Can You Help Us With Kitten’s Gender?

[itspursonal]

We took this kitten in a couple of months ago and at the time the vet told us that she was a girl. However, over the past month I’ve noticed several cases of err... red rocket, while kitten is self grooming. Is it possible to definitively tell from these photos?
Thanks!

 

[Willowy]

Lol, I don't think it's possible to get more male than that! I hope his name is fairly gender-neutral .

Be sure to have him neutered soon so he doesn't get any big ideas about spraying or fighting.

Sometimes it's hard to tell when they're young and their testicles haven't dropped yet, but I would hope a vet (!) would be able to tell at any age .

 

[Margret]

Sure looks like a tom to me! Congratulations! You have a boy!

It can be very difficult to tell when kittens are young; it's not at all surprising that your vet could have been mistaken about this. How old is your kitten now? It may be about time for neutering. And please be reassured; your vet would certainly have figured out that she was a he when you took him in to be spayed.

Margret

 

[verna davies]

Thats definitely a little boy.

 

[itspursonal]

Sure looks like a tom to me! Congratulations! You have a boy!

It can be very difficult to tell when kittens are young; it's not at all surprising that your vet could have been mistaken about this. How old is your kitten now? It may be about time for neutering. And please be reassured; your vet would certainly have figured out that she was a he when you took him in to be spayed.

Margret

Thanks. HE is about six months now. I guess it’s time to get neutered. I’m a little relieved as I believe neutering is a much less invasive procedure than spaying.

 

[Willowy]

Yes, and cheaper too!

 

[Margret]

Thanks. HE is about six months now. I guess it’s time to get neutered. I’m a little relieved as I believe neutering is a much less invasive procedure than spaying.

Both less invasive and cheaper (as W Willowy just pointed out), though spaying isn't exactly a dangerous procedure. You really should do it soon, though. Once the hormones get into his system it's likely to become impossible to keep him safely indoors, and once a cat starts spraying it can become habitual, regardless of hormones, and even neutering may not make the cat stop.

We'd love to see pictures of some parts of him other than his cute little rear end.

What did you name her, and what are you planning to call him, or haven't you gotten that far yet?

Margret

 

[Shar371]

Lol, I feel your error on this one. My little guy came into the shelter with the wrong paperwork... He was listed as a spayed female, nine months old, with the name of Faith. Nobody liked that name, so "she" became "Hannah". One night, I was moving "Hannah" to a different cage and... yeah, I saw what you see in your kiddo there. (I tried to re-dub him "Hanna Barbera" in honor of the trick... it didn't stick)

Red rocket Hank is my first boy cat and I freaked out when he was grooming one night. "What the furball is that?! ...Oh. OH. Carry on..."

 

[Margret]

Red rocket Hank is my first boy cat and I freaked out when he was grooming one night. "What the furball is that?! ...Oh. OH. Carry on..."

Yes, it can be rather startling the first time you realize how this particular bit of anatomy works in cats. And I love the euphemism.

BTW, even without the obvious testes, the red rocket in itself should be enough to identify the cat's sex. I'd be concerned that undescended testicles would make neutering more complicated if the pictures had appeared to show a female cat. (And "red rocket" has now entered my vocabulary; thanks, itspursonal .)

Margret