Male and female Kittens - worried re behaviour & mating?

Question

Hi, I have a male kitten who is 16 weeks old and we very recently got a new female kitten who is 10 weeks old. I was a bit naive in that i thought they would hit it off immediately and unfortunately since we got the female my male has been attacking her at every given opportunity! We have now confirmed the female to our spare room and the 2 cats are only allowed to meet under our supervision, the male continually seems to be biting her round the neck and pouncing on top of her, however the female does not help herself as if he walks away she chases after him and jumps on him! am I worrying un-necessarily that he will hurt her? we can't work out if this is a game! He is more than twice the size of her as well. I know as the cat that was here first he will be asserting his authority etc but how long will this go on for?? also, neither has been neutered yet (too young still) should i be worried about them getting even more close for comfort or will that not even occur to them at this age?

Answer 1

This is normal kitten play behavior. They are just having fun. Evita

Answer 2

Have you ever heard a cat who screams really loud? It's a whole different scream, an emergency scream. You can tell they mean business. The claws are about to come out.

Biting her in her juglar or on the back of the neck? Pouncing is for fun--no other reason for pouncing. She's chasing him--this is a game. Unless you hear the loud fighting screeches, they're playing. Both need to be neutered at 4 months. There will be no hanky panky if you do that.

Hopefully, if I'm right and the kitties are playing, it's all good. It's fun to watch them play and surprise each other. But I would still supervise their gettogethers until I felt that each of them was comfortable with the other and no fights might occur where one or the other got scratched.

Make sure and get their shots, etc.

Have fun!

TX cat mama

Answer 3

Some vets will fix at 16 weeks. But what you are really seeing is who is alpha, and while the male seems to have the upper hand, that could change. I had two kittens that were separated a bit more in age than yours, and it was a wrestling match daily. If no fur is flying, and no blood drawn, they are simply engaging in play. When I first got the kittens, my older cat made it very clear who was alpha in the house. Several years later, my smallest kitty ambushes and claims alpha status over her, and there is a great size difference, mainly due to the amount of fur.

It was fun watching my kittens, as they would often face off and start wrestling or even boxing. And a few minutes later they would be washing each others faces.

Even now, several years later, I can often see then racing after each other. I feel what you are seeing is they are deciding who is alpha, and neither is willing to concede yet.

Answer 4

Sounds to me like they're playing, getting to know each other. Kittens should be spayed/neutered by 4 mths of age. After that & especiallly about 5-6 mths they can enage in other activities. I suggest neutering the male first, that will also calm him down. They by 4mths get the female spayed. I have 7 cats that are pretty close in age & all from different litters. Spaying&Neutering works great. They get along & no babies!

Answer 5

Its a dominance thing...Cats do this to show each other who is the boss...Mother cats often look like they are biting the kittens at the neck but, it is just a firm "Hey, pay attention!" message. Spay and neuter both of your cats so you don't have a house full...ah but what fun that would be!! They will adjust, it just takes time. The only time I would interfere is if you think one is hurting the other,then a swift swat usually stops the behavior, that or a spray bottle of water....harmless and yet effective!! >^^<

Answer 6

first, they are not too young to be neutered. Kittens can be neutered as long as they are 8 weeks old and at least 2 pounds. So go a head and get them fixed.

Second, it sounds like they may just be playing. If they are not drawing blood, they should be fine. Kittens love to play fight.

Answer 7

I think they are playing and have not yet adjusted to to how rough they can get.

Females can get pregnant at 4 months. You actually can get your cats fixed earlier than 5 or 6 months. For juvenile spay/neuter they only have to be 3 lbs. I like to wait a bit longer than that BUT get it done before it's too late.

Answer 8

This is normal kitten play behavior. Just monitor and make him stop if she is getting overwhelmed. They need time to get to know each other, and when she's a little older she'll defend herself just fine. Neuter/spay at 5-6 months and you won't have to worry about breeding.

Answer 9

Dont project too lots i could merely attempt and supervise, if it seems slightly too lots merely clap your hands or make a noisy noise that he doesnt prefer to distract him. when I first have been given my 2 kittens at 6 weeks they have been constantly wrestling pulling one yet another to the floor etc merely project whilst they hiss at one yet another and self-compliment, they love having a wrestle. He could calm down as quickly as they're decrease off and im she would have the capacity to quickly start to have slightly combat back. Im advantageous she would have the capacity to be high quality and it would be a competent lesson in self protection for her for whilst she is going out into the great undesirable worldwide :)

Answer 10

Cats can get pregnant at a very early age. If they are already exhibiting this behavior talk to your Vet about spay and neuter.