Neutered cats still have the urge to mate?

[pipaythekitten]

I have 9 indoor cats at home, 6 of which are female and 3 are males. I had all the males neutered previously to avoid unwanted pregnancies and Im planning to have the females spayed after some time, when I have the budget.
However, i noticed that 2 of my male cats still have the urge to mate. I had them neutered March of this year so it’s been several months, and I notice they still react to the females that are in heat here at home. One of them i even caught humping one of the girls here.
Is that normal? Im thinking they were just neutered late (about a year old) and so they have retained their sexual behaviors, but any insight will be appreciated.

 

[lissalouie]

I don't have any specific information on this, but my late cat, Lou, had been at least nine years past his neuter when an unspayed cat moved into an apartment on my floor... and he went nuts trying to get out into the hallway to find her. He'd been neutered as a tiny kitten so he'd never even experienced mating before, but the pheromones still affected him, from multiple doors over, nearly a decade later.

Also--how on earth do you survive all the heat crying?! I could hear my neighbor's cat clear as day for what seemed to be weeks on end. I can't imagine six of them!

 

[FeebysOwner]

I agree that it could be the hormones that are emitted when a female is in heat that can probably impact many cats - intact or not. I don't think having a cat neutered later is going to cause them to retain mating habits by virtue they no longer have hormones running through their system. I'd be willing to bet once you have the females spayed, the behavior will cease.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I've noticed that the later a cat is neutered, the more likely he is to indulge himself, so to speak, with a willing girl. HOWEVER, the drive is gone. It's more of a "she's here, I'm here, why not?" sort of thing. Once the females are spayed, and not giving off their "come hither" scent, it will almost certainly die away. In the mean time, mating with the females in heat will help them go OUT of heat, and with no danger of kittens. Breeders often keep toms who have had vasectomies for just this reason, to stop heats in queens who are not scheduled for a litter.