Welfare organisations have joined forces in a fresh pro-neutering plea to cat owners to mark World Spay Day today (25 February).

One charity, Cats Protection, has estimated that it alone spent more than £13 million on carrying out the procedures last year to help reduce overpopulation.

But participants in one neutering programme serving the London area are celebrating a major milestone after it reached and treated its 200,000th cat.

The fresh appeal follows concerns raised across the past few months about both current neutering trends and the increasing number of cats entering charity care.

Neutering database

Hundreds of veterinary practices across the UK are already part of a neutering database run by the umbrella welfare organisation Cat-Kind, of which several leading charities are members.

But data compiled for Cats Protection’s latest Cats and Their Stats report, published in the autumn, suggested only a fifth of owners had their cats neutered before they were four months old – the point at which they can become reproductively active.

The document also estimated that around 1.4 million UK cats are unneutered, while the group said it spent £13.4 million on neutering work during 2024 alone.

Meanwhile, the RSPCA said it had seen a 14% rise in the number of cats entering its care over the past two years.

Cat welfare expert Alice Potter said neutering cats at four months old was the “best way” to ensure their health and prevent unplanned litters.

She said: “It’s a vital way to improve cat welfare and ease this strain on rescue centres.”

Targeted programmes

Both Cats Protection and the RSPCA are also members of the C4 neutering programme in London, alongside the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and SNIP (The Society for the Neutering of Islington’s Pussies), which has now neutered more than 200,000 cats since its launch in 1999.

Cats Protection CVO Alison Richards said: “Targeted neutering programmes, such as C4, not only offer a positive welfare intervention for those individual cats receiving support with neutering, but help us work towards creating a more balanced cat population, where every cat experiences a good quality of life.”

Battersea feline behaviour and training manager JoAnna Puzzo added: “Neutering is an incredibly important consideration for cat owners, not only to prevent roaming behaviour often seen in unneutered cats and female cats having accidental litters, but also to help reduce the risk of disease transmission and future health challenges, allowing for healthier and happier pets.”