males tend to be more affectionat then females - but females are often better at catching mice.
We had a male cat who had alot of UTI's and males are more prone to crystals in the urine - thanks to their water works. DH has had a few cats and said he's has more issues with the males then the females.
That's what Mojo dies of - an UTI that never really got better. He was only a young kitty as well and was in just didn't seem to get better