Q How old should kittens be when they're spayed or neutered and why is this necessary?

A Generally speaking, female kittens are spayed between the ages of 5-8 months while male kittens are neutered between the ages of 4-8 months. Six months is usually a good rule of thumb. There are several advantages to spaying or neutering your cat, including the following: (1) neutered cats are less likely to wander and get into fights; (2) female cats who are not spayed have a tendency to spray around the house; (3) spaying and neutering promotes better health; (4) spayed cats cannot develop cancer of the ovaries or uterus later in life or develop infections of the uterus; and (5) you don't need to worry about unwanted kittens and contributing to the already epidemic pet overpopulation.

The Human Society of the United States reports that 55,000 pets are born every hour in the U.S. and that half of the animals brought to most kill shelters are euthanized, resulting in some 4 to 6 million euthanized animals each year.