Best Feline Companion for a Spayed Female?

I would like to get some advice from some of you if you've got a minute?

We have an outdoor female cat and we would like to get her a companion. What would make the best long-term companion in terms of getting along and enjoying each others company?

1. Spayed female?

2. Neutered male?

3. One of her own kittens (which gender?)? She has raised one litter but they all have new homes. If this is the best choice we will allow her to have one more litter before we have here spayed.

Thanks for your help, we just want her to have a happy life and have the best feline friend possible.

Jason

Get her spayed.
Best companions for spayed females are generally neutered males.

Please, try and find one that is already an enstablished outdoor cat instead of putting yet another outside in our not so nice weather.

You'd have to go more with her personality. But she probably would accept a younger neutered male quicker then another female. Females tend to be more territorial and take longer to accept another female.

And get her spayed now - no reason to let her get pregnant again. Most cats don't like their offspring to stick around - male or female!

That's what I needed to hear. We'll get her spayed and find a young male for her companion. Thanks to each of you.

Yeah, too many cats around as it is!

In the wild, cat territories are grouped by gender. The male cats divide up the territory by one set of boundaries; and the females by another set. The male-cat territories are bigger, so they overlap several females' territories.

In the wild, males and females are used to sharing territories.

Thus--male + female is best. Of course, if they are neutered, there's usually no problem with territories; or else they divide up the house like they'd do in the wild. Sometimes they divide it up by rooms, or sometimes one cat gets certain perches and another cat gets others. And there are common areas--litter boxes, food dishes, and usually the human's bed!

Highly recommended you get two more litter boxes when you get the other cat, for a total of three. That should eliminate any problems with a cat wanting to "own" a litter box, or not wanting to use one because it smells like the other cat...