Originally posted by Leah S:
<STRONG>Avajoy, in the "olden days" males were castrated, so there would be nothing left. Nowadays, the seminiferous tubes are removed but the scrotum remains intact, so the cotton balls are simply ballettes. It's safer as no stitches are required (in cats and small dogs) and the bleeding is minimal. If he were still intact, you would know it by his behavior!</STRONG>

Thanks for bringing me up to speed, Leah!
This poses another question: suppose a male rescue cat is presented to a vet, history unknown. Can the vet visually determine if he has already been neutered? Probably a silly question, but I am just curious. When I rescued Meeshe, I noticed his "package" and immediately assumed he was in need of neutering, but . . . I could have been wrong . . . his behavior has always been docile. Hmmmmm.