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Over a year ago, our momma cat had a litter of kittens. We had all the girl kitties fixed, but male kitty sort of fell through the cracks -- couldn't catch him and, well, he's a male so we weren't worried about him getting pregnant.
He, Melvin, was a momma's boy until recently, hanging out with his mom and sisters in our backyard. But Melvin came of age and disappeared for a couple of weeks; I noticed this happened at the same time a strange tomcat started showing up.
Yesterday. I saw our young male Melvin for the first time in several weeks. He was pretty mangled up -- scab over an eye, weak, unkempt, listlessly eating the catfood and slurping water. His spirit had been broken. I felt bad.
Now, I realize he'd been out battling other tomcat(s), especially the one that was coming into our yard. Was that strange tom exerting his power over his turf (our yard)? Did he expel Melvin from what he considers his territory?
If I can, I want to protect Melvin. Would having Melvin neutered help, thereby no longer posing a threat to the foreign tomcat? Is it cruel to neuter a male cat who is about a year and a half old? Is it too late to save Melvin and bring him back into our fold?
Until recently, we lived in the country, and we let our barncats fend for themselves. But we moved into town, so I'm not sure what to do in this new situation. Any input you have would be helpful. Thanks in advance.
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