Early Onset of Reproductive Capacity in Free-Roaming Unowned Queens

Our laboratory is interested in determining if an underlying biological cause exists for the exuberant reproductive success observed in free-roaming unowned (FRU) cats. The hypothesis of the current study was that FRU queens had more tertiary follicles at a younger age compared to owned queens. The study objective was to evaluate histological ovarian follicle classifications from FRU and owned cats at <4 months of age and 4-6 months of age. Queens were presented for ovariohysterectomy at a local humane society in August and September 2015. Queens were grouped by age (<4 months (owned n=5, FRU n=10) and 4- 6 months (owned n=2, FRU n=7)). Age and life history data from cat colony managers were combined with dental eruption patterns to accurately estimate the age for FRU queens. A routine ovariohysterectomy was performed under general anesthesia. The total ovarian uterine weights from FRU queens were also recorded ...