Can A 17 Week Old Male Kitten Go Into Heat?

[Bridget614]

Hi! In the fall I took in a pregnant stray, October 14th she had 5 kittens. We eventually found a home for 4 of the kittens but wanted to keep the mom and one of the babies. The one we bonded with, that we thought was a girl, we found out after bringing it to the vet that it was a boy. Our next step after the vet visit was fixing them both, the mom first, then the baby, which hasn't happened yet but I fear now it might have to happen asap. The kitten is now 17 weeks old and I saw some disturbing behavior the other day. They always roll around and play, but this time the baby kept trying to mount her, bite her neck, and hump her back, which I read that is what they do when they are mating. Now he is too short to reach past her back, but still not something you want since they're mom and son, so when I see this behavior I seperate them. Even before I saw this happen, I heard little yelps(which he barely meows) almost like how cats sound in heat but in a little tiny voice bc he's still so young. So my question is, even though they say male cats don't "mature" until 6 months, is it possible for them to go into heat early? And even after I get them both fixed, is this a behavior I'll still have to worry about? Thank you so much in advance for any advice.

 

[ArtNJ]

Have you ever seen a nature show with big cats (lions, tigers) hunting? They mount and bite the neck. Cats of all ages practice this hunting technique and play bite each other. That is all that is going on, you don't need to seperate them or worry. Kittens are so small that its hard for them to get to the neck, so sometimes people get confused and think its sexual. You are not the first, won't be the last. But if it was sexual you would see pelvic thrusting. Six months is indeed time enough for neutering. It can be done earlier by experienced vets, but doesn't need to be.

 

[di and bob]

No, the 'baby' is plenty old enough to neuter at 4 months old. Two lbs. is the minimum. Just like humans, some cats mature at different ages. I had my boy Casper neutered at that age along with his mother, much easier because then they have the same smells from the vet that causes fights because they don't recognize the one coming home, and he is now ten years old and fine. The boy is starting to mature and definitely is going to try to mate, he may start spraying too. He may bother mama while she is healing so I strongly encourage you to have them both done at the same time. I have had several little feral girls get pregnant at or right before 6 months, and two have died giving birth so the sooner the better.

 

[talkingpeanut]

The mom is spayed already?

Males don’t go into heat. They are always ready to mate. Cats also don’t have familial associations like we do, so this being mom and son doesn’t register. Regardless, you’ll want to neuter asap.

 

[ArtNJ]

Unless there is thrusting, I would wait till 5 months, or 6 if your vet wants that. What Age Should You Spay or Neuter Your Cat? | petMD

 

[talkingpeanut]

Unless there is thrusting, I would wait till 5 months, or 6 if your vet wants that. What Age Should You Spay or Neuter Your Cat? | petMD

There isn’t really any reason to wait, but the benefit to spaying/neutering earlier is that you prevent any problematic sexual behaviors from developing in the first place.

 

[Bridget614]

Thanks guys!

 

[di and bob]

Yeah, we had a lot of inbreeding going on here, we had son mate with mother and then mate with a sister from that litter. Needless to say we have a lot of orange and white around here. All are spayed and neutered now!

 

[ArtNJ]

I did somehow forget that the mother wasn't yet fixed - definitely changes things! I'm still guessing that the kitten was playing normally, but better safe than sorry!

 

[Bridget614]

Have you ever seen a nature show with big cats (lions, tigers) hunting? They mount and bite the neck. Cats of all ages practice this hunting technique and play bite each other. That is all that is going on, you don't need to seperate them or worry. Kittens are so small that its hard for them to get to the neck, so sometimes people get confused and think its sexual. You are not the first, won't be the last. But if it was sexual you would see pelvic thrusting. Six months is indeed time enough for neutering. It can be done earlier by experienced vets, but doesn't need to be.

It did seem like thrusting to me, but I may be wrong, and the mom had her butt up in the air, but
.

The mom is spayed already?

Males don’t go into heat. They are always ready to mate. Cats also don’t have familial associations like we do, so this being mom and son doesn’t register. Regardless, you’ll want to neuter asap.

No not yet, so Im thinking after everyones advice we just have to fix both of them asap. Like someone said, better safe than sorry

 

[di and bob]

Good for you, EVERYONE will be much happier! Keep us posted!

 

[talkingpeanut]

It did seem like thrusting to me, but I may be wrong, and the mom had her butt up in the air, but
.

No not yet, so Im thinking after everyones advice we just have to fix both of them asap. Like someone said, better safe than sorry

Yep. Don’t wait!