vet won't fix him until he is 4 months. I am getting very nervous about him starting to spray because he seems like a very big cat and I'm thinking he may be older than they have said. What causes cats to stop spraying and what can I do to prevent it until I can get him into the vet to be neutered.

Answer 1

Spraying starts with sexual maturity, which will rarely come earlier than 6 months of age, as far as I've read (about a year of age most cats have reached it). I think 4 months is early enough for fixing him.

(btw, my cat, at 5 months of age, was larger than some of the full-grown cats I know (say, 3 years of age and more, males); the vet insisted I wait till he is at least 6 months (although he would have done it sooner, if I had insisted); I didn't have a problem with spraying... my good kitty has never pee-d outside his litterbox). The fact that your cat is large is not conclusive; it's behaviour that matters)

Answer 2

He won't start spraying until he hits maturity, approximately anywhere in between 7 months and 1 year old depending on the individual cat. But then again I had a male cat who was 8 years old and never sprayed once and wasn't neutered. That was more good luck than anything else.

Answer 3

If you don't know the exact age to cat it's best to wait to neuter until the vet says so. Little animals can be fragile. Cats don't spray until they turn into "teen-agers" and this can be 5-to 10 months depending on cat. If you are really worried about it see if another vet does neuter earlier.

Answer 4

Hi there...generally the average age of a male cat coming to sexual maturity begins between 5/6 months.


Here's an article of a person asking a vet when's the safest time to neuter her cat...he recommends 4 months: http://www.vetinfo.com/cmale.html#What%20age%20to%20neuter%20cat

More on early neutering:

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_neutering_the_male_cat.html

Answer 5

well, I have a male cat and got him fixed at 6 1/2 months but he (fortunately) has never sprayed. At the time he was fixed we were living with my dad and stepmom who had 2 dogs and 2 cats (one of the kittys is a male no less) and no spraying was going on from the boys!!

Answer 6

We had our male cat neutered around 8 months old...so he wouldn't start spraying!! THe only thing to STOP a male cat from spraying is to have him neutered! They do that to mark their territory..

Answer 7

for starters your vet is wrong your cat shouldnt be neutered untill it is 6 months old cats usually start spraying when they come into season so you should be alright , it will cause your cat problems if you have the op before 6 months.

Answer 8

Hi,

Don't panic... male cats rarely spray before 1 year old....

If you think he is big, than simply bring him to the vet... they
will tell you if he his ready...

A cat is not big at 4 months old... Where di you get him?

Of course, some will say an approximate age to have them
adopted... especially if you know nothing about cats....

Go to your vet... He is possibly older than 3 months if you think he"s big...

Good Luck!

Answer 9

At about 7 months his urine will start to smell... smell! Then the teen cat can make smelly puddles which are not actual spraying. But this is a good signal you have to decide what to do next.
Options are: to neuter or to make him an outdoor tomcat, the menace of the neighborhood!

Answer 10

it is usually recomended to get it done at 6 months. somewhere between maybe 7-10 months it could start happening. a male cat will start spraying when it reaches sexual maturity to mark his territory. at 3 or 4 months you shouldn't worry too much about it.