Last year, 5,838 cats were sterilised in the Brussels-Capital Region, including 1,400 kittens, according to Brussels Environment.
Since the introduction of mandatory sterilisation for cats in Brussels in 2018, a total of 60,917 cats have undergone the procedure, of which 12,166 were kittens less than six months old.
Under the rules, every cat born after 1 January, 2018 has to be sterilised before the reach the age of six months. The initiative aims to control the cat population and prevent issues such as stray animals and abandonment, stated Brussels Environment on its website.
To encourage participation, some municipalities, including Auderghem, Etterbeek, Schaerbeek, and Uccle, offer subsidies for sterilising domestic cats. Cat owners who fail to comply with sterilisation rules face a minimum fine of €200.
In 2024, 6,476 cats were sterilised in Brussels, including 1,568 kittens. The total number fluctuates depending on the registration of cats, according to Brussels Environment.
Since 1 March 2023, it has been obligatory for all cats in Brussels to be registered by the age of 12 weeks.
Sterilisation is also mandatory in Wallonia. In 2025, 32,438 cats in the region underwent the operation, including 9,783 kittens. The previous year, 32,691 cats had been sterilised, of which 9,625 were kittens.
