EARLY NEUTERING/SPAYING
The following is based on my own opinions, research, conversations with others, what I've read from internet lists from other breeders and my own experience.
The practice of breeders neutering and spaying kittens before they leave - usually at the age of 3 and 4 mos. - is still a very controversial one. As far as I'm concerned and from what I've read and been told by Vets & breeders that practice or HAVE practiced this procedure - the jury is still out on whether it's a good idea or not as far as the cat's short-term health (dying from undergoing anesthesia too early) and long-term HEALTH (developmental problems later in life) are concerned and if there's ANY chance that it's not good I say "WAIT!"
Drawbacks to Early Altering
I have spoken with people who claim along with their vet that their cats growth was abnormal due to being neutered before the age of 5 mos. of age. While I realize this may happen to a select few, I still have to wonder why anyone would want to take the chance at all when there is virtually NO difference in getting a cat altered at 3 or 4 mos. or 6 or 7 mos.
I also can say that I have NEVER had a pet buyer call to tell me that their kitten died during or after being spayed or neutered. I do know for a fact that kittens do die during or immediately after surgery at 3 or 4 mos. of age. So why would anyone want to take this chance?!
A breeder friend of mine claims to early speuter because she thinks this will keep her kittens from succumbing to FIP, because she believes it happens many times after speutering occurs later in life - thats funny because I know she has had much more FIP deaths than I have had, and of the few that I have had - NONE were spayed or neutered!
Also if you choose to buy from someone that has already altered your pet, be prepared to wait much longer to acquire the kitten, usually well over 4 mos. of age. And be aware that in most cases you will and should be charged extra for this service.
And last but not least - I would personally want to purchase my new addition from someone that does what is right for the animal, not what is right for the breeder or the new buyers, which is essentially the only ones who benefit from the early procedure.
Why Some Alter Their Pets Early?
Breeders who do this early procedure claim the kitten recovers much quicker - that is simply not true - my babies that are altered at 7 or 8 months or even 8 years require virtually no recovery time because I insist on only gas anesthesia being used without ANY injectables period.
Many who sell their kittens already altered claim they do it for many reasons, but they really do it for themselves by their own admission. They say it is for THEIR OWN peace of mind because they don't trust their pet buyers to do it themselves. Quite frankly, I wouldn't sell a kitten to someone I didn't trust period. I think the health of my babies is much more important than trying to keep one out of a thousand or more people from breaking my contract.
Another claim is that it saves the kitten from going through a stressful time later in its new home therefore making it less likely that it might become ill and die. This claim sounds wonderful, but the fact is that I know several breeders that alter their kittens before they sell them, and they have as large of a number of kittens dying in their new homes as I do, if not more. As long as you give the new addition time to get settled into its new environment, there is no reason why this procedure should have any ill effect on them. I've been doing this since 1991 and to date have had no problems reported due to the altering surgery. In reality, if your kitten should become sick immediately after being altered, it was most likely sick to begin with and had a very poor immune system and would have become sick eventually anyway. It is a sad fact, but when you deal with living things, some will die no matter what precautions are taken.
Why Some Don't Early Alter
The #1 reason why I don't do early altering of my pets is because there is a chance it could be very detrimental to my kitten and there is no reason good enough to ever make me do this.
Some breeders don't even have such a service available to them because their vet refuses to alter a kitten that young or they simply can't afford to take whole litters in at a time for the procedures.
Some have suggested getting the money up front from buyers when they reserve their kitten. This sounds great in theory, but many of us live an hour or so from our vets and simply do not have the time to be running kittens up and down the road to do it affordably. I figure for every kitten I would take to be altered, it would cost me at least half my day.
It is also felt that it should be the responsibility of the pet buyer to have their pet altered. To me this is one of the things that makes you a responsible pet owner. I have to wonder if someone doesn't want to spend the time and money on altering their pet, then what kind of veterinary care is the kitten going to get down the road?
You should also be aware in the case of FEMALES - I will not have a female kitten spayed before the age of 6 mos. unless she would be an exceptionally large girl. It is a fact that females parts are so teeny, tiny that it is a great likelyhood that something will be left behind that will cause major problems for the cat at a later date.
What you should DO
The bottom line is that you should weigh the pros and cons and do what you feel is best for your kitten and which practice you want to support.
What you should NOT do is base your buying decision based on the fact that a kitten is already altered just because its convenient and you might possibly save a few bucks if a breeder doesn't make you pay extra.
Also, many breeders who do the early altering, will talk down breeders who do not, telling you they are irresponsible, etc. Well, unfortunately this breeder is just trying to make a sale, and I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of letting them think it worked!!!