Neutered cat and testosterone hormone levels

Our question this week was:

I adopted a cat that was three years old and was never neutered. I got him neutered right away. How long does it take for the testosterone to get out of his body? I had him neutered approximately 6 weeks ago. He is still going after one of my spayed females and he has gone after my male dog.

Barbara Smith

Answer

Hi – thanks for your email. Great question. It can take several weeks for the testosterone to leave a cats system after they are neutered. Some cats can still “breed” immediately after they are neutered as they will still have sperm in their systems.

However, some cats that are adults when they are neutered will maintain a desire to try to breed other cats. Neutering will eliminate the cat’s ability to get the female pregnant but it may not eliminate the desire to mate. Every cat is different. Generally, given enough time, the behavior will dissipate.

An article that might be helpful to you is on our Petplace.com is Mating Behavior in Cats.

Best of luck!

Dr. Debra

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