Top Ten Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Manx Cat

1. Some people will argue that you should sterilize any cat. Some of these people are shortsighted individuals who believe that all of North America is as badly overrun with neglected, starving, diseased alley cats, today, as a few urban areas were a hundred years ago. Some are ignorant individuals who believe that cats are a serious threat to bird populations; in reality cats seldom catch a bird unless it's either sick, injured, or a helpless ground-nesting baby bird, and it's much easier to keep cats away from known nests than it would be to live without prowling cats. And some are just cat haters. I don't agree with any of these people's beliefs. I do think that, where local overpopulation (congestion) occurs, sterilization is a more humane way to curb overpopulation than plagues are.

2. The type of cat known as "American Short Hair" is the naturally dominant type for North America. Because this type of cat is best adapted to our environment, however, too many people have been sterilizing American Short Hair cats and encouraging animals with formerly unusual, often dysfunctional, genes to over-breed. I think this imbalance needs to be corrected.

3. The gene that produces the Manx type of cats, with short tails or no tails, extra-long hind legs, and extra-thick fur, is a lethal gene. If two "show quality," tailless Manx cats mate, the female may give birth to kittens, but they will be stillborn.

4. Manx cats are disadvantaged by not having tails. They don't climb as well as other cats. Some have a fear of heights.