Female cats begin coming into heat as early as 4 months old. Once they begin their heat cycles, they can go in and out of heat every 3 to 4 weeks until you either have them spayed or they become pregnant. During this time they may engage in behaviors such as frequent yowling and urination in unacceptable places.

It is best to have your kitten spayed at about 4 months old before they ever start their heat cycle. Otherwise, you could have a lot of homeless kitties on your hand.

The first sign that your cat is going into heat is that she will be more affectionate. This part may be more difficult to determine if you have an already loving pet.

When you’re petting her, she may raise her hind end in the air. You might notice that she gets low to the ground, raises her back end, and purrs like crazy. and she may begin to roll around on the floor. Within a couple of days, she will begin calling, move her tail to the side and start marching with her back legs. At this point, she is in full-blown heat and will begin accepting males.

All your cat is interested in at this time is breeding, and she is serious about it, even the most docile indoor cat will try to escape to find a male to breed with.

Neutering a male cat does more than prevent your cat from producing unwanted kittens, it is an excellent step in helping your young man grow into a loving well-adapted household pet. A good reason to neuter a male kitten at a young age is to reduce objectionable behavior normal in the feline world, spraying, roaming and fighting, but undesirable in the house of humans.

Male cats are known to spray and there are several reasons they do it. They spray when they’re interested in mating, but many unaltered cats spray to mark their territory, if in a new or unfamiliar place to claim their ground. No cat owner likes it, especially since it is quite foul in odor and persists through just about any cleaning substance. If your cat was sprayed prior to being neutered, he may continue doing so--but at a reduced level.

Neutering a male kitten before he reaches sexual maturity will greatly reduce or may even prevent these behavior patterns from emerging.