I've got two female house cats (just turned 6), and neither of them have been spayed as they don't go out. Recently, there's a new tom started hanging around and he's caught they eye of Sphynx through the patio doors. Instead of her gobbing off for a few days when she's in season once a month she's now started some serious hardcore calling for this guy. Her sister, Blaze, has never even called once due to seasons, but then again she's only just started miaowing.

Needless to say, my wife who lives with them (I work away) has decided enough is enough and is on about getting them spayed, but I'm worried it will change their personalities. They have really quirky personalities, and while Sphynx is a diva and makes a drama out of everything, Blaze is kind of the action fluffball and if you're stressed out she'll nibble the inside of your elbow to destress you (she's done this since being a kitten and has never been taught it). They also seem to be very "human" and will actually have conversations with you (no idea what they're saying), and if any of that went they just wouldn't be the same cats.

My mate had a cat and he had her done and she went from being a playful cat who loved fuss, to one that just sat there and got fat (ironically she was done because his girlfriend wanted her to go out and so she could open the windows). He's always blamed having her spayed, and a few people I know who have had their cats spayed said it's like they're suddenly in a low gear and they do become a lot more sedate. I couldn't imagine this with those two because everyday they just keep giving more and more surprises (they're basically like kids to my wife).

I know there are health benefits as well, and it's also a layer of insurance should they manage to get free (although I'm more scared about the fact they have no fear and are very social with people) no matter how much I'd love to see how they handled kittens. Given that they're now 6 is it likely to change their personality or am I worrying over nothing?

I know it needs to be done, but I'm just worried they won't be the same cats afterwards.

My cats personality hasn't changed, she's still a mad foot fetishist. She has got fatter though the vet did warn that spayed females tend to get greedy and put on weight. I have to watch what she eats but apart from that she's the same.

Both my cats are neutered. I haven't noticed any behavioural changes in them.

Nope, no change here. My boy cat was a headcase before, and still is. Erratic, naughty, needy and demanding attention 24/7. His sister was a laid back, gentle, fussy little thing before, and is exactly the same now. They do say that having them spayed can calm them down, so I dread to think what my boy would have been like un-spayed!! I'm still waiting for the calmness to kick in

The vet must have had quite a job spaying a male cat

My cat was spayed following having a litter of kittens. Yes she put on some weight but she is still the lovely quirky cat she always has been. She was spayed at age 18 months ish and is now 8.

Neutering or spaying generally have no adverse effects on a cat's behaviour, rather it can often make them calmer and more personable!

You may find this helpful: http://pets.thenest.com/cat-reacts-a...ying-4219.html

That's put my mind at rest a bit. Apparently the tom hasn't been around since my wife tipped a bucket of water out the bedroom window which is directly above the patio doors on Saturday afternoon, and Sphynx has been avoiding the window even though she didn't get wet herself.

They've both been added to the "to fix" list anyway, so we will probably wait until the end of summer. Does anyone have any advice regarding them scrapping as well? They both love a good tumble around in the morning and generally chase one another around and have a bit of a fight (not a hissy one, just play fighting even though Blaze usually ends up getting bitten on the neck) when the wife gets up. The last thing I want is either of them raking the other, and us ending up back to the vets with an eviscerated cat.

Depends on the cat i feel.

My tom cat is a predator, house guardian and he once even attacked a small toy breed dog like he wanted to eat him (I did intervene and stopped him). Not getting him neutered has kept him fit and stong. He is eight now and still leaps up on the bookshelf to take up his usual high resting position like he is spring loaded.

My neutered tom is eighteen and still likes to jump up to his preferred high spots and does the occasional mad gallop around the house. There's no real evidence that not neutering will keep a cat any more fit and strong, and given that an unneutered tom could impregnate up to 1,000 females a year, there's no good excuse for not neutering an outdoor cat.

I am delighted to hear that, eighteen is a remarkable longevity for a cat. You must look after him with huge devotion.

It affects all cats differently, I guess if we got snipped, (jeez the thought alone makes me wince), we would have different physical and emotional changes too. Some cats, male or female, get very fat and lazy, others, like yours, do not and are still very agile.

I could not do it to my tom cat, he is not much of a lothario doorstep pest chasing females either, hunting is his main thing, my garden is a rodent and bird dead zone, everything has been eaten by him.

Aw, thanks, he is quite the character and I hope he'll be around a little while longer yet. My mother's previous cat lived to be twenty-one!

I got spayed and it didn't affect my cat at all.

I'm assuming you mean you had your cat spayed LOL.

Did it make you calmer?

You are most welcome. Jeepers, my tom cat as I said is still only eight. He is the first cat I got as an adult. The two cats I had as a kid never lived into old age, car accidents got them. My cat is so healthy and strong, he could make eighteen or twenty as well.
That is seriously good news to me, but a calamity for the rodent and bird life in the area. He does not really eat any cat food at all, total predator.

Iqoniq, regardless of personality changes, when female cats go on heat they usually rival Houdini in the escape artist stakes. They get desperate to get out to get at a tom, so you might find that now a tom's appeared on the scene your two girlies might dig a tunnel to get out. Just a thought, if you don't want to get them spayed after finishing with the thread.

I've had several female cats (four at once until recently), and only one's been spayed at an older age. She was 2 when we got her done (she was my son's cat, and he was told she was a boy when he got her). After a couple of accidental litters, the later one caused by a friend of my sons' letting her out when she was on heat, we finally managed to get her done, and her personality didn't change. She stayed the same loving, hunting, pin-you-down-and-wash-you little bugger as she was before. We lost her last year and we still miss her. She was so independent, yet if you wanted a cuddle off her she completely loved it. Gah.

Anyway, all the other cats we've had have been spayed at the earliest opportunity. Their quirks and idiosyncrasies (are they the same thing?) are such fun regardless. None of them have put on weight, either - not even my little scaredy-cat, who takes me for a walk to the fridge a few times a day. Yes, I'm completely house-trained.

I think you're right to be concerned about this - sphynxs behave like any other cat, but unlike other cats they (obviously) have no protective coat of fur, so are more at risk in normal rough and tumble.
When they're next at the vets ask them to show you how to trim their claws and about recommended clippers.

I have had mine neutered. They don't lose any personality. Mine have always been adventurous and bouncy.

My cat was spayed before I got her from Cats Protection. She has totally mad episodes, racing around all over the place, so no, I don't think spaying causes personality changes.

She is also slim and has a beautiful glossy coat.

The feline equivalent of middle aged spread.

Sphynx is her name, not the actual breed, and it's not the first time it's caused confusion (especially at the vets). She's a standard short haired moggy, but with a kind of inverse Toyger print (actually a kind of Calico), and got the name as her ears seem a bit too big for her head. Blaze, her sister is a long haired fluffy Calico from the same litter and got her name because she's really fast and you'll just see this blaze of colour as she rockets past.

Ironically, Blaze is more my concern because Sphynx is a lot rougher when they play and Sphynx will grab her by the throat, roll onto her back and then rake Blaze her back paws. I may ask the vet will her trim their claws before they get done, and I wasn't aware they could actually have them trimmed.