all male litter

[snady68]

I was wondering how unusual it is to have a litter be all males. My calico cat had a litter about 7 weeks ago, and up until recently I wasn't sure what they were... Now it seems that we had all males. I thought that was odd but was wondering what the chances were that a litter would be all male or all female... There are six kittens.. there were seven but one died... not sure what that one was... any input will be appreciated. thanks

 

[sandie]

It's not very odd at all. It really just depends on the male cats genes. At 7 weeks, they usually are easy to sex, so if you think they are all males, they probably are. What colors do you have?

 

[snady68]

We had three all red or yellow tabby colored, one all grey/black tabby colored, one grey/black and white and two red/yellow and white, one of which died the second day. Originally we thought the grey/black and white one was a calico (he had different coloring in places... but he has changed since then) Since I wrongly thought all calicos had to be female I was very confused because they all looked alike... I am 99% sure now that they are all boys.(there is always room for mistakes) A kid I work with had kittens about the same time but the mother abandoned them... he brought one he was trying to take care of to work and when I looked at it it didn't look anything like my kittens (male/female if you follow). We have given two of the red/yellow ones to good homes. Now we have 5 cats instead of 1 but my kids are so attached to them I am keeping them and getting them all spayed and neutered... how long should I wait until getting the mother spayed?

 

[sandie]

I would wait until the kittens are about 8 to 10 weeks old before mom is spayed. Mom cats can still produce milk after being spayed, but there's no guarantees. It's best if you wait until they are all comfortable with solid foods.
Yeah, as long as there aren't any tortie's or calico's, they can all be male. It's very rare to have a male in those colors. It sounds like dad shoots boys

 

[hissy]

Is it the rarity not that they are male calicos, but rather that they are not sterile? I read somewhere that most male calicos were born sterile and it was rare if they could actually mate. I think, it has been a long time. Either way, your litter sounds lovely. Calico's are my ultimate favorite breed.

 

[snady68]

Thanks everyone... I will try to post a pic of them now that they are older....but probably not for a while... anyway thanks for the info.

 

[piddypatscats]

Male Calico's are possible, but rare, most are sterile, and if they are not and they breed your going to have problems. Females are xx and males are xy. Color is carried on the x chromisone which means male calico's must be xxy which means they are hermaphridites. Either way they should be neutered and not even give them a chance to breed. I remember the cutest little male calico, he was a longhaired exotic, blue-cream and white, he was a perfect little box and he looked like a wind up toy when he was a kitten.