# Enforcing Neutering Contracts



## Azura Royals (Sep 10, 2018)

I was just wondering how would I enforce a neutering contract for a kitten to a potential new owner, how would I know for sure that the kitten would be neutered once they are around 6 months old and not be used for breeding?

For clarification, this would be for non-active registered Ragdoll kittens.

Thanks in advance!


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## Rufus15 (Dec 4, 2015)

Legally you can't enforce it. If you want to be sure that no non-active kittens are bred from, neuter them before they go


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## Azura Royals (Sep 10, 2018)

Rufus15 said:


> Legally you can't enforce it. If you want to be sure that no non-active kittens are bred from, neuter them before they go


I would love to neuter them before they go but the vets I have been to says they cannot neuter them until they are around 5 or 6 months old


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## Azura Royals (Sep 10, 2018)

I could ask other clinics but it seems to be the norm here to wait until the kittens are at least 5 or 6 months before they consider neutering/spaying them.

Another clinic said they would allow earlier as long as they are over 2kg


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## Azura Royals (Sep 10, 2018)

I was wondering would holding off the kitten's pedigree certificate until I see valid proof of the kitten being neutered/spayed be a viable option


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## Rufus15 (Dec 4, 2015)

I would look at other vets, neutering goes on weight, not age. Some vets will neuter larger breeds because they know they will be over the 2kg most vets in the UK seem to insist on (although kittens can be neutered at 1kg). Ring around and ask to speak to the head vet, don't talk to a receptionist.

If you're registering with GCCF, you could get into trouble by withholding pedigree certs as they're saying all paperwork should go with a kitten at the time of sale, unless agreed to in a contract. To be honest, if someone's going to breed from a non-active then they won't be at all bothered that you've withheld it.

ETA I've just seen you've said another clinic will do it over 2kg. I'd hazard a guess that most Raggies at 12 weeks would be well over 2kg?


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## Azura Royals (Sep 10, 2018)

Rufus15 said:


> I would look at other vets, neutering goes on weight, not age. Some vets will neuter larger breeds because they know they will be over the 2kg most vets in the UK seem to insist on (although kittens can be neutered at 1kg). Ring around and ask to speak to the head vet, don't talk to a receptionist.
> 
> If you're registering with GCCF, you could get into trouble by withholding pedigree certs as they're saying all paperwork should go with a kitten at the time of sale, unless agreed to in a contract. To be honest, if someone's going to breed from a non-active then they won't be at all bothered that you've withheld it.


I will definitely try to look around then and see what are my options.

That is why I would include it within the kitten contract, thought it could perhaps prevent it a bit but if it could get me in trouble then there's no point in doing so.

Thank you for your help


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Azura Royals said:


> I was wondering would holding off the kitten's pedigree certificate until I see valid proof of the kitten being neutered/spayed be a viable option


That is a would-be BYBs dream. They don't care about the paperwork.


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

Agree with neutering them before rehoming:

http://www.kind.cats.org.uk


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## lorilu (Sep 6, 2009)

Ceiling Kitty said:


> Agree with neutering them before rehoming:
> 
> http://www.kind.cats.org.uk


Thanks for that. This "not until 6 months old" thing with vets drives me crazy. (my own vet included) Bad enough the people who don't bother to spay and neuter at all. You'd think vets would be glad to get it done early whenever possible.


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## Lula10101 (Aug 11, 2017)

The earliest I have found they will do it is around 16 weeks.


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Lula10101 said:


> The earliest I have found they will do it is around 16 weeks.


Depends entirely on the vet. Mine did it at 13 weeks regardless of weight,


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## Rufus15 (Dec 4, 2015)

Mine will do it at 8 as they are a big breed and will be over the minimum of 1kg. Personally I'd prefer to leave it to
10-11 weeks, or 13 weeks, I'm not quite sure which just yet.


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

Lula10101 said:


> The earliest I have found they will do it is around 16 weeks.


Then keep them for 16 weeks, or continue looking for a vet who's up to date on EN procedures.

I would never let a pet kitten leave without neutering first (which we aren't allowed to do anyway here), it's just not worth the risk as a responsible breeder.


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## Litac (4 mo ago)

Rufus15 said:


> Legally you can't enforce it. If you want to be sure that no non-active kittens are bred from, neuter them before they go


I don’t know why you think you can’t enforce it but you can and we have. As long as the contract is executed properly and witnessed it can be enforced. It may be difficult to get the cat back or force the owner to neuter if that’s what you mean but you can make it extremely undesirable for them to keep a cat entire for example we have a price clause and if the cat is not neutered we can demand the price difference which is high. Neutering before they go is indeed the only way to 100% guarantee it but it has its own issues. 9/10 vets won’t vaccinate before 2kg or 5 months either because they lack the expertise or because they don’t feel it’s in the best interest of the animal. Certainly there are arguments that suggest that kittens need those hormones to develop properly and therefore neutering them at 12-16 weeks is unethical.


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