Is there anyone else who prefers the unneutered male cat appearance, as I do? I’m only referring to one aspect of the appearance of unneutered male cats: the head shape. It would be interesting to know if men or women prefer the unsterilized cat head shape. I sense that women prefer it.
Mature un-neutered male cats – tomcats – develop a head shape that is broader and more masculine and they develop jowls at around the age of three. It is a facial appearance which shouts out, “I am masculine”. It is very noticeable. The neutered male cat face is relatively feminine by comparison. It is thinner and more delicate in appearance.
The difference is due to testosterone and other sex hormones in their bodies when they are intact. When a male is neutered as early as possible, at 6-7 months old under the current policies to avoid unwanted cats, their head and face does not widen.
However, if a person adopts a friendly semi-feral cat from a colony who is three or more years of age and has them neutered they’ll retain that masculine head shape. It is a thought for anyone who is with me on male domestic cat head shape.
I like male cats who look like male cats. I am not being sexist because I also like female cats that look female. And I am of course referring to their general appearance.
Another difference in the development of early neutered male cats is that they are slightly taller because of delayed bone growth plate closure. A third difference is a possible ‘inability to extrude the penis’. Those words come from my reference book but I think they are not entirely accurate because neutered cats get boners to put it in layperson’s language. Perhaps the penis of a neutered cat is smaller than that of an unsterilized cat.
There is another appearance issue: neutered cats may be less lean that unsterilized cats because they are less active. Whole or intact cats cover more ground on the presumption that they are outdoor cats as they patrol territory and look for a mate.
Other appearance differences between neutered and unneutered male cats are (1) stud tail in intact males and (2) poor grooming as they are less committed to it. This poor appearance may be linked to the fact that unsterilized cats are nearly always homeless which automatically means that they are likely to be scruffy.
Castration of male humans makes them calmer. I wrote a page about that which you read by clicking here. I wanted to get an insight into how male cats feel after castration. We should know.
All the talk is about physical appearance but what about the mental side after castration?
For me, and this is highly personal, the negative aspect of early neutering is that is makes a male cat look less male. I don’t like it.
SOME MORE ON CAT NEUTERING:
Unneutered male cats have a more masculine facial appearance compared to neutered male cats
De-sexing our cats changes them from real animals to living toys
Cat owner’s desperate note to vet shows how Australia’s cost-of-living crisis affects cat welfare: ‘Sorry to have to do this’
Do spayed and neutered cats put on weight?
I loved your post!
I am pleased. Thanks.
We were blessed with our tom when we found him as a kitten. He was about 4 months old and was abandoned by dying homeless people. As a mother to 4 boys, the topic of genital mutilation is something important to my husband and I, and we mutually decided that unless he started spraying in the house that we would not get him neutered.
He’s only 1 but his jowls are so big, we thought he was getting fat because his collar really plumps it up but when I looked it up and found out that male cats were SUPPOSED to have the chubby cheeks, it solidified my decision to leave him the way he was made.
I honestly can’t wait to see how he looks as he gets older, it’s sad to think about what neutering actually does for them. Leaving them essentially prepubescent for life.
I’ve included a photo of him looking extra plump watching TV lol
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Slight clarification, I meant *SOME homeless people, not dying homeless people. My phone hates me.
No problem. Sorry I have not got a comment edit button.
> I meant *SOME homeless people, not dying homeless people.
lol… ????
Also, nice pic! Didn’t want to only laugh at the typo ;D
I think he’s lovely. He looks great. I wish we could all leave our male cats alone and have them looking like real male cats and not feminized. You made a conscious decision to leave him intact. Great as long as he does not have the chance to procreate ??. Thanks for sharing Mrs Dowler.
dude what is wrong with you ?
ok wait im sorry that was mean
You are blood right it was mean. It was stupid too.
Even if you were mean you’re right. It’s weird as hell. Projecting some sort of uber-masculinity attractiveness standard on cats. Not even his own species.
He said “I like male cats who look like male cats. I am not being sexist because I also like female cats that look female.” And also saying “I sense that women prefer” unneutered male cat appearances and bringing up that women called an unneutered cat “hansome” as if that means something. Actually sexist
Are you sure I am being sexist? You are obviously very woke. Although I respect the woke movement and thoroughly understand the fact that there is a wide spectrum of genders in society. Society is not solely made up of male and females as if the world is black-and-white. But I also respect a person’s natural instincts. I also think that if a male human likes the male appearance in a domestic cat, it should be respected also. It is what makes us human. It is why men are attracted to women and women are attracted to men which is the default situation although of course there are a wide range of alternatives which I, as mentioned, fully respect.
Loved the article and yes I prefer a plump cat lol
I neutered my tom and now his his head looks tiny
Yes, they lose that masculine appearance which I don’t like. Thanks for sharing.