Rodger Whitlock wrote:

On Thu, 15 Apr 2004 20:15:25 +0100, Larry Stoter wrote:

You need a large, nasty, intact tom to keep other cats out he-ll beat
them up something rotten!

Curiously, Bruce Fogle in "The Cat's Mind" suggests a large,
burly *neutered* tom. Neutered toms are bigger than intact ones.
Some breeders use a neutered tom to chase off would-be mates to
their females when they're out sunning themselves.

My mother had an intact tom with split lip, limp and half an ear
missing. As a result of an allergy (to grass!) the vet had also pumped
him full of steroids and he tended to resemble a small, grey bulldog.

Not only did she never have any cat problems in her garden, including
her tom, but I never saw another cat within half a mile. Once he had
established himself in the area, he spent most of his life asleep.
During the spring, he did tend to disappear for several days at a time,
occassionally returning to have his injuries seen to. My mother insisted
he was always just like the kitten he had originally been - despite
overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
--
Larry Stoter