Pedigree cat suffers mystery castration in New Zealand

Call it the curious case of the castrated cat. The mysterious and totally unauthorised neutering of pedigree cat Buddy has infuriated his Tauranga owner, who can no longer lease him out as a stud cat. Michelle Curtis was horrified after her prized siamese-bengal cross returned home at the weekend, fixed and a little grumpy, after disappearing for two days.

"I couldn't believe someone took my cat and got him fixed. I don't know why they would do that," she said yesterday. "It really was quite bizarre. I mean, who just takes someone's cat and gets them neutered?"



Thanks to the cat burglar in question, all that now remains of Buddy's previous manhood is a pair of small slits from the surgery. Because Buddy was not plucked or shaven, Ms Curtis fears the unsanctioned snip was the work of a do-it-yourself surgeon.

Barkes Corner Vet Hospital veterinarian Martin Earles said if the job was done by a vet, there would have been at least some hair removed from around the cat's scrotum area. But he believed it would have been difficult for someone to neuter an adult cat by themselves. Although Buddy does not wear a collar, Ms Curtis believes his breed would have made it obvious why he wasn't neutered.

There's an audio interview with Michelle Curtis on this page.