JustAnswer PixelPaws and Effect

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:

My fiancé and I moved in together about 2 years ago. We have a young female cat who has not been spayed yet. Since the first day I brought my 13-year-old son our home to live, our crazy cat Lucky acts like she is in heat every second my son is in the house. Lucky keeps her body low to the ground but lifts her bad side while following him around the house making chirping noises threw her nose. My son is beginning to be fed up with it. When he leaves the house to go to school or to hang out with his friends Lucky will whine at the door for a minute and then return to being a normal cat just like that until he returns home. He will even hide from Lucky in his room to avoid the constant chirping.

~ Amanda

Siouxsie: Well, Amanda, we think it’s all about sex.

Thomas: It’s not that Lucky has a fetish for humans, mind you — heaven forbid!

Bella: But instead, we think she may be reacting to all the hormones in the air.

Siouxsie: We’re not doctors or veterinarians, mind you. But we do suspect that it may have something to do with the fact that Lucky is not spayed and your son is going through puberty.

Thomas: Pheromones are pheromones, after all, and since Lucky is 2 years old and hasn’t been spayed, we suspect she’s going a bit stir-crazy and even the slightest hint of male sex hormones in the air are bound to set her off.

Bella: The best thing you can do to put a stop to this behavior is to have Lucky spayed.

Siouxsie: Spaying is very important to maintaining your cat’s long-term health.

Thomas: Not only are unspayed female cats at risk of unwanted pregnancy (cats in heat are amazing escape artists!), but by roaming around in such a distracted state, they can be at risk of being hit by cars or suffering other injuries.

Bella: And unspayed female cats are at a much higher risk of uterine, ovarian and mammary gland cancer.

Siouxsie: When your cat is spayed, the uterus and ovaries are removed, thereby eliminating the risk of cancers of those organs. And as her hormone levels go down, so does her risk of getting mammary cancer.

Thomas: If you have Lucky spayed, we’re sure her annoying behavior toward your son will diminish and ultimately disappear as all the sex hormones leave her system.

Bella: If finances are an issue, low-cost spay/neuter clinics are offered pretty much everywhere. Contact your local animal shelter or rescue group to see if they know of nearby clinics or, if you’re in the United States, check out the SpayUSA website to get a referral to a low-cost clinic in your area.