I live with 4 cats, 2 girls & 2 boys, ( 1 of each is 2 in nov, younger two is 1 in 2 weeks ) ( but oldest boy has been missing since june ) all of them are from the same mother cat ( 2 different litters ) Would it be alright for my youngest cat which is pregnant to be around her siblings after shes had her litter or would it be best to keep them away at 1st?
2006-09-24 20:11:13 · 8 answers · asked by shortietrixie 1 in Pets ➔ Cats
I would be surprised if the other cats would harm the kittens, they will very likely be curious about the kittens and may want to check them out. As for while the mother cat if while she is in labour she doesn't want the other cats around she will let them know, some cats are sensitive to when someone/ thing is upset or hurting and can be quite compassionate. this is just most cats it depends on the cats nature. After the kittens are born I would take each cat in and show them the new members of the family and see how they react.
2006-09-24 20:39:09 · answer #1 · answered by just being 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The male siblings more than likely will not harm the babies, they will be curious and probably take a peek at them a couple of times and then run off. The FEMALE sibling is the one to watch out for. Someone said watch the male siblings because they will harm the male babies, NO its the FEMALE sibling or Female cats period that will kill newborn male kittens.
2006-09-25 04:01:48 · answer #2 · answered by ladieslovekewlrob 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'd keep them away. If you've ever been through labor, you know the mom wants privacy and control. Cats like to "hide" during labor anyway, usually in a closet or box. It makes them feel safe. They won't want other animals near them.
After labor, she probably won't want to leave her kittens and the other cats *could* give her an infection or cold if they got one, and she could pass it on. It's best to keep them apart. When they are older kittens, the male cats might accidentally hurt the babies.
After she delivers and weans the kittens, I'd like to suggest having her spayed & the boys neutered. It sounds like you've already got a house full of kittens and lord knows the shelters are full of unwanted cats...just a suggestion...
Good luck w/ your baby kittens.
2006-09-25 03:16:09 · answer #3 · answered by Girl named Sue 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They should be fine but watch them closely. We had a female and a male. When the female had kittens the male just kinda kept his distance and looked at them with disgust. Poor boy.
2006-09-25 06:35:02 · answer #4 · answered by doughgirl 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The other cats/ siblings stay away from a cat that's just given birth. So you needn't worry.
2006-09-25 04:41:28 · answer #5 · answered by LEO 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Definitely fine.
I kept one cat from each of the two litters the mother had. When she was giving birth for the second time I had no real problems with the young tom hanging around. He was almost 9 months by that stage, and was quite confounded by the whole thing. We kept him because he seemed to be the smartest and had excellent tracking skills. He definitely understood what was going on, and knew by our body language that it was a special event that required special attention and care for the mother.
In addition to this, when my bf and I bought the mother cat from the breeders, we were told that she too had already seen her own mother give birth and raise another litter. She was 4 months when we bought her but always acted a little older/more mature than other cats her age. When she gave birth for the first time she knew what was going on and although she needed a little bit of help finding to safe nesting grounds, she seemed calm and unphased by what was going on. She didn't abandon her kittens or eat them, as some distressed mothers are prone to do. Considering it was in the middle of the hottest summer ever, I think she did really well.
In the case of the tom it defnitely made him grow up more. After seeing the birthing he knew to keep his distance even after the kittens were several weeks old. A couple times, a few days after they were born, he went up and sniffed a kitten or two, but never endangered them when they were helpless. It was a real change of character.
Before the litter was born he was still playing "attack mum". He'd hide around a corner then pouncing through the air before running off... but never having the guts to follow through. It was pretty funny to watch. But as he grew stronger it started to annoy her, even though she could swat him down with just one paw, it did grow on her nerves. After seeing his mother give birth to kittens he stopped all of that immediately. When the kittens got a bit older and started to move away from their cat nest, he learnt (by watching the mother) how to pick them up and return them to the right place. A few times he helped out cleaning them, which was really cute and gave his mother a little bit more time to rest.
We didn't ever stop him from sleeping near the kittens either. He didnt show an interest in getting too close for a while, but once the started to grow he would lay down near them and keep an eye out to make sure they were okay. Sometimes the kittens would get confused and try to suckle off him instead of their mother. Normally he doesn't like his belly being touched unless he's tired, but seemed to be unphased by the kittens doing it. This was usually solved by mum licking her kittens to let them know where she was. If the kittens ever annoyed the tom he just walked off.
We've never experienced problems with infection. If you keep your kitten area clean and feed the mother well you avoid these things anyway. Which I'm sure you know from raising kittens previously.
As the kittens approached about 6 weeks, I did have a couple problems with the young tom 'half-attacking' them. Alpha-male lions do this to lion cubs in the wild, as a means of ensuring their dominance over the pride. In the wild they will attack and kill the young cubs, but you don't normally see this kill-the-kitten behaviour in domestic cats... because they can be taught not to eat kittens just like they can be taught not to hang on fly screens... hence 'domestic'.
I don't think my tom knew why he was picking up kittens and half-biting them (never hard and the kittens were never injured, if anything just a little shocked). I put it down to instinct, and I doubt you'll have a problem with female cats doing this. These 'attacks' weren't just against the male kittens, as you'd expect from wild behaviour. For some really odd reason he only went for the ginger kittens. Possibly because a ginger kitten in his litter used to attack him lots... maybe because of the colour or difference in fur texture... no idea really.
To solve this we taught him the command 'gentle' and gave examples with slow gentle movements, gentle voices, gentle pats for him and then gentle pats for the kittens. We further reinforced that it was a bad idea to attack kittens by using a spray bottle of water, and 'time out' in the bathroom. He got over it after about 5 days, and still understands the command.
Just keep an eye on them when they're around the big cats; and if you're going out, separate the mother and kittens in another room away from the rest of the cats. Usually the mother will defend them, but can give up if she's worn out or if they've wandered off out of her sight.
All in all it isn't a serious problem to have other cats around. Cats do live in big families in the wild anywayz. I'd definitely recommend letting your pregnant cat watch the birth, if that's what she chooses. If it starts to become a problem, just move her away until she calms down and then let her back in when she's ready to be sensible.
2006-09-25 04:34:25 · answer #6 · answered by Sierra 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
every now and then you hear about a male cat killing kittens, just watch you cats and see how they are getting along
2006-09-25 03:14:07 · answer #7 · answered by Loollea 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
KEEP YOUR CAT IN A AREA TO HERSELF.
IF THE OTHER CATS HAVE BEEN GONE & COME BACK THEY COULD BRING IN DISEASE.
2006-09-25 03:13:54 · answer #8 · answered by ? 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋