Last month, I attended the national conference of the American Veterinary Medical Association. I learned a lot of wonderful things, many of which I’ll begin to share with you here.

One of the most educational sessions was about early spay and neuter – fixing a cat before the traditional age of about 6 months – and debunking the myths about its effects. Since they’ve been doing the surgery for decades, and sometimes as early as 6 weeks to avoid more homeless kitties, there are plenty of studies that examine the procedures properly.

One of the many concerns owners have about spaying or neutering too early is how it affects growth of the cat’s long bones in the legs. While the long bones of altered cats do finish growing at a later age, by adulthood, all cats – no matter what age they were fixed or if they were never fixed – had about the same length bones.

Another fallacy is that neutering male kittens would make them more susceptible to lower urinary tract obstructions because neutering made the urethra narrower. But whether or a not a male has been neutered, and at what age, actually has no effect at all on the diameter of his urethra.

Concerns about a cat’s weight are also something many owners worry about with early altering. But while altered cats do have a lower metabolic rate – neutered males need 28 percent fewer calories and spayed females need 33 percent fewer calories – as long as you follow regular feeding guidelines, the cats can keep a healthy weight.

And finally, long-term studies show no behavior differences between cats altered early or at a later age.

To find a low-cost spay/neuter program, visit the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals at animalalliancenyc.org

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