Last Updated on September 16, 2021 by Fumipets

You may have been listening to tomcats if you’ve heard otherworldly bloodcurdling cries and howls of creatures fighting late at night. A tomcat is a sexually mature male cat that has not been desexed and is prone to fighting over territory and females.

Behaviour

A tomcat’s natural instinct is to scavenge for female cats in heat. He will battle other males as he advances into their area. When actual combat occurs, a tom may sustain wounds that get infected and frequently develop abscesses, which can be life-threatening if not treated. Male cats also spray pee to indicate their territory. They are disliked by neighbours because of this, as well as their nighttime wailing.

Appearance

Tomcats have longer necks and bigger, more muscular bodies than other cats. They also have big features with jowls that appear around the age of six months. This does not happen to cats that have been neutered. They have an untidy look due to their lack of grooming. Battle scars, such as markings on his snout or notches missing from his ears, are common in older toms.

Why Is He Called A Tomcat?

The term “tomcat” comes from a book published in 1760 called “The Life and Adventures of a Cat.” Tom the Cat, a promiscuous feline character that wooed numerous ladies, was a popular character in the novel. People started calling male cats “Toms,” and the term, coupled with the slang term “tomcatting,” which alludes to promiscuous conduct, became widely used. Prior to this, male cats were referred to as rams.

Do Toms Make Good Pets?

Tomcats like having a place to sleep and feed, and will happily sit with an owner, but the owner will never be the most essential part of his existence. He will leave his area if he senses a female in heat, and he spends a lot of time protecting it. It’s preferable to neuter male cats unless you need one for breeding; if they go outdoors, they’ll fight and get hurt, costing you time and money at the vet.